GENERAL COMPUTER HARDWARE ADVICE

	General Home or Office	Writing letters, spreadsheets, accounting, surfing the web, writing emails
	Photos	Storing, viewing and editing digital photographs
	Music	Storing, viewing and editing music
	Gaming	Playing games installed on your computer or games over the Internet
	Video	Storing, viewing and editing videos

Operating System

• The first choice is one of Microsoft vs. non-Microsoft. Alternatives to Microsoft include the Apple Mac operating system and various flavours of the Linux operating system.
• Generally speaking, our advice is NOT to choose an operating system that is less than 12 months old, as there are always issues with new software releases and a lack of available driver software to make attached devices function.

Desktop vs. Laptop

Main Computer Component Specifications

	Component / Use:	General Use	Photos	Music	Gaming	Video
	Processor	Basic	Basic	Basic	Fast	Fast
	Memory (GB)	1 GB	1 GB +	1 GB +	2 GB +	4 GB +
	Hard Disk Storage (GB)	40 GB	100 GB +	100 GB +	100 GB +	250 GB +
	Graphics Card	Low Spec	Low - Medium	Low Spec	High Spec	High Spec

Connectivity

	USB Ports:	Consider how many devices you need to connect simultaneously to ensure you have enough built-in ports: printers, mouse, keyboard, external back-up disk, camera etc. Additionally make sure that they are USB v2 not USB v1.1 as USB v2 is much faster at transferring data.
	Firewire Port:	A high speed data transfer connection for connecting e.g. video cameras.
	Ethernet Network Port:	For connecting to a wired router to access your local network of computers or the Internet.
	Wi-Fi Wireless Networking:	For connecting to a wireless router to access your local network of computers or the Internet.
	Bluetooth Wireless Networking:	For backing up data on a mobile phone, connecting to Bluetooth mice and keyboards.
	Infra-Red:	For short distance line-of-sight communication with other infra-red capable devices (e.g. laptops, mobiles).
	Modem:	Built in voice, data and fax modem.
	PC Card Slot:	For other connectivity available through PC Cards (aka PCMCIA).

Warranty

	Standard Warranty:	You typically get a one year return-to-base guarantee with a new computer. If the computer breaks down, you return the computer to the supplier or manufacturer to be fixed.
	Parts and Labour:	Ensure your warranty covers both parts and labour.
	Urgency of Repairs:	If being without your computer could be a problem, consider upgrading your warranty to a 'same business day' or 'next business day' on-site warranty. An engineer will be sent to your home or office to fix the computer.
	Warranty Duration:	For additional peace of mind, consider the duration of the warranty. A financially sensible period to cover your computer for is three years. After this time, if the computer breaks down, generally speaking it will be cheaper in the long term to buy a new computer.
	Laptops:	Laptops are generally less robust and experience greater physical wear and tear than desktops, so a warranty is a higher priority with a laptop.

Additional Laptop Considerations

	Weight:	3 Kg is a maximum comfortable weight to carry around, including battery, power supply and other accessories. If you rarely carry your laptop with you, then its weight will not be an important consideration.
	Battery Life:	How long do you need the laptop to last on battery power? Tip 1 - Always consider setting your desktop background to black to conserve battery power. Tip 2 - If a long battery life is important, consider a higher memory capacity to save on hard disk access which uses more power.
	Installed Memory:	Laptops are normally limited to 2 physical memory slots, usually with both the memory slots occupied when new. So, for example, if a laptop is purchased with 1 GB of memory, it is usually installed as 2 x 0.5 GB. Thus to upgrade to 2 GB means throwing away the 1 GB (2 x 0.5 GB) and purchasing 2 x 1.0 GB, which can be more expensive than buying the 2 GB initially.
	Keyboard:	Laptop keyboards can have smaller keys which are closer together. In addition the non alpha-numeric keys are not always located on the keyboard where you would expect them. Ensure you are happy with the keyboard and its layout.
	Pointing Device Type:	The choice of either mouse ball, touch pad or nipple is a personal preference. Additionally a standard mouse can always be plugged in to your laptop.
	Screen Size:	Laptops generally have smaller screens than desktop computers, so ensure you get a screen that is physically big enough for your needs and has a high enough screen resolution (e.g. 1600 x 1200).
	Tablet Laptop Computer:	Tablet computers enable you to write with a special pen direct on to the computer screen. You typically use an application such as Microsoft Windows Journal Viewer. You can write words with the pen, and a hand-writing recognition application converts your hand-writing into typed characters, so you can drop notes straight in to your word processing application for example. You can also easily draw diagrams by hand with the special pen. You can usually turn the computer screen around to cover the keyboard so that you can use the laptop like a pad of paper.

Brands

• HP / Compaq
• Sony
• Toshiba
• Dell (Note - desktops do use some proprietary parts)

Further Advice