Best Laptop for College Student?

[TWoods450]

Well, I just got the Dell 1525 for under $500..has 3 Gig of RAM and runs fine...I actually removed Vista and put XP (not easy) on it and now it is really a good running laptop...battery life is not the best though.

not sure what was so hard, dell provides XP drives for that computer.....

Drivers & Downloads

 

[manaheim]

I have to say the one thing I find HYSTERICAL about Macs is the stupid 1 vs 2 button mouse thing. I mean yes certainly you can do a "2nd button click" emulation of sorts, but compared to simply "clicking with the other finger" the extra stuff you have to do to 'simulate' a 2nd button click is absolutely hysterically ridiculous... especially when all they really need to do is give up, admit that they really need a 2 button mouse, and adopt that as a standard.

I'm absolutely not varying from my stance of "buy whatever works, both are good"... but this is a beautiful example of where I think Apple needs to cut the crap and get over themselves.

 

[JamieR]

I have to say the one thing I find HYSTERICAL about Macs is the stupid 1 vs 2 button mouse thing. I mean yes certainly you can do a "2nd button click" emulation of sorts, but compared to simply "clicking with the other finger" the extra stuff you have to do to 'simulate' a 2nd button click is absolutely hysterically ridiculous... especially when all they really need to do is give up, admit that they really need a 2 button mouse, and adopt that as a standard.

I'm absolutely not varying from my stance of "buy whatever works, both are good"... but this is a beautiful example of where I think Apple needs to cut the crap and get over themselves.

If i click the right side of my Apple Mighty Mouse with my other finger, it acts as 2 button mouse and the menu will appear :thumbup:

 

[manaheim]

^^^

And that seems perfectly normal, I suppose.

 

[JamieR]

The whole Mac vs PC means nothing, both have their qualities and both have their downfalls, it all boils down to personal preference. My personal preference is Mac.

 

[Mtalicarox]

I have to say the one thing I find HYSTERICAL about Macs is the stupid 1 vs 2 button mouse thing. I mean yes certainly you can do a "2nd button click" emulation of sorts, but compared to simply "clicking with the other finger" the extra stuff you have to do to 'simulate' a 2nd button click is absolutely hysterically ridiculous... especially when all they really need to do is give up, admit that they really need a 2 button mouse, and adopt that as a standard.

I'm absolutely not varying from my stance of "buy whatever works, both are good"... but this is a beautiful example of where I think Apple needs to cut the crap and get over themselves.

If i click the right side of my Apple Mighty Mouse with my other finger, it acts as 2 button mouse and the menu will appear :thumbup:

yeah.. but then you have to call it your "Apple Mighty Mouse" BAHAHAHAHHA.

 

[JamieR]

No i don't, i call it my mouse

 

[Mtalicarox]

No i don't, i call it my mouse

i know just givin ya a hard time

 

[Unmanedpilot]

Mac or PC? humm what to pick?

Well, doesn't really matter! The OP said he wanted PC, so that's the info I'll provide you with.

Anyway I do have something to hopefully contribute, I run an HP laptop and think the color of their High Def monitor is just fine. However, I don't do much printing so take the last statement with a grain of salt. Anyway, If I were going to buy a new laptop with your budget (which is huge) this is what I would get. Take it how you want, buy exactly what I show you here or pick your favorite features and find a cheaper laptop or different brand as you choose.

Newegg.com - HP HDX 16-1140US NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo P8600(2.40GHz) 16" 4GB Memory 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT - Laptops / Notebooks This is probably the laptop I would get. 2.4 Ghz processor should be plenty of power, I've been using a 2.0 GHz with photoshop and really don't have a lot of trouble. Its a bit slow if your doing complicated effects, but its really no hindrance. Just take a drink and the process is done. 2.4 should speed that up a bit.

-Windows Vista home premium 64bit
-Widescreen, Hi def monitor
-500 GB hard drive
-Wireless internet (A,B,G,N so there's no network you cant connect to)
-4GB of ram
-Nvidia 9600 GT, I have this in my desktop and its a fantastic card. Also it has 512 MB DEDICATED memory. You really want dedicated otherwise you'll have to share the RAM with the video card and that just slows things down.
-at 7 lbs its a bit heavy but mixed in with books you shouldn't notice it.

$1150 ($1100 with rebate)

Next, you can upgrade the RAM but 4GB really is enough. However, if you want more you may have trouble. This laptop seems to have a bus speed of 1066 MHz which is VERY fast for a laptop. I don't think you'll need more but you'll easily pay $100 per 2GB stick. Sorry I cant provide a link to the RAM but I cant find any I like, and Newegg didn't have any. You'll need to check the RAM when you get a laptop to make sure if you buy more you buy the same bus speed otherwise you'll slow everything down.

Expect at LEAST $200 if you decide to upgrade.

Next you'll want a bigger a battery for those long boring classes. I had a 3 hour class once a week.. it sucks when the laptop dies.. Trust me lol anyway, it comes with a 6 cell, this is 9: Newegg.com - HP GJ114AA 9-cell Lithium-Ion Battery for HP Pavilion HDX 9000 Series - Batteries / AC Adapters 12 cell would be better, but this should get you through the longest classes, if not then just keep the 6 cell charged and in your bag you'll be fine. I'm not totally sure this one is compatible with the laptop I suggested, so just double check should you buy it.

$104 is pretty average for laptop batteries anyway.

What Ive provided are personal suggestions. When you buy a laptop just make sure the accesories are compatible and youll be good to go.

$1450 total and you have extra money for a laptop bag and other accessories like like card readers, tablets, bags, or whatever. Above is what I would do, Ive been through a year of school with a lesser computer and I did just fine.

Hope I helped somewhat!

 

[usayit]

Oh here we go...

Someone has to do it... eeeeeeevery time.

Down the rabbit hole we go... (OP, did mention their PC preference)

this is nothing more than a misconception and marketing gimmick. the current version of Photoshop doesn't even exist for Mac in 64 bit. and it performs exponentially better running in 64 bit.

Yes.. but you are perpetuating a misconception that the delay in 64bit support on Mac is due to market presence (lack of.. supposedly) of Apple products in photo/video editing/processing space. The delay was due to logistical reasons of a non-trivial port to cocoa. So yes... there 64bit CS4 is first to Windows but you should tell the whole story.

http://www.macworld.com/article/132810/2008/04/photoshop64.html

Mac has historically been favored in photo/video editing professionals BUT it doesn't mean it is the only or superior choice. IN THIS CASE it doesn't matter as the OP did already mention a preference to Windows.

Back on topic. I am a mac user but I have been happy with my Lenovo (formerly IBM). My mother in law has had major issues with her Dell laptop and that experience alone has kept me away from them. We've had quality issues with Dell servers and a higher failure rate than our HP built windows servers at work as well.






btw... I love my mac but their keyboards and mice suck (mine has microsoft written on them .. ooo gasp)

 

[itznfb]

Yes.. but you are perpetuating a misconception that the delay in 64bit support on Mac is due to market presence (lack of.. supposedly) of Apple products in photo/video editing/processing space. The delay was due to logistical reasons of a non-trivial port to cocoa. So yes... there 64bit CS4 is first to Windows but you should tell the whole story.

Photoshop CS4 to be 64-bit for Windows, but not Mac | Photography | Macworld

64-bit PS doesn't exist for Mac is the whole story. it "may" exist sometime in the future but not anytime soon.

 

[Alleh Lindquist]

Creative professionals don't often use PC's and if your going to photography school they will have you working on Macs anyway. You can get a good refurbished macbook pro for under $2000.

 

[manaheim]

Creative professionals don't often use PC's and if your going to photography school they will have you working on Macs anyway. You can get a good refurbished macbook pro for under $2000.

:banghead:

I would seriously challenge this assertion and I wrote this big blurb detailing how this is SO not true, but in the end I think the people who would listen to it are already lost anyway, so why bother?