When buying a laptop I think it is important to consider
size, battery, the operating system and it’s convince for you and what available
technical aspects the laptop may hold. As a student I need the most for my
money and to be weary of how compatible my laptop is to my course.
Applied psychology requires a lot of reading and internet based
searches as well as plenty of write ups. For this reason in relation to the size
of the laptop, I would be more inclined towards an ultra-portable or a “thin-and-light”
laptop.
Ultra-portables are usually less than four pounds and have
screen sizes of twelve inches or less. This makes them perfect for the likes of
moving to and from college and setting yourself anywhere to do coursework.
However, the ultra-portables often lack the extra features such as DVD drives
and recreational technologies.
“Thin-and-light” laptops are possibly more attractive to me
the student as they are often set-up with the extra inputs and a DVD drive as
well as having the technology to upload and edit picture and music. The screens
are usually thirteen to fourteen inches and they have larger keyboards making
them slightly easier to type. Thought they are a step up in weight and size they
are still very portable and are therefore ideal for college life and more
suited to my course.
Battery life is a big factor in buy a laptop for anyone, not
just me the student. The idea of a laptop is that it is portable and you can
use is in almost any space at any time. Places such as buses and trains are
often not equipped with sockets for one to charge their laptop.
Though the ultra-portables are best for battery life due to
their smaller screens which means there is less demand on the processor.
However, as the “thin-and-light” laptop is more ideal for my course, I would be
look for a laptop that contains an Energy Star certification or has an ULV
(Ultra Low Voltage) processor that will stretch out the battery life as far as
possible. I can identify this by reading the laptop name as it should begin with
“U” at the start of the code (i.e. U7600).
The main operating system I use to using would be windows.
This fits in nicely with my course as most of the college computers operate on
this system. I therefore do not have to worry about document formats when
sending these from my laptop to computer. Though MAC is very popular for its
advance and cheats, I feel this type of laptop would be more compliant with a
course in multimedia or graphic design. As my course is more document and
research based I do not need these extra features that go along with a MAC based
laptop.
However, Windows is known for being susceptible to virus’
and spyware making it compulsory to constantly update your virus software
through time consuming scans and screenings. Also for speed and quick and easy
usability Windows Vista ( as opposed to the like of Windows XP) is possibly the
best route to go, but it will also eat into your battery time.
Other technology aspects to look for in a laptop would be
the RAM (Random Access Memory). This determines the speed. For the likes of
Windows Vista which would use up a lot of resources. It is recommended you
spring out for 2-gigabytes to prevent your laptop from over-loading and
crashing. As a student in Applied Psychology, it is important to save
everything you research and write, as more often than not, you will have to use
the information you obtained again for different modules in your course as they
are all so closely linked. This can be expensive but in the long run worth it
as it is more costly to upgrade your computer.
