Posted on: Wednesday, November 17, 2004
Not hard to find laptop that meets your needs
By Rhonda Abrams
Gannett News Service
Time for a new computer? In the past few months, I've bought two new computers for my business, and I've helped my sister, Janice, buy one for her home-based business. So I've become a minor expert on choosing a computer — especially a laptop — for business.
As a writer, my computer is an extension of myself, and I hate going anywhere without my trusty laptop. When I get a new laptop (or notebook — the terms are interchangeable), it's like getting a new car. Sure, it has to be functional, durable, and affordable, but it also has to be "cool."
I travel a lot, so my laptop has to be light. My sister, on the other hand, works mostly at her desk. At 9 pounds, Janice's old computer fell into the category —desktop replacement. She wanted a big screen and a regular-size keyboard while working at home.
What Janice didn't know — and many entrepreneurs don't realize — is you can plug a different monitor and keyboard into your laptop; you don't have to work on the little screen at your desk. Then, when you travel, you've got a nice light computer to take with you instead of a massive desktop that's staying put.
My colleague, Deborah, on the other hand, always has used a desktop. Now she travels to trade shows and demonstrates our company's software on her computer. Deborah was worried she'd have to give up functionality and speed by switching to a laptop. And she wanted a hard drive big enough for her massive music collection.
What Deborah didn't know is that laptops now are as fast and functional as most desktops. They come with fast processors, internal DVD players, huge hard drives, and more.
With Janice now convinced she could choose a lighter laptop, and Deborah convinced she wouldn't have to give up the functionality of a desktop, we went shopping.
The key issues:
• Fast processor: Minimum 1.5 GHz, but we didn't need the fastest processor on the block. • Big hard drive: At least 40 GB. • Lots of RAM: At least 512 MB and expandable. • Mobility: Wireless Internet cards and ideally, a processor maximized for mobile computing. • CD-Rewritable: Critical for backing up data, and a DVD player would be nice. • Microsoft Windows XP Pro: To run our business software. • Weight: For me, it has to be light. • Price: I wanted to stay at around $2,500, tax and all add-ons included. Because I demand a computer that's light, I looked at — and Sony let me try (ah, the benefits of writing a column!) — the Sony X505. The X505 is incredibly sleek, incredibly light, and very expensive ($2999).
But as cool as the X505 is, it's not meant for the kind of hard work — and hard life — I give my computers. And it was missing one very exciting technology Sony has pioneered: the XBRITE screen.
Sony's XBRITE screens are beautifully vivid, without eating up a ton of battery life (a key issue when choosing a laptop).
What did we buy? I bought the Sony S260. It was 4.2 pounds but comes with an internal DVD player and a long battery life, making cross-country flights more tolerable. We bought Deborah the same machine, and no, we didn't get a two-for-one discount.
Janice has always had Dell computers and been very happy, so we chose the Dell Inspiron 600m. We also got her a flat panel monitor and keyboard for when she works at her desk. She also converted to wireless DSL, and she's now thrilled to be able to move around her whole house.
As for Deborah, she's in love with her new Sony laptop. And I'm delighted, too. She gets work done on the road and at home and puts in extra hours! That's good for my bottom line.
Rhonda Abrams is president of The Planning Shop, publisher of books and other tools for business planning.
