The laptop is intended to be used mainly for internet and office. For this type of laptop the CPU performance is rather unimportant as is the graphics performance. It is important that you can handle the keyboard well - therefore it is recommended to try some typing before purchase.

Processor

The weakest mobile processors normally are sufficient for these applications. However, present processors of VIA and Transmeta are slower than equivalent AMD or Intel processors. Here patience is needed when starting the mobile computer and applications. Dual Core CPUs feel speedier if you run more than one application. Our recommendation are slow dual-core CPUs (Pentium Dual-Core or Athlon CPUs). The slow Netbook CPUs like the Intel Atom can also be used for non demandin users, but the waiting times may be annoying. See also our processor comparison for more information about the processor.

Graphics

Video cards with "shared memory" are quite sufficient for these applications and modern integrated graphic solution such as the Intel GMA 4500M or ATI Radeon HD 3200 should not cause a loss of speed when using dual channel memory. But also the worst video cards are sufficient for surfing.
See also our video card comparison for the classification of video cards.

Memory

The notebook should contain at least 1024 MB RAM. Especially newer operating systems like Vista or Windows 7 perform much better with 2048 MB (2 GB). In addition is dual channel (2 equal memory chips are used simultaneously) of advantage with integrated graphics.

Display

The larger, the better. Take care, for many people a fine resolution is very arduous to read in the long term. Here 85 - 100 DPI (Dots per inch) are a good solution (e.g. 15"1024x768 pixels or 15.4" 1280x800 pixel). See also in our DPI list, how the different displays are resolved. The question whether widescreen or standard (4:3) is not so important. If you like to work with the laptop frequently and outside in the fresh air, pay attention to a mirror-free and/or antireflection coated display.

Features

Wireless LAN - a wireless network is a very useful feature for notebooks and should not be missing. As a standard look for (Draft)-n WLAN cards, altough the old "g" Standard is more than sufficient (even the archaic "b" standard should be enought for non power users).
At least two USB ports should be available.

Notebook-Examples

Review HP Pavilion zv6214EA (zv6000 series)See our Top 10 Office Notebook chart.

The mobile computer is to be used mainly for games and demanding applications. The CPU performance is here nearly just as important as the crucial graphic performance. Also the display should be sufficiently fast and large.

Processor

For gaming the CPU should have at least two cores and at least 2.0 GHz clock speed. The faster the better. Especially the fast Intel CPUs (Core 2 Duo, Core i7) can be recommended. See our CPU benchmark list where all CPUs are ranked by the average performance.

See also our processor comparison for more information about the processor.

Graphics

The video card is the most important component for a gaming laptop. A card of the performance class 1 or 2 is recommended (see our video card comparison). The performance of the different mobile video cards can be compared well in our benchmark list of mobile video cards. Graphic cards of the performance class 3 should be regarded as a minimum, otherwise you must accept drastic restrictions with the game settings (shared memory is taboo!).

Also video card memory should be present plentifully, whereby more than 1024 MB still are not useful at present. Models with 1024 MB instead of 512 MB can be even slower (as 1024 MB are often only found with slow DDR3 chips in the middle class).

Memory

Modern games need already 2048 MB RAM and more, so for a high end gaming laptop you should use 4 GB in dual channel mode.

Display

The larger, the better is here, too. Take care, for many people a fine resolution is very arduous to read in the long term. Here 85 - 100 DPI (dots per inch) are a good solution (e.g. 15" 1024x768 pixels or 15.4" 1280x800 pixel). See also in our DPI list, which displays are finely resolved. Widescreen or standard is hardly any more a question, since game-notebooks are manufactured hardly exclusively with 16:10 widescreen display. However sometimes, old games do not support the widescreen resolution and are stretched (or show black bars - which can be adjusted in the video card driver). Reflecting displays are often used in gaming laptops, since they offer a higher brightness and contrast. Nevertheless while continuous use the mirroring might be disturbing.

Features

Wireless LAN - wireless network is a very usefuk feature for notebooks and should not be missing. Especially during game-LAN-parties WLAN allows a fast connection with the network. Take care of arrow keys with a sufficient large size (for racing games). Good sound exits and loudspeakers are important for many gamers, because they improve the game atmosphere enourmously. An SSD offers faster loading times (and perhaps a few % performance). Regarding the high price, an SSD is only adviceable if you also use the laptop for applications.

Example Notebooks

See our top 10 gaming laptops list.

In this device class mobility is the most important factor. Here you should pay attention to a small size, little weight and long battery runtime.
The processor and video card here are usually rather low dimensioned, since current saving is important.

Processor

Current saving models are very important. For example there are the Intel LV (Low voltage) from ULV (Ultra Low voltage) models, which are clocked slower, but spend less energy. Furthermore, the Intel Atom (used in Netbooks) plays an important role. It is not very fast, but uses only a low amount of power. If you need more performance (everyday work e.g.), a ULV dual core CPU may be the right choice. See also our processor comparison for more information (like current consumption).

Graphics

Since especially long battery runtimes are wished ,integrated video cards dominate this market segment. Particularly the Intel solutions are characterised by little current consumption combined with acceptable performance. We recommend the Nvidia ION / 9400M for power users and the GMA 4500M / 500 for office only usage.

See also our video card comparison for the classification of the video cards and other current saving integrated solutions.

Memory

It should be 1024 MB and more depending upon the application. Please consider: The integrated Shared memory video solutions spend up to 128 MB of the memory! In addition dual channel (2 equal memory chips use parallelly) are of advantage with integrated graphic solutions.

Display

The smaller it is, the less current is consumed and the more compact are the devices. Take care of a to fine resolution, since otherwise with Windows XP texts and icons are untolerable small and in the long term arduously to be read. See also in our DPI list, how the displays are resolved. Reflecting displays have a strong disadvantage in the fresh air (comparable with television during strong sun exposure). In addition the brightness of the screen should amount to at least 150cd/m², in order to be able to read something during sun exposure (mirroring screens need much more!).

Features

Wireless LAN - Wireless Network is a very practical feature for sub-notebooks, since already this is available in many cafés and public buildings. A second battery could be very helpful for a mobile usage and an implemented DVD drive assembly turns the small notebooks into a mobile entertainment machine. Bluetooth and infrared are practical for coupling with mobile phones (mobile surfing). A SSD may speed up the application performance drastically. See our SSD comparison article for more information.

Example Notebooks

• Top 10 subnotebooks
• Top 10 netbooks