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The Smart Computer Buying Guide For Microsoft
Processors By now you have probably figured out on your own that a quad core processor is faster than a dual core processor, but lets take a look at what they really are and how that relates to your home computing habits. A quad core processor has four individual central processing units while a dual core has only two, but there are very few programs available on the market that can keep four processors working simultaneously. Now, the extra computing power does come in handy when you’re watching a movie and defragmenting your hard drive at the same time, but that does not mean that you should spend excess money in order to be able to do so. Quad core processors also require a much stronger power supply and generate a lot more heat, which means it is much more likely to fry your motherboard or cause problems down the road. Memory (RAM) One of the most frustrating aspects of upgrading or purchasing a new computer system is dealing with the memory, because the manufacturers intentionally switch up the standard every few years so the older RAM is not compatible with newer motherboards. Memory is specifically categorized by the speed at which it runs (in megahertz or MHz), and it will be generalized by its adapter type (DDR, DDR2, or DDR3). Unless you’re building a custom system you’ll have to purchase additional memory which fits the included motherboard, and on current systems anything under 4 GB of DDR2 will struggle to properly run Windows 7 or Vista. Video Cards The video card is what allows a monitor to refresh the image on your computer monitor, and experts will tell you that a strong video card is more important than the ultimate speed of the processor when it comes to gaming or watching movies. The standard at which video cards are judged is by their overall frame rate; the higher the number, the better. Video card manufacturers release their products using NVIDIA or Radeon chipsets and they are sequentially numbered throughout their release dates, so an 1180 model would be newer than a 950. Terms like GS and GT are also used to differentiate over-clocked models, which normally perform at levels much higher than their normal counterparts. Hard Drives There are two main figures that you’ll have to be familiar with when looking at hard drives; the storage capacity (GB or TB) and the speed at which it can transfer data (RPM). A thousand and twenty-four gigabytes equals one terabyte, and 1 TB is currently the standard size being included in new computer systems. This is normally excessive however; since approximately 250 full length movies or 250,000 MP3’s can fit on a drive that size. Multimedia Drives On today’s market Blu-Ray is the standard at which movies are being distributed, but that does not mean that you want to burn music or data to that type of disk. Ultimately you should look for a Blu-Ray/DVD burner that can also read and copy CD’s, or two separate drives are also suitable to handle the various tasks. There are also multimedia readers available that can read many different formats of camera and cellular phone cards, and these devices retail for about $10 and can be added as an accessory after your purchase. Overall multimedia drives are very inexpensive and should not be used as a focal point when purchasing a computer. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com To get special discounts when purchasing computer systems from Microsoft and to find great money saving coupons on Xbox and other Microsoft products, visit MoneyJibe’s Microsoft Coupons page. Coupons typically include free shipping on PCs and Xbox consoles, plus extra savings on the Xbox game of the week. Additional discounts are provided each month on a variety of hardware items including notebooks, laptop cases and software. |
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