Good laptop for a college student?

[Shawn]

I'm starting college next month and I need a new inexpensive laptop. Basically I need something I can type on. I'd rather it be light since I'll be carrying it around anywhere but not at the expense of the keyboard. I currently have a Sotec 1.2Ghz Celeron with 256MB of ram. It's one of those light ones, only 4.4lbs but the backlight is about to die and the keyboard is so tiny I can't type on it. The keys are smaller than a regular keyboard's keys and I end up hitting two keys at once. I could write faster.

Specs aren't that important since I won't be gaming on it, neither is screen size, but it needs to have a DVD/cd-burner combo drive and perferably a large hard drive. Thanks.

 

[w00t]

have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

 

[twitchee2]

Originally posted by: w00t
have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

exaclty waht i was goning to sugest

 

[Shawn]

I'd rather not get an Apple. All the software I have is for the PC. I don't want to have to buy stuff twice, especially MS Office.

 

[dcdude]

chances are you really arent going to need a laptop - i know no one at my school ever used theres

but if you do, go 12-15" powerbook/ibook

or IBM thinkpad.

id go for the Thinkpad because IBM has always been known for the Thinkpad being so reliable and QUALITY. you're hard pressed to find a better notebook

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: w00t
have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

He should get a real computer instead.

I would normally suggest IBM, but now that they're owned by Lenovo, all bets are off. I'm betting you could still find some good T-series notebooks in the channel though from IBMs current methods. Thinkpads were by far the best notebooks for general use.

 

[Shawn]

Originally posted by: dcdude
chances are you really arent going to need a laptop - i know no one at my school ever used theres

but if you do, go 12-15" powerbook/ibook

or IBM thinkpad.

id go for the Thinkpad because IBM has always been known for the Thinkpad being so reliable and QUALITY. you're hard pressed to find a better notebook

Well I'll be taking notes with mine. Also I'm doing a summer session and I'll probably just leave my desktop at home.

 

[Amplifier]

If you can wait for another Dell deal those things are $$.

 

[micnn]

i second previous posts that you'd be getting your straight A's without the assistance of a laptop. with that been said, i still recommand ibm thinkpad.. it's not what it used to be, but ibm laptops still own the hi-end market. it's light, durable, might even outlast your college years, best (and largest?) keyboard and most user friendly touchpad design.

get it before its quality going down with Lenovo.

 

[w00t]

Originally posted by: Insomniak

Originally posted by: w00t
have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

He should get a real computer instead.

I would normally suggest IBM, but now that they're owned by Lenovo, all bets are off. I'm betting you could still find some good T-series notebooks in the channel though from IBMs current methods. Thinkpads were by far the best notebooks for general use.

a powermac g4 is a real computer.
a powermac g4 15'' would be perfect for college.

 

[mehmetmunur]

Dell 700M is a beauty, though a bit pricey at $1029. PCMAG has a nice site with a powerful search engine. You can get some real reviews there instead of enthusiast comments here.

http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,1738,9,00.asp

 

[thegimp03]

I would get a Dell. I don't normally recommend them, but they have great warranties and if you spill coffee/beer/etc all over that laptop and ruin it they will replace it. College isn't a friendly place for laptops and basically Dell will always be there if you buy a good warranty. Also just wait for a deal on them...you can easily save a few hundred bucks if you wait. The deals come around almost weekly now, just keep your eyes open in the hot deals forum.

 

[Goi]

Dells seem to have the best deals. They have a wide selection over a wide price range, and are generally cheaper than IBMs for the same specs.

 

[gsellis]

I have been doing college campus visits with my step-daughter. We have asked the laptop question enough that I agree with other posts here. Get a good desktop, preferrably a SFF with a LCD panel. It is all about real estate. Also, carrying a mobile around gives you one more thing to worry about getting ripped off. Mobiles are a freaking compromise that are prone to more frequent abuse. They try to build around it, but they still break more often.

 

[bocamojo]

My brother in law recently bought a Dell 2200 for about 1,100 and it is pretty nice. It has a 1.6 Pentium M, 512MB RAM, 60GB HD, DVD Burner, 15 in screen and the keyboard is a nice size for typing. You will get between 3 1/2 to 4 hours battery life, and you can also buy an extra battery for under 100.

 

[saimike]

Originally posted by: Insomniak

Originally posted by: w00t
have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

He should get a real computer instead.

I would normally suggest IBM, but now that they're owned by Lenovo, all bets are off. I'm betting you could still find some good T-series notebooks in the channel though from IBMs current methods. Thinkpads were by far the best notebooks for general use.

only geeks need real computers. while the OP didnt mention it, if he were going for a MBA (for example), a laptop would be much more preferable -- they need it for their flashy ppt presentations

 

[ShadowBlade]

Originally posted by: Shawn
I'd rather not get an Apple. All the software I have is for the PC. I don't want to have to buy stuff twice, especially MS Office.

note: technically, according to law, software is only licsenced to be installed on one machine
(chances are, theres spelling errors in that)

 

[gsellis]

Originally posted by: ShadowBlade

Originally posted by: Shawn
I'd rather not get an Apple. All the software I have is for the PC. I don't want to have to buy stuff twice, especially MS Office.

note: technically, according to law, software is only licsenced to be installed on one machine
(chances are, theres spelling errors in that)

This is not true. The EULA controls that, not the law. There are applications that can be group installed, have more than one instance, etc.

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: w00t

Originally posted by: Insomniak

Originally posted by: w00t
have you thought about going apple? powermac g4? 15'' students get cheaper.

He should get a real computer instead.

I would normally suggest IBM, but now that they're owned by Lenovo, all bets are off. I'm betting you could still find some good T-series notebooks in the channel though from IBMs current methods. Thinkpads were by far the best notebooks for general use.

a powermac g4 is a real computer.
a powermac g4 15'' would be perfect for college.

You're such a kidder!

 

[MobiusPizza]

Originally posted by: Shawn
I'm starting college next month and I need a new inexpensive laptop. Basically I need something I can type on. I'd rather it be light since I'll be carrying it around anywhere but not at the expense of the keyboard. I currently have a Sotec 1.2Ghz Celeron with 256MB of ram. It's one of those light ones, only 4.4lbs but the backlight is about to die and the keyboard is so tiny I can't type on it. The keys are smaller than a regular keyboard's keys and I end up hitting two keys at once. I could write faster.

Specs aren't that important since I won't be gaming on it, neither is screen size, but it needs to have a DVD/cd-burner combo drive and perferably a large hard drive. Thanks.

Ahh you should get a Tablet PC
I am a colleage student myself
Being able to handwrite your notes in lesson is cool experience. Good for people lazy in organising piles of papers.

They are quite expensive first hand. Around USD $1700
They are powerful enough for typical tasks, but not for gaming
They are a pleasure to use, very light and cool

If you are worried about the price, you can turn to ebay and get a second hand quite cheaply. I got mine from ebay for ~$900 2 years ago. Now you should be able to buy a more powerful one than I had for the same price. Plus it is a good gadget for university lectures. The Microsoft OneNote software which is used eplicitly for Tablet PC allows you to organise notes. Even record video and audio; Cool for lectures

 

[fishmonger12]

i'd get a small dell with a celly, 512 mb of ram, and dvd/cd burner combo drive, with a good warranty, so when it breaks you can just send it back and get a new one the next day. they have really good deals on the dell notebooks, too.

 

[bocamojo]

Shawn, if you are still looking, you should check out Dell. They have some deals that could save you up to 750 dollars off the retail price today, but better hurry, as they are only going to move around 15,000 units. Check out this article:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20050524-4937.html