When you don’t know much about computer hardware, buying your first laptop raises lots of questions. How can I find my way around all the models on the market? Which criteria should I prioritise when choosing my computer? Is my budget enough for a device that really meets my needs? Here are some tips that can help.
Identify your needs
First and foremost, be clear about how you will use your future laptop. Knowing what you want to do with it – work, study, gaming… – will help you invest in the right model.
Generally, you can choose between these five types of laptops:
- Standard laptop: suitable for study, office tasks, browsing the internet, social media, storing and watching multimedia files.
- Ultrabook: a very light, ultra-thin laptop. Its ergonomic, compact design is ideal if you need to travel with your work tools.
- Gaming laptop: this computer is configured specifically for games. Its RAM, processing power and graphics performance also suit people who work with image and video editing.
- Touchscreen laptop: its touchscreen allows the user to access apps and different functions with a simple tap. This model can be suitable for children who are just starting out with computers.
- 2‑in‑1 hybrid laptop: this machine sits halfway between a tablet and a laptop with a keyboard. It can be suitable for mobile professionals, students and those who use their device mainly for music and video.
Identify the key features of a laptop
When buying your first laptop, you can use the following features to find the one that best meets your expectations.
Battery life
An impromptu meeting in a café, sending an urgent email in an airport lounge, browsing the internet on a train… In these situations, you won’t necessarily have a power socket to hand. So you need a laptop with good battery life. Even if you mainly stay at home, video games and heavy software need powerful batteries if you want to avoid keeping the computer plugged in all the time.
When choosing your laptop, it’s a good idea to subtract at least 20% from the battery life stated on the technical sheet. For example, if the claimed battery life is 12 hours, the real battery life will be around 9 hours. Note that if your device can run for 7 to 8 hours on battery, that’s already very good.
The screen
A larger screen offers better comfort in use and is very pleasant for multimedia. On the other hand, the laptop will be heavier and harder to carry. Conversely, a smaller screen gives you less visual comfort, but the device is easier to transport. Current laptop models generally come with screens from 13 inches to 17 inches. There are also borderless screens, which give you the same screen size while reducing the overall width of the laptop by about 2 cm.
Screen resolution is also a key factor. These days, Full HD screens, which offer excellent clarity, are easy to find. You can also get higher resolutions such as Retina, QHD and 4K.
Performance
First, look at the RAM, or memory, of the laptop. A configuration with 4 GB of RAM is more than enough for standard use (word processing, web browsing, etc.). But you can choose 16 GB of RAM if you plan to use resource-hungry software. This is the recommended setup for online gaming.
Next, take a look at the processor. Its processing power is expressed in Gigahertz (GHz). The higher this is, the more powerful the computer. A higher number of cores also allows the device to handle several tasks simultaneously.
Finally, you should also look at the storage capacity of the device. Ideally, choose a capacity equal to or greater than 512 GB.
Set your budget
Obviously, a laptop with advanced features and high-performance components will cost a lot more. But are you really prepared to spend over €1,400 just for Facebook, YouTube, Excel and Word?
With a budget of between €300 and €800, you can get a device with perfectly decent performance. You can even buy a laptop with a 17‑inch screen and 512 GB of RAM.
