Laptop for college student

[SC Minnie]

We went to best buy and bought ds a hp laptop last year. It was not the cheapest but not the most expensive either. We got the extended warrenty thank God as he spilled pickle juice on it a week later. Because we bought the extended warranty he got a new one free and bought the extended warranty on the new one himself.

We did the same thing-- HP but ordered directly from HP. We also bought the extended covers everything warranty. DD doesn't know we bought the warranty. Thankfully she hasn't had to use it yet. She's had this computer for 2 years (her old died her senior year in HS) and has been great so far.

 

[luckyman_apd]

I will mention that one thing were are encountering in the working world with recent graduates that used Macs, they don't know much about Windows, and in the working world, PC's are the machines of choice because corporations don't care about anything other than the fact that PC's cost less.

No offense but what does one really need to know about windows except how to open an application? Anything else can be handled by IT.

And anything web based...should work on a some browser if not safari. If it runs on Chrome on a PC, it will run on Chrome on a mac. The OS doesn't matter. There are many things that won't run correctly with Safari, but that's why there is Chrome.

 

[tvguy]

No offense but what does one really need to know about windows except how to open an application? Anything else can be handled by IT.
.

Well our IT guys complain that they spend a lot of their time showing people how to do thing they should already know how to do, like how to move files, change printer settings, etc.

 

[LilyWDW]

In my opinion, Macs are not worth the money. You can get a better PC for the price. Macs are not better in any way. They do not last longer. The only reason they have less virus issues is because there are less viruses written for them. Why? Because why aim at a minority? If a virus is written for a Mac (which IS becoming more common), then it will do just as much damage.

 

[gibbow]

For college I bought through my school and got a lenovo thinkpad. At first I did not like it because it is not the most asthetically pleasing, but I grew to love it!! The laptop is tough and powerful and lenovo support is fantastic!! It has survived drops and a few spills, which over 4 years is quite possible to happen.

My little brother has an acer which I really like as well.


I have built multiple desktops and repair laptops from time to time... macs are great for some people while others love pcs. If you are worried about viruses you can always learn to use a linux os such as Ubuntu.

Best of luck with college!!!

 

[Cindy B]

We just bought my son a Lenovo. He already has a gaming PC that he bought and built this past June, so the laptop is more for taking notes and doing papers. He does commute- and has a two and a half hour break on one day so he can take that time.

Since he is a Computer Science/Engineering Major, he will be doing a lot of work computer related and wanted to be able to customize machine/software if needed. The Mac can't really do what he needs.

 

[bananasplitkids]

I think the best advice is to check with the school and the department they are thinking of majoring in. For example some posters have stated that their children were comp sci/engineering majors and needed PC's. However the college I went to the Comp Sci majors programmed on Macs so PC's wouldn't work. It depends heavily on the school.

 

[verleniahall]

Doesnt' your college provide those? my alamater gives a laptop and an ipod or an iphone depeneding on if you want the iphone service

 

[SC Minnie]

Doesnt' your college provide those? my alamater gives a laptop and an ipod or an iphone depeneding on if you want the iphone service

DD's school doesn't. They do provide wifi but not laptops, iPads, or iPhones.

 

[livsmom04]

I had a Toshiba for about 3-4 years and my accounting class was not loading on my laptop. It would just freeze up on me when loading up my accounting homework. So yesterday I went online to Best Buy and ordered a MacBook Pro and was able last night to go online with the MacBook and do my homework for the first time in a week. My university does give discounts through Apple. I would check into a MacBook. I am going to wipe my hard drive on my toshiba and use it for my dd homeschool.

The screen I'm still getting used to since my old laptop was a 15 inch but I love Macs already. We have a 27 inch iMac at home. And we have 2 iPhone 5's, an iPhone 4 and a iPad. So we have converted and probably won't go back to PC's unless we are forced to.

 

[TLuvsD]

Be sure and add whatever you buy to the dorm insurance. And you can buy the insurance for off campus apartments. Low deductible, covers accidents (like spilling a soda into the laptop) and replacement value. The policy we got even covers D's "stuff" while she is participating in study abroad and travel.