Laptop for college???

[ajasmom]

daughter will be heading off to college (art Major) trying to figure out what type of laptop to get her. Something under $500 (the basics) or do I splurge on a mac book? All thoughts and insight is highly needed.

 

[Lees3rwe]

I purchased an Asus laptop 3 years ago when I went back to college. I love it. I have never had one problem with it and I have never had a virus on it at all.

I would probably stick with a regular laptop as some programs aren't "friendly" with Apple computers (though I know a lot of people use them). If you are in any classes where you have to share documents, it's better to have a regular one.

 

[clh2]

daughter will be heading off to college (art Major) trying to figure out what type of laptop to get her. Something under $500 (the basics) or do I splurge on a mac book? All thoughts and insight is highly needed.

I would see if the art department has a specific recommendations for art majors.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Before you buy anything, your daughter needs to check with her school to see what type of computer she needs. She should also be eligible for a student discount.

 

[C-CMom]

I would see if the art department has a specific recommendations for art majors.

Agree with this.

 

[tvguy]

Another vote for checking with the college. Apple tends to have the edge in the academic graphics world.

But since sooooo many businesses these days only look at the lower cost of PC's, once she gets out in the working world, she may find herself in a PC only world.

 

[wannagoback]

Before you buy anything, your daughter needs to check with her school to see what type of computer she needs. She should also be eligible for a student discount.

Agree! If you end up going Mac, Apple definitely has an education discount. Usually $100-$150 (I was able to get it as a teacher when I bought my MacBook at best buy)

 

[PlutoPony]

Also look seriously at the option of getting it through the school (usually the bookstore) especially if they offer a good warranty/repair policy. We found them to be competitively priced at my son's school with a 4 year warranty. And if the laptop develops a problem, you just take it to the bookstore for troubleshooting and repair. If the repair is expected to take > a week, they provide a free loaner. That can be a lifesaver for a college student, laptops are like an appendage for them.

My son's laptop is < a year old and the sound card stopped working this semester. He dropped it off at the bookstore and fortunately it was a quick fix. Think he got it back the next day. That was a lot easier and faster than sending it off to a repair center on his own.

 

[megsoro]

If she's an arts major, many programs are optimized for the Mac system. But it really depends what "arts" major she's majoring in. Art history? Painting traditionally? A low cost PC will be fine. If she's soon graphic design or web development, most colleges require a Mac OS. First step is to check with her specific department. (I go to a four year arts university, and while personally computers are not a requirement each department has varying specs depending on the programs you will be using.)

If you do need a Mac, go through the apple stores education site. Generally it is a $100 for the macs that actually can handle graphics work. Also get the AppleCare. I can't even count all the times it covered some problem.

 

[danygirl]

First find out if your school had a discount program.

The one older dd attends does. If you buy your Mac or dell from them you
Get on campus service for four years.

Youngest dd school is small and remote and she will not have a car. No on campus support. So she bought the Mac because they get fewer viruses and there is a Mac store an hour away.

BUT I bought it thru the discount program at the college where I work

She paid 899 for 13 inch Mac air

 

[tar heel]

One of my sons has a BFA in studio art, and Apple was definitely the way to go for his program. We got an educational discount and an Ipod when we bought it at the Apple Store.

My youngest is in college now and also chose a Mac through the school. He dropped his computer and broke the screen - we paid $100 and he got a free loaner while they fixed it. He even brought it home on break!

 

[Patience]

I agree with checking with the college. We splurged and bought our daughter a Macbook Pro for college. She loves it.

 

[sookie]

A lot of schools are switching to MAC, especially art programs (graphic design, etc).
If you wait until July - September to purchase, Apple usually has some pretty good incentives (gift cards). Campus stores often run concurrent sales, so that would be something to check on. The campus store usually also knows which majors require certain specifications. That is another reason to buy on campus.

My college did interest free financing for all their computers. At the time it was Apple or Dell. You had to put down a "down payment", then the balance was divided into 4 separate payments, each due at the beginning of each subsequent semester. So freshman year and sophomore year, you had 4 payments for your computer. The computer would then be paid off at the beginning of your 4th semester.

 

[sookie]

First find out if your school had a discount program.

The one older dd attends does. If you buy your Mac or dell from them you
Get on campus service for four years.

Youngest dd school is small and remote and she will not have a car. No on campus support. So she bought the Mac because they get fewer viruses and there is a Mac store an hour away.

BUT I bought it thru the discount program at the college where I work

She paid 899 for 13 inch Mac air

I feel like authorized campus stores are completely the way to go. I actually went through my husband's school for my first Macbook Air a few years ago. I paid $799 on a new in box 11 inch Air (it was "last season's" model), $100 dollar itunes card from Apple (nationwide promotion), and a $50 dollar gift card from the IT store on campus. You can't beat that!

 

[tvguy]

A lot of schools are switching to MAC, especially art programs (graphic design, etc).

Actually, a lot of schools are switching to PC's because their students will be graduating into a world where lowest cost is king, so PC's are the norm.

 

[ajasmom]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences. I will contact the school and see what is the best for her major and then do some price comparisons.

 

[Agent7]

Actually, a lot of schools are switching to PC's because their students will be graduating into a world where lowest cost is king, so PC's are the norm.

This isn't true for all schools though. When I graduated just over a year ago mine was getting more and more Mac labs and over half the new freshman class had Mac's (while less than 1/4 of mine did). And it wasn't an art school either. And I only know of about 4 professors I had who weren't using Mac's.

I'd check if her department required or recommended a specific computer too. My school didn't. As for file sharing as long as she has MS Word, PowerPoint, Excell, etc she should be fine. I had a Mac and never had any problem with document compatibility issues. Especially when saving in compatibility mode, which you should do anyway to account for older MS versions (which is a problem between pc's too). Everything can also be saved as the normal jpg and pdf formats on Mac too. The only problem I had with having a Mac is when I was trying to run some obscure older cladistics sequencing program. But yeah if she's art a lot a lot of the creative programs are optimized for Mac's. It's a bit more hit an miss for science.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences. I will contact the school and see what is the best for her major and then do some price comparisons.

Mom, you really should have your daughter do this!

 

[tvguy]

This isn't true for all schools though. When I graduated just over a year ago mine was getting more and more Mac labs and over half the new freshman class had Mac's (while less than 1/4 of mine did). And it wasn't an art school either. And I only know of about 4 professors I had who weren't using Mac's. .

Then they are out of step with the world their students will be entering which is something a college should never should be.

 

[WeLuvTink!]

Throwing in my 2 cents here. That laptop will be her LIFEBLOOD for the next 4+ years. She will take it EVERYWHERE and it will see lots of use and abuse. I highly urge you to spend a little extra and get a quality, name-brand laptop with ample memory, etc. IMHO you get what you pay for when it comes to computers and a cheap laptop should be expected to act like a cheap laptop.

Best of luck!