Black Friday Online: Shopping For Laptops

This Black Friday guest post is from Jenna who writes about online shopping and getting good deals.

In the past, I’m the person you see starting their Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve. Whether it’s because I was working late, or because I had other commitments, I’ve always been a procrastinator, when it came to shopping for Christmas gifts. And the fact that I’m slightly claustrophobic, keeps me from malls during the holidays.

I’ve always heard the stories about Black Friday; people lining up outside the stores at 5 AM waiting for the doors to open, making a mad rush for the discount items. But because of my phobia, I wouldn’t even consider going to the malls on Black Friday. Now, however, since shopping online is so easy, I have no problems shopping on Black Friday. 

This year, my 13 year old is asking “Santa” for a laptop. He actually saved up about a third of the money himself, but I’m going to surprise him and buy him an HP laptop this year. I read a few gaming laptop reviews and this seems to be the best for his needs. Like I said, I would never, ever, consider going to the mall, especially on Black Friday, looking for laptops. I would not fight parking, nor would I fight the crowds, looking for a big sale on laptops. Online shopping is so easy! Now, I can go online and see the various Dell, HP, and Toshiba laptop that are new to the market. And, I can surf various websites faster than I can travel to any store looking for the cheapest laptops for sale.

The only benefit that I can see by going to the store and shopping there is that there may be an opportunity to barter and try to get a better price for the gift I’m shopping for, in this case, a laptop. But the reality is, if shopping at a Wal-Mart or K-Mart type store is there is NO opportunity to barter. If you were to ask them for a better price, they’d look at you like a puppy dog, with tilted head, with a response similar to that of a 5 year old; uh, nope. And, imagine how much gas (and time) I’d waste driving from store to store looking for the best price on laptops. Now, I can shop online and travel to as many stores as I want to, in as little (or as long) amount of time shopping for the best deal. I can surf from manufacturer’s websites, to store websites, and I can do it at the convenience of my schedule, without spending money on gas, and without wasting time and energy driving from store to store. And, with Internet security being as good as it is now (compard to when I started writing about online shopping), I don’t worry about shopping and having my identity being stolen, as long as I’m going on secured and reputable sites.

The various merchants won’t want you to hear this, but I don’t understand why anyone would shop at the stores on Black Friday. It makes no sense. I can get the same discounts online that are being offered at the retail outlets, but I can get it at my convenience, without the headaches of fighting crowds and parking, and I can do it in luxury of my own home!

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Finding Black Friday Laptop Deals

Continuing with our featured posts on Black Friday 2010, here is a guest post from Nico who tweets about deals and sales.

As Thanksgiving is around the corner, many shoppers are excited about the day where retailers offer items for nearly half off. This day is known as Black Friday and it occurs every year. During most Black Fridays, you will see people camping out of your local Best Buy or department store waiting for the doors to open so that they can rush in and get the item(s) that they’ve been targeting before someone else snatches it.

Most people, like myself, are usually looking for the latest electronics to hit the stores. A lot of people get excited because of the big sales on laptops that are being offered. It’s only once a year that your able to get a laptop for half the price it is usually worth and that is on Black Friday.

However waiting in that long line can be a hassle. Nobody likes to stay awake all night with a bunch of eager people that will be rushing to get the same item you’ve been eyeing the whole night. This is the main reason why I usually shop for laptops for sale online. It is the most convenient way of making a Black Friday purchase without people pushing and shoving you when the doors open. There are many good deals online to look for an affordable laptop that is suitable for you.

 Tigerdirect.com is a website that offers great discounts on laptops every Black Friday. Usually there are deals for online shoppers and deals for store shoppers for finding the best laptop brand for their needs. Finding a laptop shouldn’t be too difficult online since it is easy to see the variety of different computers they have including the specifications. The best way to find a good deal is to sign up for the stores specializing in Black Friday deals. That’s how I found out about a few different models of HP laptops on sale last year and ended up buying one for each of my kids. You can sign up for alerts for your electronic store to remind online subscribers that there is an exclusive offer in place that you may intrigue you.

These are just a few of the ways to find a good laptop on the day after Thanksgiving. As Thanksgiving is almost just a week away, it is a good time for potential laptop buyers to begin looking for the best laptop that is suitable for them. The rise of the use of the internet allows consumers to shop at the comfort of their own home. What better way is there to shop after you get a brand new laptop that you just purchased online at a price that’s a bargain?

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Buying Your First Laptop

A laptop is not a businessman’s tool anymore. Due to its portability and affordability, most people are keen to buy one. Many people looking for laptops are confused with the choices available and the technicalities involved. The article addresses various aspects to consider before you buy your first laptop.

Processor: The processor is the beast that provides your laptop all the computing power. The faster and more powerful the processor, the better performance you get. For basic computing purposes like word processing and browsing an Intel Core 2 Duo processor would suffice, where as for more advanced work like graphic design, multimedia & heavy gaming, a more powerful processor like an Intel Core i5 is recommended. Processor speeds are provided in Giga Hertz (GHz). The more the GHz, the faster the processing will be.

Memory: Random Access Memory (RAM) is another crucial consideration for performance. The memory is the immediate storage area for the laptop to do its computing using the processor. Normally laptop RAM comes in multiples of 1 gigabyte (GB). A basic laptop with Windows XP and MS Office needs 2GB RAM to work comfortably. For higher end work like programming or gaming its better to go with 3 or 4GB RAM. If you plan to upgrade your RAM later, ensure that the laptop you are going to buy has free slots for the additional RAM.

Hard Disk: Hard Disk Capacity is the amount of storage that is needed for storing your operating system files, movies, photographs, MP3 files and other documents. You will need to consider your future storage requirements while deciding on the hard disk capacity. A basic laptop intended for word processing , browsing may require only 80GB, where as a 500GB is recommended for a user who wants to store lots of music files, photographs etc. You can also augment your future storage needs later by buying an external hard disk later.

Size: The beauty of a laptop is in it’s portability so the size needs to factor in to your decision. Small laptops for sale offer an edge over larger ones because they’re lighter to carry, but a larger one means you can perform more functions with it.

Screen: Laptop screens come in different sizes and aspect ratios. The screen size specified by the manufactures is the diagonal measurement from one corner of the screen to the other in inches. The larger the screen, the more area you will get and less strain on your eyes. The downside of having bigger screens is the portability aspect goes down. A larger screen is recommended if the laptop is used for continuous work, whereas a smaller screen is optimal for the extremely mobile users.

Battery: A very important aspect is the back up time provided by the laptop battery when it’s not connected to the power socket. If the laptop is to be used extensively for travel, recommend going for a laptop that gives more backup time of 4-5 hours where as for the home user a back up time of 2 hrs is sufficient.

Optical Drive: As DVDs are common nowadays, it is advisable to go with a combo drive(DVD/CD -RW) that can read as well as write DVD’s and CD’s.

Pointing Devices: Laptop manufactures provide a touchpad (a rectangular box at the keyboard) or a joystick at the middle of the keyboard. Which one to use is completely a personal choice and based on your comfort. It is recommended to play around with both these options and arrive at the one of your comfort.

USB Ports: With USB devices getting popular, it’s a good idea to have a laptop that has at least 3 USB ports and that too high speed USB 2.0. The more number of USB ports, the more devices you can connect to the laptop at the same time

Warranty: Since laptops are very delicate devices with lots of components that too packed in a very small space chances of some of them conking off are a possibility. A laptop screen replacement itself might cost you a quarter of the price of the laptop. Go for laptops that has 2 years of more warranty and if not, its wise to invest in an extended warranty that gives you complete peace of mind.

While you are looking for good laptops for sale, do check with multiple vendors or retailers and compare their offerings based on your needs. Do not let a small useless freebie help you decide on the dream laptop. Try to bargain for free upgrades or extended warranty cover. It is also better to go for a laptop manufacturer who has a service center near you; otherwise you might have to bear the shipping expenses to the service center.

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How To Get The Best Deal On A Laptop

Purchasing a laptop is an important and rewarding process. If you do it right, you can find a product that fits your needs at a good price. If you do it wrong, you can wind up spending too much money on a piece of technology that does things you don’t want it to do, doesn’t do things you wish it did, or doesn’t work at all.

So, where to begin my search, what should I look for and how will I know what is the best laptop brand for my needs? I think you need to evaluate a series of questions about yourself and your computer usage to begin narrowing down the number of options. There are at least a few hundred choices, but you can quickly narrow it down once you know the following: *Apple/Mac or PC? *10-12 inch, 14-16 inch, or 17-19 inch? *Gaming or heavy video editing? *Speed and memory? *Price? *Brand? *Deals? Let’s walk through each one and by the end you should have a good sense of a few solid choices.

Apple computers are known for being slick, simple to use, beautifully designed, great for video editors, and generally expensive. PCs are known for being technically adaptable, fast, great for business, and generally affordable. Those are stereotypes that have begun changing over the years but still generally hold true.

The next major decision is size. Smaller 10-12 inch computers, also known as netbooks, make great portable devices. They work best as a secondary computer for use in web browsing, notetaking, and general work on the go. Medium sized 14-16 inch laptops are ideal for general use and can be either portable or used as a stationary computer. The screen is large enough to be comfortable but not so large as to be cumbersome. Larger 17-19 inch screens are beautiful and functional but not so portable. They’re best for graphic designers, gamers, and those who want a sleep alternative to a desktop computer that they can still unplug and pack into a suitcase.

Gaming and heavy video editing requires special features. For one, speed is a primary concern, so you’ll need a top of the line processor with lots of RAM (random access memory). You’ll also need a high end graphics card. Gaming usually happens on PCs, but video editing tends to happen on Apples.

As for speed, even those not doing heavy gaming or editing may want a zippy device which can handle multiple programs and windows running at the same time. If you tend to do 15 things at once, make sure that you opt for a faster chip with more RAM. If you are more of a simple web-browser and occasional document writer, you’ll be fine with less.

More costs more. Price is where all of these options come together. Apple is more expensive. Better chips, graphic cards, and more RAM are all more expensive. If you’re looking for the best laptop deal, a cheap 10 inch computer with full capabilities can be had for $300 dollars. An average, fully loaded 15 inch computer could be had for $700 if its a PC and $1200 if it’s an Apple. A high end, large screen gaming/graphics/business laptop could run into the $2500-4000 range. Brand choice is partly a matter of preference and partly a matter of reputation. Apples are known for being well made, so there is no concern there. PC brands with the best reputation are HP and Dell laptops, followed by Toshiba, Sony, and Acer. A newer company ASUS has been making neat devices that many people like.

Whatever brand you buy, try it out in person to see how it feels. Laptops are a very personal device and you need to like using it. Deals and checking out popular laptops for sale are the final concern. Like cars, laptops will come down in price before the next year’s new models come in. The worst time to buy a laptop is typically around the holidays or when students are going back to school. That’s when everyone buys one. A good idea is to select a few models that suit your needs and shop around for prices over a month or two. When a big sale on laptops pops up, take advantage of it. If you follow all of these tips, your laptop purchase should be a successful one.

Final thoughts: only buy the software you need. Great anti-virus software is available *free* online. Try AVG, Malware Bytes, and CC Cleaner. Microsoft Office-like applications can be had for *free* in the open source Open Office suite. Most insurance is not a great buy. The first year is always covered by warranty, and laptops rarely last more than 3 or 4. Just take good care of it and you should be ok. Good luck!

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Top 5 Laptops For Individual Needs

There are so many different reasons why someone would purchase a laptop and there are just as many different individual requirements that consumers have. With this in mind, here are five laptops out, of the vast amount of laptops available, that seem to stand out in their respective categories.

1. Good gaming laptop

Some of the good gaming laptops that stand out are the Alienware M series laptops, specifically the Alienware M15x laptop. It stands out due to its allocation in the series; it offers the best of both the high end and the low end models. In tests this laptop proved very formidable and could handle all the gaming that was thrown at it and over time had consistency in terms of CPU speed and processing. This was due to the machine’s astounding i7 Intel quad core processor which (if you didn’t know) is one of the top processors in the industry, definitely a plus. In addition to this, this highly awarded laptop 6 gigabytes dual channel DDR3 memory and 512 megabytes of GDDR3 GeForce graphics along with your choice of hard drive space. With this much power and graphics this computer will please any gamer. It will cost you, around $1400, but its well worth the cost when you can play games on your laptop in HD. Check a variety of gaming laptop reviews before making your decision.

2. Cheap Laptop

Not everyone has the resources to dish out $1400 on a laptop. There are some who would prefer to have a laptop to check emails, the occasional Microsoft office document, and web surfing. For this demographic, I recommend the Compaq Presario CQ62z. First of all, it’s only $400! What a deal! It comes with windows 7 and has 2 gigabytes of memory and 350 gigabytes of hard drive space, all of which can be upgraded. It has a decent AMD notebook processor which can handle simple tasks and never slow down. This laptop is definitely a favorite for many people.

3. Portable laptop

With all the things going on nowadays, there are some who prefer laptops that are portable and easy to carry around. With such laptops people don’t have to worry about carrying bigger conventional laptops. For this segment, the HP Mini 110 series really stand out. This computer is really cheap and only has a 10 inch screen and is really easy to carry around. It can do anything a normal computer can and comes with windows 7 in addition to that. It has about 1 gigabyte of memory and around 160 gigabytes of hard drive space (again, this can all be upgraded). In such a small device this is very amazing! It can do everything like a cheap computer but is smaller and easier to carry around.

4. College student laptop

College students usually get cheap laptops, but usually end up regretting this choice. In many cases, when they go to college, laptops become their TV’s, video game systems, and their home computers. With so many tasks student laptops need to be quite powerful. College is an investment, why not also invest in what you take and use their. In this section, the Apple Macbook pro is a great fit. The 15 inch model is, in most cases, the best fit. However there are 13 and 17 inch models also available. It comes with 2.53 gigahertz of processing speed 4 to 8 gigabytes of DDR3 memory based on your choice, and 256 megabytes of DDR3 memory. The hard drive space is 500 gigabytes. With such great features what else would a student need? In addition to this apple runs a college student program were college students get a free iPod with the purchase of a Mac. It costs around $1800 bucks but is well worth the costs, definitely a durable and student centered laptop.

5. Business centered laptop

There are some who use laptops for business alone. For these people I recommend the Dell fastrack vostro 3300. This laptop offers unparallel power. It comes with windows 7 and other Microsoft productivity software, a fingerprint scanner for security, and damage protection. This laptop is in the $600 laptop range and comes with great power and processing speed that comes with windows 7. It runs with the intel core I processors, has lots of available memory, and offers lots of available hardrive space, all of which is customizable. It has a 13 inch screen and is perfect.

All of these laptops are great. Check your local store ads for these notebooks on sale to save some money. I wish you luck on this journey as you search for the best laptop that fits you needs.

READER QUESTION: What gaming laptops do you like? Any others besides Alienware? If you own Alienware, what do you think of it?

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