Choosing the right laptop can be rather confusing for those without a great depth of technical knowledge – even those who have it can find deciding a challenge. For the same price you can get a desktop PC with more power and a higher specification, but more people are embracing the quick convenience and mobility that laptops offer for their home computing.

There are a range of options out there on the market, with online deals on laptops from Misco and other web retailers bringing more and more computing power to the sector at a lower price. But before you start looking at the specifications, it is important to consider exactly what you need the device for. This Which? guide provides some helpful tips, but internet novices and those who only intend to use their laptop for basic tasks – web surfing, email and writing documents – will find their needs more than met by an entry-level model, which usually retail for under £450. The devices have less RAM available and less storage space, but it’s surprising how far 250GB of the latter actually goes. Good value examples include the Toshiba Satellite Pro series and the Acer TravelMate.

For those wanting a bit more power, desktop replacements provide the processing power of a PC in a portable laptop. Ideal for gamers and those who want to edit videos, these devices will pack in upwards of 4GB of RAM and contain a separate graphics card and faster processing chip. The downside of these devices is that battery life is notably reduced by running these more complex programs, but good examples include the Samsung Series 7 and HP DV7 ranges.

Straddling the two groups are the likes of the Samsung Series 3 and Acer Aspire, which are good for families which want a versatile device without spending too much. Alternatively, if you just need quick internet access, a small netbook, such as the Toshiba NB500 or Dell Inspiron, could be just the ticket.

Researching laptops can be confusing and occasionally frustrating, but it pays to persevere in the same way you would when buying a car; you don’t want to overspend and be left with computing power you don’t need, or find out your new device is insufficient and be forced to upgrade.

. . . in 1974.

The biggest technology and gadget show, CES, just kicked off in Las Vegas, and as usual much of the talk surrounds Apple:

Apple is the only company that consistently gets big buzz out of the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas — without even attending.

This year will be no different.

Connected TVs — TVs that connect to and can access content from the Internet — will be a big part of CES this year. And just about everyone in tech expects Apple at some point to launch such a television — an iTV — that easily consumes and shares with other Apple devices content served from the company’s media-storing iCloud.

Microsoft made news earlier by saying this was the last year they would attend CES/ Why attend if Apple gets all the buzz anyways? Maybe Microsoft should focus on new products instead of protecting its Windows/Office cash cow? Or maybe not . . .

The holiday season is here, and today is Cyber Monday so it’s time to go searching for deals. There are a ton of gadget gift guides out there, and Bullz-Eye.com has a gadget section in their 2011 Holiday Gift Guide. The WOWee One Slim Portable Speaker is one of the featured products.

You’ll be amazed when you plug this tiny gadget into your MP3 player or phone and turn on some music. Of all the gadgets we’ve tested recently, the WOWee ONE Slim Portable Speaker is one of our favorites. It’s about the size of a deck of cards and easily plugs into any device with an audio jack. All of a sudden you can have a party. The WOWee turns flat, solid surfaces like tables, counters, bumpers, hoods and truck beds into bass-filled sound systems using patented gel technology. The sound changes depending on the type of surface and you can really feel the base on some surfaces. It’s perfect for events like tailgates as it provides about 10 hours of tunes and can turn your grill/cooler/hood into a high-end sound system for the whole parking lot. It’s also great for impromptu parties as it can fit in your pocket, computer bag or glove compartment. Take it on a trip and have parties in your hotel room or by the pool. The possibilities are endless and kids will love it as well. It seems like everyone listens to music alone these days with their headphones, so the WOWee makes it easier for everyone to share and enjoy music.

There are a ton of gadget gift guides out there, so do your research and you’ll find some great stuff. You can start with the ones from USA Today and CNET.

Whether you have a business or just do your printing at home, inkjet cartridges can be very expensive. This is where the printer manufacturers make their money, and you can burn through a lot of money if you do a lot of printing.

The tips for saving money all involve common sense. The first has to do with your printing habits and your printing policies in the office. When possible, print in black at lower quality as opposed to using color at maximum quality. This alone will save you a ton in inkjet fees.

Next, you have to shop around. If you just spend some time online, you can find the lowest price for your cartridges, even the brand name cartridges. One problem is that people wait till they run out if ink to get new cartridges. Then you’re in a hurry and it’s easier to just go to the local store and pick one up. If you plan ahead, you’ll save a ton of money and get in the habit of always keeping a supply.

If you need one right away, look for stores like Cartridge World. They have deep discounts and you can punch in your zip code on their web site to find a store near you.

Another option includes refilling your ink or purchasing off-brand cartridges. This is a matter o preference based upon quality issues. It’s not a bad option, but you can save on the brand cartridges if you follow the steps above.

I spent a solid 18 or so of my last 72 hours traveling and I was shocked to see how many tablets are out there. I knew that tablets were likely doing well, but in every airport it seemed there was always one in my field of vision. Tablets, for the most part, are fairly affordable devices, but Samsung wants to offer something for the people with deeper pockets.

At the Millionaire Fair (a concept so deplorable I could puke), Samsung announced that it would offer a Luxury Edition of its Galaxy tablet that would run roughly $1,000. Now, a grand isn’t all that bad for a piece of tech, but it is still a tablet, and it’s still running Android, which doesn’t charge for licensure. I suppose if you have piles of money to swim in, a $1,000 tablet doesn’t seem so bad. The Luxury Edition will be limited, available only until the end of January.

The device is expected to launch on Wednesday.

If you’re having trouble coming up with the perfect holiday gift this year, we have something that could help you out. Our annual Bullz-Eye Holiday Gift Guide is out, including a section (written by yours truly) specifically devoted to gadgets.

Of course, you can also check out the rest of the guide, which includes games, movies, and virtually any other category of gift you might need help with. Happy shopping!

According to Google’s CEO, Chrome OS won’t be ready to go in notebooks until after the holiday. It’s a bummer, really, because the OS release could produce a glut of development from app makers looking to make web versions of their current software.

The OS was originally supposed launch well before the holidays, then it was pushed back to late November, now it’s looking like we won’t see it until next year, outside of beta anyway. Google says it will have more to share later in the year. Guess what, guys. It is later in the year. It’s very late in the year in fact, so just tell us it won’t be ready until next year. That’s all we need to know.

Several manufacturers have held a “no comment” status on launching Chrome netbooks. That can’t be a good thing. I figured there would be some excitement about a slim new OS that won’t have the crazy licensing fees of Microsoft products. Really makes me wonder why the OS has caught a delay. Is Google having trouble partnering with manufacturers? Did they back out after agreeing to support the platform a year ago?

This is seriously cool. All you wannabe home computer builders can feast your eyes on this feat of human engineering. That’s right. Your desktop isn’t as cool as you thought. You want a cool computer? Dump the LED fans and build that bitch on your wall.

Via: Reddit

It’s no secret that internet technology advances much faster than most people can keep up. If you asked your average internet user, you can bet they would have no idea what HTML5 is, why it’s important, or what it means for the mobile web. Hell, they might not know what mobile web means.

That’s why this chart from Pingdom.com is so crazy. Look how many people are running the current versions of their browsers. Even though Chrome is a notoriously geeky browser, the 90 percent current version stat is impressive. I’m not willing to give credit to the users for most of this. I think we can all admit that the numbers would be much lower if users were totally responsible for the updates. Developers, on the other hand, have done a great job of encouraging updates or even background updating.

For some people, that’s a problem, but as technology gets more advanced, it becomes increasingly unlikely that the general population will understand it. Until we hit some sort of soft wall, where the next great leap will be like that of the silicon chip, we won’t likely see a general population of users who actually understand what the machine they’re using does. Why do you think your parents call you all the time about pop-ups? It’s because they click things without thinking and don’t understand that the “Whack the Fly!” game is actually an advertisement or a wormbait.