Features you should consider before buying a computer

There are important key features that every computer should have. Savvy consumers will take the time to educate themselves about what these features and how they impact their purchasing choice. Taking the time to consider these features and how they will affect how you use your computer, will help you to make the right choice, when purchasing a computer. In addition, purchasing a computer, whether for home or business use, can be an expensive proposition, so knowing exactly what you need, is important.

Keep in mind that the features listed below, are not listed in order of importance. These features will help to give you an overall picture, of the features you need, before paying a lot of money, for a computer that is not what you need. You should also keep in mind that if you will be using your computer, for any function that has highly specific requirements, such as gaming or other functions, you want to make sure that your computer will meet the requirements you need. Here is are features you should consider before buying a computer-

• How fast is the computer? It is important to understand that the speed of the computer comes from several different factors. However, no matter how fast (or slow), your computer is, it is important. The speed of your computer will determine how fast you can download, play games, upload files, or even use the internet. You should check out the amount of giga-hertz that your processor will be using and the other devices within the computer. Recommended speed for desktops is around 2-8 or higher, but laptops do fine at 1.4 or higher.


• How much memory does the computer have? Memory in computers is usually expressed as Random Access Memory (RAM). If you do not have enough RAM you will find that your computer will run slow and poorly. Experts recommend that you have at least 1024 MB of RAM and possibly even more.


• How big is the hard drive? While there is no one recommendation for the size of the hard drive, computer experts agree that you are going to want to go the high end. Sometimes it really is true that bigger is better. Keep in mind that you will be limiting what you can put on the system if you limit the hard drive. You should also understand that if your operating system takes up a lot of your hard drive, then there will be little room, for pictures, games or even music.


• How good is the display? Keep in mind that if you can't see what is being displayed on your computer, it will do you little good. Computer experts recommend that you choose a computer, where the display is not less capable of going to 1024x768. There is a wide range of displays, on every size of monitors, so the best thing to do is find what is most comfortable, for you.


• How big is the network card? You will want to make sure that you choose a computer that has a network card that is big enough for everything you want to do with it. If you find that the network card is too small, it can stall you on several common computer tasks.


• How good is the video card? It is important to keep in mind that the higher the quality of the video card, the better the graphics will be on your computer. If you want to do gaming, edit pictures or need any kind of high end graphics, you will need to make sure that you have a video card that can support that.