Build Your Own Computer: Blog
20Feb/12Off

How to choose a laptop: 5 top tips

With laptops outselling desktops for the last 4 years, it is becoming more and more likely that your next computer purchase will be a laptop. One of the biggest problems with this is the massive range of products available. It is often overwhelming how many choices there are. So here are a few tips to help you on your way to selecting a laptop.

1. Portability and Battery Life

One of the advantages of a laptop is that you can carry it around. Obviously, how powerful it is can affect how long you can carry it around for. More powerful components will also make a laptop heavier due to the need for extra cooling and higher voltages as well as a bigger battery. So when you buy your laptop, make sure you see whether it is light enough for your needs and look at the quoted battery life to see whether it fulfils your demands. Some laptops contain graphics switching to switch between a dedicated and integrated graphics card in order to provide a longer battery life when needed. This is another option however these laptops are often a bit more expensive than those without the feature. Netbooks also have a decent battery life and are highly portable but most people will find them horribly slow for everyday use

29Sep/09Off

Dell Announces Latitude Z with Wireless Charging

You've seen ultra-thin notebooks and you've seen large-screen notebooks but never have you seen an ultra-thin large-screen notebook. Well, now you have.

Tonight, Dell is launching the world's thinnest and lightest notebook with a 16-inch display. What's more, it's the world's first notebook to incorporate wireless charging. The Latitude Z is aimed at business users and will focus on security and usability rather than outright performance.

At about 1.25 centimetres thick and weighing 2 kilograms, the svelte-looking laptop achieves its thin profile by eschewing the DVD burner altogether; it's an external module that plugs in via a USB cable. Another way Dell has managed to shed size and weight is by using solid-state drives (SSDs). The SSDs are available in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities and, for the ultra paranoid, you can even have two of them in case the first one fails.

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The Latitude Z's external shell is finished in a matte "soft-touch" coating, available in a single colour called Black Cherry.

The stand-out feature, however, is its use of wireless induction charging. Instead of a cord, the Latitude Z can sit on a purpose-built stand designed to charge up its batteries without a physical connection. You'll pay for the privilege though; it will take 30 to 40 minutes longer to fully charge the battery and it's an optional extra that will set you back $395.

The Latitude Z can also recognise your face using a FaceAware feature via the built-in webcam, which locks out the notebook to other users when you step away. The 2-megapixel webcam focuses automatically and can recognise contact details on a business card. A fingerprint scanner is a given but there's also a no-contact smartcard sensor next to the touchpad that can be configured to work with certain office security passes.

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