Laptops
So, as this will probably be my last ever blog post, and we are all going off to college, I thought I would do a post about laptops and how to choose which to get. We all know that a laptop is almost an essential part to any college career, but how do you know what to get? And how do you not break the bank? Well you just need to weigh your options. One of the main things you are going to want to think about is whether you want a laptop that will last you for 4 years, or if you want to get one for 2 years, and buy another one halfway through. This decision depends on your preference and financial status, but for the purpose of this blog, I'm going to gear most estimates towards a 4 year computer. In my opinion, to get a nice, long-lasting laptop for college, you are going to want to spend around $1,000. This will allow you to get the up to date technology, and keep your laptop up to date even 4 years from now. Whether you get a large 17+ inch screen or a smaller 14.3" screen is, again, up to you. On one hand a smaller screen will translate into a lighter easier to carry laptop, while a bigger screen will offer a nicer picture and may just please you more. Next, CPU, you want to make sure it is at least a quad-core processor, and I recommend at LEAST a 3.0Ghz clock speed, try for 3.3+ if possible. Also, if going the Intel family route, try to get a processor from the i7 family, rather than i5 or i3 (try to avoid i3). The next thing to look at is the RAM you are getting. For a computer to last 4 or more years I would recommend at least 8Gb, 4Gb at a minimum. You can never have too much RAM and this will keep your computer running snappy and able to handle newer programs for a longer time. Now, the graphics card, here you need to consider whether or not you want to play intense games on your laptop or not(By intense games I mean real video games like COD, Skyrim, or etc. not farmville). If you do then you are going to want to look for a laptop with a DEDICATED video card that has at least 1Gb of dedicated video memory, preferably a card made by Nvidia. If not, then you don't have to worry too much, however still make sure it has a dedicated graphics card, as built-in cards have poor power and will become outdated far quicker. Finally, the harddrive, if you can afford it try and buy a laptop with an SSD (Solid State Drive). These are the fastest harddrives you can get, and will make your system INSANELY fast. However, they tend to be rather expensive, and small in size, so they may not be practical for everyone. If you do get a laptop with an SSD you are probably going to want to buy a decent external harddrive to keep most of your data on. Otherwise, just get a normal harddrive, the matter son what you think you need, but I don't recommend anything less that 500Gb, and make sure the spindle speed is 7200RPM. And one final note, try and avoid purchasing a laptop before June. This is when the newest laptops will be released and discounts will be popping up everywhere. You will be able to find newer technologies and better prices, so just wait a bit and try and buy your laptop starting mid-June.
P.S. If any of my classmates have questions about laptops/computers for college, just ask me at school or anything, I'm glad to answer and help.
