There is a wide range of laptop computers available on the market today and buying the right machine can turn into a confusing mission. Don't get ripped off. Don't buy old specs laptops

If you are looking for notebook computers, it would be best if you have at least a basic knowledge on a computer's specifications. Avoid wasting money on old laptop models with inferior specifications. It's important to have an idea on what are just the right laptop specs for you. If you will use the laptop for simple word processing and Internet surfing, you need not get the more expensive ones that have over powerful specifications. If you'll use software and games that demand a high graphic card, you have to get the more expensive ones with powerful video cards and faster RAMs.

There are laptop computers intended for home users, multimedia, business and gaming. The very first step you need to do is to determine your needs.

If you spend a lot of time traveling, your best option is a light laptop with a long battery life.

If you are an average home user, you can easily find a low-range laptop with a reasonable price of $500.

If you use the Internet a lot or store photographs and videos, you choice should be a mid-range laptop that will cost you from $1,000 to $1,500. But if plan to purchase a gaming laptop, be ready to pay more than that.

Look at the following categories:

 - Processor is the most important thing to take into consideration. Intel Pentium M, Mobile AMD Athlon 64 and AMD Turion 64 Mobile are high-powered processors. Intel's Celeron M and AMD's Duron and Sempron are processors found in low-end laptops.

Avoid desktop processors in laptops because they need a lot of power and will quickly exhaust your battery.

- Screen sizes range from 12 to 19 inches. A laptop computer with smaller screen is great option if you do not plan to use laptop too much. A larger screen is perfect for extensive use.

- Your new laptop should have at least 1 gigabyte of memory. Also, your machine should come with a dedicated video card with 128 megabytes of memory.

- Choose a faster hard drive with at least 60GB of space. This is sufficient for the majority of users. Gamers should get at least 100 GB hard drive.

There is a wide range of laptop computers available on the market and this is just some basic information that has, hopefully, helped you a better choice of a laptop computer.