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Best computer for a student entering college?
I'm starting school in august and just want something easy to use with good battery life that is durable. All computers seem the same to me!! Just have to write papers and use the internet basically... And store music and pictures
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I wouldn't get an iPad, like the first person said. It doesn't have a word processor. So, you wouldn't be able to type papers.
I would get a Mac. Matt is wrong, they aren't "thousands" of dollars more expensive. Students get a discount at the Apple Store on a macbook, and it's only $950 for the computer (that will last you a long time) and obviously you'd want to buy like Microsoft Office and a printer and a warranty on the laptop. Your total will be around $1300, but for double the price of a PC (about), your macbook will last you twice as long, if not more.
I have an HP laptop right now. And it's pretty good quality, but I've had it for not even 2 years and it's having problems. The fans make a lot of noise, it gets hot really quickly, the battery doesn't last for very long, and a few other things. I'm getting a mac for college because I know my current laptop won't last me more than another year or two.
--Jack
(18/m)
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I'd highly suggest a MacBook Pro. It's lighter (portable for classes), is easy to use and intuitive to learn how to use, as well as durable. Not to mention the customer service is remarkable; my freshman year into college I bought a MacBook Pro and three years later it randomly kept malfunctioning and died. The people at Apple helped me recover everything on my computer and sent me a brand new laptop...for free.
Immunity to viruses is a big plus ...when I called Apple about the malfunctioning, I told them I had downloaded plenty of Illegal music and asked if it could be a virus, they laughed and said no...and obviously it wasn't since they sent me a new one)
It also depends on your major. Business majors were told to buy PCs, whereas the Art majors were told to get Macs because of the amazing graphics ability. BUT... Macs can turn into PCs using a program called Bootcamp...it's amazing.
When it comes to price, you pay for what you get. None of my friends who had PCs had the same computer all throughout college. The MacBook Pro I'm on now is still running perfectly...even after my housemate spilled an entire beer all over it a few months ago!
Also, order your computer--whichever you end up getting--through the school. You'll great a great educational discount, and some universities, if you buy it through them, will load up Word, Powerpoint, and other programs for you so it's all ready to go.
*Be sure to buy the Applecare protection plan though! For about 100$ it's totally worth it.
Good luck!
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If all your doing is writing papers and going on the Internet and storing music and pictures, you should go with a PC. You can't afford a Mac if you're a college student. It's paying thousands extra for something slightly more shiny. If you're a smart PC user and actually download anti virus and anti spyware and anti malware software, you'll be fine.
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I have this computer and it's great for a college student!
[Link](Mouse over link to see full location)
-Ms. Love
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For college, you probably want a laptop, because that would be easier to carry around.
Secondly, what operating system do you want? Windows or Mac?
---Windows offers a wider range of softwares and programs, but that also comes with a wider range of malware as well (you know, virus, trojan, spyware, etc.). Mac is definitely a safer choice for college works, because you wouldn't want to have your term paper all typed and then BAM! Your computer is infected with a virus and you don't know how to deal with it. That would suck!
(It would be wise to also note that Macs aren't completely immune to malwares. Currently there are a few out there that targets Mac, but most [if not all] of them are bundled in pirated-softwares because they required elevated permission in order to install.)
So if money is not the problem (since Macs are more expensive than Windows PCs), I would recommend you to go with a Macbook, unless, of course, if you are confident in your computer skills of preventing and dealing with malwares (viruses, spywares, trojans, etc.)
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Third, decide whether your needs will grow.
---Okay, so currently all you want is to "write papers and use the internet [...] and store music and pictures" (quoted you); for such tasks, just about any current Macbooks will do. But do you think that in a few more years that needs would grow? We are talking about the course of two or three years here, at the earliest--maybe more, if you are like many other computer users who only buy new computers when their current one is completely broken.
Also, what are your preferences? Take some time and weigh your choices between portability, power, battery life, etc. Would you want something clearly excel in one area or would you want something balanced? While at that, consider how much would you want to spend?
This is where I cannot help you any more, because it's entirely up to you now--or rather, it's entirely up to what you would need and want in the future. Give it a thought and talk to the sale representative about it. He or she would be able to directly help you at that.
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Hm, for college you should get a laptop maybe a netbook, they're small light and can last quite a few hours if you get a good battery pack. Well, if you don't want a laptop a good idea might be the i-touch, sure it's an mp3 but it has internet access, can store pictures, music obviously, i'm sure you can download something to write papers with that, but to print you would have to download the file to a computer. It's touch screen and if you get a good cover I'm sure it will deifinitely be durable. But I really suggest a net book, they're super small laptops they are perfect for college, my sister's in college and she has one, she loves it, she won't even let me use it. o_o
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