What should be a modern laptop: how to choose, what to look for

In modern laptops, the details correspond to the loads from the programs that are used now. Programs are becoming heavier, you need a responsive hard drive and a more powerful processor to make them work quickly. Only if there is enough RAM can you simultaneously view multiple tabs in the browser and work with multiple programs without freezing. The requirements for laptops are gradually increasing.

Choosing a notebook by purpose

First, determine what you need a laptop for. In accordance with the purpose, a modern laptop should have certain characteristics:

• A gaming laptop requires a powerful Intel Core i7, i9 or AMD Ryzen 5, 7, 9 processor. It is good if there is an «H» at the end of the marking. It shows that the processor will run at full power. You need 12-16 Gb of RAM and a discrete graphics card, Full HD or 4K screen resolution, IPS or OLED matrix.
• Notebook for designers and photographers, in addition to the above-mentioned characteristics, you need a large amount of storage, preferably from 1 Tb and a large screen.
• Notebook to work with office programs do not require processor power and memory size. You can use a mobile video card, but the screen should be of such a quality that the text was easy to read and was protected by the eyesight.
• The laptop for the Internet should have at least 4 GB of RAM. Storage capacity of 256 GB is enough for photos and documents.
• For different tasks - not too heavy games, amateur photo processing, working with documents and watching movies need a versatile laptop with average values of all characteristics. RAM from 6 GB, better 8 GB. Memory is preferably not less than 500 GB, so that the system can easily work with several programs simultaneously and you don't have to frequently delete unnecessary files to clear space.

General criteria

Regardless of the purpose of the laptop pay attention to such indicators:

• Hard drive. SSD is necessary for the fast operation of programs. HDD is suitable as additional storage for files from the slower operation. SSD capacity is needed at least 256 GB, the average option - 500 GB.
• RAM capacity. With a larger than average RAM capacity, the speed of the laptop does not increase significantly. This affects the ability to process data simultaneously without freezing. It is not worth overpaying for excessive RAM if you do not need to work simultaneously with several very powerful programs with a lot of heavy video and photos.
• Autonomy. It depends on the battery capacity, the power of the processor and graphics card. The more they consume resources, the faster the device runs down. Battery life on average is 4-5 hours. If you need more battery life, there are models that can last 15-18 hours without recharging and even more.
• Screen diagonal: for working with documents and watching movies may be enough from 13.3 to 15 inches, designers and gamers need a screen of 17 inches.
• Resolution. For daily tasks suitable resolution of at least 1920 x 1080, for designers preferably 2880 x 1800, for gaming models - 4K.

You can make a list of key parameters of the laptop and their data for their tasks. Knowing the necessary characteristics, you can go looking for a suitable model. Even if you do not meet the ideal in full compliance with the list, are determined with the most important positions and in the choice are based on this.