Computer Recommendation for College?

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>I'm going to be an Engineering student this fall and currently have a pretty dated laptop (4gig ram, Vista, Dual Core CPU). Not horrible (well, Vista is bad), but dated. I have a pretty substantial amount of money set aside to buy a new one. I was thinking about getting an ultrabook because they're more compact and fast (SSD). However, they seem like a gimmick really and you're just paying out of pocket for the SSD and the slim feel, which isn't even that big of a deal. Anyone have experience with these?</p>

<p>I'm contemplating also if I should get a tablet along with the new laptop. I've heard from my college that space on the desks in the libraries is cramped and a lot of students just bring tablets to use because they are small and get good battery life. I could probably snag a decent, up to date laptop and a tablet for about the same as an ultrabook, which to me seems like the better option. </p>

<p>Anyways, I'm open to suggestions about what laptops are best for college students. Feel free to recommend laptops that you have had luck with or some to stay away from. Currently I'm running a Gateway and while Vista is the killer, the laptop is actually pretty fast. Oh, and being an Engineering student I'm obviously in the market for a Windows PC, not a Mac. </p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

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<p>A life lesson: If what you have is fine, don’t waste money on a new one.</p>

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<p>

Same deal here with me, SC. I won’t be an engineering major, but I’ll be starting college this Fall and have the same basic comp specs as you from a 2007 17" Toshiba X-205.</p>

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I’m planning to get an ultrabook since I obviously won’t be able to lug my 17" behemoth around a lot - most likely the Toshiba Portege Z830/5 or a Lenovo T420 or U300 (in case you wanted to look those models up), or if I really had the $ I’d get a Lenovo X1. Anyway, I decided to eventually get an ultrabook because I think their superior mobility while still providing superior (based on cost) performance gives them an advantage vs the heavier, slightly clunkier laptops. IMHO, I think paying a relatively slight premium for the SSD is worth it for increased performance. The price difference is typically still less than if you were upgrading the CPU (from an i3 to an i5 for example), but provides the potential for more increased speed than the CPU upgrade - depending on how the machine may be used. So, as a cost to benefit ratio, I think an SSD upgrade is the most economical upgrade. A couple years ago I purchased a 13" Dell Latitude for my wife and it was incredible compared to my Toshiba. The only thing my Toshiba really does that her more mobile machine can’t do it play video games. So, with the power packed in the 12-14" ultrabooks these days, I think they’re very worth it (though I’ve fiddled with some of the 11-12.5" ones and the screens seemed a little cramped, maybe because I’m used to the bigger 17" real estate, but I found that the 13-14" range is perfect).</p>

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This does sound like a viable option, and IMO, comes down to personal preference. I personally prefer to have most everything, if not everything available to snag in one place without any extra steps of updating/syncing or otherwise constantly transferring files. Most likely (and this is the opinion I mostly got from this forum) the tablet will come with certain limitations and will not replace a full-fledged laptop (which I’m sure you’ve figured by opting for a tablet and laptop). So you may find yourself doing a lot of the above to compensate. Some don’t mind that sort of thing, but I would find it a hassle. Especially if I had a not-so-portable somewhat-thicker-by-comparison 15" laptop. It would limit me taking that extra power where I needed it when I needed it. I think that’s something to consider being an Engineering major. I just guessing here, but I don’t think you’d be doing too much programming or coding on your tablet, so having a viably mobile laptop/ultrabook may be beneficial to you.</p>

<p>I’ve handled a few non Mac based tablets like the Samsung Galaxy and they seem phenominal, but I know if I got one on top of a laptop or ultrabook, then I would primarily be using only one or the other and would be pretty much wasting the cost of the other to have it mostly sit around waiting for me to use it.</p>

<p>Anyway, that’s all my reasoning on how I came to my decision of an ultrabook (I was originally going to get just an Ipad, then just a Macbook Air, then an Air and Ipad, and now one of those PC models above - yeah, I’ve been looking into this an comparing a while now). Hope that somewhat helps.</p>

<p>EDIT:
Almost forgot to add that in the very near future ultrabooks will come equiped with Intel’s new CPU line Ivy Bridge.</p>

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<p>Hey, i am in the same position as well.
I have an ASUS laptop with 1 GB graphics card and 4 GB RAM. It’s been about 2 years since I got it. Games work very well, and, I believe, engineering software will work well on the laptop.
I am unsure about ultra-books since they have a low processor speed (1.6GHZ). But, I suppose it should do. I was actually thinking about buying a conventional one, with 4 GB RAm and then upgrading it to around 8 cause it is cheaper that way.
I got a samsung galaxy TAB as because I felt it would be useful to read EBooks. Not sure about the Library use…</p>

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<p>You can buy a SSD by itself and upgrade your laptop or a new one without one. It’ll most likely be faster and cheaper than the low quality SSDs manufacturers use.</p>

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<p>Turtlerock – thanks for your reply. It was very helpful.</p>

<p>I’m still really not sold on ultrabooks. They seem like since they are pretty new they are way overpriced and they just seem like netbooks with bigger screens, that’s all. Like Nachiappan said, they have pretty low processing speeds so really the SSD is kind of counteracted by that. They cannot really do much and probably cannot run very graphics or CPU intensive programs, which is a huge downside for an Engineering major.</p>

<p>Well, I think I have decided to skip the Tablet also because it just adds an extra $200 onto my already slim budget. I’d like to get a good laptop but not blow a lot of money because I’d like to save it for spending while in college. So I think a tablet kind of adds an extra expenditure that’s not really necessary. </p>

<p>Aldfig – how easy is it to add a SSD into a laptop with a HDD? If this is an option I’d sure like to do that. Beats spending almost $1,000 for an ultrabook. What brands would you guys recommend for laptops? Also I’m looking for one with a dedicated graphics card. I’m staying away from integrated graphics in case I need to run video programs or video intensive software. I really like ASUS and have heard they’re pretty reliable.</p>

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<p>

I actually agree. Consumers are paying a premium for the “new”. However, anything smaller or bigger than an ultra would be impractical for me, so I’ve accepted that premium. Others can opt for one way or the other if it isn’t impractical to them.</p>

<p>

Admittedly, this may be an issue as an Engineering major. Hopefully an Engineering major with an ultrabook can chime in here to shed some light. Ultrabook obviously won’t be playing (good) video games though. A more traditional gaming laptop or desktop is best for that. Although 1.6GHz is close enough to play some decent stuff, like a few MMOs. I play Age of Conan on med-high settings with a 1.8GHz and there’s no stutter.</p>

<p>Do you live near the school you’ll be attending? Maybe before school is out you can try to stop by and talk to a couple Engineering majors there and see what they think about an ultrabooks power and the major?</p>

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Any SSD with a SATA connection would work. It’s just like taking out the HDD and replacing it with another SATA HDD, only you have the SSD instead. Check out newegg for some as they usually have good deals. I bought a really good external for cheap from that site a couple years ago. Always check the reviews before you make a purchase.</p>

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<p>Try taking a look at the HP envy 6 ultrabook, it’s powerful yet thin and lightweight, and very customizable (you can add discrete graphics too). I ordered one a few days ago, it looks pretty good, and not very expensive with the hp student discount.</p>

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<p>Turtlerock – Unfortunately I live nowhere near the college I’ll be attending. The other thing is that it’s a massive campus too, but everybody bikes/walks everywhere. So, I mean size wise, I’d 100% do an ultrabook, but I just don’t know if the size really matters to me that much. I mean, what’s an extra 2-3 pounds if it saves you hundreds? Another upside to the ultrabook is the insane battery life too. 9 hours I saw for one…that’s really amazing. This could be a big deal too in case a lot of my classes do not have outlets or I don’t have down time to charge. </p>

<p>I’m probably kidding myself too when I say I’ll have time for online gaming. It would just really suck if I bought a laptop without a dedicated graphics card and ended up lacking in that aspect for a certain program or software I needed. However, I don’t think any ultrabooks have a dedicated card (that would defeat the purpose of their size). </p>

<p>So, I mean, I don’t think my expectations are very practical. I’m looking for a fast, high HD capacity, powerful laptop with a dedicated graphics card that will pretty much run ANYTHING I want, yet I’m also looking for something that’s small and lightweight and gets good battery life. I guess when it all boils down to it I’d rather have the processing speed, space, and graphics. And I’m not going to lie – I could get A LOT more for my money with just a standard laptop. It doesn’t look like prices on Ultrabooks are dropping anytime soon. </p>

<p>Marinebio – How do you go about getting student discounts? If I could get one that would be really awesome. I don’t think they give them on newegg or anything? Who should I go through and how much can I get off?</p>

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<p>Sorry to butt in but why would a mac be bad for an engineering major?</p>

<p>Sent from my DROIDX using CC</p>

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<p>The only place you can get it is from hp.com, but to get the student discount you should google hp academy, sign up for an account, than purchase it through hp.</p>

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<p>I work in the IT field and the main laptop I lug around everyday for personal use is a Dell Latitude D610 (Pentium M, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB HDD) which I got free courtesy of a friend’s company which dumped 2 of them on me because of heat-issues I had no problems resolving within a week(dust cleaning and ebaying a $5 replacement for a dead CPU fan). Run Win 7 Ultimate on it and it runs surprisingly well on it. Even have aero with the ati x300 graphics. </p>

<p>Considering your machine is one generation newer than mine…I’d think a few options you may want to try first is:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Use student discount to get Win 7 and load it on that notebook. Trust me…it’s almost a night and day difference in terms of performance and general usability. </p></li>
<li><p>Load Linux…something you may have to do at some point if your CS classes want you to program in a unix type environment. Doesn’t hurt to learn another OS, either. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>IMHO, your notebook is capable enough to last you at least another two-four years. Only possible issue I can see is 64-bit compatibility…but considering how long even many tech companies have stuck with WinXP(My friend’s small tech firm)…that won’t really be an issue for 4+ years. Moreover…this can easily be worked around by recompiling your code on a 64-bit CPU-based machine in your school’s computer labs.</p>

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<p>Mali – The Engineering curriculum at my college is completely windows based. I have heard that students who have Macs are booting windows 90% of the time. So really no need to go out of pocket for a Mac.</p>

<p>Cobrat – That is a very valid point you make and I was just recently thinking about that too. I absolutely hate Vista but that’s really the only problem I see with my machine other than the battery life really sucks (like an hour and 45 minutes at best). But I mean a few replacements beat the cost of a whole new computer I guess. I have Linux installed but don’t really do much with it. Heh – I’m actually wondering how I could get rid of it. This could save me a lot in HD space.</p>

<p>Will Windows 7 really make a big difference? I’ve contemplated that in the past too. How much could I get it for with a student discount? What else could I do to my laptop to make it better and more efficient to run in college? Could I get an external SSD? </p>

<p>Oh and by the way, my laptop IS running a 64-bit processor. If that helps at all.</p>

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<p>

This is a little perplexing to me. The requirements to Run Windows 7 with Aero are 1GB RAM (for 32-bit system, or 2GB RAM for 64-bit) and a 128MB graphics card. The base Dell Lat D610 comes with 512MB RAM and an ATI Mobility Radeon X300 with 64MB dedicated RAM. With your 1MB RAM I take it you’re running 32-bit Win 7, but you must’ve upgraded the RAM - easy enough. But how’d you run aero on a 64MB card?</p>

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<p>A new lithium ion battery should have a 3 year lifespan from factory floor at 100%…provided it is not exposed to excess heat or left in the machine most/all of the time while machine is plugged in. </p>

<p>If you know you’re going to be using your notebook in a plugged-in state for more than half hour or so…take the battery out if it is already fully charged. That will protect your battery from excess heat and possible overcharging if the battery management system is buggy. Also, if you’re not going to be using the battery for more than a week, charge it to around 40% and leave it in a cool dry area away from sunlight. </p>

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<p>I’d keep it unless you plan on upgrading to a more current distro version. What distro/version are you running on it, anyways?</p>

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<p>From Vista, hellz yeah! It’s like night and day. Vista is crap…I wouldn’t even try running it on this D610 after seeing how slow/crappy it was on far faster machines. </p>

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<p>You need to check with your school. I don’t know because I’m no longer a student. </p>

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<p>Don’t load it with lots of web/software add-on crap you don’t really need. Load only software you will need for academic work, office apps, multimedia player(VLC), and maybe a non-resource intensive game or two. Leave enough HDD free for sufficient virtual memory. </p>

<p>External SDD?? If you’re getting SDD, make that sucker your main hard drive. Using it as an external is not only expensive…but even pointless because all its speed benefits may be bottlenecked by slow connection standards(i.e. USB). I’d do SDD as main HDD…and a regular SATA HDD for the external so you get much more space for the money and the bottlenecks won’t be as pronounced. </p>

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<p>I was wondering because you mentioned Vista was installed on it. Many 32-bit CPU based machines were still being sold at retail with Vista installed back when Vista first came out. </p>

<p>May also have been thrown off because the first generation of Intel dual-core CPUs were 32 bit core duos…right before they went to the 64-bit architecture with the core 2 duos and subsequent chips. </p>

<p>In that case…there’s even less of a reason to replace that machine.</p>

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<p>Actually 1 D610 came preinstalled with 2 GB RAM, 1 with 1 GB of RAM. </p>

<p>I don’t know how aero ran on the ati-x300…but it does…including the glassing. Granted…it isn’t running it at the most optimum level…the video gets the lowest Windows experience index at 2.0. :D</p>

<p>Also, the D610 with the ati x-300 is the “higher end” model. They also had versions with the integrated intel 9xx chipset.</p>

<p>Actually wished one of them was the “lower-end” model…could have turned it into an easy hackintosh…whereas I can’t with these because there’s no reliable mac graphics drivers which enable quartz extreme/core image for the ati-x-300…unless I want to run Tiger.</p>

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<p>I see what you’re saying. And yeah, I run a pretty tight ship with my computer. I barely have any excess programs on it (music is probably the biggest offender). If I loaded windows 7 I would keep in that way. Here is my breakdown, tell me what you think:</p>

<p>-Current Laptop Purchased for $500 roughly three years ago
-Needs new battery ($50)
-Windows 7 student upgrade ($65)
-Replacing the HDD with a SSD ($150-$200)
-Pretty outdated CPU (Core 2 Duo @ 2 GHz)</p>

<p>I mean, if I did all of that that’s still close to $300 without even considering that I’m running a dated computer. If I really want something that’s going to do the job all throughout college, maybe it’s best to spring for the new computer?</p>

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<p>

Plus, who knows when some other parts may begin to fail in the next couple years because of wear and tear that you’ll have to spend more money to replace. I didn’t catch this, but what size screen is it? Most likely you’ll want something somewhat portable for classes, and if this one is not, then you’re just spending to keep something that you’ll leave back most of the time because of the bulk when you could be using it at school.</p>

<p>$300 now, but maybe another $3-400 in the near future that, together, would have netted you a new 'top anyways. I’d stay course for a new one - ultrabook, regular laptop or otherwise.</p>

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<p>Turtlerock – Thanks for the reply. You’ve been very helpful. My laptop has a 14.1 inch screen. It’s actually pretty light. It weighs around 5 pounds. If I could upgrade to a 15 inch screen without adding a lot of weight that would be nice.</p>

<p>I’d also like a laptop that maybe has a second hard drive bay that I could install a SSD if I wanted to. Currently my laptop only has one port for a HD so I’d have to take my entire HDD out and install a SSD if I wanted to which could be a lot of hassle.</p>

<p>And you’re right…if I pump $300 into my already outdated laptop and something goes wrong that could be a real money sucker. Currently nothing is wrong with it but I’d really like to avoid buying a new one in college. I just doubt that I’m going to have time to research and decide on a good one if something happened and I found that my laptop was insufficient to get me through college. </p>

<p>Still, though, I wouldn’t like to spend any more than $600-$700 for a new laptop, especially if I’m planning to put a SSD in. And I’d like something with a dedicated video card as well.</p>

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<p>Crud, I typed out a really good response and hit the wrong key losing everything. Here’s attempt #2.

This makes the “upgrade my current machine” option viable, but of course there’s still:

[quote]
And you’re right…if I pump $300 into my already outdated laptop and something goes wrong that could be a real money sucker. Currently nothing is wrong with it but I’d really like to avoid buying a new one in college.<a href=“here’s%20where%20I’ll%20paraphrase%20what%20I%20originally%20typed”>/quote</a>This is just a suggestion: Some schools that have a good computer engineering or computer science program let those compsci students repair other students’ computers for free with the department’s resources. Can you determine if the school you will be attending has this amenity? If so, then the “upgrade my current machine” is, again, viable. If not, then yeah, you’ll most likely be shelling out for costly repairs that may arise that an otherwise newer machine would not experience.</p>

<p>

Question: why would you want dual drive bays? To always keep the HDD?
I don’t have the time to do the handy research for you, but I suggest you look into the Toshiba Satellite series. They’re known to have provided dial drive bays in the past (my Satellite X-205 has 2 bays), and they’re currently offering 3 models in the 15.6" size. If you see one you like, then you can search for their review and fully determine if they have a second drive bay. Plus, they’re all within the $350-800 range, so if you got a med-priced one ($6-650), then you’d have just enough left over to buy an SSD too (depending on size). Not sure which Satellite models offer dedicated graphics though. Again, mine does, but it was pricier than $800.</p>

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<p>-Current Laptop Purchased for $500 roughly three years ago</p>

<p>Sunk cost…plus you got 3 years out of it. What’s the current physical condition on it? Have you opened it up to clean the CPU fan area of dust? Is your data backed up somewhere?</p>

<p>-Needs new battery ($50)
If you’re still getting 1 hour and 45 minutes…you can get away with using it for classes if you plan out times so you can recharge it in dorms, coffee shops, libraries, student centers, etc. Ha! Back when I was in college…1 hour and 45 minutes on battery was considered damned good after 3+ years. </p>

<p>Moreover, if you’re going to be doing anything CPU intensive…I’d recommend doing it plugged in to get the most performance assuming your CPU’s power saving settings on battery are typical. </p>

<p>-Windows 7 student upgrade ($65)
Check your university to see if they provide free student site licenses for Win 7 Enterprise for the duration of your time as a student. I know some schools like Indiana U do that. </p>

<p>-Replacing the HDD with a SSD ($150-$200)
You will need to do that with most retail notebooks anyways…unless you want to pay a premium for the manufacturer to put it in for you. Not worth it considering with most well-designed notebook…all this should require is a jeweler’s screwdriver, a steady hand, and common sense precautions while following service manual from the manufacturer’s website. </p>

<p>-Pretty outdated CPU (Core 2 Duo @ 2 GHz)
A core 2 duo can still do a lot more than basic office apps/internet. </p>

<p>It’s not like it was back when I was in college in the '90s when even a 2-3 year old CPU would be so slow that it would no longer run more current Office suites/internet apps very well. Then again, most people were still using dial-up modems due to cost and/or lack of broadband availability in their area back then.</p>