If money is no object, then get the fastest most expensive computer out there. Even then you may not get the best computer for your own needs. I have been a computer technician for over twenty years. Some people do have a pretty good idea of what they really need, but most people choose to little or too much for their needs. There is a big difference between choosing the right desktop and the right laptop. One is portable and one sits on the desk. Lets take a look at laptops first. Is portability and battery life a major concern, or is screen size and power more important. Some processors are power savers while others are designed for performance http://www.theitstuff.com/processors-everything-need-know .
One critical thing to keep in mind is most processors found in laptops are there forever. Desktop processors can be more easily replaced, but this requires a skill level that would be considered above average. You can upgrade ram and hard drive, but most often the processor is soldered to the motherboard. Gigahertz is a good way to get an idea of what type of performance you will get out of a processor. 1.3 to 1.9 gigahertz are generally going to be weak processors. Today many low gigahertz processors have the letter U included when the processor is listed under hardware. Many newer processors are designed with Turbo-boost technology. This means that although the processor is rated at 1.8 it can go as high as say 2.5 when the power is needed. You will pay more for any turbo-boost processor. Even though the higher number is there it is not always available when you need it. I suggest getting a processor with 2.5 to 2.8 as a good guideline. If it will boost to 3.5 then all the better.
I always say that you cannot go wrong with 8 Gigabytes of ram. If you are going to play light to medium games then 8 gigs is usually enough. I should mention that gaming is a whole different animal from regular computer use. If you want a laptop that can play some games as well as being used for other computer use, I would suggest the following specs; an Intel third or newer generation i5 or i7 with turbo-boost of 2.8 to 3.5 gigahertz. Pair this processor with 12 gigs of ram and at least an HD 4000 graphics chip on-board. This computer if purchased new will cost from $600 to $1,000. If gaming is your main concern, just go crazy and buy what you want! As far as hard drive size I don’t see why anyone needs more than a terabyte of storage. Larger hard drives like 2 TB and 4 TB fail three times as often a a 1 TB hard drive. One last but not least option is a solid state hard drive. An SSD is three to five times as fast as a mechanical drive. Do I need to say more?? I already have articles on the advantages of having an SSD https://www.cactus-tech.com/resources/blog/details/solid-state-drives-101 .
Desktop computers are much easier to price out. For medium to heavy use, these are the specs; Processor third or newer generation i5 or i7, 12 to 16 gigs of ram, 256 gig SSD for your boot, app and programs and a terabyte mechanical hard drive for storage of larger files. The graphics card is really up to you. If you are using your desktop as a workstation and some lite to medium gaming a 2GB graphics card will probably do. If you are a serious gamer, there are people out there who will be glad to help you make a decision. Part picker.com is also a handy site to help you decide on what you need for a gaming computer.
One last thing! Remember when for a short period of time little netbooks were very popular? Well tablets took over that share of the market and Intel and AMD had millions of these small processors to move. They started putting them in regular size budget laptops, with larger screens. These processors are from 1.0 Gigahertz to 1.6 Gigahertz. If you buy one of these you need to have an abundance of patience. I mean these things give a whole new meaning to SLOW!! If this is helpful please consider giving me a good review on Google. Thank you