Laptop: where to get? what configuration?

A laptop could actually be your most prized possession while studying abroad in Australia. almost all students have one and it is indeed recommended that new students get one as well. eventhough you may be fully aware of the uses/advantages of having your own notebook pc, I still feel I must shed more light.

here we go...

1)you need to talk (voice and cam) to people back home for which you need one or all of the following. yahoo messenger, gtalk, and skype.
2)im sure you would want to listen to music...and you dont want your ipod headphones in your ears when you are in the kitchen cooking.
3)your assignments will require that you use a word processing software.
4) you may have to use excel for calculations or making graphs.
5)watching all your favourite movies
6) writing emails to apply for jobs
7) social networking with all your friends back home and also the new ones !

I could possibly keep listing the usefullness of having your own notebook while studying abroad in Australia.

however, the questions which arise are:
What configuration do I need?
Eventhough there is no strict answer to this...it depends on your usage and requirement. All laptops released in the last couple of years should be fine in terms of processor speed/memory etc. every major laptop in the market is now almost high end. every manufacturer has some edge over the others. like toshiba notebooks may have longer battery life, while compaq is good for the processing power(AMD turion !) and graphics. some notebooks could be lighter than the others while some might have wide screen displays. its upto you to choose which would best suit your taste and pocket.

coming to the next question about where to buy it? from your home country or after coming to australia?

from what I have seen in the past, irrespective of where you buy your notebook, your home country (India for example) or Australia, the prices are not very different. however, the main point you need to consider is warranty. if you buy it from your home country, you may get 2 years local warranty and one year of international warranty. it is mandatory that you get a product with international warranty. but if you get it in australia, you could actually buy the notebook with upto 5 years extended warranty.  so considering this aspect, you may want to buy it here. besides, there may be student discounts or special offers available.

you must remember that without warranty, even a minor spare part replacement or service will cost you very heavily. so heavily that you might find it cheaper to just buy a new one instead of trying to fix your old laptop.

Take home message: get your laptop with as much extended warranty as possible.