How to buy a pc

¿Are you thinking of getting a pc and don’t know where to start? Well, in this post “How to buy a pc” I am going to explain some features and tips that you should know when buying a computer.

Use of the pc

The first thing to consider is the use you will give your computer. The goal is to get the most out of it and adjust the budget. It is not feasible to leave a lot of money and then not use half of the hardware or software we have purchased. But it is also important to consider the medium-long term so as not to be too short and make the most of our purchase.

In my opinion and as an experience, I am not in favor of choosing a cheap PC. There is a saying that says “cheap is expensive”. Therefore it is better to invest a little more and buy a good pc than to regret it later.

Actually, in most cases, computers are sold for personal use, either for home use or professional use in an office and the most common thing today is that it is a laptop.

If you’re a geek maybe you’re not even reading this article, because you already know all about hardware and software and have preferred to mount your super tower piece by piece, partition your hard drive to install your Linux, etc. And I don’t see it wrong, I did it back in the day. But when it comes to buying a laptop, things change and it is not feasible to buy it in pieces, in my opinion. They are already sold very well equipped laptops and at competent prices ready for use. I recommend you look at the Amazon website.

Therefore, below I will show you the minimum characteristics that you have to consider, both hardware and software.

Hardware features

• CPU processor: It is the brain of the pc and the most important part. It is what causes the price to increase along with the RAM and the hard drive. The most common brands are Intel and AMD. I would choose the Intel brand, between Intel Core i5 and Intel Core i7, with a minimum of 4 cores.

• RAM Memory: It is the main memory of the computer, and the higher the RAM, the higher the speed of information processing. I recommend about 8GB of RAM onwards.
• Hard disk: It is the component where the information is permanently stored. The most common today are HDD (Hard Drive Disk) and SSD (Solid State Drive). Obviously, I’m sticking with SSD, which are faster. And of capacity, since from 512 GB or 1 TB we are left over. If in the future you lack capacity, you can choose to buy an external hard drive.
• Motherboard: It is the component where the internal devices of the pc are connected.

• Graphics card / Video card: It is in charge of optimally displaying information on the screen. It can be integrated in the cpu or on the motherboard. It can also be dedicated, that is, it is a separate CPU and motherboard device. If you are going to dedicate yourself exclusively to design, better choose a dedicated card.
• Screen: From about 15 “is usually enough.
• Network card and Bluetooth: These are usually already integrated in the motherboard.
• Camera, microphone and speakers: These are usually integrated into the laptop and have adequate quality.
• Keyboard and mouse: These are usually integrated in the laptop. But it is recommended to have an external and wireless mouse.
• Connections: At a minimum, to be up to date you must have connections USB 3.0, USB 2.0, Audio combined, HDMI, RJ45, 4-in-1 card reader.
• Other external components: If you need to scan and print documents, I recommend a multifunction printer. There are for about 60€ that are very good.

I recommend some hardware products:

Software Features

Mandatory programs:

• Operating system: To suit the consumer, but nowadays most laptops already have the Windows 10 Home version installed.
• Antivirus: Windows 10 has an antivirus called Windows Defender that works very well. If you want you can install a payment antivirus.
• Web browser: Depends on the operating system, by default it usually contains one already installed.

Programas opcionales:

• Ofice automation: Microsoft Office o Libre Office.
• Photo editing: Gimp, Adobe Photoshop.
• Vídeo and audio: Windows Media Player, Adobe Premiere, Wondershare Filmora, etc.
• Comunication: Skype, Teams, etc.

I recommend some software products:

In short, you can get a good laptop from 700€. At the end, quality comes with a price.

The brands I recommend are Acer, Lenovo, Asus, Dell y HP.

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I hope you liked this tutorial “How to buy a pc“.

Thanks for reading and see you next time!