Going to buy high-tech goods?

Remember when shopping for a camera was easy? Fiddle with a few models, pick one and go home happy. Today you practically need a degree in computer science and three months just to research the right one.

The same clutter exists in virtually every category of consumer electronics and technology. Faced with too many choices, people cannot compare all the options competently, says Barry Schwartz, an American professor of social theory and author of The Paradox of Choice. For example, one university study found that a supermarket customer offered 24 varieties of jam was less likely to buy any jam, than a customer offered just six varieties.

So how can time-pressed electronics shoppers make a decision without feeling regret? Experts urge self-restraint:

Stick to a budget: It’s easy to get snowed into adding features that inch up the price, says Brian Clark, founder of The Tech Enthusiast’s Network, a consumer technology consulting service. Begin with an absolute price ceiling, he says, and you will automatically limit yourself to the best product you can afford.

Know your needs: Ask a friend or relative who is up on electronics to explain the options and then figure out which ones matter most to you.

Talk the talk: Before coming face to face with salespeople who favour jargon, bone up on the lingo. Clark says knowing what key terms mean in advance can inoculate you against buying more than you need.

Ease the pressure: If you feel overwhelmed, leave the store, Clark says. Impulse purchases rarely wind up satisfying in the long run.

Train your brain: No product is perfect. And with electronics, there’s always a new, more technically sophisticated version just around the corner. “We tend to focus on what’s disappointing, but with training, you can learn to focus on what’s satisfying about your purchase,” Barry Schwartz says.

Buying new TV? Read this first

Your boxy old tube is growing obsolete, so is it…Time to Buy a Flat Panel TV?

What Is It? New flat panel TVs come in two formats, LCD (liquid crystal display) and plasma. LCD screens are just like those on laptop PCs. [Even if your TV screen looks flat, it most probably has a cathode ray tube (CRT), so it’s not a flat panel TV.] Plasma screens have innumerable gas-filled picture elements that get illuminated by electrical signals. LCD sets normally range from 15 to 23 inches in size; plasma, between 32 and 50 inches.

Cost? Depends on the features and brand. In general, the smallest LCD sets start at about Rs60,000, while plasma sets start at about Rs 2.3 lakhs; some 50-inch plasma sets cost around Rs 5 lakhs.

Pros: Both LCD and plasma provide more picture clarity than CRTs. Being very thin, they take up less room than CRTs. Some can be hung on the wall. Cons: Plasma screens tend to have shorter life spans than LCDs—over time, the picture quality tends to degrade. The weight of plasma TVs may require a professional to wall-mount them.

Bottom Line: LCDs are your best choice. But since they’ll soon replace CRTs to become the standard, it’s worth waiting till prices really drop.

Looking to buy a laptop?

Read this…

• Don’t be seduced by super-fast processor speeds unless you’re running graphics-intensive applications such as games or design programs.
• If you are running the software codes, consider for dual core with higher RAM.
• If you want to watch DVDs on the move, buy a laptop with an internal DVD drive. An external drive could be a nuisance if you travel a lot.
• Buy a spare or higher-capacity battery for when you’re not near a plug socket.
• Be prepared to pay extra for software. Even Microsoft Office is absent from many packages.
• Due to their rough life, laptops are more prone to failure making it vital to back up data: a second, external hard drive or pen-drive makes this easier.
• Up-loading digital pictures? You’ll need a memory-card slot (Now a days, all laptops have these slots).
• Buy a decent bag to protect your laptop.

Computer Comfort

In a recent Microsoft survey, 73% of respondents named their keyboard and mouse as the things they touched most during the day. Half of all respondents said they’ve experienced discomfort using a computer.

If you spend most of your day in front of a computer, Dan Odell, a Microsoft ergonomist, offers these tips for avoiding injury:

Adjust your chair so your feet are firmly on the ground.

Set your keyboard at elbow height. “We see more discomfort in the shoulders and neck than in the hands and wrists,” says Odell. “If your desk is too high, you tend to hold your arms up over the desk, which results in an extra load on your shoulders.”

Avoid extreme reaches. If the mouse is too far away, your shoulder is really rotated when you use it, comments Odell.

Look for products designed for comfort such as a padded wrist rest or a mouse that fits the relaxed posture of the hand.

Don’t ignore even minor discomfort. According to Odell, any misalignment can add up.

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