Acer Aspire AS8940G-6865 (Core i7 720QM 1.6GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit)

If you demand more from a notebook, you'll need a true desktop replacement. Whether you're designing a Web site, editing home movies, or mowing down aliens, your laptop will demand a powerful processor, plenty of memory, great graphics, and a healthy hard drive.

Read more in the Laptop Buying Guide

Ready for Windows 7?

If you want to run Windows 7 on your PC, here's what it takes:

• -1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• -1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
• -16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
• -DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

Additional requirements to use certain features:

• -Internet access (fees may apply)
• -Depending on resolution, video playback may require additional memory and advanced graphics hardware
• -For some Windows Media Center functionality a TV tuner and additional hardware may be required
• -Windows Touch and Tablet PCs require specific hardware
• -HomeGroup requires a network and PCs running Windows 7
• -DVD/CD authoring requires a compatible optical drive
• -BitLocker requires Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 1.2
• -BitLocker To Go requires a USB flash drive
• -Windows XP Mode requires an additional 1 GB of RAM, an additional 15 GB of available hard disk space, and a processor capable of hardware virtualization with Intel VT or AMD-V turned on
• -Music and sound require audio output

from windows.microsoft.com

Home users are increasingly turning to notebook computers as their primary PCs, as they like that laptops can offer similar performance and features to those of a desktop PC, and can be easily moved from room to room. Though of course almost any notebook computer will do for typical home use, there are two types of laptops most suitable for home users: mid-size notebooks, which tend to be budget-friendly, and desktop replacements, which are usually packed with features.

Read more in the Laptop Buying Guide

To maximize battery life, notebook computer processors are often designed to save more energy and run cooler than desktop processors. The drawback is slower performance, but more memory can help, which it won't consume energy or radiate heat. Even better, up to 4GB of RAM can now be found in budget configurations. If you want more memory later, expansion is often a simple procedure.

See more Notebook computer RAM products

The central processor (CPU) is the heart of any computer system and an excellent litmus test as to whether a desktop computer or notebook fits your needs. The trouble is, processor names like Athlon and Celeron are as cryptic as system names like Latitude and Pavilion. Here's a quick guide to see which chip is a fit:

See more Notebook processor products