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What screen type, size and resolution?
Choosing the right screen is important. It is the one part of the notebook that you will spend the most time with. Make sure you pick one that will suit your needs.
Widescreen LCDs (16:9 and 16:10) dominate the market, but there are those who prefer standard aspect LCDs (4:3). Standard screens are increasingly difficult to find today and are almost exclusively available on business-class notebooks.
The glossy finish is also becoming the standard. Matte screens are difficult to find these days, generally only available on business-class notebooks. Glossy screens benefit from a brighter, sharper look and have excellent contrast. Matte screens on the other hand, do not have the reflection and glare problems of the glossy screens, and can reduce eye-strain over extended use.
Choosing the right screen size is important. A smaller, portable screen size is best-suited for a lot of on-the-go computing. A larger screen is ideal for high-power users who will keep the notebook somewhat stationary. Determining the right screen size can be difficult. A good way to get a feel for the different sizes is to go down to your local computer shop and see them first-hand. If you are allowed to pick the notebooks up and hold them, I encourage you to do so. This will give you a chance to get a feel for their size and weight.
Screen resolution determines how much desktop real estate you have. Higher resolution screens offer more desktop real estate, at the cost of icons and text becoming smaller onscreen. Note that you can always adjust desktop resolution or text size, but you can never add more pixels to your screen.
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