No matter how many manufacturers of tablets and smartphones predicted the death of laptops, they are still alive today, and continue to develop rapidly in technical terms. As for sales, this is also good, and judging by the statistics, stability is observed in the segment. That is, people, like a couple of years ago, buy all kinds of laptops, but calmly and without excitement. The latter is more apparent in the smartphone segment, while laptops are quiet, measured and stable.
Despite such silence and the opportunity to think carefully about the choice, studying reviews and reviews, many consumers ask more general questions: what types of laptops are there, or which type is better than the other and why. Having defined more global criteria, then it is already possible to move on to specifics.
So, let's try to figure out what types of laptops are there, what you need to pay attention to before buying a device, and which manufacturers are better to stay in one case or another. We start by describing the situation around popular brands and continue with the main types of devices.
Manufacturers
There are a lot of conflicting opinions about choosing a brand, but almost all consumers agree that they need to stop at a time-tested manufacturer and those for whom laptop production is the main type of business, and full-fledged conveyor lines are reserved for it.
The list of popular and trusted brands is as follows:
- Lenovo
- HP;
- Dell
- "Acer";
- Asus
- MSI
- Apple
As for the last manufacturer, all types of Apple laptops stand apart, because they differ not only in the quality of the models and the availability of their own operating system, but also at prohibitive prices. Drawing an analogy between the technical characteristics of devices from the above companies and “apple” devices, we can say that the user in the latter case pays a good half of the cost precisely for the brand, and not for some kind of performance.
The situation on the computer equipment market
Taking into account the opinions of consumers and the statistics of independent reviewers, it is clear that literally all types of Asus laptops were distinguished by the best price to return ratio. That is, in this case, the user pays exactly what he receives. And although many consumers complain about the already annoying classic design of most of the company's models, there are no responses about the unjustified high cost of the device. So almost all types of Asus laptops are a great balance in price and quality.
The devices from Lenovo and Acer have always been noted as high-performance and thus justified their price. Of course, nimble laptops at a very reasonable cost are just a godsend for the consumer, but not everything is as rosy as it seems at first glance. Almost all types of laptops from Acer and Lenovo do not have the most flattering reviews about build quality.
If you do not take into account the flagship models and other premium class, then the reliability of the companies' devices, as well as their life expectancy, is slightly lower than that of the other venerable brands. So here we can say that almost all types of laptops from Acer and Lenovo are not intended for trips and serious tests, but for the most part they are “home” devices.
MSI and Dell also have problems, but users have not noticed any pronounced flaws. Separately, it is worth mentioning the products of Hewlett Packard. Those types of laptops from HP, which are located in the premium segment, showed excellent results in all respects: the technical component is good, and the cost is more or less acceptable.
But here reviews about models from the budget and mid-price categories are far from the most flattering. One gets the impression that the company relies only on the premium segment, and devices for other, less noble categories are stamped, as they say, for show. So, some inexpensive types of laptops from HP should be taken more closely and with a greater degree of skepticism, without looking back at the brand.
As for other manufacturers, the principle of lottery works here for the most part. That is, the characteristics of each model must be carefully weighed and analyzed, comparing it with devices from the above brands. For example, some models and even entire types of laptops from Samsung can be perfectly balanced in terms of price and quality. But this is rather an exception than a rule. Therefore, devices even from eminent, but slightly successful companies in another area, should be taken with special attention.
Next, we consider the main types of laptops that can be found on the computer equipment market.
Netbook
These are small devices characterized by their compactness and ease of use. This type of laptop (photo below) can be compared with a large tablet equipped with a keyboard. Due to its high cost in comparison with the same tablets, netbooks are not very popular among ordinary users.
As for the technical characteristics, this type of laptop is limited to a screen of 12.5 inches and a mediocre set of chipsets. Of course, playing serious toys does not work on a netbook, but it is not intended for this. The main advantage of such gadgets is mobility, ease of use and long battery life. The latter is just achieved due to the modest processor and the same video card.
The main consumers of this type of laptop are students, girls and business people. That is, users for whom it is household qualities that are important: write an essay, sit on social networks or view exchange statistics. The price tags on the model start at 15,000 rubles.
First level
Here we have the cheapest, as well as mediocre laptops. The above-mentioned brands are preferred to bypass this sector, and a good half of manufacturers are little-known or generally no-name companies.
The initial level is just the case when the saying "Avaricious pays twice" is true as never before. Having saved 15-20% of money and not having bought a normal device, you run the risk of getting a lot of problems, and a good half of them are critical and guaranteed by the low quality of the products.
In this segment, things are literally bad in everything: a mediocre screen, performance is sometimes lower than that of tablets, and the case itself is falling apart and cracking at the seams. Of course, in this heap you can also find a more or less sensible laptop, but only great luck and study of reviews on all models will help here, and there are a lot of them.
The main contingent of buyers of entry-level laptops is consumers with an extremely limited budget, as well as lovers of risky experiments. Price tags start at 9,000 rubles.
Budget models
This is a mass segment and the majority of skilled producers try to present their models in it, as they say, for sample testing. Budget laptops are mostly silent, because there is actually nothing to make noise there. Nevertheless, the performance of devices at a noticeably higher level than that of the same netbooks.
Budget models are designed to perform simple household and office tasks. Some devices are more expensive and can cope with serious games, even on minimal graphic presets. From this comes the second feature of this type of laptop - the lack of a discrete graphics card.
It is very difficult to determine the consumer in this category, because budget laptops are bought by almost everything, from students and other home / office users to demanding music lovers with businessmen. The price tags on the model start at 17,000 rubles.
Universal devices
This is a cross between budget and gaming laptops. That is, here we have very good performance, a good matrix with a normal response and a capacious battery. Such devices can be safely used not only for surfing the Web and multimedia, but also for solving more complex tasks.
Thanks to the presence of a discrete graphics card, universal laptops allow you to work with powerful graphic photo and video editors, as well as play games on medium graphics settings. Models from this segment are in demand by those who do not want to overpay for unnecessary gaming capabilities, but still want to join the gaming industry.
Universal laptops are also widely demanded in the professional environment of users, such as typesetters of media content. Price tags in this segment will start at 30,000 rubles.
Game models
Here we have uncompromising options for the most demanding category of users. The models are distinguished by a high-performance processor, a powerful discrete graphics card, as well as a large amount of RAM. All this is necessary in order to play modern games at medium and high settings.
But enviable performance has a downside. Gaming laptops are noisy and very hot, in addition, many users prefer to overclock the processor and RAM even more, which again affects the cooling system. Therefore, in a good half of cases, you will have to additionally purchase a special cooling pad.
It is also worth warning that gaming laptops are not a panacea for demanding games. Stationary computers of the same class are about one and a half times more powerful than their mobile counterparts. Desktops take on board more powerful and productive processors, and the motherboard works with two or more discrete graphics cards. Yes, and problems with overheating on stationary computers are noticeably less.
Some respected users on popular specific forums generally believe that as a class, full-fledged gaming laptops are simply untenable. For the money that you spend on a powerful gaming laptop, you can buy an "omnivorous" desktop computer, and to surrender some kind of budget model for mobility. The price tags for this group will start from the mark of 40,000 rubles.
Touch devices
This is a separate type of laptop, which, although actively, but with little success, is being promoted by venerable manufacturers of computer equipment. As such, there is practically no benefit from a touch screen with this form factor.
Specialists in this field call this segment intermediate and deserving of attention only partially. Yes, the next generation of the device will probably be able to supplement the sensor with some serious "trick", but so far we have just the original control and a lot of associated hassle.
The disadvantages of touch models outweigh their advantages. Here we have a high weight of devices, a modest set of chipsets, decent thickness, display dimming and a considerable number of vulnerabilities. A similar technique has found its application in the hands of artists, designers and users in other similar areas where the sensor plays a special role. And for ordinary consumers - this is a toy and nothing more. The cost of models starts at 13,000 rubles.
Ultrabooks
This group can be found mainly in the premium segment. Ultrabooks are distinguished, first of all, by their thin body and noiselessness. In addition, each manufacturer tries to bring something new, attractive and original to the exterior of the models, so a good half of ultra-thin laptops are noticeably more beautiful than their counterparts from other categories.
Retribution for the exclusivity of design, as always, fell on the shoulders of the price tag. If you look only at the technical specifications, then for the same money you can buy an intelligent universal device with good performance. But for those who care about the image, talking about it is completely optional.
With regard to specific performance indicators, such devices fully cope with office and household tasks. You can also run modern games on them, but be prepared to reset the graphics settings to the minimum values, because a more or less powerful discrete graphics card just does not fit in such a thin case.
Ultrabooks are bought mainly by business people who are very interested in the image, and other users who care about exclusivity and exceptional aesthetics. Prices for such devices start at 20,000 rubles.
Summarizing
Choosing a technique of such a plan, you must first identify the range of tasks that you are going to assign to the laptop. If you need a device for surfing the Web, working with office applications, multimedia or launching undemanding games, then the option “the more expensive, the better” will be clearly impractical.
In this case, it is not necessary to overpay for a high-performance set of chipsets. In addition, you need to understand that a powerful processor and a good graphics card automatically mean the same powerful battery. And this adds weight to the device and noise. The gamer will put on his headphones and play at his pleasure, and he does not care about extra decibels, but office work - printing and surfing, will turn into a headache.
It is also worth paying attention to the structural components. In obvious advantages, you can write a metal case (or at least with aluminum inserts) and resistance to wear, that is, scratches and other mechanical damage. If you are looking for a travel partner for yourself, then it is better to completely abandon the clean plastic, which bends and breaks. And most importantly, remember that sensible and high-quality equipment in all respects simply cannot be cheap, and buying mediocre models from the ultra-budget sector is more expensive.