The Best PC Specifications (for now)

PC Specifications are subject to constant change. However, they are central to your choice of a Computer! The specifications of your new PC will depend on what you plan to run on it - today, as well as for the next 2 to 3 years.

Unlike a Refrigerator or Washing Machine, today's dream Computer specifications will become old - even unworkable, before long. Again, the price you pay for a Computer will appear ridiculously huge to you in as little as six months time, with prices constantly nose-diving while specifications zip upwards. But then, when you need to buy a Computer, you need to buy it!

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The fact is, while there are countless specifications for the Notebook or the Desktop forms of the Computer at any point of time, it is a combinations of specifications alone that are mainstream. These are the specifications that are manufactured in bulk, worldwide. These are the specifications that are most economical, these specifications translate into the best value for your money! Following are the components where specifications change most frequently:

Motherboard: The Motherboard's FSB (Front Side Bus) speed is an important indicator of a Computer's speed. It is a bi-directional bus (i.e., interface) that carries all electronic signals to and from the CPU to the components - Hard Disk, Main Memory, etc. The faster the FSB, the faster your Computer! FSBs today come at speeds of 667 MHz, 800 MHz as well as 1 GHz

Hard Disk: Current technologies here are ISA and SATA, with Hard Disk speeds being 5400 RPM, 7200 RPM and 10000 RPM. Of the two technologies, SATA is faster.

Main Memory: An article about Memory technologies would take up an entire website! EDO, SDRAM, PC100, PC133, PC800 RDRAM and DDR DRAM are memory technologies, past and present. As far as your purchase decision is concerned, the higher the speed (Memory speed is internally measured in nanoseconds, and the speed it communicates to the FSB is measured in MHz) of the Memory, the faster your computer. Current Memory technology is DDR SDRAM and speeds are 667 MHz to 1 GHz.

For more information on Memory technologies and Memory Speeds, visit

http://www.dewassoc.com/performance/memory/memory_speeds.htm

Graphics and Sound: All Motherboards today come with built-in Graphics and Sound. This was not the case earlier. However, the Graphics and Sound that is built into the motherboard is very basic. Most of the graphics-intensive programs - AutoCAD, CorelDRAW and the likes, would run much faster with an add-on 3-D Graphics card with dedicated memory. In fact, many of today's graphics-intensive games would not even start to play on the built-in graphics or sound card! Therefore if you plan to run more that a Word processor, e-Mail, Browser and such stuff, a dedicated Graphics Card such as nVIDIA or Radeon, with 128 or 256 MB of dedicated Video RAM is a must! Similarly, if you are into music editing/ making movies/ audio CDs/ DVDs on your Computer, you must go in for a dedicated Sound Card. Sound Blaster has remained the market leaders and preferred brand in the sound cards segment for many many years now!

Operating System: Lastly - and equally importantly, your choice of Operating System will also affect your specifications. While Windows XP would run quite well with 512 MB Memory, you will require a minimum 1 GB, if your choice is Windows Vista Business: we recommend 2 GB RAM if you are running Vista Home Premium, Vista Business or Vista Ultimate. In the rest of this page, let us look at the current value-for-money specifications and the next-higher specifications, separately for Notebooks and Desktops. These specifications will be updated, as and when trends change.

Recommended Notebook and Desktop Computer Specifications

Recommended Notebook Specifications		Recommended Desktop Specifications
Processor	Core 2 Duo 1.6 GHz or faster, 667 MHz FSB. Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz, 800 MHz FSB would be nice!	Processor	Pentium D, 2.8 GHz or faster, 667 MHz FSB. Pentium D, 3 GHz with 800 or 1 GHz FSB would be nice!
Operating System	Windows XP Professional (DO NOT go for XP Home edition!) Windows Vista Home Premium/ Vista Business. (DO NOT go for the Starter or Home Basic versions!)	Operating System	Windows XP Professional (DO NOT go for XP Home edition!) Windows Vista Home Premium/ Vista Business. (DO NOT go for the Starter or Home Basic versions!)
Main Memory	For Windows XP, Minimum 512 MB - 1 GB would be nice! For Vista, Minimum 1 GB - 2 GB is preferred, 3 GB would be nice!	Main Memory	For Windows XP, Minimum 512 MB - 1 GB would be nice! For Vista Home Basic, 1 GB is minimum and 2 GB preferred, with 3 GB being nice 3 GB is definitely required for Windows Home Premium and Ultimate versions, with 4 GB being nice!
Monitor	14" TFT Color Wide or Conventional screen, depending on your fancy TFT is definitely preferred over BrightView/ VibrantView/ TruLife, though it is marginally costlier than BrightView/ VibrantView/ TruLife hp and Compaq call their screen technology BrightView, IBM and Lenovo call their screen technology VibrantView, while Dell calls it TruLife. These are all the same technology and are newer than the TFT technology used earlier on in Notebooks TFT does not allow very good vision in daylight, in comparison with BrightView/ VibrantView/TruLife However, TFT does not reflect glare, therefore it strains the eyes a lot lesser than BrightView/ VibrantView/TruLife Although BrightView/ VibrantView/TruLife manufacturers claim brighter colors for their technology, the colors are not real-life, in comparison with TFT technology In terms of longevity, both BrightView/ VibrantView/TruLife and TFT are about even For your information, a recent online poll conducted by Lenovo showed that 86% respondents prefer the older TFT technology for the different reasons pointed out here! Finally, if all this still does not help you make up your mind, it is best to compare both technologies side-by-side on different Notebooks, before you choose yours - the decision on which technology is a very important one, for it is YOUR eyes that are at stake!	Monitor	15" Color. Check out LCD Monitors, they are affordable today, you might want to consider a 17" LCD Monitor, for the viewing area is so much larger! 19" LCD Monitor would be nice! LCD Monitors for Desktops use the same TFT technology used for Notebooks: No BrightView/ VibrantView/ TruLife options to confuse you, where Desktops are concerned!
Graphics	Intel GMA 950 is basic. nVIDIA GeForce Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) with 256 MB dedicated Video RAM would be nice! Other options here include support for 2 Monitors and TV In/ Out support	Graphics	On-board Intel GMA 950 is basic. nVIDIA GeForce Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) with 256 MB dedicated Video RAM would be nice! Other options here include support for 2 Monitors, IEEE 1394 (also called FireWire 400 and FireWire 800, with the latter being much faster at data transfer) socket for connecting your Video Camera and TV In/ Out socket
Hard Disk	120 GB Hard Disk running at 5,400 RPM SATA Hard Disk or an ISA Hard Disk running at 7.200 RPM would be nice!	Hard Disk	160 GB SATA. 250 GB SATA HDD running at 10,000 RPM would be nice!
Optical Drive	Go for a Dual-layer DVD +/- RW Writer - a Combo Drive WILL NOT let you write DVDs! BluRay Disk Drives are still too expensive, but KEEP WATCH... PRICES WILL FALL!	Optical Drive	Go for a Dual-layer DVD +/- RW Writer - a Combo Drive WILL NOT let you write DVDs! BluRay Disk Drives are still too expensive, but KEEP WATCH... PRICES WILL FALL!
Network	10/100 Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g with Bluetooth 2.0	Network	10/100 Ethernet is ample. Some Desktops ship with 1000 Ethernet as well - check out the extra cost vis-à-vis your requirements
Security	Norton 360/ Norton Confidential/ Norton Internet Security 2008. We urge you to strongly consider Norton SystemWorks in addition, for its many excellent features!	Security	Norton 360/ Norton Confidential/ Norton Internet Security 2008. We urge you to strongly consider Norton SystemWorks in addition, for its many excellent features!
Warranty, Insurance	Ensure you have International Travelers Warranty (ITW), if you frequently travel outside the country of purchase. Check the number of years for which you get warranty. Ensure that you are insured against theft & damage! It would be nice to get support at your location (on-site warranty), rather than to carry the Notebook to the vendor's service center, when it develops problems (off-site warranty)	Warranty, Insurance	Check out the number of years for which you get warranty Ensure that you are insured against fire & accidental damage (for example, against power supply-caused damage) as well! It would be nice to get support at your location (on-site warranty), rather than to carry the Desktop to the vendor's service center, when it develops problems (off-site warranty)
Other Notebook Specifications: A - Adapter, B - Battery, C - Carry Case	*Adapter:* Price of the Adapter is included in Notebook price, by all vendors. If you constantly work at multiple places. consider purchasing a second Adapter! *Battery:* 6 or 9-cell Li-Ion Battery - the 9-cell Battery may cost substantially higher, so check out the price difference! *Carry Case:* Check if the price includes a Carry Case - some vendors charge extra for your Notebook's Carry Case
Add-ons	*Web Cam:* *(Optional, for Desktops and Notebooks)* If you plan to do a lot of video conferencing/ chatting, check out models with built-in Webcams. The option of adding a separate Webcam would be a better option though, since internal webcams (on Notebooks, these do not come internal with most Desktops) are usually not best-of-breed Fingerprint Security: *(Optional, for Notebooks)* This is a great option, if you are in the habit of leaving your Notebook open but would not like others to see your files. A number of Notebook brands ship with Fingerprint Scanners, today. *Data Card: (Optional for Desktops, useful for Notebooks, specially if you travel frequently to places that do not have Wi-Fi)* If accessing the Internet is vital, you ought to consider purchasing a Data Card. Although slower than the slowest of Broadband connections, it will let you connect to the Internet from places where the service provider has coverage. Be prepared to pay a small fortune every month though - and be prepared to lose service if you are tardy in making payments! *Thumb Drive:* *(Absolute Must, both for Desktops and Notebooks)* Today, Computers do not have Floppy Disk Drives (the slot in a Computer, into which Floppy Disks are inserted, to read/ write data onto them). Nor are Floppy Disks (the magnetic media that stores data) easily available in markets. These do not reliably store data for too long and have been replaced by Solid State Storage devices. Thus, Thumb Drives - also called Pen Drives, Micro Drives and USB Drives - are in vogue. It is wise to purchase a 2 GB Thumb Drive too, for every Computer (Desktop as well as Notebook) has a USB Port, into which Thumb Drives can be inserted, to read/ write data. Thumb Drives have become extremely affordable today! Make sure you go for a USB 2.0-compatible USB Slot, on your Computer's Motherboard - it transfers data much faster than USB 1.0 or 1.1 slots! Do be warned that Thumb Drives need to be scanned thoroughly before and after they are inserted into a Computer - increasingly, they are being targeted by Virus and Spyware creators for spreading their malicious creations!

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