Reviews > Hardware > Laptops

We cover every aspect you need to consider in making a notebook purchase in our extensive tech guide.

Notebook specs vary widely depending on what you need to get out of your portable computer. Manufacturers make trade-offs--slower processors allow for smaller batteries, for instance--so it's important to know what you'll have to sacrifice to get the notebook of your dreams. Many vendors offer configuration choices when you buy your notebook. We've broken out the most important specs so that you understand your choices.

Find out more about: Processor, screen, and memory options Types of storage drives Networking devices Notebook accessories

Options: Processor | Memory | Display size

Sometimes referred to as the CPU, or central processing unit, the processor is the brains of the computer. It's the most important chip in a notebook, and it has power-management features that extend battery life. Notebooks use a variety of processor types depending on their focus. We've explained each in the chart below:

PROCESSOR	NOTEBOOK TYPE	PROS AND CONS
Mobile AMD Athlon 4	Budget notebooks	Inexpensive but a bit slower than Intel Pentium chips, according to CNET Labs' tests.
AMD Althon XP-M chips	Desktop replacement, thin-and-light notebooks	Still undergoing tests. No conclusion yet.
Apple PowerPC G3	Apple iBook (budget notebook)	Long battery life and relatively inexpensive, but slower clock speeds limit performance, especially under OS X.
Apple PowerPC G4	Apple PowerBooks (performance and desktop-replacement notebooks)	Excellent performance and reasonable battery life but expensive, and clock speeds top out at 1GHz.
Mobile Intel Celeron	Budget notebooks	Extremely inexpensive, slightly slower than Intel Pentium chips.
Mobile Intel Pentium III-M	Ultraportable notebooks	Less expensive than many other processors but not as powerful. Longer battery life allows for lower system weight.
Mobile Intel Pentium 4-M	Desktop-replacement, thin-and-light notebooks	Very fast and expensive. Allows for only mediocre battery life.
Intel Pentium M	Desktop-replacement, thin-and-light, some ultraportable notebooks	Part of Intel's Centrino technology, the PM is both very fast and allows for long battery life. Very expensive.
Intel Pentium 4	Desktop-replacement notebooks	A chip intended for desktops, the Intel P4 is very fast and is less expensive than Pentium 4-M and PM chips, but it runs very hot and allows only poor battery life.
Transmeta Crusoe	Ultraportable notebooks	Long battery life but very slow.

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Every computer comes with a certain amount of physical memory, usually referred to as main memory or RAM (random-access memory). Computers store currently running applications and data in this area. To find out how much memory you'll need, take into account your operating system and the applications that you plan to use. A general rule of thumb: You'll need 256MB for Windows XP or Mac OS X and 128MB for all other Windows and Mac operating systems.

If you're planning to hang on to your notebook for a long time, look for a laptop with easy-to-access memory slots, as memory is typically one of the first specs you'll want to upgrade.

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Unlike traditional desktop CRT (cathode-ray tube) monitors, notebooks ship with thin, liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). Notebook LCDs range in size from 12.1 inches (diagonal) to 17 inches. For comfortable viewing at the preferred Windows resolution of 1,024x768, most people like 14.1-inch or larger LCDs.

The ultraportable Fujitsu LifeBook P series (left) has one of the smallest screens--just 10.6 inches--in order to accommodate its feather-light, 3.1-pound weight. The giant 17-inch Apple PowerBook (right), on the other hand, has the biggest notebook screen we've ever seen.

Notebook LCDs once varied widely in brightness, colour, and sharpness, but today, you'll find much better quality across the board. Unfortunately, when it comes to LCDs, the specs reveal little about actual picture quality, so if you're picky about screens, compare some at your local dealer.

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Graphics card capability also ...Anonymous -- 30/03/04

Graphics card capability also is important to a desktop replacement notebook. Also neat little features, like the location of the microphone away from internal sound sources (ideally two one at each top corner of the display, haven't seen it yet) manual off switch on all wireless connections, hardware firewall chip for all external network connections, intergrated numeric keypad on 17" models. The most important thing of course is an effective stand to get the notebook off your lap when relaxing in a rocker recliner and doing some power computing (games ÷Þ).

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One thing I think you should i ...Anonymous -- 12/04/04

One thing I think you should include in your article is warranty conditions, as I purchased a HP Pavillion ze4316 notebook around 7 months ago and ever since I have had all sorts of problems with the unit but the biggest problem is the level of service.

So far I've had a new battery, screen, motherboard and hard disk and I've recently had it picked up to have analysis of the PC fan that doesn't seem to be working. The thing that concerns me most though is the cosmetic issues that I keep noticing about the repairs. I've had the machine come back with the speaker grill and a one-touch panel bent over something above the keyboard. The most recent repair came back with a label that sits under the screen (it's a magic label that appears between services) that was "pasted" in such a way that I would expect better from a kindergarten class.

I'm not sure at this stage if I'm more concerned that either the machine came back with such an ugly defect, or that they apparently had upper-management informed about these issues and this was the last time it would be done urgently and correctly.

The thing that disappoints me most of all is the attitude that I received from the HP call centre. They wouldn't accept my argument that I cannot determine a degradation in performance using third party software (that my job is to support), as it just came back from spending two weeks in service. The same software and set-up that doesn't run efficiently on my relatively new HP notebook, but runs flawlessly on a three year old Dell Inspiron machine with a quarter of the memory and one-tenth the hard drive capacity.

More or less, I was surprised and pissed off that they had the audacity to argue with me.

Whilst the unit has "only" been in 3 times, I know what to expect from a reputable manufacturer. I paid a lot more for a name brand machine so I didn't have to spend hours on end nutting out problems and I've yet to experience this relief.

A few other reasons I've learned not to buy a HP notebook product is:

The warranty conditions and turn around time is way below their major competitors
They can't fix the faulty product they supply, even when taking twice as long as they say it will take
The only service centre for Sydney is way out at Prospect and their working week is 30 hours
They only seem to care once you start talking "Department of Fair Trading" and "refund"
System performance is rated by running MS Works, if this works, the whole computer must be performing 100% and you cannot say/ argue otherwise
They don't call when they say they will
They supply email addresses for customer focus support that don't exist
They don't inform you of the progress of the machine, you have to call them "continuously" to be told they will get back to you, which only sometimes happens
The service centre will blatantly lie to you over the phone
If you complain about being lied to, you automatically get your machine back, but it will need to be sent in again for other problems
The product cannot be relied on, definitely not the choice for business.
And the one reason I like the most is:

They have a department that actually say "sorry" for all the issues, but I think overall this doesn't equate to getting it right.

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thanks heaps, i am about to bu ...Anonymous -- 14/04/04

thanks heaps, i am about to buy my first lap top, yeah i'm a late starter. your info was easy to follow,informative and cleared up a few things i wasn't sure about.i had been looking at the HP9110 series and after reading your review and laptop hints, will be staying with that decision.

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Finally, a website that answer ...Anonymous -- 11/08/04

Finally, a website that answers my questions on Notebook buying. For a person who does not know much about notebooks your guide is very helpful. Considering the amount of money a person can spend on a notebook, it is a must that you read this before some salesperson convinces you to buy a notebook that may not suit your needs.

Thankyou very much.

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