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I've read many reviews for laptops (particularly by Dell, Asus or Lenovo) which I feel might suit my studies related to programming and data analysis, and working with art softwares. What I understand is that I need to consider memory and processor speed to be able to work efficiently. But I do not know what other hardware/software features I must consider in making my decision, I was hoping I could get some tips here into what I should keep an eye out for when choosing a laptop.

Some questions I have are as follows:

1) My previous laptop experience resulted in a fried hard drive. Out of the three manufacturers I have mentioned, how can I know which has less problems with overheating? Hardware wise, is there something specific I should be looking out for?

2) If anyone has experience or works for a programming & Data analysis purpose, how much memory and hard drive space is recommended at least, for a smooth running, considering I wish to make a Linux and Windows partition? Like, compared to 320 GB, will a 500 GB HDD suffice?

3) Is it important to consider which processor it is, or consider the processor speed?

4) In laptop reviews, a lot of detail is given to display quality which often confuses me as I do not understand which feature is important. For simple illustrations, display wise, what is important to consider - Contrast, viewing angle or resolution?

4) For illustrations purposes and not gaming, if a laptop has Intel HD graphics 3000/4000, what difference does an additional graphics card make, if I am to, say, work in Photoshop or 3D MAX?

Thanks

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Is the wording better now? I basically need some clues in what I need to consider in a laptop, there are so many options feature wise that I do not understand. I figured users here may have a better understanding of those features, and which are important to consider, instead of being lost in details. – Antibody Jan 16 at 14:31
Good job in rewriting, thanks! Very closely related question: superuser.com/questions/297274/… – slhck♦ Jan 16 at 14:33
Try breaking these questions up into different posts. This question is too broad as it stands. – terdon Jan 16 at 14:33

closed as off topic by Xavierjazz, Michael Hampton, Dave M, Diogo, CharlieRB Jan 16 at 17:04

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