With the huge growth in free laptop deals
with mobile broadband from both the UK networks and mobile phone
retailers, many more of us are being tempted to take out pay monthly
deals, just as we do with mobile phone contracts. But unlike with mobile
phones, where we've all become familiar with minutes and texts,
megapixels and form factors, many of us are unsure about what to look
for in a free laptop deal. This short article aims to help you spot a
great deal from a dud and explains what to look for in each of the key
features of the laptop itself.
The first thing to think about is the mobile broadband part of the deal. How much data are you going to want to access on the move? Pay monthly laptop deals typically have between 1gb and 15gb of included data in them, if you're only going to use the laptop at home and to occasionally browse on the train or in a cafe then 1gb is probably fine for you but if you're planning to download lots of music and movies you should consider a high amount of data, even it costs a little more as it can be expensive to exceed your included data cap.
One key thing you should consider is what type of laptop you want. Generally pay monthly laptop deals are for both small and highly portable netbooks and larger, more powerful full sized laptops. A netbook generally is around the size of a hardback book and is fine for browsing the internet and looking at photos but if you want to do more you should consider a full sized laptop. It's not always clear how large full sized laptops will be as they can vary greatly but one hint is to look at the screen size. 15" is pretty standard, less than this tend to be small laptops, more tend than this and the laptops may be large and heavy. You might also consider if you are particularly inclined towards one brand of laptop, for example Samsung or Sony.
Next you should think about the laptop's specification. The three main things to look out for here are the processor, the amount of RAM and the size of the hard drive.
RAM is a measure of the laptops working memory and is one of the key factors in how quickly your laptop will operate. It is very important for multi tasking and as a general rule of thumb, the more RAM the better the laptop will cope with memory hungry demands like photo editing or playing games. 2gb RAM is a reasonable amount in a free laptop but obviously the more the better.
The hard drive is measured in gigabytes and is a measure of how much data you can store on the laptop. The larger the hard drive the more files and documents you can store. 1gb might be enough for 50 documents, 200 music tracks and 200 photos for example. Even if you don't think you will need to use all the storage space you should always aim for the largest amount you can as the laptop can begin to slow down once the laptop becomes more than half full and you never know what you might want to store on the disc in a years time.
The processor is the main chip that powers the laptop and is one of the most important parts of the laptop spec. Processors are measured in Ghz and generally the higher the number the faster you can expect the laptop to start up and run. Processors can also be single core, dual core, quad core or even more. Again, the higher this number, and the more recent the chip, generally the better you can expect the laptop to perform. Another thing to watch out for is the manufacturer. Most are made by Intel or AMD, of the two, Intel chips tend to perform better on average.
You should also think carefully about any extra features you may be interested in like high definition screens, 3D sound, the number of USB ports or the inclusion of a web cam. Different features suit different needs so once you've considered what you plan to use the laptop for, it should become clear which additional features you are interested in.
The first thing to think about is the mobile broadband part of the deal. How much data are you going to want to access on the move? Pay monthly laptop deals typically have between 1gb and 15gb of included data in them, if you're only going to use the laptop at home and to occasionally browse on the train or in a cafe then 1gb is probably fine for you but if you're planning to download lots of music and movies you should consider a high amount of data, even it costs a little more as it can be expensive to exceed your included data cap.
One key thing you should consider is what type of laptop you want. Generally pay monthly laptop deals are for both small and highly portable netbooks and larger, more powerful full sized laptops. A netbook generally is around the size of a hardback book and is fine for browsing the internet and looking at photos but if you want to do more you should consider a full sized laptop. It's not always clear how large full sized laptops will be as they can vary greatly but one hint is to look at the screen size. 15" is pretty standard, less than this tend to be small laptops, more tend than this and the laptops may be large and heavy. You might also consider if you are particularly inclined towards one brand of laptop, for example Samsung or Sony.
Next you should think about the laptop's specification. The three main things to look out for here are the processor, the amount of RAM and the size of the hard drive.
RAM is a measure of the laptops working memory and is one of the key factors in how quickly your laptop will operate. It is very important for multi tasking and as a general rule of thumb, the more RAM the better the laptop will cope with memory hungry demands like photo editing or playing games. 2gb RAM is a reasonable amount in a free laptop but obviously the more the better.
The hard drive is measured in gigabytes and is a measure of how much data you can store on the laptop. The larger the hard drive the more files and documents you can store. 1gb might be enough for 50 documents, 200 music tracks and 200 photos for example. Even if you don't think you will need to use all the storage space you should always aim for the largest amount you can as the laptop can begin to slow down once the laptop becomes more than half full and you never know what you might want to store on the disc in a years time.
The processor is the main chip that powers the laptop and is one of the most important parts of the laptop spec. Processors are measured in Ghz and generally the higher the number the faster you can expect the laptop to start up and run. Processors can also be single core, dual core, quad core or even more. Again, the higher this number, and the more recent the chip, generally the better you can expect the laptop to perform. Another thing to watch out for is the manufacturer. Most are made by Intel or AMD, of the two, Intel chips tend to perform better on average.
You should also think carefully about any extra features you may be interested in like high definition screens, 3D sound, the number of USB ports or the inclusion of a web cam. Different features suit different needs so once you've considered what you plan to use the laptop for, it should become clear which additional features you are interested in.
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