Samantha asks, “I want to purchase a used laptop for my 15 year old daughter so she can use her iPod and do homework. Do you have a recommendation?” Well Samantha, you’re asking a fairly common question which has several answers. I’ll provide some basic guidelines to get you started.
I would suggest purchasing a laptop running no less than Windows XP. As far as processor, I would also recommend purchasing a computer with no less than 1.6 GHZ of processor speed and 512MB of memory. This combination will last her a few years and will handle the latest version of iTunes (used for her iPod). Many machines will handle Windows XP fine; however, the boost in performance will allow your daughter to use the machine for a couple years until she leaves for college.
If you’ve been shopping already, then you’ve probably seen a huge disparity among used machines. Aside from local merchants, eBay and Craigslist are reasonable places to look. I did a search for a specific model which meets the requirements I outlined and found prices ranging from $100.00 to $400.00. Be careful because many vendors will not list the condition accurately.
I am assuming your daughter will be attending post-secondary school or college in a couple years. Most colleges will dictate the computer she will need. Nine out of ten times the requirements are very specific and will most definitely be more than is currently available. My opinion is to spend a few hundred dollars on a decent used machine with the specifications I’ve outlined and use it for a couple years.
Tom asks, “I am buying a new router and see some options I don’t understand. What are the benefits of wireless N and gigabit?” Tom, gigabit and wireless N are both the most current networking specifications found with the most current networking equipment. Wireless N has the highest transmission rates and distances of all wireless; gigabit is almost ten times faster than previous wired technologies.
Wireless N, also referred to as 802.11n, allows multiple transmissions of data both in and out of wireless devices at rates up to 100 megabits per second (Mbps). One of the benefits of 802.11n technology is its ability to transmit multiple data streams simultaneously. As a frame of reference wireless G transmits at 54Mbps, so it’s almost twice as fast as its predecessor.
Gigabit networking is a faster wired networking technology which transmits data at rates up to 1000 Mbps. This speed is ten times more than the older standard of 100Mbps. Benefits of gigabit technology is the ability to move large amounts of data over the network much faster.
No matter the technology you choose to setup at your office or home, all portions of the network need to be brought up to speed at the same time or there will be no benefit. Most people we talk to at the shop purchase a $100.00 router expecting it to be a complete solution.
To fully utilize the benefits of wireless N, you will need to upgrade both your laptop wireless card and the router. Internal wireless N cards are usually around $80.00 including installation. Gigabit upgrades usually mean upgrading the network interface card in your computer as well as upgrading cables to handle the improvements. My final thought is to make sure you can take advantage of the benefits prior to making the investment.
your choice, I suggest buying a book on HTML so you can learn as you go. Let me know your URL when you’re finished!
Tech-Tip of the week: You should set aside one hour to setup your new computer. Don’t get too frustrated and don’t be afraid to read the manual. Have a nice holiday.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can e-mail him at Jeromy@LocalComputerWiz.com or call him directly at (978) 919-8059.)