Installation on laptop with no OS

My apologies for asking what may seem like an easy question.

Can I install the latest (or a particular level of) FreeBSD on a laptop with no OS by first downloading the product to a CD on a Windows 7 system, then booting up using BIOS control on the laptop with no OS?

I'm not interested in using VM/partitioning/etc. on my Windows 7 laptop. I would like to have FreeBSD running standalone.

Thanks for your time.
 
wblock@, thanks for your response. I have not yet purchased an OS-free laptop. It sounds like it's a can-do. I'll queue back up when I know the make/model.
 
Just so you know, some newer hardware is not fully supported yet. The most important of these:
  • Intel Haswell graphics: not supported yet, only console text or vesa X drivers for now.
  • Optimus graphics (dual Intel and Nvidia): some of these can be made to work by disabling the Nvidia chip, but not all.
  • AMD video cards in the 7000- and 8000-range (and possibly some of the 6000-series), including those built-in as APUs, are not yet supported by the radeon driver.
Work is at various stages on all of these, but none have an expected completion date yet.
 
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