Best Laptop for a University Student

[sk!mom]

My DD17 will be heading off to college in the Fall. I'm thinking of getting her a new laptop as a grad gift. She currently has a 2 year old Dell. She will be a Design major at the University of North Texas. I emailed the design department at UNT and they had no specific hardware advice. They only said that she will likely want Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software.

Any advice on the best computer?

 

[CynthiaC925]

My DD17 will be heading off to college in the Fall. I'm thinking of getting her a new laptop as a grad gift. She currently has a 2 year old Dell. She will be a Design major at the University of North Texas. I emailed the design department at UNT and they had no specific hardware advice. They only said that she will likely want Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software. Any advice on the best computer?

my daughter is a senior at San Diego state. Loves her Mac book pro!

 

[theladyloki]

My college always recommended a Mac Book for Design (whether graphic design or interior design) students. My two interior design-student friends (and my graphic design friend) have Mac Book Pros and they all swear by them.

I was a Chemistry major, so I went with an HP because I needed the Windows Programs - namely Excel.

Hope that helps!

 

[pad406]

I'm afraid you've a modern 'how long is a piece of string' question Primarily the laptop will be driven by your budget. If it's a design course she's on, the best advice is get the one with the biggest screen and most memory (ie RAM not hard disk) that you can afford. The only downside is that the bigger the screen, the heavier the machine, generally. This applies equally to Macs and PC based laptops. I realise that it might be nice to surprise her, but as she will be using it extensively, I would strongly recommend that you talk to her about what she needs/wants as she will probably have a fair idea herself. Would be a shame to miss her ideal machine just because you didn't ask. The surprise could be in the form of an IOU voucher if you really want to do that. Best of luck.

 

[jrmasm]

My husband, a design professional for 20 years, prefers to work on a desktop.

 

[pad406]

OR, as an alternative, depending on her current laptop (for instance my own laptop is 2 years old also, but was the best I could buy 2 years ago, so is still very powerful and fast), might be to get here a graphics tablet and a second screen. If she does a lot of work in her accommodation, this might be a better idea. I have a friend who's into graphics and can't function without a 2nd screen and his tablet. In case you don't know what it is, a tablet is a touch sensitive device that comes with a special pen, where you can draw and it all translates directly to the screen. It allows for much finder detail than you could ever hope to achieve with just a mouse. Just google graphics tablet. They range from $100 to $500+

 

[clh2]

Mom of a 2nd year college student here:

Will she REALLY need a new computer her first year or so of college? The first year or two where my DD goes, they get a lot of "GenEd's" crammed down their throats (i.e. English, Math, Science, etc) and a brand spanking new laptop with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software may not be needed until your DD is a sophomore or a junior. By that time - she may have a much clearer idea of "if" she wants a laptop that she can take with her to class, or one that she uses primarily in her room, or in the library.

I would do an IOU for her to pick something out that she would use.

 

[blessedby3]

We got our DD a Dell when she went off to college 6 years ago. Our family has gone through about 4 laptops (all Dells).
We got DS a Mac when he graduated last June. It is a Macbook Pro and awesome. So awesome that we bought ourselves a Macbook Air. I can't say enough good things about the Macs. We have yet to get one virus or problem out of either one. With the PC's we constantly had problems and virus'.
We also got an iPad this past Christmas and we have gone to iPhones for the whole family. I can't say enough good things about the Apple products. They are pricey, but the quality is worth it. My DS has had his Mac since he graduated High school 6 years ago with not one problem and its still going strong.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I agree with the advice to not make this a surprise. Let her chose the laptop she wants. If you wait, she can get a student discount through her college.

 

[Ranger111]

clh2 -- the mom of a second-year college student nailed it pretty well --

To refresh, she said: Will she REALLY need a new computer her first year or so of college? The first year or two where my DD goes, they get a lot of "GenEd's" crammed down their throats (i.e. English, Math, Science, etc) and a brand spanking new laptop with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software may not be needed

She may even decide to switch majors to English!!!

Anyway, for what it is worth, I live in a college town, went to a couple of coffee shops near campus and chatted with a few of the "kids" a couple of evenings.

Based on their advice and my own research, ended up buying my three "college kids" refurbished Dell Vostros. The big thing was they had 13-inch screens -- seems small, but as another poster pointed out, they lug that thing around all the time....weight matters.

My kids love theirs -- indeed -- my daughter's died last spring and she insisted on an exact replacement.

Finally, I went the refurbished route because of cost and because of something one "kid" told me. He was a grad student, but he remembered in his first year or so a lot of kids -- not used to the college environment or whatever -- managed to drop/destroy/ or otherwise render their laptops inoperable....

If after a couple of years she needs something else, well, as the mom above pointed out....

Oh, Dell does not make the Vostro anymore, but I would still lean toward the smaller screens. At their age their eyes can take it and my kids all told me they loved the size as it was big enough -- but not too big.

 

[sk!mom]

My DH will be happy with your responses. He thinks that we should let her start school with the Dell and then buy her what she needs when she needs it.

Thanks!

 

[KCmike]

Macbook Air for design. Don't worry about hard drive space as everything is stored in "Clouds" now and there is no need for a cd/dvd writer. Apple makes a quality laptop and the Air is so light and has anywhere from 9 to 12 hours of TRUE batter life. It's amazing.

 

[mickey1968]

Macbook Air for design. Don't worry about hard drive space as everything is stored in "Clouds" now and there is no need for a cd/dvd writer. Apple makes a quality laptop and the Air is so light and has anywhere from 9 to 12 hours of TRUE batter life. It's amazing.

I agree with the MB Air recommendation. The 11 inch is about the same weight as a full size iPad and very easy to carry. I have the whole Adobe Creative Suite on mine as well as Microsoft Office and some video editing programs that I have no idea how to use. Adobe and MS Office are the workhorses for graphic design students and for journalism, mass communication, video production students like where I work as well. The good news is most of the college that have good programs also have good open labs for students. Those computers have all the software they really need. They would still need a good laptop to write papers, do internet research, make presentations and manage their digital life. If she feels she wants a bigger monitor later when her classes will get more interesting and intense, then a monitor can be hooked up to the laptop.

Maybe let her go in the first few weeks and see what others have and talk to the lab people in her area. Then you can order what she needs.

Sidebar: Don't let them push her into taking just the gen ed classes at first. Make sure she gets right in with at least one intro class per semester in her chosen major so she gets to do the fun stuff before getting burned out.

Anyway, good luck with your decision.

 

[mikehn]

The macbook air is pretty incredible. It is like the perfect tool for any business traveler or anyone who does a lot mobile computing. B&H photo has some great prices and they will configure them just about any way you like. You can get them on Amazon too, but with limited configurations. And if you are a student, the apple store has a student discount.

 

[natfrac]

I highly recommend any Mac Book. My last one lasted over 8 years and I only had to replace it because the operating system was not upgradeable. I do agree with waiting until she gets to college. Speaking from experience, a university bookstore may have better student discounts than available through apple direct.

 

[wiigirl]

my daughter is a senior at San Diego state. Loves her Mac book pro!

 

[pryncess527]

My DD17 will be heading off to college in the Fall. I'm thinking of getting her a new laptop as a grad gift. She currently has a 2 year old Dell. She will be a Design major at the University of North Texas. I emailed the design department at UNT and they had no specific hardware advice. They only said that she will likely want Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software.

Any advice on the best computer?

The College of Design at the school where I work strongly recommends Apple laptops. Though they also encourage students not to buy a laptop until their 2nd year when they are deeper in the design program and can select a machine tailored to the needs of their department.

 

[leebee]

Mac Book Pro, and this is coming from a PC girl! DD bought a Lenovo and within 2 years it was all crapped up and worked at a snail's pace, if at all. She then bought a Dell and the hard drive crashed within the first four months. I have always tried to steer her away from Macs as I think they are overpriced, but over the summer I was given one from my job, and I am sold. She needs a MacBook.

Here's the thing: In college, even freshmen don't use laptops for JUST writing assignments. They are expected to use the University/College communications systems, like FirstClass, and the University email systems EVERY day. Faculty communicate this way, and assignments are expected to be submitted electronically. Many classes do group projects online. If your kid doesn't have a computer than works reliably and quickly, they'll be behind the eight ball before school ever begins. Bite the bullet and buy her the upscale laptop that she is going to need.

 

[Ranger111]

As several have said for a designer a MAC is the way to go.

I am in advertising and any designer/graphic artist/publications person who does not use a MAC...well.

They are expensive, but as in any profession, the best tools usually are pricey.

But, dear child of yours is just entering school. As someone else mentioned you really don't know what she needs.

If money is not a big thing in the family, certainly, go ahead and get one of the top of the line MACs. You may, however, have to do some pricey replacements, enhancements, etc. in a couple of years.

I don't have to tell anyone how electronics constantly evolve, change, etc. What was good a couple of years ago....

And, again, while she may be focused on design now, that could also change.

Any decent laptop will get her through her first years just fine, and depending what she does may get her all the way through.

It guess it comes down to whether or not spending a couple/three grand now and then having to possibly spend a significant amount later is no big deal or not.

Good hunting, either way.

 

[WDWOswald]

My DD17 will be heading off to college in the Fall. I'm thinking of getting her a new laptop as a grad gift. She currently has a 2 year old Dell. She will be a Design major at the University of North Texas. I emailed the design department at UNT and they had no specific hardware advice. They only said that she will likely want Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop software.

Any advice on the best computer?

College is very expensive. The cost of a nice laptop is a tiny fraction of it, so invest in the best computer you can possibly afford. The 15" macbook pro retina is actually quite a reasonable choice. 90 percent of college work is done on the computer these days and you don't want to be dealing with a computer that slows you down and frustrates you. I just got a 13" macbook pro with retina display and I don't know how I even lived with slower systems before.