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Need a Laptop for College. Advice?

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S

Shadownet

Banned
I've been researching for a while now. Got 3 laptops in mind.

1. Toshiba Satellite Radius 15 *getting it from best buy since it's the cheapest*
(15.6 inch, i5 processor, 1080p resolution, 8GB RAM and 750GB HDD)
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/toshiba...etal/4203500.p?id=1219706548682&skuId=4203500

2. Lenovo Flex 15 *I can get this from the Lenovo website for $650 since it's on sale*
(15.6 inch, i5 processor, 1080p resolution, 8GB RAM, 1 TB HDD)
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/lenovo-...1312814644.p?id=mp1312814644&skuId=1312814644

3. Asus Flip 2-in-1 *I think best buy is the cheapest that I found*
(15.6 inch, i5 processor, 1080p resolution, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD)
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-fl...lack/2995123.p?id=1219567194763&skuId=2995123

So those 3 are the ones I narrowed it down to. I'm trying to look for a laptop that is:

Between 13-15 inch
Full HD Display (1080p)
At least an i5 Processor and 8GB of RAM
Backlit Keyboard
If it has touchscreen that would be great.
Need something light so I can carry to college that's under $700 or no more than $800.

Anyone has any experience with any of the laptop above? Or any other recommendation?
 
M

maeh2k

Member
Without opening any of the links, my first recommendation is not to buy any of the three you listed. Those kinds of 15" notebooks tend to be of somewhat low quality, bulky, with a relatively small battery life. Not something I'd like to lug around campus all day. I'd recommend a 13"-14" device with an SSD.

$800 is a decent budget. There are certainly better options.
 
T

trixx

Member
maeh2k said:
Without opening any of the links, my first recommendation is not to buy any of the three you listed. Those kinds of 15" notebooks tend to be of somewhat low quality, bulky, with a relatively small battery life. Not something I'd like to lug around campus all day. I'd recommend a 13"-14" device with an SSD.

$800 is a decent budget. There are certainly better options.
Click to expand...
Agreed 13/14 inches is the perfect size imo. Carrying a charger as well would already make you bag pretty heavy.
 
G

grumble

Member
What about the hp spectre x360? Isn't that basically the best thin and light laptop out right now in the PC space? Was under the impression it ran circles around the MacBook Air.

Yep just checked the review. I5 processor, fast, 360 hinge, nice screen, thin and light, great battery life, about 900 bucks, stylish and has enough ports etc that you aren't screwed. Ms helped design it as a MacBook Air killer and apparently did a really good job.
 
D

diamount

Banned
Really, saying 'college' and asking for a laptop isn't really helping. What are you studying, anything computer related? If just word processing, research then any cheap one will do. From a trusted brand that is.
 
shira

shira

Member
Ahasverus said:
Dell XPS13 is the best reasonably priced laptop in the market. Everything else is a downgrade.
Click to expand...

Macbook gets the laides attention
invoker-romance.gif
 
S

Shadownet

Banned
diamount said:
Really, saying 'college' and asking for a laptop isn't really helping. What are you studying, anything computer related? If just word processing, research then any cheap one will do. From a trusted brand that is.
Click to expand...
I'm studying sociology, so I don't need anything expensive. I only need it for Microsoft office, YouTube Video and maybe some light gaming like Terraria/Starbound
trixx said:
Agreed 13/14 inches is the perfect size imo. Carrying a charger as well would already make you bag pretty heavy.
Click to expand...
I already seen these laptops in person. They're big but not that heavy. The Flex has a 14 inch version as well.

The laptops I listed above has 6-8 hours of battery life. That's basically enough for me for a single day of classes.

And guys thanks for the Mac suggestion but its not something I can afford.
 
K

kharma45

Member
Shadownet said:
I was looking at that but it's a bit more than I can afford.
Click to expand...

What about a refurbished one from Dell? You'll still get the same warranty you'd get with a brand new one. The refurb I bought from them seemed to just be a customer return as it was immaculate.

Probably some deals on the Surface Pro 3 floating around too which the new one not too far off.
 
BigBeauford

BigBeauford

Member
Hoo-doo said:
Macbook Air. You'll never have to carry a charger, ever. It keeps going.
Click to expand...

I know you didn't put a Macbook air in as the criteria, but I bought mine summer of 13', use it almost daily for office work and school, thing lasts 12+ hours, and still works like the day I bought it. Pound for pound, this has been the best computing device I've ever used for productivity, and I even installed Parallels with Windows 7 on it. I would seriously consider one, even if you have to scrape together a few more bucks. More than worth it.
 
M

maeh2k

Member
Finding good laptop deals for the US always seems so difficult. I usually check out the deals for professional laptops on lenovo.com, the signature edition laptops on microsoftstore.com, and the dell site. Sites like newegg or amazon always seem horrible for finding the right laptops. Aren't there any sites that sell specifically to students and that have discounted devices optionally without OS (since most students can get Windows via dreamspark)?
 
G

Grazzt

Member
I'm using surface pro 3 and definitely satisfied with it. Easy to carry and can install all the required software.
 
O

OEM

Member
Grazzt said:
I'm using surface pro 3 and definitely satisfied with it. Easy to carry and can install all the required software.
Click to expand...

Its definitely out of OP's budget by little. But I would also recommend this with type cover. Unless you will be heavy on typing and will be typing shit ton of things. That type cover will get the job done.

And if you can wait, wait JUST couple of weeks for price drop, because Surface Pro 4 is around the corner. I am expecting a good discount on Pro 3. By end of this month.
 
A

Astral/H3X

Member
The Surface line is basically custom made for college, OP. OneNote + the stylus will basically change the way you take notes forever. Screengrab a powerpoint slide > paste into OneNote > mark up with your own notes/thoughts. Seriously, it's awesome.
 
Z

Zaraki_Kenpachi

Member
OEM said:
Its definitely out of OP's budget by little. But I would also recommend this with type cover. Unless you will be heavy on typing and will be typing shit ton of things. That type cover will get the job done.

And if you can wait, wait JUST couple of weeks for price drop, because Surface Pro 4 is around the corner. I am expecting a good discount on Pro 3. By end of this month.
Click to expand...
Seems like normal surface 3 might be up his alley though. Although it has a smaller screen than he's looking at.

H3XAntiStyle said:
The Surface line is basically custom made for college, OP. OneNote + the stylus will basically change the way you take notes forever. Screengrab a powerpoint slide > paste into OneNote > mark up with your own notes/thoughts. Seriously, it's awesome.
Click to expand...
Yeah, can't imagine college without a tablet style laptop. Writing notes and marking up PDFs and always having them at hand was awesome.
 
M

maeh2k

Member
If you drop the backlit keyboard requirement and settle for an i3, you could e.g. get a Lenovo Thinkpad L450. You can simply buy it with 4GB RAM and the cheapest HDD and then upgrade/replace RAM and HDD anytime. That's cheaper than buying with 8GB and SSD in the first place.

The L450 will be more robust and upgradeable than an Ultrabook or a Macbook Air. It comes with a matte Full HD IPS display. With the 72Wh battery it should also manage 8 hours of real-world use. review
 
D

Dusk Soldier

Member
If ASUS still does their two-yr warranty, i would go with that. It even covers spills and drops.

I feel like you're looking for something too high-end though. I honestly think you should slash your budget right in half.

If you clean up your computer of all the junk your manufacturer sticks on there you can get a lot of performance back.
 
B

Butts-a-plenty

Banned
Definitely a Macbook Air. There is a refurbished 2015 13" on the Apple Store right now for $849, a little over budget but you won't regret it.
 
A

Al-ibn Kermit

Junior Member
grumble said:
What about the hp spectre x360? Isn't that basically the best thin and light laptop out right now in the PC space? Was under the impression it ran circles around the MacBook Air.

Yep just checked the review. I5 processor, fast, 360 hinge, nice screen, thin and light, great battery life, about 900 bucks, stylish and has enough ports etc that you aren't screwed. Ms eloped design it as a MacBook Air killer and apparently did a really good job.
Click to expand...

That's what I got. To meet his specs you would get the base $900 plus $50 to increase the RAM from 4 GB to 8. Probably the first laptop I've gotten that doesn't feel like I overpaid or had to live without some desirable features/specs. It (imo) is also the prettiest laptop on the market.

But I only paid $750 for an unopened one since I got it off a developer who got one for free at a conference. It only has a 128 GB SSD which is enough for me but it's apparently easy to replace the SSD and battery if you ever feel like you need to.

Ahasverus said:
Dell XPS13 is the best reasonably priced laptop in the market. Everything else is a downgrade.
Click to expand...

How they made the XPS so light and yet fit a 13" inch screen is impressive and I'm sure he'd be happy with it but it's battery life is on the low end compared to the competition and the base model doesn't come with a touchscreen, that costs an extra few hundred and would go way out of his budget (not to mention it doesn't have 360 degree hinge which makes it more comfortable to tap on). I think it's a nice luxury to have touchscreen input on a laptop and may even feel necessary on a PC in a few years but as of now, only Web browsers, video services, and art programs really incorporate it.
 
S

Shadownet

Banned
I'm at work right now (best buy) and I found an open box Lenovo Yoga 3 14 inch for $726 (probably can get it down to $700) and I can get a Toshiba Satillite Radius 15 inch for $700.

Thought?
 
M

mltplkxr

Member
You really should consider a Surface 3 or Surface Pro 2 or 3. Just looking at the weight, all the laptops you chose are 5lbs. Don't forget you' ll have to lug the power supply everywhere. Surface 3 is listed at less than 2 lbs. That's half the weight. Trust me, it will make a huge different in your day to day.

You' ll also be using your laptop in cramped spaces: small desk in class, small desk in your dorm room, small seat in the plane/train, etc. A format like the Surface will be much more practical than a laptop. Believe me, I use mine all the time at work and on the train and it is much more practical than the laptops I had.

The other advantage is that MS has deals for students. I know my Uni had free software for students. Right now, MS has a deal on Surface 3's for Students. That'll take care of you budget.

Regarding the touch screen, it might be cool on a laptop but it's nothing compared to a tablet. The main advantage of a Windows tablet is that you can use One Note and write, draw, annotate and do tons of stuff.

Do not under estimate the usefulness of One Note. Want to know a cool trick: Skype+Share Screen+One Note = shared white board session over the net. It might not be that useful in sociology work but it's a godsend for software dev work.

The other technical disadvantage of those laptops is the HDD : 5400 rpm is slow and you will notice. Slow to boot, slow to update, slow to shutdown, slow to search. You really need an SSD. It's unthinkable to use a computer with a 5400 rpm drive in this day and age. Even more so with your use case. You don't have time to wait for your laptop to boot when class starts.

The only requirement the Surface doesn't fulfill is the CPU. You don't need an i5 for the kind of work you'll do, but it's true that an atom might not be up to snuff for gaming. That's why I am also recommending a Surface Pro 2 or 3.

If you do go with a Surface 3, don't go below 4G RAM. I don't know why they sell ones with 2G. No Windows computer is usable with that.
 
Melon Husk

Melon Husk

Member
Shadownet said:
Between 13-15 inch
Full HD Display (1080p)
At least an i5 Processor and 8GB of RAM
Backlit Keyboard
If it has touchscreen that would be great.
Need something light so I can carry to college that's under $700 or no more than $800.

Anyone has any experience with any of the laptop above? Or any other recommendation?
Click to expand...

If only Surface (they're hybrids) were reasonably priced. The backlit keyboard & pen push the price up by almost $200. Have Microsoft created a product that's too good to be sold cheaper where it would piss off the OEMs?

Maybe look into a refurbished/second/third hand Surface Pro 2?

Edit: Surface Pro 3 - 128GB / Intel Core i5 is $749.00 for students, but the keyboard is gonna push up the price by $100... I'd say go for it. Pen is included. You get Office for free

Edit 2: I can't tell you how big of a price cut you can get but check this (Microsoft store) site out.
 
S

strata8

Member
Just avoid any laptops with a hard drive. They really suck and even eMMC found in cheap laptops will be better.

I might be biased because I've been using SSDs for a few years now, but I feel there's something to be said when my $200 laptop feels more responsive (in terms of opening programs, coming out of sleep, etc) than our $1000 all-in-one, just because the latter uses a hard disk.
 
M

Mr.Mike

Member
Seems like there's an issue here that people only really want to (or perhaps only really know of) recommend nicer laptops, but those are expensive.

I'll share this article here (http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-budget-laptop/), but I can't really speak to laptops in this range except to say that I have one in about the same price and size range. I find that I have to carry around a charger because the battery life is terrible (and be careful with advertised battery lives), and it's pretty heavy. In hindsight I would have just gotten a Macbook Air. Really, I am considering getting a MBA, but I also have a nice desktop at home, so I don't really use my laptop that much and can't really justify the purchase since I already have something that works.

PS. Don't buy anything that doesn't have an SSD :p Even my laptop have a weird hybrid drive with a 24GB SSD (and another TB of HDD). Windows doesn't fit on the SSD portion any more, but Linux works perfectly fine on it, and it's really snappy.
 
B

BriareosGAF

Member
You can get a used Macbook Air with SSD for less than your budget easily (~600), and it is by far the best laptop for anyone who needs to carry their laptop around. I've been using one (well, more than one) for several years now, traveling around town as well as across country and overseas. I am a professional programmer and it's fine for short assignment style work (I would never use a laptop for full-time coding).

Doesn't play games particularly well though.

Random aside--I kept trying to give my interns all these spare high-end GPUs and CPUs we have laying around but they all only have laptops so couldn't use them. I would have died without my gaming PC in college... getting up and watching Quake replays in my underwear while eating cereal. Sniff...
 
M

mltplkxr

Member
BriareosGAF said:
You can get a used Macbook Air with SSD for less than your budget easily (~600), and it is by far the best laptop for anyone who needs to carry their laptop around. I've been using one (well, more than one) for several years now, traveling around town as well as across country and overseas. I am a professional programmer and it's fine for short assignment style work (I would never use a laptop for full-time coding).

Doesn't play games particularly well though.

Random aside--I kept trying to give my interns all these spare high-end GPUs and CPUs we have laying around but they all only have laptops so couldn't use them. I would have died without my gaming PC in college... getting up and watching Quake replays in my underwear while eating cereal. Sniff...
Click to expand...

Bah! Kids these days! Never had their hands full of cuts from changing an HD controller card or moving around those IRQ pins. No wonder they can't appreciate a good piece of hardware even if it's given to them.
 
M

maeh2k

Member
Mr.Mike said:
Seems like there's an issue here that people only really want to (or perhaps only really know of) recommend nicer laptops, but those are expensive.
Click to expand...

Well, $800 is a lot of money. That's right where all the nicer, expensive laptops start. So you can get one of the lower-spec business-grade devices or one of the higher-spec versions of less nice laptops. Those less nice laptops will then inevitably feel cheaper, as the build quality and basic components that you don't see on the spec sheet, e.g. a keyboard, are usually inferior to the higher-end product lines.
 
U

UFO

Banned
Get a Macbook Air or get something cheap and regret it the rest of your time in college. You can get student disco7nts at the apple store to lessen the price.
 
S

Shadownet

Banned
SMattera said:
13-inch ASUS Zenbook with an SSD.

There are plenty in the $700 range.
Click to expand...
This is pretty attractive tbh. I know you guys recommend Macbook but I've used iPhone before and just not a big fan of the iOS.

The surface is real nice but I like having an actual keyboard and laptop feel to it. SSD is a major draw point but I really enjoy my storage space.

And omega shut it, you know what I want.
 
S

SMattera

Member
Shadownet said:
This is pretty attractive tbh. I know you guys recommend Macbook but I've used iPhone before and just not a big fan of the iOS.

The surface is real nice but I like having an actual keyboard and laptop feel to it. SSD is a major draw point but I really enjoy my storage space.

And omega shut it, you know what I want.
Click to expand...

How much storage do you really need? It doesn't have enough juice to run those 50GB games anyway. If you have a ton of files that you want to carry around, get a WD portable 2TB HDD and keep it in your laptop bag.

The performance gains you get with an SSD are so worth it. Like night and day over a standard HDD.
 
B

Butts-a-plenty

Banned
Shadownet said:
This is pretty attractive tbh. I know you guys recommend Macbook but I've used iPhone before and just not a big fan of the iOS.

The surface is real nice but I like having an actual keyboard and laptop feel to it. SSD is a major draw point but I really enjoy my storage space.

And omega shut it, you know what I want.
Click to expand...

It's a good thing MacBooks don't run iOS.
 
F

fataliteter

Member
I don't think there's a laptop out there that will fulfil all your requirements at the price you listed, but since you mentioned $800 as your cutoff, I'll respect that and suggest the Asus Zenbook UX305. It has a Core M processor, but it should be more than enough to run Office and any other program a sociology major might need. It doesn't have a touchscreen, and the keyboard isn't backlit. If you can live with those flaws, then I really think the Asus is one of the better options for a student on a budget who needs a laptop that's light, has good battery life and a good screen.
 
S

SMattera

Member
You might also give serious consideration to a Chromebook. It fulfills all your needs except the gaming, but with the money you would save, you could buy another console.
 
G

GavinGT

Banned
I bought a $300 laptop for college and I'm perfectly happy with it. I knew damn well I'd only be using it for light tasks, as all the heavy lifting will be done at home on my desktop. I really just needed it for viewing PowerPoints, browsing the web, word processing, and occasional videos. I got an 11.6 inch Inspiron 3137, then upgraded the RAM to 8GB. It's light enough that I don't even notice it in my backpack, and small enough that I can actually use it in class even with limited desk space.
 
S

Shadownet

Banned
SMattera said:
How much storage do you really need? It doesn't have enough juice to run those 50GB games anyway. If you have a ton of files that you want to carry around, get a WD portable 2TB HDD and keep it in your laptop bag.

The performance gains you get with an SSD are so worth it. Like night and day over a standard HDD.
Click to expand...
How about the Lenovo Yoga 3 14 inch? It has a 256 SSD

Inebriated said:
It's a good thing MacBooks don't run iOS.
Click to expand...
You know what I mean. I like my Windows
 
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