Date: July 29, 2005
Subject: Mobile Computing

No longer a luxury for the business executive today's laptop is affordable, powerful and more than likely the only computer that most mobile workers will use. With this month's bulletin we give you the information you need to purchase your next laptop and briefly discuss the popular Pocket PC and the up-and-coming Tablet PC technologies. We also include a flyer showing just some of the laptop computers that ELM can supply to you at very reasonable cost.

A - Laptop Computers - The most popular computer format today is the laptop. With near desktop performance, reasonable pricing and the ability to do serious computing in any location the laptop is fast becoming the workhorse of businesses of every description.

What to look for in a laptop computer:

1 - Power - The first consideration when purchasing a new laptop is how much power do you need. The speed of the CPU (Central Processing Unit) is the chief factor in performance but less so than several years ago. Today the way the CPU makes use of its speed is equally important: Is high power and low battery life more important than moderate power and excellent battery life? Most laptops are built around one of three CPU types manufactured by either Intel or AMD (American Micro Devices):

a - Intel P4 or AMD Athalon CPUs offer performance nearly equal to that of the mid-range desktop but have very limited battery life, typically in the neighbourhood of one to two hours. Laptops with a P4 or Athalon CPU are excellent for users who are occasionally mobile but who desire mobile performance approaching that of a desktop.

b - Intel Centrino CPUs are a mobile P4 coupled with wireless networking and low battery consumption technologies. Centrino CPUs offer performance only slightly less than that of the P4 or Athalon based systems but have a battery life of three to four hours. Centrino based systems are ideal for users who are on the move but who desire to have an adequate amount of power and battery life at their disposal. By way of comparison a 1.7GHz Centrino laptop would have performance similar to a 3.0GHz P4 system.

c - Intel Celeron or AMD Sempron CPUs are commonly found in low end and entry level computers but are not ideally suited for use in business laptops. Celeron and Sempron CPUs are stripped down variants of their P4 and Athalon cousins, reducing cost with lower operating speeds and reduced internal resources. On desktops these CPUs are more than adequate for most business use but due to the design restrictions of the laptop's size and shape they often result in reduced performance. Celeron and Sempron laptops are ideal for students or as a second computer at home and adequate in non-intensive business use. By way of comparison a 3.0GHz Celeron laptop would have performance similar to a 2.4GHz P4 system.

2 - Operating System - In general your choice here will be limited to Windows XP Home, Windows XP Pro or Windows XP Media Centre Edition. While operating systems such as Linux have their advantages, because of software and data format incompatibilities they are not generally as useful to the average user as Windows XP.

a - Microsoft Windows XP Home is, as its name implies, an operating system designed for the average home user. As such it does not include the more advanced features required for operation in a business environment. For general home use, however, Windows XP Home is more than sufficient.

b - Microsoft Windows XP Pro is geared toward business use and combines all the features of XP Home with enhanced security, more efficient use of internal storage and the ability to connect to the typical office network. If the laptop will be used at all in a business environment it should have Windows XP Pro as it operating system.

c - Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition is an enhanced version of Windows XP Pro that includes special multi-media functionality but is generally most useful to the home user or to businesses with a high concentration on management and presentation of multi-media content.

3 - Memory - For basic business and home use the lowest recommended amount of memory (RAM) is 256Mb. For more intensive business use or graphics processing a minimum RAM of 512Mb is recommended. If the system will be used to process video and multi-media content on a regular basis 1Gb of RAM should be installed (1Gb = 1,000Mb).

 

4 - Display - Laptop screens typically range from 14" to 17", measured diagonally. A 15" screen is the most widely available with 14" screens usually appearing on entry level and ultra-portable laptops. The most widely available resolutions (horizontal pixels x vertical pixels) for laptop displays are listed below:

a - XGA - 1024 x 768

b - SXGA+ - 1400 x 1050

c - UXGA - 1600 x 1200

d - WXGA (Widescreen XGA) - 1280 x 800

e - WSXGA+ (Widescreen SXGA+) - 1680 x 1050

f - WUXGA (Widescreen UXGA) - 1920 x 1200

Standard laptop displays have screen proportions similar to those of a television screen while widescreen displays have screen proportions similar to those of a movie theatre screen.

 

 5 - Input/Output - As a minimum a laptop should have at least some combination of the following input and output options:

a - USB port - As almost all computer accessories require a USB port, look for a laptop with at least two USB ports so that you can connect at least two accessories, like a scanner and a printer) without having to resort to the purchase of a USB hub. Ensure that the laptop uses the USB 2.0 format rather than the older USB 1.1 format (which is significantly slower)

b - TV Out - If you plan on using a television set for presentations from your laptop you have two options:

1/ S-Video - high quality output but not available on older televisions or VCR equipment

2/ Composite (or RCA) - lower quality, but acceptable output, almost universal availability

c - Firewire - Firewire is a high speed communications medium used by many Digital Video cameras. Firewire is not essential unless you plan to use video equipment that has firewire capability.

d - Microphone/Headphone Jacks - As on stereo equipment these jacks allow you to connect an external microphone or a set of headphones to the laptop. Some laptops also provide a Line-In jack which permits them to record from external sources.

e - Infrared/Bluetooth - Provides short range wireless connections with external devices such as printers and hand held computers.

f - Wireless Networking - Wireless networking is currently available most commonly in one of two formats: 802.11b or 802.11g. 802.11g is five times faster than 802.11b, which is important when connecting to a network but makes no significant difference when connecting only to the internet as most internet connections these days operate at slower speeds than the 802.11b wireless speed.

g - CD/DVD Writer - Very convenient to transfer presentations to CD or DVD media for distribution and for making backups of critical data CD and DVD writers have become almost essential and are standard equipment on most laptops.

h - Mouse/Keyboard - Most modern laptop keyboards are good for touch-typing but it is a good idea to test the keyboard prior to your purchase if you can. Two types of mouse, or pointing device are used on laptops (as each is equally effective the choice is a matter of personal taste):

1/ Synaptics TouchPad - by far the most popular the TouchPad is a small rectangular touch screen below the keyboard over which you slide your finger to move the mouse.

2/ AccuPoint - A stick located between the G, H and B keys on the keyboard which you push in the direction you want to move the mouse.

B - Handheld Computers - When the original Palm handheld computer (with the Palm operating system) was introduced more than a decade ago it gained an appreciative audience among technically minded professionals and for years remained the most popular handheld format. With the proliferation of the Pocket PC (running a version of Windows specifically designed for handheld computers) almost anyone can carry in their hand computing power that would have filled a desktop not too long ago. The primary advantage of the Pocket PC is its completely compatible with standard Microsoft Office components such as Word, Outlook and Excel. Many handhelds also perform admirably as portable multi-media devices. Combine the Pocket PC with a wireless internet service and suddenly you have the same functionality in your hand as you do on your laptop computer, although with reduced performance and usefulness.

C - Tablet Computers - A combination of the laptop with the handheld computer tablets are typically smaller than laptops with a 12" display that is touch sensitive for data entry. Many tablets are actually small laptops with a display that reverses and folds down over the keyboard, combining the functionality of a laptop with the convenience of a tablet. Typically a tablet computer is more expensive and has less storage capacity and power than a laptop  computer since tablets are intended to be carried for extended periods and are designed for maximum battery life and minimum weight; but if you need a reasonably powerful computer that can go with you throughout the office or out onto the production floor a tablet is worth considering.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about this or any other issue.

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