An often overlooked brand of computers is the Lenovo range which provide excellent value for money with a vast array of specs.  Two such models are:

Lenovo G575L (1699AED)

• AMD Dual_Core E-350 Processor 1.6 GHz
• AMD Radeon HD 6310 Graphics
• Genuine Windows 7 Basic
• RAM – 4Gb DDR3
• Hard drive:  500GB

Lenovo IdeaPad Z575 (2199AED)

• AMD Quad-Core A6-3400M APU
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
• RAM – 4 GB DDR3
• Hard drive 750GB
• 15.6″ High Def. Glare with intergrated camera

These laptops can be found at Carrefour.

1. Sharaf DG

2. Plugins

3. Jackys

4. CompuME

5. Carrefour

6. Jumbo

The last three stores can be found in the Mall of the Emirates.

Laptops are an essential asset for most people especially students and business people.  Laptops are used for different reasons and therefore buying one depends on what you want its primary function to be.  However, there are few basic things that you need to look out for in order for the laptop to function best.

Good screen resolution should be checked.  Most laptops do not offer great color production and this is never an issue for someone who just wants to do word processing and surf the internet.  If you love good gaming, watching videos and editing photos, a laptop with good color production is best for you.

You should get an excellent processing speed that you can afford. Whatever the purpose of the laptop is, a good processing speed is best for optimum functioning of the device.  Intel Pentium processors are the best as they also enhance a longer battery life.

You should select a laptop with the screen size that you deem fit. For movie lovers, mini-laptops are not the best. A 17 inch laptop is standard and ideal for most people. vWide-screen laptops offer sharper and clearer images.

A laptop with ample memory is the best.  This is for storage of your software like the operating system and office package.

The memory should also allow storage of other miscellaneous applications. If you are a student or a busy businessman, ensure that you have ample memory for storage of documents and files.  RAM should be enough too. An ideal RAM capacity is 1GB. This is to enhance proper gaming, video editing, your graphics work and image editing.

Slots for all reasons are ideal.  These will enable you to connect a variety of compatible peripheral devices. You can at least connect your laptop to a TV, a projector, your phone or your digital camera.

The type of keyboard should be considered.  As laptops reduce in size, so does the keyboard.  It is important to check where important keys like the control, shift, space bar and delete keys are.  Laptops purchased in Dubai will most probably have Arabic characters. 

 Laptop keyboards have a touch pad which functions as a mouse.  Test the functionality of the touch pad.

Laptops with Local Area Network and a wireless connection give you a whole new dimension in surfing the web.

Battery life should be looked at.  A good laptop should have a long-lasting battery. The best battery is the Lithium-ion batteries.  These have replaced the nickel-cadmium batteries.

Top quality laptops in Dubai can be bought from a number of electronic stores.

Take a close look at this laptop range available now.  The specs look exactly the same, but the price is considerably different.

And that’s because the 3170s hold a powerful Quad core processor (i7-720QM) that is super fast when using software that will make use of it’s four cores and 8 threads.  For instance during HD video encoding and high end gaming.

If you want a laptop for everyday use then go with the cheaper 3140.

3170/71/72/73   3,999AED

• Intel Core i7-720QM Processor 1.6GHz
• Windows 7 Home 64bit
• 4Gb Ram
• 500Gb SATA Hard Disk Drive 7200rpm
• 15.6″ High Definition LED display
• Microsoft Office Starter 2010

3140/41/42/43   2,999AED

• Intel Core i5-460M Processor 2.53GHz
• Windows 7 Home 64bit
• 4Gb Ram
• 500Gb SATA Hard Disk Drive 7200rpm
• 15.6″ High Definition LED display
• Microsoft Office Starter 2010

Both from Jacky’s Electronics.

The latest 64bit Sony Vaios are out and they come in a variety of colours and speeds.

The VPC-S135FA/B comes with Windows 7  Home Premium 64 bit, loaded with 4Gb of Ram and a 320gb Hard drive.  With a 13.3″ screen it’s a steal at 4,195 AED.

If you prefer a larger screen then check out the VPC-EB36FA.  It houses a 15.5″ screen, Windows 7 64 bit, 4Gb of Ram and a 500GB hard drive.  Available in Black and White and priced at 3,595AED.

Or if you’d like something inbetween, the 14′ Sony Vaio VPC-EA35FA is available for 3,495AED and comes with a 14′ screen, Windows 7 Home 64bit, 4Gb of Ram adn 320gb hard drive. 

Available in Black, White, Pink.

These Sony Vaios are all available from Jacky’s Electronics.

Although strictly not a laptop, the Apple IPAD is fast becoming the gadget of the year.  Light weight and a speedy boot up, the ipad coupled with a wireless keyboard (or fold out keyboard) is an excellent laptop replacement. 

Some favourite and useful apps to download and install (particulary if you’re a frequent traveller) on the ipad are:

Citrix receiver (excellent for business enterprise use)

Evernote (store, record, search for notes, business cards, upload files, photos and sync across multiple platforms)

Pages (Apple’s Word document equivalent)

Zinio(a fantastic app to download magazine subscriptions).

Where to pick up an IPAD in Dubai:  all major electronic stores stock them.  The 32Gb with 3g is currently going for 3600AED at CompuME, but check out the small kiosks doted around the Mall of the Emirates for even cheaper prices. 

Apple Keyboards can be bought at the same places for around 380 AED.

This is the perfect device for writers and bloggers because it does not come with a built in LAN card which means you don’t spend all day browsing the internet when you should be writing.

It does, however, come with WiFi support and a USB LAN dongle, so you can connect to the internet if you really need to.

• Processor Speed: 400Mhz
• OS: Linux
• Screen size: 7″
• Hard Drive: 1Gb NAND Flash storage
• Ram: 128Mb

At less than 1kg, the ASUS EEEPC is your ultimate travel companion. Perfect for the aspiring travel writer, wildlife photographer, or global jet setter. With a solid state hard drive, the ASUS is ready for all the bumps and bruises that come with a life on the go.

“Due to its lightweight stature, most users will place the Eee PC on their laps or hold them in their hands during use. With the addition of new user-friendly features, users will find it even more convenient to use the Eee PC.” Jerry Shen, CEO of ASUS.

• Processor Speed: Intel Mobile CPU
• OS: Windows XP Home
• Memory: 1Gb
• Hard Drive: 12Gb SSD
• Display: 8.9” Display, 1024 x 600 resolution
• Wireless: Built-in 802.11b/g
• Power: Output: 12V, 36W; Input: 100-240V AC, 50/60Hz universal
• Webcam: 1.3 MP camera
• Storage cards: SD / MMC (SDHC)

The ASUS eeePC is not only light and mobile, it is cheap. Check it out at:

SharafDG for AED 1799

The sleek and sexy A300 series provides users with a 15.4″ TruBrite WXGA TFT High Brightness display.

And what on earth does that mean you may ask?

It means it is super clear and safe on your eyes when confronted by glare. Designed for the home user, this sexy beast will run equally well at the office (although you may have to upgrade to Vista Business or check out the Satellite Pro U300-15T for AED900 cheaper, and have Vista Business preinstalled).

• Processor Speed: Intel Centrino Core 2 Duo T8300 (2.4Ghz, 3Mb 2nd level cache)
• OS: Vista Home Premium
• Screen size: 15.4″
• Hard Drive: 250Gb
• Ram: 3Gb
• Optical Drive: DVD RW Super Multi Drive
• Wireless: Yes
• Bluetooth: Yes
• Built in Webcam: Yes
• Extras: 1 yr international warranty

Jumbo Electronics: AED 5695

Plug-Ins: AED 5695

Jackys Electronics: AED 5695

Looking to work in Dubai? Look no further than Dubai Jobs Info

You can’t get much cooler and lighter than the Apple MacBook Air. Sit in a internet enabled Dubai cafe and all eyes will be on you and your new 1.36kg apple notebook. It’s not only fast and reasonably priced for a Mac – it’s environmentally friendly. Getting the big thumbs up by Greenpeace (and us here at Laptops in Dubai for its use of arsenic free glass substrate used in its 1280×800 pixel screen, and PVC free internal cables. Now that’s something to mention to awe struck cafe patrons!

• Processor Speed: Intel Core 2 Duo, 1.8Ghz
• OS: Apple Leopard 10.5
• Screen size: 13.3″
• Hard Drive: 80Gb
• Ram: 2Gb DDR2
• Optical Drive: DVD RW
• Wireless: Yes
• Bluetooth: Yes
• Built in Webcam: Yes
• Extras: Remote Control

Stockists:

CompuMe AED 9599