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I'm planning to buy a new laptop in a couple of months or so, but I have no idea what tech specs I should go for. I'm on a budget and would only like to get specs that I really need.

On that note, I was wondering if there's a software that can monitor my laptop usage over the next 2 months and then tell me what are the minimum requirements that I would need. So the software would read the memory usage, CPU usage, etc. over 2 months and then tell me (or at least give me the info I need to decide) what are the optimal tech specs I should go for.

Anything out there that can do this?

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    This would be particularly good and interesting. – Izumi-reiLuLu Jun 26 '14 at 10:21
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    I like this idea, something to log what application is running and identify where you are stressing your system most often. Would be a very handy tool, even just for component upgrades. – James Jun 27 '14 at 14:39
  • What operating system are you running? (Bear in mind that if you're putting Windows and MSOffice on your new computer, that's going to take a large chunk out of your budget.) – Pharap Jul 30 '14 at 8:14
  • I'm only talking about my budget to buy a new computer. MSOffice and Windows are not included in this. – Prahar Jul 31 '14 at 12:15
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    I completely agree with that. I was simply wondering if there's an app that can do it all for me. I know exactly what I would have to do to make a decision. But it seems that such a thing can be automated and therefore, there should be an app for this. – Prahar Aug 2 '14 at 16:38
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The best thing you can do is:

  • try all applications you are interested in
  • if you notice some are not working as fast as they should go online and search for their system requirements and look for a computer based on that requirements

Also you could also use Microsoft Upgrade Assistant:

  • runs on XP, Vista and 7
  • free
  • scans your software and hardware and tells you if you can run Windows 8/8.1. If it says yes, then you can start looking for a laptop with similar hardware like your current PC.
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    Why do you say that computer usage has nothing to do with hardware? I mean, If I use software like Photoshop (say), there is definitely an optimal hardware that you must have to be able to run the software smoothly. I know that I can do what you said, I was wondering if there is a software that can do it for me. – Prahar Jun 26 '14 at 16:38
  • The stat "ran at 100% for 3 hours, versus ran at 100% for 20 minutes" would be very valuable. – James Jun 27 '14 at 14:39
  • This seems to focus on theoretical usage, while the OP asks for measurements on practical usage. – Mast Mar 20 '15 at 13:34

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