Did you know that in 2017, laptop sales dropped below 63 million? Although the number was in decline from the previous year, millions of people still buy laptops. With so many brands and models in the market, it’s easy to buy the wrong laptop.
If you need to know what mistakes to avoid when buying a laptop, we have 9 tips for you.
1. Think Long Term
When your current laptop breaks during the worst moment, you might be tempted to get a laptop “just for now.” While this mentality might get you a laptop in the meantime, you might want to consider investing in a laptop that will last you a few years.
Choose a laptop depending on your needs right now and in the future. If you only use your laptop for recreational purposes, you might want a laptop that will allow you to continue doing that.
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It’s a different story, however, if you depend on your laptop to get your work done. Think about getting a laptop with enough memory or graphics for your needs.
2. Going for the Cheapest Laptop
Laptops are not the cheapest products on the market. It might be tempting to choose the cheapest laptop, especially while you’re on a tight budget. Unfortunately, cheap laptops don’t do it all. Let’s say you need a quad-core processor, but you get a dual-core processor, it might not be as fast as you need it to be.
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Instead of getting the cheapest laptop to save a little money, look around and try to find a laptop that will fit your needs and your budget.
3. Not Getting Enough Memory
Most laptop buyers who aren’t into technology will probably buy a laptop based on many factors before they think about how much memory they need. Don’t buy a laptop because you like how it looks or how the keyboard lights up. Instead, ask how much memory the laptop has. Get a laptop with at least 4GB of ram.
Anything with less memory will make it inconvenient for you to run certain programs. On the flip side, if you don’t run programs that need a lot of memory such as video games or editing programs, you don’t need more than 8GB.
4. Give a Try and Ask Questions
It might be tempting to buy a laptop online in the comfort of your home without giving it a try. However, like with any big investment, you need to take it for a test drive before you commit to one laptop. Getting a laptop online might be overwhelming with all the features and options you can customize. You should consider going into a store and testing out the laptop.
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Places like Best Buy and the Apple store have associates trained to answer all the questions you might have about the laptop you wish to buy. At least get familiar with the terms and the features you want in a laptop.
5. Overpaying for a Laptop
There are laptops out there that offer every single feature in the world. Some of the most sophisticated laptops can set you back almost $3,000 plus additional features. All of those features are great to have, but if you don’t use them, you could just be flushing money down the drain.
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Let’s say you need a laptop mostly for playing video games. Gaming laptops have a reputation for being quite pricey. However, it’s possible to get a laptop without any extra software.
6. Pay Attention to the Ports
When was the last time anyone bought a laptop based on which ports it came with? People buy a laptop based on the screen resolution and other features.
The ports might not be an important feature for most people, but those who do video editing or use other external pieces of hard drive might need extra ports. These days most laptops come only with USB-C and Thunderbolt ports. If you need an SD card port or a USB-A port, you might want to make sure the laptop includes this. Check out this page if you need extra port-entries for your laptop.
7. Take a Look at the Size
When it comes to laptops, size is an important feature to consider. If you need to get a laptop to transport everywhere you go, you might not need to get a large screen. Larger laptops have a bigger screen display that might make working a lot easier, but you might not be able to transport them as easily as smaller laptops.
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Before you decide on the size, think about what you will need the laptop for. If you travel a lot with it, you might need a 13.3-inch or 14-inch laptop. But if you work from home and like having a laptop instead of a desktop, you could get away with a 15.6-inch screen.
8. Laptop Vs Ultrabooks
Ultrabooks have become more and more popular in recent years due to their weight and size. These devices can fit into a tote, backpack, or briefcase.
Even as convenient as these might seem, they should not be bought in place of a laptop. Laptops store more complex programs and have more memory. You can use an Ultrabook to surf the web, read email, and complete a variety of tasks you would on a laptop.
9. Buying Based on One Specification
When you’ve had a laptop for years, you might love everything about it or at least one thing. You might be looking for the same features in a new laptop.
If your last laptop had a great battery life, you might want to find a laptop with the same specification. While it’s great for you to know what you want in a laptop, you shouldn’t be closed to the possibility of new features.
Buying a Laptop That Will Last: The Bottom Line
If you’re buying a laptop, it’s easy to get carried away by all the choices. Make sure you get the right size, enough memory, and test out your top choices. We also have a separate guide on things to consider while selling an old apple laptop.
