Dear Lifehacker,
I'm looking to buy a new digital camera, but I don't know what specifications matter. I've been told megapixel ratings don't really matter when it comes to image quality, so what do I look for? What specs will tell me if a camera shoots great images or not?

Sincerely,
Spec'd Out

Dear Spec'd,
You're right. Megapixel ratings—meaning the number of megapixels a camera can capture in a single shot—is pretty much irrelevant when it comes to image quality. If anything, a high megapixel rating on a small camera is often a bad sign. When companies pack too many megapixels into a camera, images can get a little noisy because so much information is being captured in a small space. As technology is becoming better, this is becoming less of a problem. Nonetheless, don't rely on a megapixel rating to discover whether a camera can take high quality photos. Like megapixels, many specifications you'll see advertised on a camera box will not indicate image quality, and, ultimately, you're not going to know if a camera can take beautiful photos by looking at its technical details. But there are specifications that can tell you a few things about a camera's image quality potential, and they all relate to its sensor.

The Sensor

A digital camera sensor is, basically, its film. When you take a photo, the sensor is exposed to light and other components in the camera record what it sees. There are many, many types of camera sensors and it would be wasteful to compare every last one, but there are a few you should know about. Here are the four that really matter right now, organized by size from small to large.

Cellphone and Point-and-Shoot Sensors

Cellphone and point-and-shoot sensors are generally pretty tiny, and they try to pack a lot of information into their small size. This often results in poor image quality because a tiny little sensor can only do so much. Quality is sacrificed in a couple of ways. In general, light is an issue. If there isn't plenty of it, many small sensors will struggle to see. Because they're tiny they can only be exposed to so much light, and this often hinders their performance. Of course, the iPhone 4S' camera is a great example of an exception. Tiny sensors are getting better, and so are the image processors associated with them. When a small sensor struggles in low light situations, the camera's (or phone's) image processing abilities can try to compensate. They can brighten up dark areas and try to pull detail out of overly-lit sections of an image. This is often beneficial, but it comes at a price. If you've ever tried to brighten up a photo that's too dark, you know that it gets noisy/grainy when you do. Image processors know this, too, and therefore try to reduce that noise. That reduction will cause the image to look a little less sharp, and sharpness is already a problem with small sensors in the first place.

While sensor size won't matter much when it comes to cellphone cameras, it can matter with point-and-shoots. The more compact your point-and-shoot, the smaller the sensor is likely to be. When you have a smaller sensor, the manufacturer is going to have to compensate for its deficiencies in some way. While a smaller sensor won't always equal poorer image quality, you have a better chance for better images with a bigger sensor.

Micro-4/3rds Sensors

The Micro-4/3rds system was created as a compromise between big digital SLR (DSLR) cameras and point-and-shoots. The idea was to provide a compact system with interchangeable lenses that provided high image quality. Thanks to the larger sensor size and the fact that you can choose your lenses, these cameras can provide much higher-quality images while still feeling portable enough for many people.

APS-C Sensors

APS-C sensors are most common in digital SLR (DSLR) cameras, but are sometimes found in compact cameras like the Sony NEX series. They are significantly bigger than what you'd find in a point-and-shoot camera or a cellphone, and this is largely their advantage. Whereas smaller sensors struggle with capturing a lot of light, larger sensors don't suffer as much from this problem. You also have greater control over the depth of field in an image, meaning you can more easily render an out-of-focus background behind your subject. APS-C sensors do have one common disadvantage, however, and that's crop factor. Crop factor refers to how lenses are magnified when attached to APS-C-based cameras. This means that if you attached a 28mm lens it would be magnified to look more like a 45mm lens. Basically, things get zoomed in a little bit. This isn't really a big deal but it's important to know. If you need to take a wide image, you need to buy a wider lens. While 28mm lenses would look plenty wide on a 35mm film or full frame camera (which we'll discuss next), they might not be sufficient on a digital camera with an APS-C sensor.

Full Frame Sensors

Full frame sensors are considered to be the digital equivalents of 35mm film. You'll find them on high-end digital SLR cameras like the popular Canon 5D series. The primary benefit of the full frame sensor is that there is no crop factor. As previously mentioned, APS-C sensors have a crop factor that magnifies attached lenses. For example, on an APS-C-based camera a 28mm lens would look more like a 45mm lens on a regular camera. On a full frame camera that lens won't be magnified at all. It'll look like a 28mm lens. As you've probably figured by now, larger sensors have greater potential to capture more light and so they often handle low-light situations better than smaller sensors. They also are capable of producing a very shallow depth of field, just like a 35mm film camera. Being one of the largest sensors, full frame cameras are often produce some of the highest quality images. This isn't a given, but you can set your expectations high.

The bottom line is this: biggest sensors tend to produce higher-quality images. This is not always the case, but you'll rarely see a cellphone image rival one from a DSLR. While you definitely need to pay attention to more than a camera's sensor, it's a good place to start when comparing specifications.

The Image Processor

A camera's image processor can affect quality in a few ways, many of which are irrelevant if you're shooting in RAW and not JPEG. RAW images are just the data the sensor sees, completely unprocessed. This is great if you want to process the images yourself, later. If you're using a point-and-shoot, or just plan to shoot JPEGs, the processor matters. Many cameras can fix lighting issues and adjust various other settings that can make your images look really nice. A good image processor makes it possible for the camera to handle these operations. It also makes it possible for a camera to capture images in quick succession. While this won't affect image quality directly, being able to capture a few images can mean the difference between getting a good shot and a great shot. A fast processor can actually make a big difference in these ways, so don't disregard it even if you don't need to shoot a lot of photos quickly. A camera's speed is important, as a fast processor can allow a camera to compensate for less-than-ideal lighting conditions.

The Optics

Long-time owners of DSLRs, or cameras with interchangeable lenses, know how important a good lens can be. The lens is the eye of your camera. If it can't see well, your images aren't going to be very good. The optics on a point-and-shoot camera are generally going to be of limited quality because they're 1) pretty tiny and 2) fixed to the camera. There are few specifications that will tell you anything about their quality unless you dig into some very technical reviews. There are, however, a few things you can look for. With any lens, you'll want to know its maximum aperture, or how wide the lens can open. A wider aperture means it can let in more light. More light means you can take photos more easily where there isn't a lot of lighting. Apertures are rated in f-stops, so when you're looking at a lens you'll often see something like f/3.5 attached to it. That means it has a maximum aperture, or f-stop, of 3.5. This is a pretty standard number. Wide apertures are generally considered to be in the range of f/1.4 through f/2.8. If you need a camera that can photograph easily in lower light, looking for a wide aperture is a good place to start.

You'll also want to consider the sharpness of the lens. You won't find this in the specifications, however, but rather in tests. Ultimately, when you're trying to determine if a camera is capable of high-quality images there are two things that will matter: 1) reviews with image samples and 2) your own experiences. The best thing you can do is go out and buy a camera you want to test from a store with a good return policy. Plan to try out the camera for awhile and return it if it doesn't live up to your expectations. If you can't try out the camera or want to do research in advance, one of the best sites for samples and comparisons is Digital Photography Review. While comparisons can get a little technical, they offer plenty of good information that everyone can benefit from. They also provide plenty of samples from technical tests and real-world situations. The best judge of how a camera performs in terms of image quality is going to be your eye. If it meets your needs, it's good enough.

Happy shooting!

Love,
Lifehacker.

Have you ever needed to look up something about a processor but didn't know where to go? CPU DB is an enormous database of information about pretty much every processor you'd ever need to research. The folks over at Stanford put it together to let you browse or search all the data (in real time). Each entry for every processor includes the majority of its specifications plus benchmark ratings and often a photo. You can even download the entire database onto your computer if you want a local copy.

The database is useful if you're looking to build a computer and need to know the specifics about the processors you're considering. It's also helpful if you're overclocking. Whatever you're doing, if you need processor specs this is the place to go. It's easy to find what you're looking for and provides plenty of helpful information.

CPU DB | via How-To Geek

Dear Lifehacker,
I'm in the market for a new computer, but I keep reading that I should wait until Intel's Ivy Bridge processors get released. Are they really going to be that much better? Will I even notice a difference if I wait two months for the next big processor?

Sincerely,
Seeking CPUs

Dear Seeking,
It's true that, when it comes to raw speed, we've reached a point of diminishing returns when it comes to processors—at least for the average user. However, new processors bring more than just raw speed, and depending on what you're using your computer for, the next new architecture could actually be worth the wait, even if you're rather impatient. Here's a rundown of what you should be looking for.

Most People Don't Need to Worry About Processors Anymore...

For the average user, the difference between one generation of processor and the next is negligible, if it's even noticeable at all. Processors have gotten faster and more efficient than most people will use in their day-to-day activities, so holding out for something like Ivy Bridge is really just depriving yourself of that new machine for a few months. Even if you're gaming, you're unlikely to notice a difference with a minor upgrade like that. Your graphics card is more likely to be the bottleneck on your system—once you get past a certain point, most games won't benefit from more CPU cores or speed. So if you're building or buying a new desktop for regular computing or gaming, it probably isn't worth the wait (that is, if you're really itching to get your new computer...if you're a very patient person, why not wait?).

...Unless You're Editing Hours of Video...

That said, each generation of processors does come with speed increases—you just wouldn't notice them in regular computing. Intel has a "tick tock" release schedule where every other release brings more significant performance increases—Sandy Bridge brought a 10-50% increase, whereas Ivy Bridge brings about a 5-15% increase in speed. Again, though, most people won't notice either of those. If you're doing processor-intensive tasks, however—like heavy video editing—you definitely will. Rendering or encoding a long video will take less time, thus freeing you up for other things, and a few months wait might be worth it.

...Or Buying a Laptop

Now, remember, speed isn't the only improvement we see in new processors. We may have reached a point of diminishing returns on speed, but we certainly haven't when it comes to other things, like integrated graphics performance or heat buildup. If you're buying a laptop or low-powered machine that runs on integrated graphics—that is, that doesn't have a dedicated graphics card—you're likely to see a huge boost in graphics performance for gaming or video watching between generations (and, specifically, with Ivy Bridge). You also may notice that your computer doesn't run quite as hot, which is a big concern for laptop users. Furthermore, laptops usually come with low-speed processors, that haven't really reached that point of diminishing returns—so you're likely to still notice the speed increases as well (unless, perhaps, you're buying a gaming laptop with a high-end processor in it). Photo by pahudson.

In the end, it's hard to tell you what every new generation will bring in the future, so you'll want to do your own research—AnandTech is a really great site for in-depth looks at new hardware—but in general, this brief rundown should give you a good idea of where the state of processors is today. In general: if waiting is too hard, you probably won't miss out on a ton unless you're buying a laptop or doing seriously CPU intensive processes. If you're one or two months out, and have the patience, you might as well wait...but by no means do you need to like a lot of people might say. Just like all technology, something better will always be around the corner, and if you're always waiting for the next best thing, you'd never upgrade.

One last thing to consider is cost. While a new line of processors may bring some moderate improvements to a new laptop, it also means prices of the old model are going to drop, so if you're looking to save money, you should see if you can't grab an older model for less once the new ones come out. You might find that you enjoy the extra cash more than you enjoy a slightly cooler or graphics-friendly laptop (especially if you aren't using those graphics for much).

Sincerely,
Lifehacker

P.S. Obviously, this is pretty simple look at a complicated topic, so if you have anything important to add, be sure to do so in the comments below.

Dear Lifehacker,
I only have $X to spend, so I can only make one upgrade to my PC. Should I upgrade my RAM/hard drive/processor/video card or my RAM/hard drive/processor/video card? Which one will give me the biggest performance boost?

Sincerely,
Collecting Components

Dear Collecting,
Every version of this question is different for every person that asks it, so it's difficult to give a definitive answer based on only the parts available. Some upgrades will be better in certain situations, and it all depends on what you already have, too. That said, we can give you the information you need to make the decision pretty easily. Here are the two things you'll want to keep in mind.

Choose the Best Upgrade for What You Do

There is no "best" upgrade for everyone. It all depends on what you use your computer for. If you do a lot of multitasking, or your work involves applications that require a lot of memory (e.g., you run a lot of virtual machines), RAM is going to be a solid upgrade. If you play a lot of games, a new video card is more likely to increase performance, while video editors would probably like a faster, multithreaded processor. Here's a breakdown of possible upgrades and what they'd be good for:

RAM: While RAM is easily the cheapest upgrade you can make, most modern computers aren't going to see a huge performance benefit from upgrading. Usually, 4GB should be enough for the average person—it isn't going to make most apps run faster and it isn't going to improve gaming all that much. If you're still rocking 512MB, it could definitely be worth an upgrade—but otherwise, you can probably pass. Exceptions include people who use a ton of programs at once, use RAM-intensive applications like Photoshop or a video editor, and people who run virtual machines in programs like VirtualBox or VMware, which require you to set aside a chunk of RAM for those machines. The more RAM your virtual machines have, the faster they'll run (and the less they'll steal from your actual OS).

Hard Drives/Solid State Drives: We've talked about this a lot before, but it's worth repeating: Upgrading to a solid state drive (SSD) is one of the best upgrades you can make in terms of general speed boosts. An SSD can speed up your boot time and the launching of applications, though it isn't going to encode video any faster or make your games run more smoothly (though they will load faster). An SSD won't make web sites load any faster, and it isn't really worth it if you only use a few applications. It's especially great for those using slow-launching programs (again, like Photoshop) or launching many applications at once. Upgrading your regular hard drive to a more spacious hard drive (that is, a non-SSD) will only help your speed if you're regularly running out of space.

Processors: The first thing you'll want to note is that processors are not as easily upgradable as RAM and hard drives. Laptops and pre-built desktops are sometimes upgradable, and if you built your machine yourself, you can always upgrade to a faster processor with the same socket type. This upgrade would be most useful for those doing processor intensive tasks that make you wait—like encoding video or audio. Multi-core processors will help with multitasking, especially when these intensive processes are involved. Faster processors can also help boost gaming, but not as much as...

Video Cards: If you're a gamer, this is where you probably want to upgrade. Nothing boosts your gaming performance like a new video card, and it's easy to find one in your price range. If upgrading to a new card is too expensive, you can always try to buy a second video card and put it in SLI or Crossfire, which essentially means having two of the same video card for extra performance (though it requires a compatible motherboard). If you aren't a gamer, then you don't need to look too closely at video cards, considering any semi-modern PC can handle everything else you'll throw at it, including HD video. Focus on the other upgrades instead.

Eliminate Bottlenecks

Now that you know what components are best for what tasks, it's time to take a look at what you already have. We've talked about bottlenecks once before, in the context of gaming, but it still applies to regular computing too. Upgrading one piece of hardware to something awesome will only take you as far as that component can take you. If you upgrade your video card but your processor is still old and slow, games aren't going to magically run everything at high settings. They may run better, but they'll still probably slow down when you have a lot of things happening on screen—since it's the processor that regulates that, not the video card. Similarly, getting an SSD isn't going to make your computer feel brand new if you still have 512MB of RAM. Take a look at what you have, see which part is the most outdated, and factor that into your upgrading decision. If you have a very old computer, you won't be able to eliminate bottlenecks completely, but at least you'll be more realistic about what kind of performance increases you'll see—and you won't waste your money on a $250 video card since it won't help your computer like it would one without existing bottlenecks. Photo by Phil John.

If you're still deciding on which component(s) to upgrade, I recommend checking out our guide to building a computer from scratch—even if you aren't building your own—as it can help you get a feel for which parts do what. For specific part recommendations, check out our list of the best current PC builds to see what some of our favorites are. Hopefully that will help you make a more informed decision.

Sincerely,
Lifehacker

P.S. If you have any wisdom gleaned from your own hardware upgrades, be sure to share it with us in the comments.