Laptops are gaining popularity these days. Almost everyone is carrying one now either for work or entertainment. Laptop computers with the latest technology was introduced into the market every day and these new laptops come with a huge price tag. But that does not mean you can not get a good and cheap laptop. I have written a guide that can help in your search for a cheap and good laptop.

Buy cheap laptop with older technology

Rapid progress in technology makes it meaningless to buy the latest technology at a high price. When laptop with wireless capability first came to market, a unit with this technology can cost up to U.S. $ 2500. Now, after 2 years, you can get a relatively fast Centrino notebook for less than U.S. $ 1000

Buy used or refurbished laptop
The depreciation of a laptop value is so high that after a year on the market, a laptop can easily lose half its value. So if you are looking for a cheap laptop, look for one that is close to a year old. Not all laptops are used in bad shape. You will be surprised to discover that some laptops are still used in good condition because their owners are power users or gamers.

Buy portable power users or gamers
I like to buy electronics like laptops from hard core users of power or the players. Let me share with you why. Players or users usually require the latest technology and more powerful to run games or applications that require energy. Often not satisfied with second best. They also tend to chase after the latest technology. So after a year, which is bored with what they have and will look to sell their laptops so they can buy a new one. Now, if you are looking to buy cheap laptops with advanced technology and you happen to have friends who are players, not ask them if they are looking to sell their laptops. Who knows, maybe you can buy a good laptop and cheap to them.

Scan through gaming forums and local gaming community
if you have friends who like to play computer games, followed by analysis through gaming forums on the Internet is another way to get good and inexpensive used laptop. Internet makes it easy for you to do this. Go to google.com and start searching for gaming forums. Visit each and every one and see if they have a trade section. Definitely going to find after a lot of players looking to sell their gaming laptops.

Scan through local bulletin boards
You should scan through local bulletin boards near you for cheap deals on laptop.Especially if software companies around the area. Software companies offer to their computers or laptops for sale when completed software projects. I personally had gotten a good few of my family and friends.

Look for cheap laptop with at least 512 MB of memory
This is especially important for used laptop. If processor speed is slow, then having more memory can compensate for the lack of speed. In fact, the size of memory plays an important role in determining the speed of a laptop computer running an application. Only by increasing the memory size, you can see a big difference in speed. A cheap laptop with at least 512 MB of memory can not run the most graphics-intensive applications with ease.

Get cheap laptop from reputable manufacturer
This is very important because if you are buying used laptop, then the chances of maintenance required is greater than a new laptop. So if you buy from a reputable manufacturer, you will save a lot of trouble and time if your laptop does not require maintenance.