Top 2 Laptop Screen Tips When Hunting For a Cheap Laptop

When on the hunt for laptops under 200 there will be more than a few things to consider. Hard drives and ports can remain hidden inside your laptop, forever invisible. But a critical piece in buying a laptop, especially when concentrating on cheap laptops like laptops under 200, is focusing on one element that is impossible to hide. I’m talking about the screen.

Your laptop’s screen is important for many reasons, but here are two. Firstly, you will be gazing at this screen quite possibly for entire days at a time! Anything that you need to watch for such a prolonged period needs to be given some thought. The subject of screen resolution can sometimes cause confusion. It might help if you can think of it like you do with regular televisions. Old screens, TV and desktops, were more square (4:3 aspect ratio), however today’s flat screens are wider (16:9 aspect ratio).

Now, as you might suspect, it is a touch more technical than this with a host of resolutions around depending on laptop model. In reality, though, I’ve never encountered a single individual who actually spends much time worrying over the specs of their laptop’s screen. Any differences will be tiny to the normal user who uses the laptop for typical activities like email and social networking. I do realize that the screen is important, but really, screens are incredibly comparable when looking at laptops. And today, even with laptops under 200, the screen is going to come in the 16:9 widescreen format. This alone will make your experience more enjoyable, like watching movies or TV episodes while on the go.

By all means explore the specs, but if you’re not inclined or don’t feel you want to make this a hobby, there’s no need to lose sleep. Just find a screen that appeals to your eyes and you can essentially move on.

Lately a new twist is available for your laptop screen: glossy or matte. Glossy screens seem to have enhanced contrast and come across as looking a little sharper. But there’s a cost with having such a glossy surface. Be definition these screens are highly reflective, which can impair screen readability.

It comes down to personal preference, but just remember: it’s tough to love your beautiful screen when it’s barely visible because of glare. For my money, I prefer the matte screen. It’s not as dramatic, but you can use your laptop sitting at a coffee shop window and avoid a lot of frustration. One final point: the quality of the matte screen is still beautiful.

Now, the other reason your laptop screen size is important is it will dictate the ultimate size of your laptop. This seems straight forward, but as you’ll see in a second, it has some bigger implications. Laptop screens can be found in a multitude of sizes. What you’ll probably find is: 11 inches or so for netbooks and other smaller devices; 15 inches for what is basically a standard size; and 17 inches for desktop replacement.

Just remember, the larger the screen, the larger the body of your laptop. You might think this is obvious but a lot of people hunt for a laptop thinking they need the biggest screen size possible, all the while not realizing that they will be carrying this behemoth everywhere they go.

If you’re replacing your desktop with a laptop, then the larger screen size won’t be an issue. Otherwise, portability definitely suffers. Be a smart shopper and avoid this pitfall. Consider what you’ll use your laptop for and only then click the buy button. Following this approach, you will enjoy your laptop for years.


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