Compare the laptops: not so simples

A need arose for me to purchase a new laptop recently and working in the computer industry, I roughly knew what criteria to look for.

As I’m not particularly loyal to brands, searching laptops mainly consists of comparing different machine specifications across different makes, and figuring out which models offer the best value for money. The first logical step was therefore to start looking on comparison websites. To my surprise, none of them provided decent hardware comparison.

Then I ‘Googled’ “compare laptops”. I don’t really like browsing for products using such generic search expressions; it makes me feel like I am a novice/naïve Internet user, but I was desperate to find a decent comparison website. The majority of the results were actually websites reviewing laptops, rather than providing a factual comparison. Reviews may be important and valuable, but they don’t replace technical details. Some websites however, did offer product comparison via a faceted navigation (progressive selection of criteria to narrow down results). However, to me, they looked cheap, weren’t user-friendly, or (because they were new to me) I was not sure of the reliability of their product database.

The consequent disappointment led me to do the comparison job myself. After spending a few hours researching, I was able to make a few observations.

1. Some leading brands such as Samsung or Acer do not offer an online store, which at the present time is astonishing to me and in my mind potentially brand damaging.

2. Most of the websites strategy seemed to convince and guide users with marketing speeches rather than with actual machine performances. As an example, HP and Toshiba have invested a lot of effort in making up fancy laptop range names that, to be honest, don’t actually tell consumers why it would be “the right laptop right for me”.

However, some brownie points can be attributed to Dell and Lenovo. The websites look easy on the eye, are modern and sharp, and they are fairly easy to use. Most importantly, they provide faceted navigation upfront (one click away from the homepage). Users then have the ability to drill down by technical criteria or by laptop range.

Buying a laptop online remains a painful experience for users who don’t know exactly what they want. The ability to compare models might be one of the most important aspects of the buying process and is not yet widely supported. As for me, well I’m still looking.