Are you a college student or do you plan on going to college soon? If so, then you have been thinking about many different things. You’ve been thinking about that new dorm, the classes you have picked, new clothes, and, of course, a laptop. If you do not already have a laptop, then you need to make sure you are choosing the best college laptop.
The laptop you choose must fit your needs. Some of you may only be doing school work on it, but for all of you gamers out there, you need to make sure you get one that is top of the line. When the weekend has finally arrived and you open up World of Warcraft or some other game, you do not want it to crash your computer.
What are some of the things you need to consider as you are searching for a college laptop? You need to think about the size and weight, memory and drive space, processor or CPU, graphics, operating system, USB ports, screen size, laptop role, aesthetics, CD/DVD drive and saving money.
Memory and storage: For the laptop, you will need the hard drive to be a minimum of 80 GB and the ram should be at least 2 GB. Just about every current version of applications, operating systems and games are larger than those previous versions and will require more disk space. Today, having a hard drive that is 40 gb simply is not enough. If you are into photography, video, music, or gaming 80 GB probably won’t be enough.
Processor or CPU: Over the past years, the processors have changed a lot. Companies today seem to be adding more processor cores. At present, the laptop you choose should be a dual core processor or above. If you have the money to spend, then you may want to look into some of those quad core laptops that are available today.
Operating System: Do you want a laptop that has Windows XP on it, but found a laptop that has Windows Vista (which is more common)? If so, then you should not assume that you can just wipe off Vista and replace it with XP. Why? Because a lot of the new computers available today may not have the necessary XP drivers developed for them. When trying to change over to Windows XP, this can be a real headache. If you are used to Windows, you may not want to buy a Linux machine.
Graphic Cards: Generally, it is not possible to upgrade or replace the video capabilities on a laptop, so usually whatever video card that is installed is what you will be stuck with for the duration. Generally speaking, the better the graphic card, the more expensive the computer. If you are into gaming, then you need a graphic card that has dedicated memory. Ask other gamers about the laptops they use, so you won’t end up with the wrong kind.
USB Ports: When it comes to USB ports, you can never have enough of them. On average, you will come across 4 USB ports on a laptop and that may sound like enough. However, once you plug in your peripherals such as the mouse, printer, keyboard and pen drive, It will not seem like so many. Of course, you could always purchase an external hub, but you may want to try buying one that has more than 4.
USB ports are handy but wireless is where it’s at today. Bluetooth is a form of wireless networking. Try to find a laptop with built-in bluetooth if you can. Make sure it support simultaneous connections to multiple devices, so you can have a wireless mouse, keyboard, headset, and printer. After all what’s the point of getting a laptop that has to be plugged into a bunch of cables.
Networking: If your laptop can’t go online, you might just as well drop out of school now. Most laptops come with ethernet connections and Wifi. Fewer and fewer come with a dial-up modem. Odds are that you will be using WiFi most of the time to connect to the campus-wide network.
DVD Player/Recorder: Nice for loading new software and watching movie, and handy for backing up projects.
Screen size: The most common screen size of a laptop is around thirteen to fifteen inches and they are generally the ones that have the lowest price tag on them, which is great if you are looking to save some money. However, if you are studying art, architecture, or engineering you should consider buying a machine with a larger screen. You could get a digital television that can double at a monitor and use the remote to switch from PC to TV and back again.
Weight: If you travel a lot or plan to lug your computer from class to class, then a small laptop is definitely a blessing as you will not have to carry a heavy one around. By the time you add in the main adapter, padded case and anything else you need to carry, it will start to get pretty heavy and a seventeen inch laptop will be even heavier. Look for a laptop that is around 5 or 6 pounds if you want to lighten your load.
The Netbook Alternative
A netbook is a small laptop that weighs just a pound or two. Until recently the smaller the computer, the more expensive. With the introduction of netbook the game changed. Consumer netbooks run around $300 to $500, business ones from $700 to $1000.
If you already own a desktop pc or a laptop, you might want to consider adding netbook. You can stick in your backpack and take everywhere and not notice the weight.
The first netbook was the EEE PC, and the screen was a miserable 7 inches. I bought one shortly after they came out, and I loved it in spite of the too small screen and cramped keyboard. Much as I liked it, I didn’t hesitate to upgrade 10 months later to an HP Mini 1000 with it’s 10 inch screen and larger keyboard.
For some college students a small laptop like the HP Mini would probably work nicely. The Mini comes with a 160 GB hard drive and 1 GB of ram that can easily be upgraded. You can get a Window or Linux operating system. If you are used to Windows, I would recommend sticking it because you won’t have to learn a lot of new commands and programs.
In the long run the best college laptop is the one that comes closest to matching your needs. Only you can decide.
