Looking to buy a laptop?

Question

Hey, I am looking to buy a laptop, and I have information from two different stores on an HP laptop, which is almost the exact same but they have a few different features. I was curious as to which one is better based upon the information given from the website. I have the information all down here:
PS. Thank you for answering my question, in advance. :)

#1 is from Future Shop:
Approximate Battery Life: N/A
Hard Drive Speed/Capacity: 160GB 5400 RPM SATA
Optical Drive: Super Multi 8X DVD±R/RW w/ Double Layer
Processor Speed: 2.10 GHz
Processor Type: AMD Sempron SI-42 Processor
RAM: 2GB DDR2 (Exp to 4 GB)
Screen Size: 16.0"
Discrete Video Memory: No
Expandable Video Memory: No
Graphics Chipset: NVIDIA GeForce 8200M
Integrated Video Memory: No
Native Screen Resolution: 1366x768
Upgradable Video System: No
Video Memory: Up to 895 MB
Audio Chipset: Altec Lansing
Audio Output: Stereo
Digital Input: No
Digital Output: No
Hardware Volume Control: No
Integrated Amplifier: No
Integrated Microphone: Yes
Microphone Input: Yes
Speaker Wattage: N/A
Speakers: Yes
Card Reader: Yes
Card Reader - Compatible Memory Types: SD/MMC/MS/MS PRO/xD
Composite Output: No
ExpressCard/34 Input: No
ExpressCard/54 Input: No
HDCP Compliant: No
HDMI Port: No
IEEE 1394 Input/Output: No
IR Receiver: No
Number of Touchpad Buttons: 1
PC Card Input: No
S-Video Output: No
Type of Keyboard: 101-Key
Type of Modem: High Speed 56K
Type of Pointing Device: Touch Pad
USB 2.0: 3
VGA Output: 1
Webcam: Yes
Ethernet Port: 10/100BASE-T Ethernet LAN (RJ-45)
Integrated Bluetooth: No
Integrated WiFi: 802.11b/g WLAN
Battery - Capacity: N/A
Battery - Number of Cells: 6-Cell
Battery Type: Lithium-Ion
Processor Cache: 512KB L2
System Bus; Up to 1800Mhz
Loaded Software 1: Microsoft Works
Loaded Software 2: HP DVD Play
Loaded Software 3: Muvee Reveal
Loaded Software 4: Cyberlink DVD Suite
Operating System Language: Bilingual
Pre-loaded Operating System: Windows Vista Home Basic with SP1
Headphones: No
Remote: No
Notebook Depth: 37.80cm
Notebook Thickness (closed): 4.09cm
Notebook Weight (including Battery): 2.96kg
Notebook Width: 25.15cm
Warranty Labour: 1 Year Limited
Warranty Parts: 1 Year Limited,

#2 from Best Buy:
Approximate Battery Life: N/A
Hard Drive Speed/Capacity: 250GB 5400 RPM SATA
Optical Drive: 8X Super Multi DVD±R/RW w/ Double Layer
Processor Speed: 2.0GHz
Processor Type: AMD Athlon X2 QL-62 Dual-Core
RAM: 3GB DDR2 (Exp. To 4GB)
Screen Size: 16.0"
Discrete Video Memory: No
Expandable Video Memory: No
Graphics Chipset: NVIDIA GeForce 8200M
Integrated Video Memory: Yes
Native Screen Resolution: 1366x768
Upgradable Video System: No
Video Memory: Up to 1GB
Audio Chipset: Altec Lansing
Audio Output: Stereo
Digital Input: No
Digital Output: No
Hardware Volume Control: No
Integrated Amplifier: No
Integrated Microphone: Yes
Microphone Input: Yes
Speaker Wattage: N/A
Speakers: No
Card Reader: Yes
Card Reader - Compatible Memory Types: SD/MMC/MS/MS PRO/xD
Composite Output: No
ExpressCard/34 Input: No
ExpressCard/54 Input: No
HDCP Compliant: Yes
HDMI Port: Yes
IEEE 1394 Input/Output: No
IR Receiver: No
Number of Touchpad Buttons: 1
PC Card Input: No
S-Video Output: No
Type of Keyboard: 101-Key
Type of Modem: High Speed 56K
Type of Pointing Device: Touch Pad
USB 2.0: 3
VGA Output: 1
Webcam: Yes
Ethernet Port: 10/100BASE-T Ethernet LAN (RJ-45)
Integrated Bluetooth: No
Integrated WiFi: 802.11b/g WLAN
Battery - Capacity: N/A
Battery - Number of Cells: 6-Cell
Battery Type: Lithium-Ion
Processor Cache: 1MB L2
System Bus: 1800Mhz
Loaded Software 1: HP DVD Play
Loaded Software 2: Muvee Reveal
Loaded Software 3: Cyberlink DVD Suite
Loaded Software 4: HP Games Powered by Wild Tangent
Operating System Language: Bilingual
Pre-loaded Operating System: Windows Vista Home Basic with SP1
Headphones: No
Remote: No
Notebook Depth: 37.80cm
Notebook Thickness (closed): 4.09cm
Notebook Weight (including Battery): 2.96kg
Notebook Width: 25.15cm
Warranty Labour: 1 Year Limited
Warranty Parts: 1 Year Limited

Answer 1

I see there are contradiction answers that others have posted. So I’m going to try and be the neutral person. I see that both of these computers come with Vista Home Basics, which I believe requires 512 MB of Ram (memory), I always recommend at least doubling or even tripling the ram with Vista, which is 1 GB to 1 and half gigs. Comp#1 has 2GB and comp#2 has 3 GB. More is always better. Comp#1 also has less of a hard drive, with Vista you need at least 20GB with an addition of 15GB for personal storage.



I am not going to tell you which to choose. But always consider what programs you know for sure you’ll be installing on this computer and figure out their specifications, you might be surprised how much space they take up. There is also an article online that teaches you how to buy a computer right for you, view my sources.

Answer 2

Get the first one because you will be glad that you got the extra speed and hard drive space. The extra ram can't be used on the second one because vista home basic is 32-bit which means it can only use 2 gb of ram.

Answer 3

the second one