[greencat]

For some people specs don't matter, for some they do. The specs that may concern some people don't bother others.

A friend of mine is really fond of the colour purple. It made buying a phone really easy for her because there were only two purple coloured phones available at the time. She simply asked the store which was the best of the two and bought that one. For her the only spec was the colour.

I used to worry a lot about specs - how many MHz, Gb, upgradeability etc. Now I find it is the useability and ability to do what I want with a device that concerns me more. The specs sometimes give an indication of that but it's increasingly the case that they don't. I still recall my 'upgrade' to a Psion Series 5 from a 3a. On paper everything about the Series 5 should have been better. But the screen was almost unreadable under my home lighting - and the store would not take it back. The store's decision, despite me being a good customer, meant any future purchases no longer included them in the spec.

For most devices I am looking for specs which are not readily available eg how long is this device likely to last, is it well supported by the manufacturer, can it survive regular travel. The latest Acer might have twice the specs and half the cost of my Macbook Air but after being stung by two Acers failing just outside of warranty as well as various unresolved problems within warranty- I would them never touch again. Your mileage may, of course, vary.