Computer Architecture Assignment If I needed a laptop for my computer science classes, the top 5 features I would look for are processor, storage, battery life, display size, and portability. The processor, aka the CPU, is the most important part of a computer. The processor's speed is directly related to the laptop's speed to execute tasks. Processors are extremely important for computer science because having a faster processor will result in a dramatically shorter time to complete many different tasks. Multitasking is also very useful when you have a faster processor. Multitasking will allow you to run many different applications as well as many different tasks on the same processor simultaneously. Storage is another important feature to look for in a laptop. As a computer science student, there will be many program files I will be dealing with, so having a sufficient storage laptop would help me manage my files on my laptop without any worries of running out of space. One of the most important tools for CS students are IDEs, and there are many different ones for different languages, so having a large storage would allow me to download many different necessary IDEs without any worries. Being a student causes you to have a pretty hectic day by day. I spent most of my time working on my laptop for school and work. I realized how important battery life is for a laptop once I started college. Having a laptop that lasts you all day or half a day will make a huge difference in your productivity. Sometimes I forget to carry my charger or I don’t have any outlet ports near me, which causes me to miss out on valuable time that I could use to study, but my laptop would be dead. The fourth feature I would look for is the laptop's screen display size. I have realized throughout the years that having a bigger laptop screen helps you be more productive. I have a dual monitor setup at my home for my work and school, and I have personally realized that having multiple monitors has helped me be more productive than I was before. Having a larger laptop display will help you look at more information, and it will also give you more space to split the screen and multitask. Finally, portability is the final feature that I would look for in a new laptop as a CS student. As a CS student, I am always moving, such as going to school, walking around campus, coming back to my apartment, going back home to my parents, and going to a friend's house. When moving so much, I am mostly only carrying my backpack, my laptop, and my iPad. If I have a portable laptop, I would be able to easily fit it in my laptop and take it anywhere I wanted. Having a portable laptop will give me the freedom to do my work at any location and at any time I want. The three laptops I would like to compare are the Razer Blade 15 with an i7 processor, 1TB SSD, 15.6’’ QHD 240HZ display, and 7.5 hours of battery life. The second laptop would be the Macbook 14 with the M2 Max chip, 1TB SSd, 14’’ display, and nearly 13 hours of battery life. Finally, the last laptop is the Alienware X15 with an i9 processor, 1TB of SSD, 15.6’’ FHD, and about 7-8 hours of battery life. After looking at all three of my options, I would most likely choose the Macbook because of its huge battery life. All of the processors, storage, and displays are similar between the laptops. The only thing that stands out is the insane 13 hours of battery life on the MacBook, which would persuade me to buy it.
