RAM

2GB

- Barely used/ light work (ex: typing, browsing, email)

[Not recommended, if can get at least 4GB of RAM]

4GB

- Normal usage like browsing, watching movies, office.

8GB

- Gaming, heavy multitasking, low resolution video editing & photoshop.

16GB

- Serious Gaming, Video Editing, Heavy work like video rendering, animation and 3D
graphics.

32GB

- [Heavy] PC replacement laptop (ex: 60fps 4K video rendering, 60fps high resolution
animation, and professional level 3D graphics)

64GB

- Can be used for anything, less recommended because it is not efficient, it is better for PC

DDR3 or DDR4

DDR3 is usually cheaper but slower than DDR4.

If you want to use your laptop for gaming, video editing, heavy multitasking, and heavy work, I
suggest to use DDR4, if you use your laptop only for browsing, social media, light gaming, light
work (e.g. typing documents) then DDR3 is enough.

STORAGE

SSD, NVME, Hard Disk, or SSHD

SSD or Solid State Drive

- is a type of memory storage that is famous for its speed, SSD is usually popular for
storage of OS, Games, And other applications, SSD makes booting and loading much
 faster than a regular Hard Disk, unfortunately, this SSD is much more expensive than
HDD. the size of SSD on a laptop is 256GB.

HDDs

- are usually used to store large quantities of files, and this HDD is much slower than SSDs
however, is much cheaper, and large memory. Usually people who like to store a lot of
files use this HDD.

NVME

- is a Super-Fast SSD, typically popular used for transferring large amounts of data
(example: video editor).

SSHD

- is an HDD that has "SSD" Inside it, however, "SSD" In this SSHD will store data based
on how many times/ how much it is used. (example: SSHD will store file A because I
often use file A).

I don't recommend SSHD because it Costs a little more than it should be (in my opinion) and
would rather recommend SSD or HDD, and these SSHDs are pretty hard to find on a laptop.

*Note: If only need fast loading windows, SATA SSD is better, if need for heavy data transfer
(ex: video edit, animation, and large file transfer) NVME SSD is recommended.

USB PORTS

How many USB A ports do I really need?

My recommendation is:

 3x USB A
 at least 2 USB A 3.0

What other port?

- Yeah... that depends on you

*Note:

USB C

- Pretty handy, but not a must-have.

HDMI & Display port

- for external monitor/TV

SD & MicroSD, most useful for camera work (photographer & videographer), less recommended
for storage expansion.

What screen should I use?

 15.6 inch = Gaming or if want a big screen.

 14 inch = For balance between portability and large screen size.
 13.3 inch = for portability
 12 and 11.6 inch = Super Portability already.

The resolutions:

720p/HD

- would look great on a laptop with 11.6 - 12 inch screen

1080p / FHD

- for 13.3 inch or larger screen

1440p/QHD

- if you really need/want a sharp screen

2160p/4K

- if you need a super sharp, super accurate screen.

For Gaming- 1080p only

Response time/latency

 >5ms = normal gaming & normal usage

 4ms - 5ms = serious gaming
 3ms = super serious gaming. If you're not a pro you won't feel the difference with 5ms.

Refresh Rate

Standard = 60Hz

Serious Gaming = 120Hz

Sultan gaming = 240Hz - 300Hz

*Note: if you buy a high refresh screen, make sure you use an upper middle class GPU.
Otherwise, it is recommended to reduce the graphics settings & resolution on FPS games to
enjoy a high refresh rate.

IPS = accurate color, Great viewing angle

TN = fast screen.

*Note 2020: now a lot of TN screens have a good viewing angle & good color, but still advised
to choose IPS for color grading. While for IPS screens, there are many IPS screens that are
good for gaming, so if possible, it is recommended to choose IPS only.

How to boost performance & hot laptop?

- Just Undervolt, lots of online tutorials

GPU

Generalize laptop GPU

[FPS from AAA game, not competitive / fps]

Nvidia GTX:

MX150 = Casual gaming for Ultrabook

1050 = Gaming setting medium @1080p

1050 Ti = Gaming Setting Medium - High @1080p

1060 = Gaming setting high- ultra @1080p

1070 = Gaming setting ultra @1080p & medium - high @1440p

1080 = Gaming setting max @1080p, high @1440p.

1650 = similar to 1050Ti

1660 = similar to 1060

1660Ti = similar to 1070, sometimes equivalent to 1080

Nvidia RTX

2060 = Similar to 1660Ti, for Ray tracing can make about 60fps, but less stable in ray-tracing.
2070 = Suitable for ray-tracing in 1080p, smooth, same/better performance than 1080.

2070 Super = New GPU, approximately 10-15% faster than 2070.

2080 = Suitable for gaming in max settings, 1440p or 1080p.

2080 Super = About 10-20% faster than 2080, depending on game.

CPU

CPU Generalization 2019-2020

Intel:

H Series

 i3 = For light consumption

 i5 = gaming & multitasking
 i7 = heavy gaming & heavy work (video rendering, animation, graphics, etc.)

U Series :

 i3 = if can be avoided
 i5 = regular usage, similar to i5-H
 i7 = can do photoshop & light rendering

AMD (sorry for the lack of info):

Ryzen 7 series 4000H & HS (high-performance):

 Ryzen 9 = If I can buy this, I can do anything

 Ryzen 7 = Kyk i7-H, but better
 Ryzen 5 = Between i5-H and i7-H

*Note: AMD CPU is usually stronger for multi core (gaming) things if intel is better for content
creator, illustrator because intel is superior in single core