<p>I am a senior planning on attending college in Fall of 2014 as a Computer Science major. I am not sure which type of computer to purchase. The price limit is $1300 approximately, and I am technologically competent enough to upgrade RAM, etc. should it provide a better laptop for a cheaper price.
The primary area of importance is COMPUTER SCIENCE.
So which is best?</p>
<p>I personally like the Lenovo T440p and T540p series. I personally prefer a 15.6" screen with at least 1920x1080 resolution for coding. It helps when you have to split screen. You may want a set up that can dual boot if you need to develop in a Linux environment so account for separate partitions when looking at hard drive space.</p>
<p>You probably don’t need a lot of computing power for introductory CS courses. More memory is probably a better bang for the buck than CPU speed for most use. An OS similar to what is used in your CS courses will make it more convenient to do programming assignments when not connected to the network.</p>
<p>Consider your use – will you be carrying it around a lot and/or using it at home (or dorm room)? If both, consider a smaller lighter laptop to carry around, but have an extra monitor, keyboard, and mouse at home (or dorm room).</p>
<p>I am open to using an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse. I’d prefer a laptop that would last all through my undergaduate studies and hopefully after, and is light enough to carry around. I am a PC person, but am willing to go Mac seeing as how that’s the direction the worlds moving in.</p>
<p>Any opinions on custom laptops from websites such as Sager? They seem to provide much better specifications for the price, I still question whether or not they are reliable as something mainstream like a Macbook Pro. </p>
<p>@AAA117</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>…(Apple is the) direction the worlds moving in? Hardly the case. </p>
<p>Also, it’s not so much about the “specs”. Packaging, durability, build quality matter more for a laptop than a desktop. That’s why you can’t just go on “specs” as much as you would with desktops. With that said, I don’t believe the premium you have to pay for a Mac is worth it.</p>
<p>I personally use Apple products. Like Polo said it’s not exactly the direction the world’s moving but what it provides me is the ability to code in any language I want. I use VMWare Fusion instead of bootcamp and have both a Linux and Windows partition. Having a Mac let’s me code easily in XCode for any projects that require Objective-C(iOS and OSx apps). While during the beginning of the semester other students tend to have a view that I can’t do what they can do with their machine after midway through the semester they realize that they’re wrong. I can do absolutely anything and everything they can do.</p>
<p>If I do purchase a Macbook Air or Macbook Pro, I would get one with an SSD, most likely 128gb. Would using multiple partitions take up too much memory? I would prefer not having to lug around an external drive to store other files. </p>
<p>And as far as specifications go, I simply want a laptop with the ability to make it through four years in a Computer Science setting, so I’ve read on multiple sources that RAM and screen size are important. </p>
<p>I’m personally happy with a $500 ThinkPad X220 that I bought about a year ago. The IPS display (not all have them) and the keyboard are very nice.</p>
<p>I recently bought a Surface Pro with 4 GB RAM, 128 GB hard drive and it works pretty well for programming. Sharp screen resolution (10.6" screen, 1920 x 1080). However because of the resolution and processor, the battery life is a bit lower, around 4-5 hours.</p>
<p>I have a T440p. I opted for 14" over 15" for portability and have an external monitor at home. (I have had everything from a 9" netbook to a 17" laptop and this is my favorite compromise size.) Even with 1600x900, I’m still comfortable with side-by-side coding. (There is a 1920x1080 option for this one as well, but I opted for the cheaper route.) It meets all my needs for my upper level CS classes. Also, I’m getting about 8 hours out of the battery running full power.</p>
<p>If you are looking for something that will last through undergrad, definitely get something with build quality. This means probably a Thinkpad or Mac. I also opted for the T440p over the T440 because it’s more moddable. For example, I bought it with 4 GB RAM and added another 4 myself for cheaper than Lenovo was charging. This also gives you the option to upgrade specs later on to keep your machine faster.</p>
<p>I have a lenovo yoga 13 for school. It’s quite portable and has decent battery life. If you have a desktop or other computer at home get an ultrabook/notebook. I bought this one because I couldn’t bear the pain of carrying my heavy 15"</p>
<p>My D just had to get a new laptop and is finishing up her second-year as a CS major. She had a Macbook Pro (from HS) and decided to stick with it and got a more souped up Macbook Pro. It’s perfect for her.</p>