laptop for college how much to we need

[luvsmickeymouse]

Well that is very generous of you to put a minimum $1K present under the tree for a teenager. If she has her heart set on a Mac and doesn't really need one then give her a gift card to the Apple store for maybe $200 this year for Christmas and tell all your friends and family that she is saving for a computer. She can then save up all her GC's for this big purchase. Sometimes when a kid finds out that this one gift will be all she gets, her tune may chang on "needing" a Mac.

When in college I wanted a very expensive bracelet ($600) and for every occasion for almost a year I only got GCs to the jeweler. I don't think my parents thought I had the patience to save up for it, but it worked out great in the end. They stopped buying me useless gifts and I got one great piece of jewelry that I still love to this day.

This is a great idea. She will most likely get money for graduations gifts and by waiting until she starts college the computer will be the 2012 model not a computer already a year old.

 

[jrmasm]

Please don't assume that a MAC is always a want...it CAN in fact be a need.

My daughter is majoring in Graphic Design and the MAC is considered a standard workhorse in the design world. Based on recommendations and information from the college she attends, we got her a MacBookPro when she graduated from high school in 2009. We got educational pricing and also purchased the AppleCare warranty.

The machine has been a workhorse for her, never once crashing or getting 'infected' with anything. Battery life has been superb for over two years (just now starting to diminish, but under her warranty it will be replaced if needed before June of 2012).

The AppleCare has paid for itself. She required a CD-drive replacement (she uses it constantly) and was taken care of in less than two days. While they had it, they recommended replacing the hard drive and that too was done under warranty. We didn't pay a dime.

Unless a specific school requires a MAC, it is still a want. My husband, a graphic design professional, hasn't touch a MAC in more than 10 years.

 

[MrsPete]

I'd say the laptop is a NEED, but a Mac is a WANT.

Kids that age are very good at knowing what they want . . . but not so good at seeing that want in the context of the big picture. That is, not so good at figuring out how a PC vs. a Mac fits into the overall budget -- parents' income, her income, tuition, books, meal plan. It's easy to say, "It's only this much" 'til you look at how many other things are "only this much". When you add them up, it's more like, "Wow, it's that much?"

I'd go with the PC myself -- unless she has some specific needs for her major. If it genuinely is a need for some reason I don't see, I'd pay it.

But IF she balks at it, I'd give her a VISA gift card for the amount you're willing to spend on a computer . . . and let her pick her own laptop. If she really wants the Mac, she could chip in the rest from a summer job or her graduation money. Does she want the Mac enough to work extra hours this summer? Does she want the Mac enough to bring her old bedding from home instead of having cool new stuff for her dorm? Does she want the Mac enough to forego having a TV (or whatever thing she doesn't have now) for her dorm room?

Let it be her choice. It'll be a learning experience for her, and a college student who heads out understanding that she can't have everything is a college student who's ahead of the curve.

 

[MrsPete]

Unless your kid is really into gaming I would go with the smallest screen you can afford. They will be carrying it all day and those big screens are HEAVY! I love the 14.1' Inspirons from Dell.

As we've toured colleges, I've been asking the student tour guides whether students carry their laptops to class, and I've not received a clear answer. Some say, "Yes, all the time!" Others say they only need them in certain classes, but frequently tote them to the library or friend's rooms.

I'm convinced it's a matter of habit for the student. But how is a student to predict whether he'll be a "carrier" or not?

 

[debbi801]

Please don't assume that a MAC is always a want...it CAN in fact be a need.

My daughter is majoring in Graphic Design and the MAC is considered a standard workhorse in the design world. Based on recommendations and information from the college she attends, we got her a MacBookPro when she graduated from high school in 2009. We got educational pricing and also purchased the AppleCare warranty.

The machine has been a workhorse for her, never once crashing or getting 'infected' with anything. Battery life has been superb for over two years (just now starting to diminish, but under her warranty it will be replaced if needed before June of 2012).

The AppleCare has paid for itself. She required a CD-drive replacement (she uses it constantly) and was taken care of in less than two days. While they had it, they recommended replacing the hard drive and that too was done under warranty. We didn't pay a dime.

Any design or multi-media school is going to require (or strongly suggest) a mac because of the specific software used. My son is attending an art school and majoring in painting. They still weren't happy about the fact that he has a windows based laptop and not a mac.

Plus there are specific publishing apps that require a mac, too. I'm a tech writer for an IT company. Back before the documentation was all online, the publisher we use had a cow because all of the documenation was created in MS Word.

 

[Tistal]

As we've toured colleges, I've been asking the student tour guides whether students carry their laptops to class, and I've not received a clear answer. Some say, "Yes, all the time!" Others say they only need them in certain classes, but frequently tote them to the library or friend's rooms.

I'm convinced it's a matter of habit for the student. But how is a student to predict whether he'll be a "carrier" or not?

I have no idea what determines if a student will bring a laptop or not. It is something I have wondered many, many times over. I have had students of every major and from the greatest and brightest to the ones who aren't trying at all bring laptops to class.

There doesn't seem to be a reason other than personal preference. I will say I still see more students without laptops in class than with. This isn't just my class (I teach intro to comp, research and argument and world lit). Because I teach introduction level classes, I often find myself teaching in buildings that usually house other majors, so I often see a lot of classes in progress that are not related to mine.

However, if you go to the library in the evening you see far more students with laptops than without. I will say, whatever you decide to get you should invest in a a laptop cable lock and make sure she uses it. I'm always shocked how many laptops I see sitting somewhere unattended and unsecured.

 

[dis-happy]

Science Major is another reason to consider a Mac. We gave me dd a Dell, but several times over her undergrad years she has said she wished she had a Mac isntead. Apparently there are some programs that run and manipulate experiment data and they aremuch easier to use on a Mac.

 

[msmayor]

Unless a specific school requires a MAC, it is still a want. My husband, a graphic design professional, hasn't touch a MAC in more than 10 years.

Her school does not 'require' a MAC, but with the exception of Architecture majors (which use CAD software not available for MAC) the entire school computer system is MAC-based. Kids can use windows-machines, but it makes it a bit more complicated to transfer files.

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

Google Dell Student special deals. My daughter was able to get a Dell Inspiron 15r with all the updates, bells, and whistles. When she brought it to the IT dept at her school to put on University required software, they said she paid less than anyone they had seen so far. I just kept googling until the price was in the range she was comfortable she/we were able to pay. No she didn't get free Ipod, but did get a wireless 3/1 printer for $19.99 with two sets of ink.

The deals are there. It took us a whole day of looking, but it was worth it. In her University the only classes that are asked to have a Mac are the Engineering students, and even with that they have glitches as they are not a Mac based campus. Always call the IT Dept!!

Good luck, have fun!!!!!!!!

 

[bonoriffic]

Windows 8 is coming next year. Windows 8 will run on tablet devices as well as traditional laptops and desktops. This won't be like Apple's strategy of OS X on computers and the very limited iOS on iPads. It will be full Windows on tablets, so Word, Excel, any program you use today on a tablet. That is one option that a college student would probably want to strongly consider. I would wait until next fall to buy a computer for someone going to college then. Here is a preview video of Windows 8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p92QfWOw88I

 

[drinkme]

DD12 has a Mac laptop and loves it. She uses it for school and some personal stuff. The school has restrictions on what websites the kids can't go on and they do monitor it. She has a PC desktop at home and really only uses that in the summer when she doesn't have her laptop. The school has the kids return their laptops at the end of the year, and they get them back about 2 weeks after school starts.

This laptop program is only available through the junior high, so I told dd I would buy her her own Mac laptop as an 8th grade graduation gift for her to use in high school.

 

[jrmasm]

Her school does not 'require' a MAC, but with the exception of Architecture majors (which use CAD software not available for MAC) the entire school computer system is MAC-based. Kids can use windows-machines, but it makes it a bit more complicated to transfer files.

If the school has requirements that makes it a different story.

I was addressing the bull crap statement that for graphic design you need a MAC. That is simply untrue.

 

[cats mom]

As we've toured colleges, I've been asking the student tour guides whether students carry their laptops to class, and I've not received a clear answer. Some say, "Yes, all the time!" Others say they only need them in certain classes, but frequently tote them to the library or friend's rooms.

I'm convinced it's a matter of habit for the student. But how is a student to predict whether he'll be a "carrier" or not?

I don't know how you predict, I wish I did.

DD #1 has a big 17 inch laptop and absolutely loves it, but seldom ever takes it anywhere.

So when we were outfitting DD #2 we went with bigger is better... turns out she's definitely a "carrier" so that didn't work out well for her at all.

We donated a few $ to her cause, she saved up a few more $, and she found a friend who was willing to pay a fair price for her big clunky laptop, and she ended up buying a 13 inch macbook air that suits her needs perfectly.

Different strokes for different folks.

BTW, interesting info on windows 8
Certainly worth looking into for those who don't need something right away, at least IMO.

 

[elfbo]

If you are looking at a netbook for ease of carrying and wondering about screen size, get a separate monitor. This way you have a light mobile computer when you need it on the go, and when you are at home typing up something then you have the nice big screen to work on.

I have a 15" laptop, and still have a seperate external screen so i can play movies and be productive at the same time.

 

[Forevryoung]

I will echo the fact that my macbook (2006 model) has been a workhorse that has lasted me far longer than any other laptop ever would have.

For the first two years, it was pulling consistent 17+ hour days with me through graduate school.

About a year ago I purchased a new hard drive (upgraded from 80gb to 500gb ) and upgraded to Lion. The $200 purchase gave me a "new computer."

I honestly expect my Macbook to easily last me another 2 years. At that point (7 years old!) I will probably replace it because of significant changes in technology, not because it's no longer functional. And yes, I will replace it with another Mac.

In the long run, I have paid relatively the same for my Macbook for the 7 years of use compared to purchasing 2+ Dells in the same time frame