Daily Tip: Notebook Buying Tip: Consider Ports Because many accessories, including mice, portable storage devices (such as a flash drive or a portable hard drive), and a variety of adapters require a USB port, be sure the notebook you choose has at least four. Additionally, a built-in memory card reader will let you transfer media right from the card to the computer, without having to pack a memory card reader in order to work with photos and videos from a conference or other event. When it comes to choosing among video ports such as VGA (Video Graphics Array), DVI (Digital Visual Interface), HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface), and DisplayPort, consider both your future and legacy products. VGA and DVI are older video graphics technologies, while HDMI and DisplayPort were created within the past few years to accommodate high-definition and high-resolution video. Having both HDMI and DisplayPort connections is important, because each technology supports different types of video products, such as cameras, high-definition camcorders, Blu-ray Disc players, HDTVs, and monitors.
Additionally, an eSATA (external Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) port and a FireWire port are handy for some external hard drives and optical drives (although you'll find fewer and fewer FireWire devices as that interface is fading quickly from view). The eSATA standard is ideal for transferring large amounts of information to storage because it's faster than both USB and FireWire technologies. David Ferrin ow...@jaws-users.com For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: http://www.jaws-users.com/help/
