Know your needs when buying a laptop

By Joe Johnson
The Collegian

You walk into your favorite electronics dealer, full of hope and enthusiasm and packing a wallet stuffed with cash.

The computer aisle beckons you with its shiny lights and glossy displays. Each looks the same, but it can’t be that simple. Maybe that salesperson can help.

Or maybe it is better to ask a person who doesn’t get a commission on every computer he or she sells.

“Know your needs,” Kennel Bookstore computer salesman Brad McRay said. “There is plenty of information out there for you to get bombarded with, so ask yourself: What are you going to use your computer for? If you are just the average student using it to surf the Internet and write papers, you don’t need a fancy setup. A basic computer will work just fine.”

University policy requires that all students have access to a computer.

“Try to get the most powerful machine you can for the money that you have, because you probably won’t be replacing it right away,” Information Technology Services help desk supervisor Kelly O’Boylan said. “As soon as you buy a new computer, it is going to be superseded by a better model.

That’s just the nature of technology.”

The recommended minimum laptop configuration for a student include a 1.5 gigahertz processor, 512 megabytes of memory (RAM), a hard drive with 60 gigabytes of space on it and an Internet connection, according to the Kennel Bookstore’s Web site.

“I also recommend watching out for the warranty,” CVIP store employee and student Pablo Martinez said. “Computers don’t last forever and will eventually need repair. You can get an extended two-year warranty for about $200, which will save you a lot of money down the road. Just make sure you actually read the warranty, since you don’t want to pay for one that will only cover defects and nothing else.”

Brian Gurien, a fellow CVIP store employee and a business major, said the upgradeability of a laptop is very important to look into, in order to prevent spending money on a new system every five years.

“I own a Dell, but many of my friends tell me that this might not be the best manufacturer right now,” McRay said. “The hard thing about this is that everyone will tell you something different. I’ll tell you the best laptop to get is a Sony Vaio and that I avoid HP as much as humanly possible, but someone else will tell you to get a Macintosh. The important thing to know is what you need.”

The Kennel Bookstore sells two versions of the MacBook, a basic one that ranges from $1,024 to $1,349, to the more advanced MacBook Pro for $1,800 and above.

“There are also independent companies you can go to, such as Alienware, that specialize in customized machines for high-end video gaming and graphics,” Martinez said. “They don’t sell retail, so you can only get them online, but they have a really good warranty plan that even covers accidents. You have to come to grips with the fact that no laptop is perfect and will ever be crash-free. That’s just the way technology is.”

According to an article in Newsweek, the popularity of laptops is growing quickly, as 53 percent of computers sold in May 2005 were laptops — the first time ever that laptops have surpassed desktops in market share.

“Just like any other major purchase, do your research and get some different possibilities,” O’Boylan said. “Check out Consumer Reports and if what you are looking at is a decent deal, then dive right in. Call your Mom and say, ‘Here’s the bill. I need it for college and I’ll take care of you when you are old, trust me.’”

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