Posted on June 18th, 2010 — in A Better Web, Hardware Center, University of Software
Windows PC’s or other Computers have had a long tradition of not performing well after some time and that continues getting worser. It can be experienced in several ways. PC start up that drag, login that never happens, software crashing, blue screens and webpages that never materializes. This happens to about all pc’s during their existence. And yes, it may happen for your Computer.
Trying to deal with a slow laptop manually from time to time could be incredible frustrating and is not all the time advisable. Laptop maintenance is uncomplicated if you have a good idea about what you need to try. Thus be clear in your head before you move on! Firstly discover the problem or the several problems which is producing slow pc to work slower.
There are many easy and cheap ways to speed up a slow pc and there is also software that can handle the job. The fix to your slow laptop will be different depending on your operating system aka windows version and programs installed. Try searching Google and additional search engines for this area of slow pc’s but also go looking at my list. This is a short list that i have made that could be used as a starting beginners guide. Subsequently, here is my file of general topics:
Check that there is not less than a few hundred Mega bytes’s of hard drive space free. Use a disk defragmentation tool or something like that to help ensure that there is nothing physically incorrect with your hard drive. Remove or turn off any programs that you do not use. Be careful not do disableimportantsoftware. Make sure you have all the most up-to-date Windows files installed in the pC. Also sometimes a quicker browser can speed up a slow pc. Try eg. Google Chrome that seem to use fewer ressources on the Computer. Also a full mirror of your PC is a must before you begin optimizing your PC.
These are the regularly seen reasons for a slow pc. However, they causes are not sorted in any precise order of significance. Straight away your pC can runmore rapidlyand not be as sluggish as a turtle. Fortunately there is something you can do to repair a slow PC.
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Posted on February 14th, 2010 — in Doing Business, Hardware Center, Techies Corner
Computers are among any company’s heaviest expenses, especially when it requires networked PCs and internet access to do business. This expense is down to not only to upfront costs, but also due to the fact that these units must have regular patching, scheduled maintenance, and repairs, which usually needs to be performed by an engineer from outside the organization. Then there is the unwelcome loss in profit caused by that down-time and hassle involved. Second-hand networking equipment can keep costs down by a significant sum and appeals in particular to start-ups and professional people working by themselves. It’s easy to see why the market for quality second hand servers and information storage is flourishing. Most computer hardware necessary to run your business may be purchased second hand, reducing costs when it is all added up.
It can be challenging to find just what you need from new hardware. When you can do without the worries that come with the latest technologies, tracking down older models may often seem impossible. Nevertheless the entire process is uncomplicated when you use the right IT asset disposal services. Inform them should you would prefer a particular server, brand or even features. It is common knowledge that brand-new networking equipment is almost always full of bugs, and generally isn’t great value for money. As a result business organizations who get new units as they come out usually have to make repairs and upgrades. Accordingly, quite a few early adopters have found it necessary to cut their losses and replace their new computer hardware altogether as a bad idea. Of course older hardware has the advantage of having been tested exhaustively. This equipment has more often than not had most of the teething problems ironed out. Also, due to the fact that they’re meticulously reconditioned before sale, you don’t need to be worried about the quality.
Working with the right suppliers is essential. Look for a supplier that actually has the industry experience to do the job efficiently. Doing this ensures the items you need are good quality. And just in case, do ensure your items are supported by a guarantee.
So you can see the benefits of buying used hardware are more than simply monetary. Therefore be sure to research all the options and IT financing options when you are looking for the latest networking equipment.
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Posted on January 2nd, 2010 — in Hardware Center
Are you captivated by the stunning Case Mods you’ve seen online but shell shocked at some of the prices.
What is a case mod, some of you may ask? Have you every wanted to spice up that boring bland box you call your computer?
Well you can and there are lots of people online with fantastic clever ideas on themes, gee whiz lights, sounds, and much much more. Here is a list of top places where you can get information, buy stuff, and chat with others about your ideas.
If you want great case mod information you should go to the Best Case Scenario;
http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/
There you will get great advice on do it yourself case mod projects that will save you money. You will find “well written and photographed case modding worklog that allows us to follow a modder’s project in a step-by-step fashion”.
If you want to buy great case mod items at low prices you should go to:
http://www.case-mod.com/store
Their statement sums up what the site is about; “A unique shopping experience for the Hardcore PC Enthusiast! Along with providing an excellent selection of high quality items and offering exceptional and personal customer service, Case-Mod.com has found many unique ways to save you money and make your shopping experience an enjoyable one.”
If you want case mod forums and galleries go to;
http://www.casemodgod.com
Do it yourself case modding projects. “If you want guides to dozens of creative modding projects, this is your site”
These sites have great advice and products on all kinds of case mod ideas.
Now First-Ever Star Wars PC
(more info at http://www.maxsvr.com/case-mod-information/)
Alienware now has a line of Star Wars PCs. In addition to stunning Star Wars graphics on the case, the systems also come with spectacular Star Wars skins and Wallpaper. (more info at http://www.maxsvr.com/case-mod-information/)
According to Alienware;
“As possibly the most popular movie franchise of all time, Star Wars has appeared on countless products and become an indelible part of pop culture. Despite all of that, however, there has never been a PC that Star Wars fans could call their own. Until now. The first-ever Star Wars PC, the Alienware Aurora: Star Wars Edition, has arrived, bringing together one-of-a-kind Star Wars style and award-winning Alienware power to forever transform your computing experience.”
The Star Wars graphics on both the “light side” and the “dark side” versions look as impressive as it gets. (more info at http://www.maxsvr.com/case-mod-information/)
Kevin Taylor is a freelance writer/webmaster and lives in Toronto, Canada. http://www.maxsvr.com/case-mod-information
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Posted on May 21st, 2009 — in Hardware Center
This is the first article in the Understanding Your Computer series from aworldofhelp.com. Our goal is to help people understand how their computer works, not simply tell them what they need to buy or use. When you know how your computer works, buying the right system or upgrade is easy. The series is designed to provide valuable information to users of all knowledge levels, so if part of it seems too complicated or too simple for you, I hope you read on and get all you can out of the articles. If you have questions or comments about this or any article, please ask in the forums!
RAM - What is it & why you need plenty
Many people picture a computer as consisting in part of a
Processor - CPU
Memory - RAM
Hard Drive
The way these three components interact is important to understanding how a computer works, and ultimately to understanding why you need enough RAM for your programs. Around the Internet and in Magazines you can find recommended RAM amounts for typical users. You also will find many places proclaiming RAM as the best performance for your dollar upgrade. I don’t disagree at all, but I want you to understand what RAM actually does, and why it can be such a valuable upgrade.
I covered this subject briefly in the aworldofhelp Notebook Buyer’s Guide on page 4. The information in that article is accurate, but I want to try to make things a little clearer here.
The article is divided into four sections, covering:
1. The functions of the three components we are discussing and their relative speeds
2. Why you need RAM and what takes up RAM
3. Multitasking and how RAM improves performance
4. How much RAM you need
CPU stands for Central Processing Unit. It is the brain of your computer. When you open a program, like Microsoft Word for example, the CPU reads through lines of computer code and follows the instructions so you can use your program. When you play an audio file like an MP3, the CPU has to do work to decompress it while it plays. When you edit a picture the CPU has to perform many calculations to make even the smallest changes.
One thing to note is that the CPU actually does have a very small amount of memory in it. This is the fastest memory in a computer system, but it is so small it doesn’t really affect this article. Generally speaking, the CPU doesn’t store the information that makes up the program, MP3, or picture, it only processes it. The data has to be located somewhere in your computer, and the CPU has to find it and then retrieve it.
That action, the problem of locating the data and how it affects your overall system performance is what this article is about.
RAM
RAM stands for Random Access Memory. This memory is very fast, and you will see it in sizes like 256 MB, 512 MB, or 1024 MB. When you turn off your computer, the contents are erased, so it is only temporary memory. This is where the CPU looks first to get data to process. So if you are editing a picture, and its data is in this RAM, because RAM is fast memory, editing the picture will happen relatively quickly.
Hard Drive
Your Hard Drive is where you store all of your programs, music, video, and everything you keep on your computer. This is the memory where you store your files that remain even after you turn your system off. You will see them in all sizes, now typically ranging from 30 GB, to hundreds of GB. Hard drives are very slow compared to your CPU and RAM because they are mechanical. Inside the disk there are actually small readers that physically move around to locate and read data.
If you are editing a picture, the CPU will first look in RAM memory to see if it is there, because RAM is fast. If it isn’t, the CPU will go to the hard drive and edit the picture there. Because your hard drive is so slow, this takes a much longer time than if the picture had been in RAM.
Again, the CPU only stores a tiny bit of data, so it has to get it from somewhere to operate on. If the CPU has data to process, it will do so as fast as it can, but if it doesn’t, the brain of your computer simply sits and waits doing nothing. Only after it finds and retrieves the data it needs can it process it.
So ideally, you want your CPU to find data in the fastest place possible. As you can see, if the data is in RAM you are far better off than if it is in your hard disk because RAM is so much faster. Just take a look at the graph below. It shows the time it takes to access each memory type in nanoseconds.
Clearly, your hard drive is slow, but when you look at the above graph, and you see the numbers it is based on below, you realize just how slow it is. Each is an approximate access time in nanoseconds:
CPU 1 ns
RAM 60 ns
Hard Drive 10,000,000 ns
It should be clear why the bars for your CPU and RAM do not even show up on this graph, your hard drive is simply extremely slow.
So why bother with a hard disk?
Seeing that, you might think that it would be great if you could just use huge amounts of RAM instead of a hard disk. You are right, this would be a great situation, but as you might imagine, the faster the memory in your computer, the more expensive it is. RAM prices have come down significantly in recent years, but it will still cost you much more compared to Hard Drive space.
Computers work within this constraint - that faster memory is more expensive - by looking in the fastest place for information first, then moving to slower locations only when they need to. So if you hear your hard drive making noise or you see a light telling you it is being accessed, you know the data could not be found in RAM.
Now you know that the hard drive access that’s going on is very slow, and that is the reason your CPU, and in turn you, have to wait.
So now you know that you want lots of RAM, at least enough for all your programs, so you don’t have to access your slow hard drive too often. But what actually uses your RAM, and how can you see whether your system has enough?
Windows itself takes up a lot of RAM. Microsoft says Windows XP will run on a machine with 64 MB of RAM, though they recommend 128 MB or 256 MB. If you have even more RAM than that, and I recommend you do, Windows will use some of it as well.
Everything that loads when you boot up your computer also uses RAM. What these programs are actually doing is putting themselves in to RAM, if enough is available, so that they can be used very quickly. The problem is when there isn’t enough memory for all these programs, and your computer runs very slowly.
On my machine these programs load when I turn on my computer:
AVG Antivirus
Scanner Software
Digital Camera Software
Gmail Notifier
AOL Instant Messenger
And some server software for testing
Then, everything I run after the boot up uses more RAM. Whatever Internet Browser I use, for example, takes up RAM. Microsoft Word does too, as well as all my programs. To see how much RAM you have and how much free RAM you have, you can open up Task Manager by right clicking on the start menu and selecting it, it looks like this.
On the right, in the Physical Memory section my RAM is listed. My total and available memory is listed, and as you can see, just booting my computer into Windows XP and loading all the things I do, I have less than half of my RAM available for other programs.
Your system will probably have less total RAM, but you’ll be able to see how much and how much you have free. You can easily find out how much ram you have by right clicking on “My Computer” and going to properties, but it’s useful to see it here so you understand what the Task Manager is showing. You can use this tool to convert the number shown in “K” to a number that you may be more comfortable with, in “MB”.
K MB
On my computer, 1048040 K converts to 1023.4 MB, which is 1024 MB.
Your own system may give you a number a few megabytes lower than the actual. For example, 252 instead of 256. That is normal, and is a result of something else, like a video chip, using a portion of the RAM. The actual RAM your programs has to work with is the number listed in the Task Manager.
In my example, I have a hundreds of Megabytes of free RAM. I sometimes fill the RAM if I am video editing or photo editing, but beyond that, it is rare. This is a good thing though, remember the chart. If your RAM is full, your Hard Drive will be used more, and since it is so slow, your system will grind to near a halt.
By looking at the Task Manager, you can get a good idea of how your system is running. If you have lots of available RAM, you are in good shape. But many systems I see actually have almost no free RAM, and this is what causes the system to use the hard disk instead and run slower. Note that the available RAM will generally never hit zero, but will fluctuate around very low numbers if your system is out of memory.
Our example so far has been simplified to show how doing one thing on your computer needs memory. But a real benefit of having adequate memory is multitasking. Basically, if you are doing more than one thing at a time, you are multitasking. If you are reading this article and editing a picture at the same time, you are multitasking.
Generally, if you can switch between two open programs on your machine very quickly, they both are loaded into RAM. In this case, you can likely see plenty of available memory in Task Manager. On my machine, since I have plenty of RAM, I switch between two or three Internet browsers, Excel, PowerPoint, Instant Messenger, my audio player, and more very quickly.
On the other hand if you don’t have enough RAM, even with just two programs open, when you switch between them your computer may slow down considerably. The program you are switching to is not in RAM, and the CPU is forced to get information from the hard disk. As you open more programs, the situation only gets worse. A check on task manager in this case will likely show very little free RAM, too little in fact to fit all your programs.
How Much RAM do you need?
The best answer is that you need enough RAM to run all your programs and multitask between them quickly. If your system is running well and you check Task Manager and have lots of available RAM, you are probably in good shape. If your system is slow switching between more than one program, look at the task manager and see if your available RAM is low. If it is, adding more will likely make your entire system run faster, just by fitting more programs into RAM.
You’ll be amazed how fixing this problem will improve you computing experience overall. That is the reason so many people talk about RAM as being the best upgrade for older systems.
If you are buying a new computer 512 MB is a good amount of RAM for most users. If you edit a lot of pictures or video, or if you can just afford the upgrade, moving up to 1024 MB (1 GB) is not a bad idea. Memory prices are much lower than they used to be, and you’ll have extra memory for more programs now. For most users, the biggest advantage to getting more RAM is that if you keep your computer for a long time, the extra RAM could save you an upgrade down the road.
But how much RAM is too much? Well you won’t really slow down your system by adding RAM. Typical systems currently can accommodate up to anywhere from 512 MB - 2 GB of RAM. The problem is, after you have enough RAM, adding more really doesn’t get you much, if any performance gain.
With that in mind, check back soon for an article comparing performance of common applications, including multitasking, with different amounts of RAM. We’ll test from 256 MB to 1024MB, and you’ll be able to see how all we’ve covered here has a real affect on the speed of your computer.
Steve Perlow is the founder of aworldofhelp.com, where you can find the aworldofhelp Top Picks in desktop and notebook systems.
Visit aworldofhelp.com to get answers from real people to your questions about technology, travel and more.
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Posted on May 6th, 2009 — in Hardware Center
What’s Your Processor?
First and most important thing to consider when buying your motherboard - what CPU or processor are you using? Motherboards are made differently, not all motherboards will support all CPUs. What CPU you select will determine the type of motherboard you get.
For example, if you want to use an Intel Pentium 4 CPU, the motherboard you select must be able to support that brand and model of CPU. The motherboards are also designed to support specific speeds for a CPU, so make sure it can support the speed of the processor as well.
Choose Your Chipset
What is a chipset? Well, chipsets are the main controllers on the motherboard - they allow the CPU to interface with the various components and expansion cards installed.
When choosing your chipset, always bear in mind the type of memory supported by the motherboard. Make sure that the board supports the type and amount of RAM you need. Generally, choosing a chipset that supports high speed memory will allow your system to perform better.
Expansions Slots and Connectors
If you intend to various peripherals to the computer, then the number and type of expansion slots and connectors is important. By default, most motherboards these days have USB 2.0 ports incorporated into their design. If you do a lot of video capturing and editing, you’ll also want to have a Firewire (IEEE 1394) port. If you intend to buy expansion cards, make sure the board comes with an ample number of PCI slots.
Do You Need to Overclock?
If you want to overclock your CPU (though I don’t particularly encourage it) - you should ensure you get a motherboard that supports overclocking. You’ll want a motherboard that has a wide range of adjustments to CPU settings, including CPU voltage and bus speeds.
Other Features
These days, most motherboards have a whole host of extra features loaded into them. These can include things such as on-board Ethernet, audio, a RAID controller or even graphics. I find such features very handy as they help you save money - you need not buy additional expansion cards.
Conclusion
In short, make sure you do your homework when purchasing a motherboard. Go to the motherboard manufacturer’s website and read about its products. Download the motherboard manual and see if its well documented.
At the risk of sounding biased, I’ve always preferred ASUS motherboards. However, its all up to you. Consider what features are important to you and go get your motherboard. As I said earlier, don’t scrimp on the motherboard. Its one of the most important PC components, so get the best you can afford.
Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on building computers. Visit his
website at Build-Your-Own-Computers.com for tips and tricks on assembling a PC, as well as buying good computer components.
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Posted on May 2nd, 2009 — in Hardware Center
Many web sites claim to offer free ringtones, and most of them are legitimate, but there are a couple of issues that seekers of free ringtones should keep in mind. First, some of these sites are either outright scams or at best disingenuous–They may have free ringtones, but they’re only available if you buy something else or pay for a membership first. The second potential problem with free ringtones is that the purveyor may be using private material such as movie themes and popular songs without paying royalties to the rights holder.
Many sites that offer free ringtones do so not because they love the public and want to make sure their ringtone needs are met, but rather as a lure to draw them in for nefarious purposes. This issue was highlighted most directly in 2005 when a judge ordered the shutdown of several web sites that were luring web surfers with promises of free ringtones, and then installing malicious software on their machines. Some sites that offer free ringtones may not go this far, but they may feature annoying pop up ads and other offensive content
Many sites may offer free ringtones without installing spyware or inundating visitors with ads, but they still may present a legal issue. Most popular music is protected by copyright law, and any use of the music, such as in free ringtones, requires that royalties be paid to the artist.
While there are many good sources of free ringtones, it is worthwhile to read independent reviews of the sites before visiting them. If the free ringtones offered are popular songs or file themes, make sure that the website pays royalties to the artist. Be safe, and have fun while hunting for free ringtones!
Craig Thornburrow is an Author and Business Owner. Find all you need to know about ringtones at http://www.ringtonesvault.com/
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Posted on April 3rd, 2009 — in Hardware Center
Cable Modems are made to acquire data through your television. This way, you can access the Internet using a tried-and-true technology, at a reasonable cost. They are mostly used in broadband Internet that usually eats up the unused bandwidth that is sitting in your cable TV network. Americans are the largest users of cable modems. In 2005, there were 23 million users, and the number is on the rise as other parts of the world are turning on to cable.
Many companies now offer Internet services with your cable subscription. However, there cable modems have some disadvantages. One is that Internet access comes from cable television, and computers also using cable modems can eat up speed. This is due to the single coaxial cable line. The more people that use cable modems at the same time, the slower the connection is. If you’re more concerned about uploading files rather than downloading them, then cable may be a spoiler for you - the better option would be DSL However, DSL may have the same speed as cable. Privacy is also a problem with cable because there are many hacking tools available.
Lines of cable modem from telephone and computer are now widely available. The latest ones are no bigger than your CD player. There are three types: internal cable modem, external cable modem and the interactive set-top box. You can share your Internet access by connecting a router to your cable modem. Some modifications to your modem can speed up internet access.
Cable Modems provides detailed information on Cable Modems, Installilng Cable Modems, Cable Modem Reviews, Uncapping Cable Modems and more. Cable Modems is affiliated with Computer Cables.
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Posted on February 26th, 2009 — in Hardware Center
Today, the there is a ringing mobile everywhere you go. It might be any public place, office, roadsides different mobile phone ringtones shall draw your attention. It might come to your mind as from where the idea of ringtone arrived?
Beginning of ringtones
This interesting technology started in the year 2001 when the first ringtone was sold in Finland. The teenagers of Finland were in the SMS (Short messaging service) mobile technology at that time and every teenager had a mobile phone and was seen typing short text messages and sending them back and forth. The Finns then tried to escalate their mobile phone services after building the success of SMS. The ringtone business was evolved by Vesa Matti Paananen and now it has reached a position where mobile customers are free to download customized ringtones by paying a small fee.
The stage of competition
During the same time, cellular services providers in America started positioning for market share. Nokia, the world’s largest mobile phone provider found that to know what people want needs to watch them, observe what they are doing and then from that arrive at what do they actually want?
At this time, the mobile phone industry reached to about 20 percent of the college students and teenagers market and that was to be improved. And they found that teenagers especially girls loved to talk at mobile phones. It was also observed that these girls used to be very fashion conscious and therefore they wanted to have customized, sleek and small mobile phones and this was successfully done by Nokia. Later, some of the other mobile phone companies targeted these girls who used to hang out with their friends and provided theme based ringtones such as” Girls just wanna have fun”. At this time, Japan, a competitor in the electronics market also entered the race and in the year 2003 The Japanese Copyright Organization collected a very huge amount of royalties on mobile phone ringtones.
Mobile phone providers making music
Later, Motorola and MTV started together developing a wireless menu interface for mobile phones whereby there are direct links to embedded or over the air downloadable MTV and Motorola content and experiences. These included wallpapers, screensavers and other cool ringtones which are original recordings of the music artists. There are other technologies evolved by mobile phone providers that enable mobile and online mixing capabilities to create unique ringtones.
Ringtones were continuously catching up
The recent statistics and research shows that consumers have jumped upon this technology thereby pushed the industry in the last four years from nothing to $11 billion by the year 2005 worldwide. People are taking advantages of various mobile phone options available in the market.
Uniqueness of Ringtones
Innovation produces creativity and mobile ringtones is the best example for this. Ringtones are now available in all forms of music based on different themes, culture and mood of the consumer.
Ringtones have come a long way and the technology is still advancing providing some interesting and useful applications.
For more information, visit our recommended website t-mobile-ringtone.info
Olivia Andrews, writer of t-mobile-ringtone.info is a freelance journalist and has written many reviews on subjects such as finance, education, health, entertainment, music, gifts, crafts, travel, apparels and mobile phones.
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Posted on February 23rd, 2009 — in Hardware Center
We are living in an age where everyone needs or at least wants a phone with them at all times. This desire is fueling the growth and creation of wireless network providers all across the country. At the same time, this growth in business is encouraging more and more people to get themselves into the cell phone market. The Cingular cell phone network is one of the most accomplished at doing this. They’ve attracted an incredible market share of consumers, businesses and government groups. They have accomplished this through great marketing, but more importantly, by offering a superior service.
In the United States there are over fifty million people using a Cingular cell phone or a related Cingular service. This number represents the largest customer group for any United States digital network. These fifty million network users are on Cincular cell phones or using Cincular’s internet access services through laptops, PDAs or other data devices. All together the collective users of their network help them take in over thirty billion dollars worth of revenue annually.
In the United States Cingular cell phones are able to access the wireless network in over a hundred of the most popular markets. This area covers over two hundred and fifty million people meaning its available to massive percentage of the nation’s population. They also boast the fastest voice and data connections for incredible speeds whether you’re transferring data on a Cingular cell phone or a computer device.
The company offers a lot of advantages to its clients in order to reward them, retain them and win over more customers in the future. The Cingular cell phone collection itself is staggering. They offer an incredibly wide variety of compatible handsets so that a customer or potential customer can be sure to get one that’s comfortable for their tastes and budget. Once on the network they offer a lot of perks that other service providers fail to extend to their customers. A popular benefit to using the Cingular Network is that any airtime minutes paid for but unused can be transferred over to the following month. This is a great bonus to people who are inconsistent with when and how long they use their phones. Better still, their customers can enjoy unlimited calling between anyone else who is using the Cingular cell phone service. This is a great money saver for families and friends that want to stay in touch and have planned ahead. As long as they’re all on the Cingular network then counting airtime minutes can be a thing of the past.
Businesses are also serviced well by the company. They have a client base consisting of almost all of the Fortune 100 companies. This isn’t surprising given their ability to cater to needs of a traveling business person. Their roaming capabilities extend through six continents and eighty countries.
More so, for someone fresh in the cell phone market, cingular wireless not only promises the best service but stands behind it. They offer the longest satisfaction guarantee of any major provider in the States. Try them out and if you don’t like them, you have thirty days to get your money back.
Christopher M. Luck has an extensive background in working his way through the uppermanagement ladder at Cingular and is now offering his free professional cell phone secrets to the public. If you are at all interested in Christopher’s personal advice, tips, or secrets on cell phones you can visit his cingular secrets blog.
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Posted on February 14th, 2009 — in Hardware Center
Nearly all cell phones today have a built-in camera, but if you are serious about taking photos and would like to order prints the basic mid-range phone is not enogh. The picture quality is limited by the resolution, and cameras on a typical cell phone today use 1.0 megapixels or less rather than the 2.0 or 3.0 megapixels common in digital cameras.
This is why buying a camera phone is more than a matter of picking a mobile phone with a camera.
Phone With a Camera
This is choice if your phone is for making phone calls, but you would like to take snapshots, save photos on the phone only, send them to friends and you have a decent digital camera. All cell phone manufacturers have these mid-range models with built-in cameras. The camera on this phone is most likely 1-megapixel or less.
Something More
If you would like to have a phone that takes pictures you could add to your photo album I would say a good quality 1-megapixel is minimum. Remember this is a very personal question and depends on what you are used to.
If your photo album is full of snapshots taken with the old pocket camera then 1-megapixel might be a step forward in quality. Good candidates for this category are the 1.3-megapixel Motorola E815 that has made it to the CNET Editors’Top Wireless list.
I want the Best
For some reason if nothing but the best is good enough for you. If you need the best quality pictures you can get with a cell phone here are some 2-megapixel models to consider: Samsung MM-A800, Sony Ericsson K750i, Nokia N90 or Siemens SXG75.
Things to Remember When Buying a Camera Phone
- Camera phones can be bulky
- Camera phones do not take good pictures in the dark
- A lens cover is good
Nicolas Fogelholm writes for several online publications and has his own web sites and blogs. Nokia Info
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