Laptop Specs Advice Sought

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

ODS heads off to college in about 5 weeks.

He needs a laptop.  His school has adequate computer labs, but ODS has always been a "study in his room" kind of kid.

His high school gives its students Apple Macbook Airs for use during the school year.  We have an iMac desk top at home, iPhones, and a family iPad. 

His school says that they can support either pcs or Macs.  

We will go with a Mac because ODS is comfortable with them.

But, how much memory/storage/processing speed does the average college student need?  He is undecided but leaning towards Environmental Science/Business/Exercise Science, so not computer programming or graphic arts.  He'll most likely be taking notes/writing papers/using the online foreign language lab/typing up lab reports/running Excel spreadsheets/occasional Power Point presentations.  He's not a gamer, but does watch Youtube videos and online lacrosse games.  

The hope is that this one laptop could carry him through 4 years of college.  (Is that a realistic expectation with the speed technology becomes obsolete these days?)

So, help me configure a laptop for him that doesn't lead me to overbuy on specs he doesn't need.

Thank you in advance for your wise and knowledgeable counsel.  

[The Captain]

Jul 17, 2015 12:45:34 GMT -5 GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl said:

ODS heads off to college in about 5 weeks.

He needs a laptop.  His school has adequate computer labs, but ODS has always been a "study in his room" kind of kid.

His high school gives its students Apple Macbook Airs for use during the school year.  We have an iMac desk top at home, iPhones, and a family iPad. 

His school says that they can support either pcs or Macs.  

We will go with a Mac because ODS is comfortable with them.

But, how much memory/storage/processing speed does the average college student need?  He is undecided but leaning towards Environmental Science/Business/Exercise Science, so not computer programming or graphic arts.  He'll most likely be taking notes/writing papers/using the online foreign language lab/typing up lab reports/running Excel spreadsheets/occasional Power Point presentations.  He's not a gamer, but does watch Youtube videos and online lacrosse games.  

The hope is that this one laptop could carry him through 4 years of college.  (Is that a realistic expectation with the speed technology becomes obsolete these days?)

So, help me configure a laptop for him that doesn't lead me to overbuy on specs he doesn't need.

Thank you in advance for your wise and knowledgeable counsel.  

I know nothing is carved in stone, but what is your son thinking about studying?

An accounting major will have different computing requirements than would a CAD Engineering major.

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

Undecided, but leaning towards Environmental Science/Business/Exercise Science.  

Not STEM.  

( )

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

I would say that the minimum that he needs is what the Mac equivalent to an i5 processor is, with 4GB of RAM.  Storage space is cheap, and he will probably have server space at the college too so probably a 500 GB hard drive is sufficient.  You'll have to look at the difference between upgrading the processor and RAM.  IMO, if it's not that much $$ you may as well give him the extra speed.

This being said, the laptop I bought for school is a Lenovo Yoga Pro.  It has an i7 processor with 8 GB RAM and a solid state hard drive.  I use the server space at school and jump drives to go from school to laptop/desktop.  However, I'm running some memory intensive graphics programs (CAD and Solid Works) and it sounds like he's mainly going to be using Office products.

A friend of mine told me that with buying a laptop, you need to look at weight, speed and cost.  You can get 2/3 of these.....so it really depends on your priorities.  For me, carrying additional weight in my laptop was hard on my hips, so my laptop was not inexpensive.  I did manage to knock a couple hundred $$ off of it by buying it on Black Friday (but it was still nearly $1200).  If your son can wait that long, you might want to try this.

[ken a.k.a OMK]

Contact the school book store. They usually have a good idea of the requirements for each major and sometimes have decent offers. Plus if he needs assistance or repair, they are familiar with it.

[saveinla]

We bought a HP laptop for my son for around 600$ including tax in 2013 June. He is going to be a junior and is still using it. He has had to install virtual servers in there to run some stuff for Physics and Computer Science and may need something else soon, but so far it's been good. His machine has 4GB RAM and 200 GB HD. It was more expensive just because we wanted Windows 7 and we had to do a special order at Best Buy.

I would think that one laptop should be fine for 4 years unless he switches majors - even then it should be enough for most of the stuff that they do. Good luck - it's an exciting time for the both of you.

[8 Bit WWBG]

"Wanting technology to last" and "bare minimum" only belong together in the following sentence: "damn this slow computer... I wanted it to last 4 years, but my parents insisted on buying me the bare minimum!"

I'm having a bit of fun, but think of it this way... on a tool that is going to be used constantly, do you want an "adequate experience" or a "comfortable" experience.  I'm a big believer in spending money on something proportional to how much I use it.

Yes, technology changes constantly.  The laptop won't be "useless" in 4 years, but it might be painful to use.  I got through 4 years of college with the same computer, and I did so by buying something that was much closer to the top of the scale than to the bottom.  I bought a desktop, not a laptop.  Besides writing papers, I was playing around with graphics and web design, so the extra power was nice.

How much are you willing to spend?  I sense the answer will be something like "I'm willing to pay for something reasonable, but I'm not looking to go overboard".  Since he wants a Mac, you already know you'll be shelling out.

A very healthy ultrabook (13.3 inch, i7 processor, qHD resolution, solid state drive, 8Gb of rAM) can be had in the $1,200-$1,500 range.  Scale down a bit (i5, 4Gb of RAM, 5400RPM hard disk) you might get down to $899.  If he wants a huge screen, like a "desktop replacement" you might be in the $1,400-$1,700 range.  I am not familiar with the price and performance of Macs, but I AM a big believer in buying something to last, so I'd shell out the $1,400 or so and be happy for a few years.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

If he wants a huge screen, like a "desktop replacement" you might be in the $1,400-$1,700 range.


If he wants a huge screen, it might be smarter to get a laptop with a smaller screen and just attach a large monitor to work on it.  When I was working on my data, I was working with some pretty massive spreadsheets on a laptop and found even my 16" screen difficult to deal with.  I wound up going out and buying a 24" monitor to work from, but I could easily disconnect it to take it elsewhere.  That gives the best of both worlds.

[8 Bit WWBG]

...:::"If he wants a huge screen, it might be smarter to get a laptop with a smaller screen and just attach a large monitor to work on it.":::...

Perhaps, yes.  One of the things that appeals to me about the Surface is the docking station.  You can have a "home base" setup with a wireless mouse, keyboard, additional storage, optical drive, and big monitor attached to the dock.  If you are on the go, you just undock the unit.

Remember though, "desktop replacement" laptops have other benefits besides large screens.  They have the room for much beefier graphics cards.  Besides being great for gaming and media, they are useful for photography or any job in which quality graphics are an issue.  I am not sure if this is an issue in engineering.  If 3D renderings and complex schematics are in the cards, then perhaps.

I only mention that as part of my price comparison though.  You said he wants Apple, and I do not think Apple makes laptops in large (17 inch) sizes.

[simser]

My laptop lasted me all 4 years of college, but it was higher end. That's kinda your choice there: 4 years and go high end or 2-3 years with a cheap end (buy 2).

Do you think he'll be taking it to class? I almost never moved my laptop except to the library to write, but things have changed in the last 10 years.

[alabamagal]

My kids started school in 2009 2010 and 2012. They started off with low end laptops. We didn't get cheapest one notch up.

DD lasted all 3 years of school with no problem, biology major. It crashed when she was out of school and wants to use for gaming

DS was fine for 2 years then wanted one that was "faster" so he used his financial aid and bought a newer low end laptop. We took his castoff and used at home for 2 years.

Third got his in 2012 and is still using it with no complaints.

Boys are business majors. All their schoolwork is web based they do not need much computing power.

[973beachbum]

Jul 17, 2015 13:15:19 GMT -5 saveinla said:

We bought a HP laptop for my son for around 600$ including tax in 2013 June. He is going to be a junior and is still using it. He has had to install virtual servers in there to run some stuff for Physics and Computer Science and may need something else soon, but so far it's been good. His machine has 4GB RAM and 200 GB HD. It was more expensive just because we wanted Windows 7 and we had to do a special order at Best Buy.

I would think that one laptop should be fine for 4 years unless he switches majors - even then it should be enough for most of the stuff that they do. Good luck - it's an exciting time for the both of you.

We got DD about the same as you.  It was also an HP but maybe $500.  It has a decent amount of hard drive space but better than low end speed.  I will say though that it ended up not really mattering as much as we though it would.  DD only really uses it in her dorm room to study.  She takes her Kindle tablet to classes to write note on and look things up as needed.  The tablet is soooooo much lighter and easier to stuff in her book bag or purse than any laptop could ever be.

She said that with rare exception most students do the same and it isn't often you see a kid in class pull out their laptop.

Just a thought but maybe a cheaper laptop but a newer tablet.

ETA I know it wouldn't work with a graphic design major thpe of thing but the vast majority of students seem to do this.

[gooddecisions]

It is nice of you to spring for the Mac, but pretty much everyone has to get used to a PC at some point. I would buy an hp 15" 6 gb memory, 500 gb hard drive, DVD drive, webcam, i5 intel processor, number pad on the keyboard for less than $500 and be done with it. Then at least it won't be as devastating if it gets lost, stolen, or destroyed.

I use two (one for work and one for personal) like this daily and replace them every 4-6 years. Never had a problem and I create video and web-based training. I also use a iPad daily, and it is pretty convenient.

[gooddecisions]

I am actually about to buy a new one to replace my 2010 hp. It was doing great until my one year old pulled it off the table and cracked the screen. I could still use an external screen but refuse to live that way. So, I cashed out 50000 credit card points and am off to best buy. I will use my company discount program to order Microsoft office suite for $9.95, which will be my total out of pocket cost. 

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Besides being great for gaming and media, they are useful for photography or any job in which quality graphics are an issue. I am not sure if this is an issue in engineering. If 3D renderings and complex schematics are in the cards, then perhaps.


For engineering, the amount of memory and speed are a huge issue with using CAD.  It is largely the reason why I bought a second desktop computer along with my laptop, that has 16 GB of RAM and a much faster processor, some of my drawings are complicated enough that I need it.  I don't use my laptop much for CAD or Solid Works, while it loads up and works ok, it is hard to do the detailed drawing on such a small computer screen and deal with the lack of a number pad.  

However, the OP's son is not going into engineering or graphics/arts.  

[myrrh]

I wouldn't spend much more than $500 on a windows laptop. A Surface is really cool but a lot more expensive. Macs are about 3x as expensive as a regular windows laptop IME, and unupgradeable (if that is a word). If he's more comfortable with the mac I'd go with that however.

I am assuming he will be able to network to printers, you might want to check that.

And Environmental Science is too a STEM field. Says the person whose job title is Environmental Scientist.

[alabamagal]

Jul 17, 2015 17:41:48 GMT -5 myrrh said:

I wouldn't spend much more than $500 on a windows laptop. A Surface is really cool but a lot more expensive. Macs are about 3x as expensive as a regular windows laptop IME, and unupgradeable (if that is a word). If he's more comfortable with the mac I'd go with that however.

I am assuming he will be able to network to printers, you might want to check that.

And Environmental Science is too a STEM field. Says the person whose job title is Environmental Scientist.

College kids don't print. Printing is old school. Just email assignments. My kids never had a printer never needed one.

[joemilitary]

It all depends on how much and what kind of porn he usually looks at......

[Deleted]

My DD had teachers that required printed papers be turned in (graduated 2 years ago). The printers in the computer centers were always broken. Make sure you buy a few 2GB flash drives for him. If for some reason he can't print & that is required, he can turn in a flash drive. Several of her teachers did have assignments to be emailed in, but several were still print mode!

My DD had a netbook to take to class, as she did take notes via typing them. She then had a desktop in her dorm room. Desktop is less likely to get stolen. Also less likely to get stepped on when your drunk roommate stumbles in at 3am. That choice worked for us best. Mac laptops will be high target for theft & dorm roommates are stupid. DD had one that never locked the door. You have no idea who you will be rooming with, so just be aware that your child may not be fully in control of the security of their stuff.