Although there is a limitation, we can still make the distance be extended through an external wireless RF signal booster antenna attached through a suitable interface on a laptop to about 3 miles. This antenna can also be termed as a laptop wireless booster. The wireless antenna uses signal gain control technology to extend the range of transmission of RF signals. 

One more thing, we know that Bluetooth technology is a special application of wireless technology. It uses short-range RF signals at 2.4 GHz to achieve wireless signal transmission within a distance ceiling of 10 meters. Through Bluetooth technology, a laptop equipped with an integrated Bluetooth adaptor (laptop wireless connection interface) can be wirelessly connected to Bluetooth enabled cellphones or barcode readers or to a Bluetooth base station within the prescribed distance limitation and data or files shared or transferred mutually between the synchronized devices at the two ends of the connection. For the above to be achieved in practice, Bluetooth adaptors on devices at both ends of the connection need to be switched on and the necessary password permissions assigned on these devices.

The major advantage of a laptop wireless connection is ‘on the move’ seamless connectivity to the Internet, to wireless office networks, and to similarly equipped Bluetooth devices from a laptop. This provides convenience and independence to a mobile laptop user.

The benefits of a laptop wireless connection are manifold. Some of them include complete avoidance of unwieldy, expensive, and problematic wired connectivity on a laptop to achieve the same tasks, and wireless connection sharing facility among two or more laptops.

In the case of wireless connectivity to an office network from a laptop, wireless LAN on the laptop connects to a wireless office network through the internal antenna of an onboard integrated wireless LAN if so available on the laptop or alternatively through the antenna on the wireless LAN card if so available and inserted on the PCMCIA slot of a laptop. The wireless LAN or wireless LAN card alternatively on the laptop needs to be switched on and correctly configured as some of the prerequisite conditions for this connectivity. An option for laptop wireless connection to the Internet can be an external USB wireless modem attached on a USB port of a laptop. You can choose which one more confortable and more effective for you.

Bookmark to:

by: John Gall

Two years ago I needed a way to refresh more PC’s and Laptops at my company without spending more. New Dell laptops were great but expensive and over the years we had accumulated many Latitude C series parts. The C series ran from the CPX C600 C610 C400 and C640 models before their new D line of Latitude laptops were released. The docks, drives and many other parts are usable in any of these models so we decided to take advantage of this and purchase used Dell laptops. eBay was where we sourced these. Over the years I’ve learned some valuable things about buying these expensive items. Here are some tips and some recommendations of sellers I’ve found to be very reliable.

Know what you are buying.

Don’t just go by the model and specs of the machine. I’m seeing two types of units out there. Those that are complete PC’s sold as used units. Also refurbished units that have no serial number on the bottom or in the bios. These units can be had at very good prices and so far I’ve found them all to be in great condition. The problem is that without the serial you can’t even get tech support from Dell and obviously there isn’t a warranty. If you don’t mind this from the right seller these are great. For my use at my company it just isn’t worth the appearance of a model with no serial number. I’m passing on these for now.

Always pay using Pay Pal or some other service that lets you use a credit card.

Even when you use a credit card on Paypal your covered by the dispute and charge back protection provided by your credit card company. I’ve had two instances where the seller did not ship my laptop and I had to dispute the charge with my credit card company. In both cases I received a credit back from my company and had no trouble from Paypal. Before disputing open a formal case with Paypal as they require that before you do a charge back. I’m not sure what the consequences would be but better to appear as if you are trying to use their system.

Buying regularly? Try to form a relationship with a couple reputable sellers.

After doing business with a handful of sellers I trust I now completely bypass eBay. The sellers love the money they save on fees and I can often have them hunt down mint condition Latitude laptops. Some will even customize the laptop to your specs.

Check the sellers feedback.

Look to see that the seller regularly sells Dell equipment. This tells you two things. One that they are a reputable seller and have a history of people who bought the exact same item and were happy. The other thing is that if you see positive feedback regarding non-similar equipment you can assume that they will have no spare parts or service ability. If you see many sales of similar Dell equipment you can be sure that if you have a problem and notify them right away they will probably be able to fix your laptop.

Ask about warranty or warranty transfer assistance.

If you are lucky the unit you purchase will come with some warranty left from Dell. However Dell will not transfer the warranty into your name unless you have the original owners name and address. If you can find a seller willing to provide this you just struck gold! Note, this is not common at all. You can still get Dell to service an in warranty unit but they won’t transfer the ownership to your name.

Buying Servers? Look for Dell refurbished units with a warranty.

I don’t know how it works but there are many resellers of Dell Servers that are new or refurbished from Dell. These come with the Dell warranty and are transferable. When the server arrives its in the original Dell box still sealed up. The price can’t be beat and I’ve never had a problem. My suspicion is that for those with the right connections, Dell will sell you volumes of over production and refurbished units far below pricing you’d see in their Dell Outlet site. http://www.scsistuff.com is a great vendor for this type of buy.

About The Author

John Gall is a full time IT Manager and self employed IT Consultant in Minnesota. He runs several hobby web sites related to technology and travel from http://www.gallconsulting.com

Bookmark to:

As we know that nowdays laptop has become common device to be used by everyone from students, professionals up to business owners. We can avoid this development even more than that we can foresee that almost all businesses will be operated by this tiny device sooner or later as the internet marketing/e-commerce has grown up from time to time all over the world. But still many people feel that laptop is still an expensive product, therefore Buying discount laptops is one solution to save some hundreds of dollars needed to buy a new laptop. Generally, laptops are expensive, sometimes two times more than that of a desktop PC and are not affordable for most low budget people. For those who are looking for a cheap laptop PC with same functions of an advanced laptop, a discount laptop is the best solution. Discount laptops are cheap, smaller in size, and very suitable for many people from university students to business travelers and executives.

As we know that promotional exposures, secondhand or outdated, and operational faults are the major reasons for selling laptops at a discounted price, so we have to be careful. A laptop manufacturing industry requires a comparatively large investment; so the discount on new laptops is a part of their promotional endorsement of leading manufacturers. Sometimes discount is offered as seasonal reductions. Discount from a secondary manufacturer or supplier is not ideal. Purchasing a discount laptop is also not a good idea if you are not familiar with the quality and the reputation of goods that a supplier is selling. Most of these sellers sell laptops which may be refurbished, reconditioned, or not work at all. So once more we should be careful while selecting a discount laptop.

To promote the sales rate and clear out the old stocks, computer manufactures and suppliers sell laptops with discounts. Launching of a new laptop technology will dramatically reduce the price of older versions; hence one can purchase these at discount rates. You can purchase a good discount laptop at less than $1000. Selecting laptops with only those features that you need will save you many dollars. You can also purchase from secondhand sellers  or directly from manufacturers or from retailers that may help you  getting good discount laptops. Shopping through these suppliers is an ideal option to get a notebook PC within a budget. Another source for getting discount laptops is online shopping.

Once more you have to be careful if selecting this kind of products or you will regret in the future when in fact the products are not as good as  what you expect to be.

Bookmark to:

by Samir Sharma

Laptops are everywhere, one should need laptop like wrist watch, technology is running fast to make life easier, in today’s world, Laptop is on demand. Here are some points, why you need laptop skin or laptop decal or say laptop Sticker for you notebook.

1. Make over to your laptop

This is the time to give new look to your laptop. Laptop skin is not bad idea for make over to your laptop. Go for laptop skin and give make over to your notebook. Laptop skins are easily available in the market with cheap rates. You can choose your laptop skin in minutes by surfing sites.

2. Business Identity

Laptop skins are good idea for business identity, put your logo and company name would be great push for your business identity, now a days, this idea is popular among big IT giants. Start with your own laptop and send gift to your employees and clients. Not a bad idea, huh?

3. Give unique look to your notebook Just imagine, you will find lots of laptops same like your laptop, what is the different? You need unique identity among all like your personality. Select and design unique skin, like your lucky number and name, symbol of your hobby or profession. For example, freelance writer may select pen and paper as laptop skin.

4. Laptop skin is reusable and removable I got lots of reply with same questions; can I use laptop skin again? Is it easy to remove? They are scared about damage of laptop body after removal of skin. I will say, answer is NO. Feel free to apply laptop skin anytime you want, and you may change skin or use the same skin again and again as per your mood.

5. Easy to buy You can buy laptop skins easily by surfing online stores, hundreds are store available with lots of varieties. Go for google.com and start your search.

6. Protection Protection is most important for your laptop. Everyone wants laptop scratch free, clean and neat. Laptop skin is good option for you in such a case. Make sure, you may change your skin whenever you want!

7. Marketing Use laptop skin, for your marketing purpose. You are not able to give your business card everywhere, in such a case, laptop skin is effective marketing. Laptop skin will speak for you while you are working on your laptop.

About the Author

Samir Sharma is freelance writer, currently dealing with www.laptopboom.com - A free portal provides ideas for your laptop skins laptop stickers and laptop decals. Laptopboom.com also provides free laptop tips, guides and articles.

Bookmark to:

Laptops can be sent back to the manufacturer if the purchaser finds the screen of the laptop scratched or with a minor blemish, or if it is an unwanted present to him or if the packaging of the laptop is dented etc. Such laptops are inspected, tested again for quality and repackaged by the manufacturer and sold for a very less price. Such laptops are called as refurbished laptops.

Factory refurbished laptops:

The laptops in the factory undergo rechecking for any manufacturing defect by passing through various stages of examination. Then, when no fault is found, the hard disk of the laptop is reformatted and again the operating system is loaded. It is again made to work for less than 4-5 hours time to check for any defect and the parts are replaced if they are found to be defective. The refurbished laptop is then updated with a new serial number to mark it as a factory refurbished laptop. Such factory refurbished laptops are of high quality available to the consumer at a lesser retail price. Such refurbished laptops can be got from almost all the renowned brands. However the process carried out for the restoration of laptops may differ from company to company. The main aim is to make the laptop run again efficiently as it used to be previously.

Custom refurbished laptops:

These are repaired laptops which are reassembled to match the customer s preference. It gives an opportunity to get a complete laptop solution at a very affordable price to the customer. The utilities offered by the customer refurbished laptops are got at a cost of a used laptop. It also avoids the necessity to upgrade immediately, which is not the case with the standard laptop. It allows the customers to have preferences in terms of selecting the features like the screen size, processor speed requirements, multimedia, memory capacity, hard drive size, optical drive, graphics, accessories, Bluetooth etc.
When purchased in bulk, custom refurbished laptops are the best option as it combines both functionality and price advantage together. Additional benefits can be availed through promotional offers and discounts from the manufacturers.

Advantages of purchasing refurbished laptops:
The refurbished laptops are of high quality as they are checked for high standards of performance at each level of examination done. The consumer can get a branded, quality laptop of a latest model at a very less price compared to the retail price. More over discounts are offered to military personnel, senior citizens and students who can maximize their savings by purchasing a refurbished laptop. The refurbished laptops can be selected from renowned brands available in the market at a lesser cost. Such refurbished laptops are also got with 1 year warranty which can be extended up to 3 years. The warranty period supports replacement of parts and maintenance required by the laptop. Hence purchasing such laptops are very reliable. The refurbished model laptops enable the customers get more features at a lower cost. When the purchaser is bent on buying the latest, trendiest laptop, but cannot afford to buy a new one he can go for a refurbished laptop to get satisfied. By: Subasree

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Subasree contributes several informative articles regularly to www.laptopmall.info and www.bestusedcomputers.info which have exhaustive resources for computers, laptops and the other related accessories.

Bookmark to:

by: Dan Preston

So you’ve finally decided it’s time for a change. No matter what advice you follow that old work horse of a desktop computer you have has outlived its usefulness with slow loading applications and a continuous rise in operation noise.

Searching for that Perfect Computer can be about as much fun as purchasing a new car and about as frustrating also when sorting through the various brands while trying to decide which “bells and whistles” best fit your needs. Besides all that trying to return something that is so large can be both inconvenient and very difficult to do.

So making the right decision the FIRST time is the wise path of choice.

For starters you’ll need to decide what you want to do with your computer. Are you into the video game scene or are you someone who likes to just surf the internet and occasionally do some book keeping with simple word processing software?

If you’re into video games you’re going to want a machine that can handle the high level of graphics and superior sound quality.

On the other hand if you’re not into all that high adrenalin stuff can probably get by with a less expensive system. Although, if you want to stay on the safe side I would recommend going with something more “high-end” so you don’t have to spend another large chunk of change to upgrade the system you just bought.

There are two basic routes you can take when purchasing a new computer.

1) Purchase a “Brand Name” Computer

2) Purchase a “Clone” Computer

A “BRAND-NAME” computer is one that is manufactured by a company that is recognizable by name.

Some Advantages/Disadvantages of “Brand-Name” computers include:

Advantages-

Customer Support- If you are experiencing problems with your computer you will have the option to contact a representative of the company that you purchased the PC from to get help in solving your problem.

Customer support is probably the best reason to buy a brand-name computer.

Warranty- Having a warranty is always nice since it acts as a type of security blanket for you.

In case a part on your computer should fail you should be able to get the item fixed at no charge just as long as the warranty has not expired.

Read and understand a company’s warranty policy BEFORE you purchase a computer from them.

This way you’ll have a good understanding of the procedures to follow in case a problem should arise.

Pre-installed Software- Many companies will include software packages that are all set up and ready to go for you on your computer.

Although, a disadvantage of buying a brand-name computer with software pre-installed is that you usually end up with more than fits your needs and usually just results with the wasting of space on your storage device.

Additional Support- Most brand-name computer companies are also able to provide you with web sites that may provide you with current software updates, user manuals, or basic troubleshooting help.

Disadvantages-

The use of Proprietary parts- the term Proprietary refers to products that are unique to an individual company and that company only.

So if a part was to malfunction on your computer after warranty and you needed to replace it you could not just go to your local computer store and purchase any old part even if it was intended for the same function as the item that failed.

You would be forced to buy the exact same item that came out of the computer or else the computer would more than likely cease to function correctly.

Having to buy proprietary parts usually involves the need to place an order which means you’ll have to wait for the part to arrive or you’ll have to send your computer into the company or an authorized dealer of that company for repairs.

People with a home based business would probably not be too happy with that situation at all.

Integrated/On-board parts- In the computer world when you hear the word integrated or on-board it means that a particular part such as the modem or sound port where you plug in your speakers, is built-in or part of the computer main board (Also known as the Motherboard).

This means that if any of these items should fail, you can’t just remove them from the computer and replace them with a new part. They are usually soldered directly to the main board and are stuck there.

Although, some computers do provide a way to disable a malfunctioning device which will allow you to install your own store bought device to take the place of the broken part.

From a computer technicians point of view this is not always easy to do.

It just depends on what brand of computer you currently have. Meaning some are easier to work on than others.

A “CLONE” computer is a clone or a copy of its brand-name counterpart with the exception that instead of company specific or proprietary parts, the items used to make a clone computer are from several different companies instead of only one.

Let’s say that if you were to go to a local company that builds “clone” computers, and you tell them what you need, chances are they don’t use parts that are specific to only that type of computer like the brand-name computer companies do.

This is a good thing because it means that they will probably use components that are interchangeable with many different brands and are easy to come by if needed.

Some Advantages/Disadvantages of “Clone” computers include:

Advantages-

Cost- compared to brand-name computers the clone will generally be easier on your pocket book when purchasing one with similar features as its brand-name counterpart.

This is most likely due to the money that is saved by not offering the high-end customer service. Although, that may not be the only reason for the lower prices.

Easily Accessible Replacement Parts- Since the clone computer was built with parts that are not any one company specific, you can buy parts for the clone computer that can be used even if the brand is different from the one that was in the computer when you originally bought it.

Note: Before you buy any parts, it is necessary to make sure that the replacement parts are compatible with your particular computers system requirements.

Either consult the manual that should have came with your computer or get help from a knowledgeable friend or repair person.

Disadvantages-

Warranties- Unless you purchase a service plan you will typically not have as an attractive warranty as you would with a brand-name computer company.

Whatever you do just make sure you understand how long the warranty is for and as to what kind of repairs the warranty covers before you make the purchase.

Customer Support- With brand-name computer companies you are usually provided with a 24-hour toll free number that you can call if you have questions or concerns with your computer.

Clone computers are more than likely not going to have a 24-hour help service, but rather you will be forced to only be able to call during regular business hours.

Also, it is more than likely that there will not be any one website that you can go to in order to find out information concerning troubleshooting questions you may have.

For service it may be necessary to take the computer back to the store that you bought it at or you may have to do some research on the individual parts that went into the computer and visit the manufacturer’s website for troubleshooting tips.

Finally, if all else fails you can certainly take what you have learned from this article and being that you know what you need now, but don’t know where to go and get that “Perfect Computer”, the best resource at your disposal are the very men and woman that work at your local electronics shop.

It is their duty to help you get hold of that “Perfect Computer” that best fits your needs. All you need to do is tell them what you plan on using that computer for and they should be more than happy to help you from there.

About The Author

Dan is the webmaster of a friendly site called InfoHeaven Digital Books where he offers all who visit the knowledge they seek in the form of How-To digital books and free articles. You can find his website at http://infoheaven-digital-books.com

Bookmark to:

by: John San Filippo
It’s easy to be intimidated by all the laptop models on the market today. There are literally dozens and dozens in every price range.

The key to finding the right one for you is to step back and consider exactly how you plan to use your laptop. When you define what you need before you go shopping, buying the right machine becomes much easier.

Here are 5 basic factors to consider:

1. SIZE

In the world of mobile computing, size definitely matters. The size of a laptop affects two key areas: portability and display size.

If you’re always on the go and will be using your computer only in short bursts, a so-called ultralight will save you some shoulder strain.

On the other hand, if you’re going to spend hours in front of your laptop, a larger display may be in order.

Today, some laptop displays exceed 17 inches, rivaling the display size of many desktop systems. The down side is that these monsters can easily weigh three times as much as an ultralight.

2. HARD DRIVE

Speaking of size, what about the size of the hard drive? One way to approach this issue is to ask yourself the following question:

Will this be my primary computer, or will it supplement my desktop system?

If the former, you should look for a bigger hard drive - 60 GB or more.

If the latter, you may be able to make it with a 20-30 GB hard drive.

But even this isn’t absolute.

If, for example, you plan to copy a huge MP3 library from your desktop system to your laptop to make your music library portable, you’d be well advised to err on the side of too big.

3. MEMORY

In determining the right amount of system memory, or RAM, take a look at the ways in which you intend to use your laptop:

If your needs are somewhat mundane - email, spreadsheets, word processing, etc. - 256 MB of RAM should be plenty. This is a common configuration for many laptops, so it means you probably won’t need to spend extra for more RAM.

On the flip side, if you’re an aspiring mobile digital photographer or videographer, you should stuff your laptop with as much RAM as it can hold.

In fact, exactly how much RAM your laptop can hold may in part drive your purchase decision. Applications for editing and manipulating multimedia content are notorious resource hogs.

4. NETWORK CONNECTIONS

Thanks in no small part to the Internet, computing in the 21st century relies heavily on being connected:

Connected to the Internet, connected to a corporate network, connected to a wireless network, connected to a home network, connected to an online service.

Your life will be easier if you buy a laptop that includes built-in means to connect to them all.

5. PRICE

If you’re considering a laptop, you’re probably wondering how much money you’ll need to spend.

A few years ago, you’d be hard-pressed to find one for under $2,000. Today, there are plenty of laptops to be had for under $1,000.

What’s more, most of the major manufacturers offer a variety of financing options.

Laptop prices have come down, to be sure. However, a laptop still represents a fairly major purchase for most people.

If you take the time to search for a laptop that meets your specific needs, you should get many years of use and enjoyment from this important investment.

About The Author

The author, computer journalist John San Filippo, has created the definitive guide for buying a laptop computer. It’s an easy read and explains everything you need to know. Check out ==> http://howtobuyalaptop.com/

Bookmark to: