Looking to buy a new laptop, is this a good choice?

**Jorge** · 09-30-2010 09:07 PM

Hello everybody!

I am looking for a laptop to buy.

I found this on Amazon,
and I wanted to ask the
Tech Forum if it's a good buy?

Amazon.com: Acer Aspire AS5251-1805 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black): Computer & Accessories

Here are the key features:

Key Features

15.6-inch CineCrystal LED-backlit widescreen display with native 720p resolution for high-definition viewing. Its widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio is designed to present websites without lots of left-right scrolling, as well as with a smoother line of sight.

* 2.20 GHz AMD V Series V120 single-core processor with 512 KB L2 cache and 1066 MHz front-side bus for good multi-tasking. And with Vision Technology from AMD, you'll get a combination of cutting-edge processing and video power that allows you to experience vivid web and video content, sharp photos and crystal-clear music.

* 250 GB SATA hard drive (5400 RPM)

* 3 GB of installed DDR3 RAM (1066 MHz; expandable to 8 GB)

* ATI Radeon HD 4250 graphics (with 256 MB of discrete video memory) is equipped with 40 stream processors and an advanced 3D engine to provide support for hybrid graphics when paired with this system's Windows operating system. It provides up to 1919 MB of total shared system memory and is compatible with Microsoft DirectX 10.1.

* 8x SuperMulti DVD±R/RW drive can also write to CD, DVD-RAM, and dual-layer (DL) DVD±R discs--which can hold up to 8.5 GB of data.

* Multi-Gesture Touchpad allows you to pinch, flick and swirl your fingers across the touchpad for more natural photo and video viewing as well as intuitive navigation of websites such as Google Earth. It also enables you to scroll, zoom in and out and flip through web pages, photos, spreadsheets and more. (Learn more)

* Crystal Eye webcam with a built-in digital microphone that helps keep background noise levels low and minimizes echoes. Acer Video Conference Manager software supports 640 x 480 resolution online video calls.

* Wireless-N Wi-Fi networking capability provides up to five times the performance and twice the wireless range using 802.11n-compatible routers as you would with 802.11g networks. It's also backward compatible with 802.11b/g networks (commonly found at Wi-Fi hotspots and in older home routers).

* Fast Ethernet (10/100/1000)

* Multi-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader compatible with Secure Digital (SD), MultiMediaCard (MMC), Memory Stick (MS), Memory Stick PRO (MS PRO), xD-Picture Card (xD)

* Three USB 2.0 ports

* HDMI high-definition audio/video output allows a single cable to transmit uncompressed high-definition video to your digital TV or LCD. It also includes a standard VGA video output.

* Windows 7 Home Premium makes it easy to create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos, and music. And you can watch shows for free when and where you want with Internet TV on Windows Media Center. Get the best entertainment experience with Windows 7 Home Premium.

* Get more features with Windows Anytime Upgrade. It's the best way to add features to Windows 7, takes as few as ten minutes, requires no software or downloads, and you'll keep your existing programs, files, and settings. Windows will walk you through the simple upgrade process. (Learn more)

* Pre-loaded software includes Microsoft Works SE 9.0 for word processing and spreadsheet work. Enjoy a 60-day trial version of Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007.

* 6-cell battery (4400 mAh)

* Weight: 5.74 pounds

* Warranty: One-year parts and labor limited warranty with concurrent International Traveler's Warranty

Amazon is pricing this at $379

I would use my computer for the occasional photoshop, playing hd movies, internet, music, programs, etc. Will the processor be ok for my tasks?

Thanks in advance.

**Supernova** · 09-30-2010 09:39 PM

2.2 Ghtz single core is nothing amazing, but I think it will be sufficient for your needs. My laptop is a pentium 4 3.0 GHtz and it runs pretty well for what I do. Seems like a good deal for that price. I'm not terribly knowledgeable about this stuff, though, so let's see what everyone else says.

**Tyler** · 09-30-2010 09:51 PM

I don't know a whole lot about hardware, but it seems pretty cool . . .
Just wipe that terrible OS and put Linux on it.

**Jorge** · 10-01-2010 04:38 PM

Could anybody explain to me what the Processor does and/or what the 2.20 GHz means?

Thank You

**Spartiate** · 10-01-2010 04:55 PM

Originally Posted by Jorge

Could anybody explain to me what the Processor does and/or what the 2.20 GHz means?

The processor is the computer's brain, 2.2 GHz means that it is able to process ~2.2 billion functions per second. That's actually quite low especially for a single core, which means your computer will lag/not be able to run some more demanding programs. Ideally you should get a dual core processor, but the price will jump a bit.

**Jorge** · 10-01-2010 09:10 PM

Originally Posted by Spartiate

The processor is the computer's brain, 2.2 GHz means that it is able to process ~2.2 billion functions per second. That's actually quite low especially for a single core, which means your computer will lag/not be able to run some more demanding programs. Ideally you should get a dual core processor, but the price will jump a bit.

Ok I understand.

Damn, it's hard to choose. Can anyone provide some places where they sell good laptops? I'm more of a "portable" kinda guy, so desktops I'm not really interested in. I just want a laptop, that I can run some programs in, play some hd movies pretty much.

**Maria92** · 10-01-2010 11:59 PM

I got mine at Best Buy. Dual core 2.0 processor, 250 gigs RAM. $375. This was a year and some ago. HP. haven't had any problems with it, and I'm dual-booting windows and ubuntu. All in all, you can do better. Keep watching. There are usually a lot of back-to-school sales this time of year, though you may be a bit late. :/

**Jorge** · 10-02-2010 03:27 AM

Originally Posted by Mario92

I got mine at Best Buy. Dual core 2.0 processor, 250 gigs RAM. $375. This was a year and some ago. HP. haven't had any problems with it, and I'm dual-booting windows and ubuntu. All in all, you can do better. Keep watching. There are usually a lot of back-to-school sales this time of year, though you may be a bit late. :/

I see, can anybody here give me some basic knowledge on the CPU Speed and talk about the computer's processor please?

I've been looking at laptops everywhere! And the most I've seen were 2.2's and Icore 3-5-6-7-8-9's etc...what does that mean?

Thank You

**Maria92** · 10-02-2010 04:01 AM

My core is an intel pentium 2.0 dual core. It has 4 gigs of RAM. This basically means that it will run old games (like Halo 1 and 2) great without any problems or lagginess, but the moment you try to put in any recent game, it can't take it. It barely chokes through Prototype on the lowest settings possible, and won't even launch Just Cause 2. It's recommended that you have at least a dual core CPU. i-7 is the latest commercially available installment...2.5 and above will run most or all games on some level. That said, they're rather spendy if you're looking at the 300-400 dollar range. If you aren't going to use it for gaming or graphic design or anything that treats your processors inhumanely, a dual-core 2.0 will do the job for whatever you put in front of it. You'll also want at least 3 gigs of RAM. Hard drive size isn't so important, and external hard drives are fairly inexpensive.

**Spartiate** · 10-02-2010 04:44 AM

Single cores are starting to be pretty outdated technology. They used to top out at over 3 GHz before dual cores became mainstream. Laptops always have lower processing power than desktops. My laptop is a 2.53 GHz dual core, which was excellent when I got it in 2008. It's probably slightly above average right now.

Processors aren't the be-all end-all of computer performance though, RAM is also very important (it's not that expensive, most laptops max out at 4 GB, you'll want as much as possible).

If you're into graphically intensive applications (like games or photo/video editing software), then the usual bottleneck is the video card, not the processor. Laptops are notoriously weak in the video card department (especially those integrated ones). You probably won't find anything with a decent video card for under 500$.

**Jorge** · 10-02-2010 05:46 AM

Ok, well just to make it clear to everybody. This is what I want for my laptop.

I want it to:

Play HD Movies
Run Photoshop
Play Music
Internet
Download Files
Have my laptop open files & programs quickly

And that's all!

Could somebody explain what I need specifically?

Thank You

**Maria92** · 10-02-2010 07:19 AM

If you want HD movies, you may want to search for one with a blu ray reader built into it. Otherwise, almost any generic PC should do all of that. If you get one with 3-4 gigs of RAM and a cheap dual core, you'll be set for a good long time. The graphics card is the one thing that may hold you back on any computer purchase, but you can always buy it separate and add it yourself.

**Jorge** · 10-02-2010 11:23 PM

Originally Posted by Mario92

If you want HD movies, you may want to search for one with a blu ray reader built into it. Otherwise, almost any generic PC should do all of that. If you get one with 3-4 gigs of RAM and a cheap dual core, you'll be set for a good long time. The graphics card is the one thing that may hold you back on any computer purchase, but you can always buy it separate and add it yourself.

Thank you Mario! I am not looking for a blu-ray player built in, because I get all of my movies online and can play them all via VLC Player. What does the graphics player do? Is their a basic one I should consider purchasing on my next laptop?

Thanks.

**Maria92** · 10-02-2010 11:32 PM

The graphics card is the thing that handles graphical display (e.g. movies, games, etc). The one thing I've noticed on my computer is that when I try to play a blu ray rip or excessively large HD rip with VLC, it can't keep up. It's sort of like a perpetual buffer race. The bottleneck is at the graphics card, which is some integrated piece of crap. Most graphics cards that come built in to a laptop are pretty bad, and it is only in the insanely expensive ones that they start to get good. I'd say to try the one that comes built in first, and if it can't keep up, consider either a new graphics card, or software that can convert HD to a standard .avi.