My son prefers to use his own laptop.
Has Macbook now, may upgrade to newer laptop but considering surfacebook pro. Older brother uses sb and finds it great for notetaking (via stylus) and portability.
What is the downside to not buying the rpi laptop ? Can he get same software from school if he has his own windows laptop ?
Is the pc support all that necessary ? Not sure what can break on a tablet type device.
Software support seems to be the main concern there. Thoughts ?
I bought my son the RPI laptop, because he didn’t have a car on campus and trying to get another laptop fixed quickly could have been stressful. My son who attends college within an hour from home picked a different laptop, and I figured I could take him a spare if necessary. In my case it was just peace of mind.
Hardware support is the main issue. If you are on the plan you can get a loaner anytime you need a repair.
Any software you would need is available for download if you have the RPI laptop or not.
Is laptop theft a big problem in the dorms ? If so, what would you do about it ?
My S will have 2 roommates. My older kid had a roommate that never locked the door at another school.
Got lucky, nothing walked away, but would like to know situation at RPI ?
I’m pretty sure my son didn’t lock his door often at RPI. He did have clothes stolen from the laundry room, but nothing was ever stolen from his dorm.
The laptop is overpriced and not worth it.
This might be very late as you have probably already decided on which laptop you would like to buy, but personally I like the RPI laptop program. I am a very clumsy person as I spilled water on my last laptop (right before I graduated from high school, thank God) so it was the perfect time for me to get a new laptop in time for college. My parents were debating whether I should use the school’s laptop program with warranty, etc. or if we should just buy our own (same model) instead. It turns out that there was not much of a price difference, so we went with the RPI package as it also had warranty. Since getting it and using it for a full year, I am satisfied with my choice. The only bad thing I have to say about it is that my laptop continually broke down (computer wasn’t turning on, keyboard issues, charging issues) so I was very frustrated with the quality of my laptop. However, this problem was solely individual as many of my other friends who have the same laptop did not have any of the problems I had with mine, so maybe I just had a faulty one. But if you ever do experience a problem with the school laptop, you can just go to Computer Repair and they will gladly fix the problem, which will not take more than a week depending on the problem, giving you a loaner laptop for the duration.