The best way to buy an old laptop

You can't afford a genuine "boxer" laptop, but really need a laptop. So secondhand laptop will be the best solution. However, you need to be very careful when choosing to buy used equipment.

Processor

The first thing to note when buying a laptop is the processor, the brain of the entire laptop (laptop). Most laptops in Vietnam and Asian markets use Intel microprocessors. Therefore, when choosing to buy a device, you need to request an Internet connection, preferably with both wired (LAN) and wireless (Wi-Fi) lines. Once you have connected to the Internet, simply go to Intel's website and download the utility program to determine the Intel processor model.

The software will inform you about speed and processor model, system bus speed, Cache Memory .

After installing and running, the software will accurately notify the speed and model of the processor being used on the machine, the system bus speed (system bus) as well as the capacity and type of cache (cache memory) . If any of these parameters are different from the seller's promotional referrals, switch to finding another device, since Intel's program detects all cases of speeding up or "changing their name". Processor.

TFT screen

After the processor chip, the laptop's screen is the second important part to check. Sometimes, you will not be able to see pixel dead errors (dead pixels)

Dead pixels will not display some colors or all colors.

on the screen if the seller intentionally uses dark or detailed backgrounds. To check, you can download Dead Pixel Locator software to display the entire screen in turn in different colors.

There are pixels of the screen that die with all colors, but there are points that don't show some colors. Therefore, Dead Pixel Locator will help detect all "dead" pixels on the LCD screen of a laptop or plasma screen. The program does not need to be installed and can be run, you just need to click on the color picker button and observe the entire screen to see if there are any unusual color dots.

When there are any dead pixels detected on the screen, it is best to try to choose another one, because the screen with a pixel error is often used quite a lot, coming to the time when many pixels die.

Windows XP operating system

Most modern laptops use Windows XP. It doesn't matter if you buy a "messy" laptop. But if advertised as a new surfing product, with a warranty stamp, it is best to check whether the Windows XP version is copyrighted at http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/ downloads / whyValidate.aspx.

If the laptop has reinstalled Windows and does not have the copyright, it shows that its history is somewhat complicated, since there is no original Windows copyrighted disk, or much has been used, Windows has errors, the machine has ever encountered incident

Worthwhile experience

Often laptop manufacturers with famous brands such as IBM, HP, Sony, Toshiba . have standard configurations for each model. Just flip the bottom of the notebook secondhand you intend to buy, search Google on that product code on the manufacturer's website, you will know if the laptop's hardware configuration has been changed.

Well-known laptop manufacturers also have specialized software to check whether the entire configuration is genuine or not, check battery quality, time used, time of using the device with battery power.

More visually, you can observe the angle of the machine or rubbing with the bag and the hand (when used) that has worn the paint coating, whether or not the paint has been removed or not, the screws with the signs have been removed. is not. Another detail that can be easily observed is the rubber base of the laptop. Users often have a habit of moving laptop locations rather than lifting up to move. Therefore, if you see a worn-out rubber stand, it can be determined that the machine has been used for a long time.

In addition, when choosing to buy an old laptop, you should also take a scratched old DVD or VCD to try the DVD / VCD drive. Time to recognize the disc quickly means that DVD drive is still good and vice versa.

Finally, when I tested the programs that required good configuration compatibility such as processing large images on PhotoShop or AutoCad drawings and found the speed stable, not jerky, hanging, you should open a program edit text like Word, then type all keys on the keyboard to make sure no key positions are paralyzed or sensitive. These are very easily overlooked details, but greatly affect the efficiency of the machine.

Minh Phong