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Computer shopping comes down to what you will use the computer for, whether you are buying one for a family, or you’re a student looking for something lightweight that you can carry around in your backpack. Finding the best computer for you is a tricky balancing act of weighing aesthetics with capabilities and portability with functionality. This article will save you time, and might even save you money.

The Hipster

If you mostly use your computer for web browsing and media, then aesthetics and convenience should be your only concerns. You either want the latest computing trend or a timeless mainstay. For the former, the word netbook should pique your interest. For the latter, “Buy Mac” should be your mantra.

Netbooks are small computers that have just enough processing power to perform the day-to-day tasks you need them to. The Asus Eee PC 1005 is a candidate for the best computer in this category for both its visual appeal and impressive set of features.

As for Apple, all of their laptops could comfortably waltz into computing beauty pageants. The relentless focus on design has meant the Macbook Pro editions have always been seen as cutting edge. They even introduced a little product called the iPad that could very well revolutionize how we think about computing. Computer shopping is made easy when everything a manufacturer makes is both attractive and powerful as long as you don’t mind paying a premium.

The Worker

This is for the person who needs their computer to work. Long periods of use, coupled with multitasking and the odd resource-intensive application define your computing experience. Whether you go desktop or laptop depends entirely on preference, since the price difference has become mostly negligible. Computer buying then boils down to the most balanced offering. To this effect, the best computer would be any core release from the major makers. Dell’s Studio range of laptops fits this bill in that they are tailored for media but handle everyday home and office use with ease.

The “Power User”

Photoshop, Autocad, Maya, Pro Tools, Avid. If you know what these applications are, you’re likely a “power user”. Very careful computer shopping is critical for you: a netbook would self-destruct if you so much as brought an installation disc for these apps near it, and ‘regular computers’ would chug horribly, rendering them barely usable. What you need is a beast like the HP Pavillion Elite: massive hard drive space, cutting edge Nvidia graphics cards, and top-of-the-line Intel processors. It also helps that these computers can run any video game you can think of fresh out the box without the need for upgrades. The best computer for a “power user” is, without doubt, a powerful desktop.

Leaving You to Your Devices

Different people need different things out of computers. This list covers the full spectrum of computer users, and while some of you may fall between the categories, a good rule of thumb is to always get that little bit more than you think you’ll need. This way the computer does what it needs to, so you can focus on what you want to. Essentially, the best computer you can buy is the one that listens to its master.

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Computer buying for the home means purchasing a computer that can deliver on every family member’s expectations. Your family will want access to a range of programmes, from games like The Sims, to the Internet, to business applications like Excel. Having a computer that only caters to one member of the family could well result in conflict. Below you’ll find some fail-proof rules on how to buy a computer for the family.

Rule #1: It Must be a Desktop PC

Buying a laptop, a computer that is inherently personal, is counterproductive in a family setting. Many years of going to Internet cafés, school computer labs and office use has conditioned us to think of a desktop PC as a social computer. A family is a society within itself (and some more so than others). This first rule must be adhered to if household anarchy is to be avoided.

Rule #2: Affordable with Great Support

A home computer needs to be affordable and have great technical support. While build-it-yourself project computers can be fun and cheap, the frugality stops being fun when you become the “fix the computer at home” guy. Buy a well-priced desktop PC that comes with some limited support and a flexible warranty priced into the cost so that everybody is easily able to come to grips with how to service it.

Rule #3: As Powerful as Necessary

A computer must be as powerful as its most demanding user needs it to be. In a household where complex computer games are not played, the computer usually needs to be able to run popular smaller games like The Sims well. Using this “Sims benchmark”, almost all office software suites will run well. Resource-intensive applications for technical work are best left on a private computer, but if you must use these on your home desktop PC, then use the specifications on these software applications as a guideline when you buy a computer for the family.

Rule #4: Anti-virus Protection

Antivirus software on the home computer is crucial. You have no idea what viruses your children (or parents!) could inadvertently transfer to your computer via memory sticks or negligent downloads, so it is best to be protected.

Rule #5: Aesthetics

Simply put, the computer you choose has to look good. It needs to fit in with your personal style, match your décor, and not take up more space than you can afford it to.

The Actual Purchase

Now that you know the elements to look for in a good home computer, let’s look for the computers that fit these criteria. Thankfully, most retailed computers come with anti-virus software built in, and if you buy from a big manufacturer, you’re invariably guaranteed some level of after-purchase support. Hewlett-Packard is the largest technology company in the world, and with good reason. It has managed to strike a perfect balance between product and price, as well as developing one of the biggest service networks in all of the computing industry. The Pavilion series of desktop computers is a reflection of this, in being tailor-made for the budgetary and functional needs of a family without compromising on looks.

The Packard Bell iXtreme X6620 UK is better suited for a family that has somebody who plays intensive games or runs resource-heavy applications. This unit, priced at £573, runs the gamut of everything a family will need in a computer while also being extremely attractive.

A computer buying family needs to do what families always do: figure out needs and wants and determine, as a team, what is best for everybody. Thankfully, modern day computing has eliminated the need for extensive know-how.

Stealth Computer, a leading manufacturer of specialized miniature PCs and computer peripherals, has recently unveiled its new mini PC called LPC-625F, which is ideal for use in mission critical operations. The Stealth LPC-625F boasts of its strength and fan-less assembly. You don’t have to worry about its maintenance too much as it can face bumpy roads and accidental drops, dust and moisture. The LPC-625F has got an aluminium rugged chassis that itself acts as a heat sink of the device, thus there is no need to install a dedicated noisy fan for cooling. The aluminium chassis also acts as the key factor behind the ultra-light form factor of the LPC-625F.

The LPC-625F is optimised for military computing, rugged operations and other mission critical solutions. It is basically meant for system integrators who crave a strong, durable and fanless computer. That’s right, the LPC-625F doesn’t need a fan, nor will need something like the CoolerMaster NotePal P1 laptop cooling fan either, as the Stealth mini PC can cool itself without making an noise or overheating. The LPC-625F is an ideal product for demanding applications used within various verticals such as Industrial, Commercial, Scientific Research, Military, Public Safety, Utility, Transportation, mining and Telecommunications markets. It assures unsurpassed performance, reliability and top notch durability every time you are set for work.

The LPC-625F is built around Intel’s Penryn family of Core 2 Duo Mobile processor technology with ample amount of main memory and performance boosters integrated within the circuit. It’s a very small sized PC and measures 7.9 by 7.9 by 2.4 inches only. For mobile workers it’s a boon as it offers myriad of connectivity ports and interfaces. These include Gigabit LAN, 8-USB 2.0, 1-Serial, 1-eSATA 1-DVI, 1-HDMI and Audio 7.1 ports and Wi-Fi 802.11g (optional). You can opt for up to 4GB of memory and 500GB 2.5-inch high-shock hard drive. The LPC-625F can be run on both Windows and Linux OSes.

Data security is the latest concern of all organisations that deploy lots of computing machines, both fixed and mobile, on a network. To make the stored information more secure, security experts are looking forward to upgrading from partial disk encryption to full disk encryption. The new technology is likely to be adopted this year. But is the full disk encryption alone enough to prevent an data breaches?

The definite answer is NO. Although a full disk encryption will offer tighter security but it has its own limits and to be purely effective this technology demands a few substantial changes in the company’s security management policies and user behaviour. After all what’s the use of encrypting all the folders on a PC if the user still pen down his passwords and other hard to remember yet sensitive information on a note pad or card and keeps it in his Belkin laptop sling bag! Some users also store their passwords in their mobile in the form of sticky notes that ca be captured accidentally (or deliberately) via electronic cameras and other surveillance devices.

Therefore it’s necessary to have a security management with high level credentials to match it with full disk encryption expectations. Right from a simple USB port blocking solution to sophisticated digital rights management, all is needed to compliment a full disk encryption deployment and once it’s done the full disk encryption will be the number one security solution of 2009.

International Business Machines (IBM) has announced that it is developing the world’s most powerful computer for the US government. The machine will be known as Sequoia and will have the power of two million laptops. That’s unbelievable but true. Sequoia is being developed to bolster the American nuclear capabilities. The US Department of Energy will receive it by 2011.

Sequoia system will be able to run the most complex computer simulations and will be of great help in nuclear research. 1.6 million microprocessors will be responsible for its super computing speed of 20 quadrillion calculations per second. According to IBM, more than $100 million will be spent on the development of the system. The size of the system will be gigantic and it will be kept in a very large sized building. The company also said that this will be most environment friendly system and will consume six megawatts of energy per year (the average power consumption of 500 US households). Sequoia will also be useful for research related to human genome, climate and astronomy.

The system will offer much more precise weather forecasts. The forecasters will be able to predict climatic conditions precisely for a small area (spread across 1km). The current weather forecasts are more localised as it targets areas measuring at least 10km in size. Currently the Sequoia possesses the same power as around 2 million Lenovo ThinkPad SL500 laptops. But given the rapidly advancing pace of computer technology, we are sure IBM will one day let organisations other than the US government make use of its groundbreaking technology

Consumers expect a lot from portable computing machines nowadays. The technology is growing at a fast pace and every company is focusing on enhancing its product line before its rivals do and to grab some more share of the market. Currently Panasonic is focusing on improving its two Toughbook laptops.

The company is going to revamp the Panasonic Toughbook 30 laptop and the Panasonic Toughbook 19 tablet notebook. These portable computing machines will now equip latest Intel processors, new management features and all the cutting edge technologies that are usually found in commercial offerings from Dell and Hewlett Packard. Panasonic will upgrade to newer Intel Centrino 2 mobile platform and will also incorporate the chip maker’s vPro management and security technology to offer unprecedented reliability and performance. Both the Panasonic ToughBook CF-30 and CF-19 will, however, retain many of their unique and desireable features. For instance, both laptops will keep all those rugged characteristics that make them ideal for use in strenous conditions

The Panasonic Toughbook 30 laptop is built around Intel Core 2 Duo SL9300 processor @ 1.6GHz. It can support up to 4GB of DDR II RAM and 160GB of shock resistant hard drive. It has also got touch-screen capabilities this time. The Panasonic Toughbook 19 tablet has got the same 4GB RAM. The upgraded feature in this model is the low-volt Intel Core 2 Duo SU9300 processor running at 1.2GHz.

Looking for a reliable Solid State Drive? Then look no further than the new Apex series SSDs. Developed by OCZ Technology, a leading provider of innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and computer components, the Apex series promises to deliver the most beneficial and reliable secondary storage upgrade to date.

The company has rolled out its new OCZ Apex SATA II 2.5” Solid State Drive (SSD) Series that offer the PC enthusiasts, system builders and mainstream computer users a cost-effective way of boosting their machine’s performance. Based on the flash technology, the Apex series SSDs are optimised to deliver mind blowing performance at less cost per gigabyte as compared to the traditional hard drives like the Western Digital Scorpio Black, for example. Apex series incorporates the latest storage technology and features internal RAID 0 architecture and enhanced controller. Apex SSDs are snappy devices and can speedily handle the data read/write operations. It can achieve a read speed of 230MB/sec and write speed of 160MB/sec.

Apex drives are ideal to use in laptops as it consume less power and like all the other SSDs it is completely shock and bump resistant. Available in storage capacities of 60GB, 120GB and 250GB these solid state drives comes with an affordable price tag and can be owned by a wide range of consumers.

New years a coming and so are New Year Resolutions , computer users around the world, weather you use a PC, Mac or if you just rely on your trusty laptop. There will always be room to improve something you do on your computer, so that it will be more reliable, run faster and be less prone to nasty viruses, Adware and Spyware attacks. So here are 5 New Year Resolutions for computer users to stick to over 2009

Don’t be skimpy on Virus protection, although free programs like AVG are pretty good these days, you will get much better protection by paying for your security, your ISP will also be able to beef up your security, for as little as £2.99 a month.

Adware, although virus programs do hunt out Adware there is nothing like being over protective of your computer so go to stopzilla.com and run some individual scans of your system.

Keep your Hard Drive Clean, regularly clean out your drive and store things either to CD or to an external drive, this will lessen the risk of bad ass viruses hiding in the back ground.

Get your hard drive to repair itself, most Windows users know they need to defragment their hard drive on a regular basis. However the amount of people that do this, or know what it means is pretty low, so get your computer to do it automatically, if you need help doing it have a look at this.

Finally here is one that all home computer users can do “Learn more about your computer.” The kids get bored of having to help Mum and Dad use the family computer, so try and teach yourself a bit, if not take a course. There are plenty of free computer courses available throughout the country.

So they you have it a few New Year Resolution suggestions for computer users in 2009, hope it helps and Happy New Year.

The Sony Vaio AW125J/H is the least expensive laptop in its class to come with a Blu-ray drive. Because of its awesome hardware configuration and large 18 inch display, it clearly beats competitors like the HP HDX18 and the Acer Aspire 8920.

The Sony Vaio AW125J/H comes equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.26 GHz processor embedded on the high speed Mobile Intel P45 Express chipset, which lets its users multitask with ease. The memory is quite decent as well with 4 GB of DDR II SDRAM @ 800MHz that smoothly runs the laptop with its pre-installed Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit Edition) operating system. If you still want more then you can double the RAM. These high-end specs demonstrate how the laptop belongs to Sony’s advanced AW series, which also includes even more high-powered computers like the Sony Vaio VGN-AW11XU/Q at its upper echelons. Apart from this, the AW125J/H includes sophisticated graphics performance with its integrated 512MB Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics adapter. This ensures that you are already well equipped for all the latest next gen games.

This laptop is also a perfect companion for those who love to enjoy and carry high definition media along with them. The 320GB hard drive offers enough room to accommodate all kinds of digital content, and a running speed of 7200rpm assures quick read/write operations. The 16:9 aspect ratio gives the user a maximum viewable area on the 18 inch screen. The Vaio AW125J/H also features a number of different interfaces to support a wide range of devices. It supports IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 EDR and USB and much more.

Nowadays smartphones are really getting smart enough to perform a large number of computing tasks. Smartphones like the Apple iPhone 3G, T-Mobile G1, Blackberry Bold, HTC Touch, HP Data/ Voice messenger, E-Ten phones and many more, are capable of high speed internet surfing and executing web based tasks. With such a scenario, analysts are speculating that relatively soon consumers will prefer smartphones over their personal computers.

This is naturally because smartphones are far more portable when it comes to internet usage. The mobile world is just offering more sophisticated phones day by day, which promise to fulfill the needs of the next generation of computing enthusiasts. According to a survey, the amount of mobile internet connections will incredibly grow up to 5.8 billion till 2013. Practically every smartphone released today, like the HTC Touch Pro Raphael, for example, offer a whole host of features that rival small laptops. Mobile manufacturers and wireless carriers are continually upgrading their offerings, which results in the evolution of super phones that support instant messaging, social networking, newsreaders, office applications and much more.

According to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, “You know, one of our entrants into that category, if you will, is the iPhone. For browsing the Internet and doing e-mail and all the other things that a netbook lets you do. And being connected via the cellular network wherever you are, an iPhone is a pretty good solution for that, and it fits in your pocket.”

Greg Sterling, founding principal of Sterling Market Intelligence said, “The usage that iPhones have already had clearly validates the idea that smartphones will expand into PC territory. Opera confirmed to me over the phone that in places like India they’re seeing more usage from their mobile browsers than on the desktop.”