Being a college student you need a laptop that is not going to give you any trouble. If you use a PC during college you are immediately in the “uncool” crowd as you don’t have an apple logo on the back of your monitor. It is amazing how good apple does with their marketing. Well anyway, I digress. The Dell Inspiron 1545 is about a third of the price of a macbook and will give you the ability to surf the internet, listen to music and write your thesis all without crashing or giving you any problems.

Assuming you know your way around a computer and are able to trouble shoot the simplest of problems you can save a lot of money buying a pc for college versus a mac. Keep it up to date with all the updates and don’t go web browsing in “bad neighborhoods” on the internet.

The inspiron 1545 has a nice large screen and plenty of hard drive space for all your applications and music. This will make your college stay a lot nicer as long as you have a carrying case for it that will protect it in case you accidently drop it. I dropped mine once and had to replace the screen. I am pretty tech savvy so I was able to do it myself with the help of dell’s support site. I didn’t have mine in a nice case like an incase but after I replaced the screen I went out and bought one right away so that wouldn’t happen again.

Some other things I have found to be annoying with this laptop while at college is that the power supply is acting up on me and now it isn’t charging anymore so I constantly have to have it plugged in if I want to use it. I think it might be a faulty power supply or the connection where the power supply plugs into the computer might have come un-welded.

I would also like to say that I would definitely upgrade the laptop from the standard configuration that dell gives you. I chose to upgrade the screen to the extra bright, glossy screen and I also upgraded the wireless card to draft n protocol. It wasn’t that much to upgrade these things and it was well worth it. This is especially true with all the typing I do on this while in college.

So all in all you can save yourself a ton of money buying a dell inspiron 1545 laptop directly from Dell’s website rather than buying an apple macbook. I have also found you can get the best deal from buying directly from Dell’s website. I found it is even a better deal than buying from the discount stores like tiger direct and the like. College is rough enough by itself; you don’t need a crappy laptop dragging you down while you are trying to excel during the best years of your life.

With the economy being the way it is, students are having a hard time making ends meet. School and education can be very costly and so are the tools that go along with that trade. With meal plans, text board and housing, any student can be incredibly over whelmed by the power of how much it actually takes out of pocket to attend school. Computers have become a necessity in college and laptops have always been more feasible than desk top PCs. However, now with the Dell student discount program, this financial burden of a computer can be eased off these struggling student’s minds.

Dell offers a student discount for higher education purposes. The program is to help cushion the burden of adding yet another expense to your educational needs. The Dell discount program is geared to mirror that of the employee discount program; hence it is called EPP on your invoice statement. This is to give the feel of being part of the Dell family. To be a part of all this, the first one need to do is sign up at delluniversity.com, the website for the program. Once there you chose whether you’re a student or a student’s parent. Then you chose what state and school you are in. However, not alls schools are part of the program but most of them are worldwide. In the end the discount is anywhere from 5% to 12% off your purchase added on top of any other Dell sales or deals going on at the time.

Other competitors offer similar deals and discount programs but they aren’t exactly the best for the college life. Apple student discounts for example really target the computers and needed accessories for K-12 schools. That’s kindergarten to senior year of high school. That’s not really what you need at the college level. Hewlett Packard also offers a sizeable student discount program, however their program isn’t as good as some of the actually HP sales you would find. So why bother with a program that will not stack or outshine the standard that everyone else off the street can find? A student discount should be for students and not anyone else and that is exactly what the Dell student discount program delivers.

Life made simple, that’s the motto of Dell. And life can be simple with an Inspiron 17R Laptop which runs roughly around $699 and as low as $21 a month in payments. You can customize this laptop with a variety of features and excellent photo sharing. With a wireless display on an impressive 17.3 inch widescreen high-definition monitor display. One can even choose between an Intel Core i3 and i5 processor.

Or make the most of your day with the Inspiron 15 Laptop. This valuable Dell laptop comes at just under $429 and can be paid off for as a little as $15 a month. With a Pentium dual-core processor and the new Windows 7 64-bit included. This beauty is sporting a high-definition screen on a 15.6 inch widescreen LED display. Complete with a built-in webcam and microphone so you can stay in touch with your loved ones at home whole at school.

As anyone can see, Dell supplies the finest in computer laptops out there and they already come at affordable prices but they also make sure that our youth’s educational needs are met. Why not look into the Dell student discount program? It could be very much worth your weight in gold.

As a student at a junior college, I will be the first person to admit that many of us are strapped for cash. In addition to unit and material costs, many college courses today are difficult to excel in without a decent laptop or notebook. And not just any notebook will do; it has to conform to a huge list of requirements, such as wireless internet access, easy portability, and lots of disk space. It can be difficult and troubling to spend hours searching online for a laptop that will both meet your needs and not bleed your wallet dry.

Here are what I believe to be the two best value laptops under 500 for college students.

#1. The Dell Inspiron Mini (base model) – $300
Another goodie brought to you by Dell, this mini notebook easily took it’s spot at my list of top college laptops. In addition to being the only one of these laptops that I’ve personally owned, it beats all the others that I have tested that are in the same price range.

The Good: The most basic version of this laptop has everything the average college student needs; a decent processor, twenty-four hours of battery life, a built-in 160GB hard drive and the best portability of any notebook on the market (under three pounds) . At approximately ten inches by seven inches, this laptop fits easily in any backpack and even inside many purses, and has the capacity for your daily needs, such as Word processing, emailing, social networking. The base model comes with Windows XP, and not Windows 7, but if you are looking for functionality, this is an amazing laptop. The more expensive versions have Windows 7, increased processor speed, and are even a little bit smaller. However, these upgrades can run up to $300 more than the base model.

The not-so-good: I’m never going to say anything about this laptop is bad. However, it is not a laptop for, say, a video production student, because it doesn’t have enough ram or processor power for the more intense applications, nor does it have the large screen that most people are used to expecting. The only other down side is that it doesn’t have a built-in CD drive; but with more than enough USB ports, it’s not too difficult to plug in an external drive.

#2. Acer Aspire Laptop with AMD Athlon Single-Core Processor - $400
The Acer Aspire is another amazing college buy. If you are looking for a laptop with a larger screen and keyboard than those of the mini notebooks while not spending a huge amount of money, this is the laptop for you. However, with greater size comes a greater footprint, and this laptop is approximately ten inches by fifteen inches and weighs a good six pounds. Nonetheless, it offers everything a college student needs.

The Good: This laptop comes stock with Windows 7. It can support up to 4GB of ram, and comes installed with 3GB. It also comes with a CD/DVD read-write drive. Oh, and did I mention? It starts at only $370. As with all other computers, you can upgrade it, but it’s going to cost more money.

The not-so-good: It’s size can be a concern. Whereas one can slip the mini-notebook into a small compartment in a backpack or purse and not even notice the weight, cramming this laptop into a backpack along with books and binders can be a hassle. And again, as with most budget to mid-range college laptops, you aren’t going to be using this laptop to edit a movie anytime soon.

If you are a college student looking for a laptop that will meet your basic needs, either of these laptops is an excellent choice. The Dell Inspiron Mini is the best mini-notebook on the market and offers premium portability, while the Acer Aspire has a good-sized screen and can do everything the mini notebook can. Whichever laptop you choose, I’m sure you will not be disappointed.

How do you know what are the best laptops for college? What do college students think the best laptop they have owned is? First is best to look at what type of feature is most important to you. Speaking as a college student, there are a couple of main categories that you want to look at. These include: price, size and portability (convenience), amount of memory and programs it is packaged with, and the type of operating system.

Usually most important for college students, is price. College students don’t have a lot of money to throw around and though a laptop is essential to college life, you cannot sell a limb to get it. The price needs to be low. Most of the time, the best laptop for college students can be found for under $1,000. A laptop is a big investment and a solid laptop usually ranges anywhere from $500-$1000. As a final note on price, the best laptop is one that is one sale. Stores know the season when college students are heading off, and thus give great deals that cater to students. Look for them and you will not regret the savings.

The second most important aspect is the size and portability of a laptop. In general, the smaller the laptop the better it will be for college students. Many times this laptop will go into a backpack, be carried around the shoulder in a pack, or be carried in-hand. College students already have a lot of books, papers, and notebooks to carry around so adding a few extra pounds is never good! Always strive for a laptop that makes an effort to be more portable by weight and size. Screen size also determines the main bulk of the laptop. Usually, while 13” is a little small for some of the fun activities college students do like watching TV, movies or playing games 17” is too large to carry. Thus, 15” is usually the perfect middle ground.

The third most important aspect is the amount of memory and programs a laptop is packaged with. These I will combine to form “packaged features”. Memory is always important for a college student to store their documents and anything else they may need later on their laptop. A good laptop has at least 250GB of memory on the hard drive. This will help college students store everything they may need. Regarding programs, it is always best to look for a laptop packaged with Microsoft office. Most importantly, Microsoft word, excel, and powerpoint. These are the programs are the most common ones college student will use.

The last deciding factor is operating system. Namely, Macintosh or Windows. The trend has lately been to go for the more hip Macintosh that is more user-friendly. However, many students may need to use programs in classes that run on Windows only. It is best for students majoring in technical things like engineering and computer science to go for a Windows computer. Ultimately, it is up to the customer to weight the individual criteria listed above. For some people, one aspect may be much more important than another. If one sticks out, make that one the most important and look for one that meets all the other criteria but excels in that specific category.

The top 5 laptops that meet much of these criteria are:

1. Sony Vaio EA Series $599.99 640GB hard drive 14.2” screen, 5.2 pounds Windows 7 Professional

2. MacBook $999.00 250 GB hard drive 13” screen, 1.08” thick and 4.7 pounds Macintosh operating system.

3.Dell XPS 15 $799.99 500GB hard drive 15.6” screen, 6.1 pounds Windows 7 Home Premium

4. Toshiba A215-S4807 $779 160GB hard drive 15.4” screen, 6.3 pounds Windows XP

5. Samsung R780 $849 500GB hard drive 17.3” screen, 6.4 pounds Windows 7 Home Premium

There are many things to consider when looking for the best laptops for college. One of the main things to consider is your budget. There are many laptops out there for those who are looking for the cheapest laptop that will get them by. There are also many people out there who are willing to spend much more to get all of the extras.

When sorting through the many options available, you will find that there are many different sizes to choose from. There are netbooks that have 10.1” screens. This may be convenient to carry around, but the keyboards are typically much smaller and may make typing more difficult for those who are used to typing on a regular keyboard. You can also choose the other extreme and purchase a laptop with a screen that is 18.4”. This may be good for watching movies and playing video games, but having a laptop that big will be difficult to carry around. Choosing a laptop in the middle of the size range may be the best option for you. Top college laptops with a screen size of 14” or 15.6” tend to give you the best of both worlds. You still get the portability that you do with a smaller laptop, but you get a decent size screen to go along with it.

If you are looking for the cheapest thing to get you buy, you may beinterested in a 10” Coby NBPC1023XP. This has an N480 processor, 1GB of memory, and a 160GB hard drive. This netbook is meant for those on a very limited budget, who are looking for the bare minimum to get them by. You can get this netbook for around $250.00.

Another option for those on a budget is the 15.6” HP G56-129WM. This laptop will run you approximately $375.00, but is worth the extra money if you can afford it. This comes with an Intel Celeron 900 processor. It also has 3GB of memory and a 250GB hard drive.

For $450.00, you can get an Acer Aspire A55736Z-4016. This has an Intel Pentium Processor T4500. It also comes with 4GB of memory and a 320GB hard drive. This also has a 15.6” screen. This would be my pick for the best laptop for college students.

If you are looking to spend a little more money, you can choose a Toshiba Satellite. The L655-S5100 has a 15.6” screen. It comes with an Intel Pentium P6100 Processor, 4GB of memory, and a 500GB hard drive. The Toshiba Satellite Helios L655D-S5110WH comes with the AMD Phenom II Quad Core P940 Processor. It has 4 GB of memory and a 500 GB hardrive.

When buying a laptop, there are many additional things you can add on. You can add features for gaming, music, and music. These features aren’t a must, but would be appreciated by most college students. So when you are out looking for a new laptop for college, just remember to use every penny of your budget wisely. Choose the features that are best for you and your needs.

Finding the best college laptop while preparing for the new, exciting experience of undergraduate education is, nowadays, a very important task for any student. More and more, mobile computing has become a staple, if not a requirement, of higher education. Selecting a laptop that will meet the student’s needs for portability, ease of use, power, and features is imperative. This article will showcase five of the best college laptops currently available.

Best value laptops: At rank five on our list is the Dell Inspiron 17R. The Inspiron 17R gives quite a bang-for-your-buck at only $499 for the base model. It comes stock with a powerful Intel Core processor, which can be upgraded to a Pentium Dual Core for additional horsepower. A pre-loaded copy of Windows 7 Home Basic or Premium allows for usefulness for years to come. The screen is 17″, but don’t be misled- it is only 17″ wide, not the traditional 17″ diagonal measurement seen in most laptops. It therefore has a squatter, wider profile when open. It is recommended thus to try this out in a store or display area before choosing it. Still, a strong choice.

Next is the HP G62x, an inexpensive standard laptop from Hewlett-Packard, an industry standard name. Only slightly more expensive than the Dell Inspiron 17R, this model boasts a 16:9 widescreen display, which is more standard and expected. HP is currently running a nice sale providing a few free upgrades with your purchase of a G62x, including nearly doubling the on-board RAM free of charge, making this a powerful deal.

The HP Pavillion dv6 is a very powerful media laptop, packed with an AMD Quad-core processor for intensive computer work. The added power gives this machine the ability to run many programs at once. It also has the option of including a DVD-burner/Blu-ray-reader with LightScribe technology, which can be very useful to a college student with many files to backup. The dv6 is more expensive, at $749, but the extra performance justifies the cost in this case.

The Apple MacBook – the quintessential college laptop – weighs in at number two on our list. Apple has a reputation for providing powerful computers which function flawlessly, often with more stability than traditional PC-based computers. However, Apple is also notorious for their high-priced products, which is precisely what knocks the MacBook out of contention for first on our list. At over one thousand clams, it may be out of the budget for many college-goers. There are discounts available for college students through the Apple Store, but this reviewer felt that $40 off of a $1,200 computer was lackluster at best. When choosing a Mac, however, keep in mind that the majority of computer infrastructures at most colleges are PC-based, so incompatibilities may become a problem later.

Top college laptops: Our grand champion college laptop is the HP dv7. The next model up from the above-discussed dv6, the dv7 is an even more powerful machine for a marginally higher price. The key feature of this laptop is its longevity. It is designed primarily as a “desktop replacement” – that is, it has all the power of a desktop on a mobile platform. While this is never entirely true, this machine does have the chops to perform well for years to come. Its powerful 64-bit processor, 6GB of RAM, 750GB hard disk drive, integrated ATi Radeon graphics, and more are perhaps overpowered for today’s applications. This means that as software becomes more computer-intensive over the next decade, the HP dv7 will still be slugging it out with the best of them. Added HP features such as ProtectSmart, Lojack, and TrueVision-webcam are more than enough to make this a unanimous choice for the best college laptop of December 2010.

In closing, the selection of a laptop for college purposes is an important task. Affirming a wise choice now will allow for years of use without the need of replacement or augmentation. This list is a good place to begin, but the true decision of what laptop to select lies with the student and his or her individual requirements, desires, and financial ability.

This post continues our Best College Laptops 2010 series.

To be successful in college you will need a few basic things, a planner to keep you organized, plenty of notebooks and office supplies, and a good computer. These days computers are needed for everything in college. From planning your schedules to turning in homework a good computer will take you a long way. However, given the current market, one can feel overwhelmed when choosing a computer, especially laptops. This is my list of the 5 top college laptops.

1. The Apple MacBook is a sleek, sexy looking number with many features. It comes with a built in webcam, dvd player, and Apple’s iLife suite of applications. This computer is for the creative person on the go as iLife helps your inner musician or artist come to life. With a 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor and a 250 GB hard drive, this computer has the speed you need and the space to store your work. However, the hefty $999 price tag is a big turn off.

2. The Sony VAIO E Series computers are good 15.5″ sized computers. With 3GB of DDR3 memory and an AMD Athlon II Dual-Core P340 2.2G processor its got the speed to compete with the MacBook. This model comes with a 320 GB hard drive and windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit edition. At $599.99 this seems like a bargain over the MacBook, but it doesn’t come with the MacBook’s software suite.

3. HP comes out swinging with the Pavilion dv6-3143us notebook. Its loaded Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit and comes with more than enough power to play games on. The screen is a tad bit bigger at 15.6″ and the hard drive is twice as large as the MacBook’s at 500 GB. The HP comes with an Intel Core i3 processor running at 2.4GHz. Its sleek and powerful, and it costs $799.

4. Netbooks are a popular item among college students. They are a bit less powerful, but what they miss in power, they make up for in portability. This is a definite for the student who has to trek across campus everyday. The Acer Aspire One A0821-3574 is a neat little netbook. It comes with with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit preloaded. Its powered by an AMD Athlon II Neo processor at 1.70GHz. It has 2GB of memory and a 250 GB hard drive to store all of your homework. The 5 hour battery life span is a must for the college student on the go. The $409.99 pricetag won’t break the bank either. These are the best value laptops on the market.

5. The DELL Inspiron 15R is a full size powerhouse of a laptop. This one is looking to bridge the gap between desktop and laptop. It comes with an Intel Core i5-460M processor running at 2.53GHz, 6 GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 640GB hard drive. This computer is a beast! It comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit edition preloaded. This computer is a bit expensive, coming in at $869.99, however, the price is a good tradeoff for the the power this computer has. For the college student on the go, I would have to choose the Acer Aspire One A0821-3574 as the best laptop for college students. The price, along with the portability and great battery life will be great for a college student on the go.

College is a fast paced, but overall fun part of anyone’s life. A good laptop is a must if you want to succeed and graduate.

This post continues our Best College Laptops 2010 series.

This is a guest post by Charles Moranell, a new reader and writer at helium.com.

What should a new college student should look for in a laptop? With so many different laptops out there and available today it’s very hard to know what to look for. You need to look for certain features, prices, and of course one stylish enough to match your individualism and make you stand out from your new classmates. Luckily with so many articles found online, or even by asking family, friends or teachers, you can find what is needed and for a manageable price. As an avid laptop user myself, certain features I can think of off the top of my head are certain to help you for your college classes.

A model you may consider would be the Toshiba Satellite Laptop L455 model. This laptop comes with a variety of features such as a 3 GB RAM, USB ports, 250 GB hard drive and is also in a lightweight and small design. The 3 GB RAM can be upgraded without any problems, this laptop also plays music and allows you to watch movies. To make this laptop even better, besides having all the basic needs for a college student, Toshiba has one of the best value laptops for students.

Another amazing model all college students should consider would be the Gateway NV5387u laptop, which has been featured on numerous lists for potential college students. The number one thing that is so amazing about this laptop is the price. Seeing as most college students aren’t rolling in cash, price is another big thing to look for when buying a laptop. This laptop costs a mere $500, and comes with many other features needed when in college. This laptop has a Dual Core processor as well as a 2.4 GHz, 4 GB RAM, and a hard drive of 320 GB. Also for this price, the screen of this laptop is at least 15.6 inches, as well as equipped with amazing graphics. Not only can you do school work but you are able to play video games, watch shows and movies and store as much data as you can possibly want on it.

Third and finally, the best laptop computer for college students I believe would be the Apple MacBook. This laptop is featured on many lists which includes it in the top five laptops for college students and is loved by generally the entire population. Not only are these computers fast, reliable, and meet the basic requirements for college, it is also stylish or good looking. Most people do not want a laptop that is unappealing to the eye, and thankfully the MacBook is anything but that. Known as a beautiful model, and being purchased by a wide variety of students, this laptop has a Core 2 Duo processor, a 2 GB RAM, a 9400M graphics card as well as a 160 GB hard disk capacity. As well as a 13 inch display screen, though some come with smaller or larger screens. Though is costs about $1299 and up, this laptop is definitely worth the price.

When searching for a laptop for college, it is important to research and look for hours about the basic requirements needed for a laptop, as well as what makes you happy and comfortable. Make sure you do not buy a laptop with features you don’t understand, simply because it is the latest and hottest thing, and you want to outshine your fellow classmates. When buying a laptop, make sure you understand everything about it, inside and out. You do not want to buy it, mess something up and end up having not laptop to use for college.

This post continues our Best College Laptops 2010 series.

READER QUESTION: What is your pick for the best value laptop and why?

I used to work in a college IT department on all different makes and models, different operating systems and Macs so I know first hand that certain manufacturers are better in quality than others.

For students in an art type of major, Architecture, Interior Design, Fashion, I would hands down recommend a Mac due to the graphics quality. But there are equally good Windows-based laptops for school that are very popular. After reading this you should have a better idea of what to look for when shopping for a laptop and your personal preferences for things such as screen size and color.

The three best brands I’ve worked on are Gateway, Dell and Apple. You’ll want to go with an Intel Core duo processor or better for speed and a minimum of 2GB of memory. If you plan on using your laptop for games or using multiple applications at the same time (toggling between open applications) get 4GB.

Hard drive size is dependent on what you plan on storing. If you are just going to be storing documents for school any of the standard hard drives the manufacturers are offering now will work. For music and picture storage you’ll want to increase the size depending on your usage. For those who store a tons of music and large pictures, keep in mind that it takes up a lot of space and will ultimately slow down your computer. So you may want to invest in an external hard drive. But for the average person, as I mentioned before, all the hard drives offered in the new laptops have a lot of space, about 250GB or more and will work just fine.

It is important to get a laptop with Wi-Fi capability as it is probably needed in certain classes and every college now offers Wi-Fi on campus and in dorms.

Also keep in mind battery life – some last just 3 hours and others last 6.5 hours or more. Video and sound are dependent on what you plan on doing with the laptop. This is particularly important to gamers but for your average student, the standard video and sound feature offered by the manufacturer will work. Personal options to decide is whether you want a webcam, if you are looking for a laptop with Windows or a Mac Operating System, the screen size and weight. There’s some laptops you can customize the color but there’s also different styles of skins for purchase as another option and perhaps less expensive. All these latter options are based on personal preference.

I would suggest going with a Gateway, Dell or Apple Macbook. However, the best laptop computer for college students is the Dell Inspiron 15R or higher. This laptop has excellent standard features with Intel Core i3 370M processor (better than Intel Core Duo), 4GB memory, 500GB hard drive, built in wireless and webcam, CD/DVD burner and 1 year warranty just to name a few options! You can also check; Best College Laptops 2010 for more suggestions.

Whichever laptop you decide to go with, all three that I mentioned above have a much better quality than others on the market, and this is based on my direct experience fixing a variety of student computers on a college campus.

The Holiday 2010 shopping season will be fast upon us, with the day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) sales set to begin shortly. Computers, specifically computers for college students—those returning to school or perhaps starting for the first time after the winter break—will be among the hottest sellers this year. Choosing the best college laptop is not as tough as you might think. In this expert review, we will present the five best laptops for college and explain why one of them should be on your shopping list.

In terms of value, the top selling college laptops fall into two categories, ultra inexpensive netbooks, and deeply discounted notebooks.

Netbooks encompass small computers with screens generally under 11 inches like the Coby 10-inch Netbook PC. What is particularly unique about the Coby is that it is one of few netbooks still shipping new with Windows XP instead of Windows 7. One fantastic benefit of that distinction is that the Coby is about the lowest priced new stock netbook available. It can be had online for under $250, about $20 less than its close rival, Acer.

Acer’s 10.1″ Netbook PC with Intel Atom Processor and Windows 7 Home Starter is another super bargain, selling now for as little as $270. Your choice of which to buy depends to a great degree upon whether you are willing to part with Windows XP and move on to Windows 7.

Before discussing another popular netbook, it is important to know why this review considers netbooks a top choice for the best college laptop. It comes down to space. Many colleges were not built with computers in mind and ample desk space is often scarce.

That is a key reason why the Dell 10.1″ Inspiron Mini Netbook PC is also a fantastic deal. Coming in at just under $350, the larger battery in the Dell makes it superb. With nearly double the power of many netbooks, it is just the thing for when AC power is hard to find.

Before closing this review of the five best college laptops, we need to look at some larger models for those who need a 15-inch screen, the Toshiba 15.6-inch Satellite Laptop PC with AMD V140 Processor and the Toshiba Silver 15.6-inch Satellite Laptop PC with AMD Sempron Processor. The Silver sells for under $380, an outstanding price for a 15.6- inch laptop. The Silver is best suited to students who will have ample access to AC power, as the battery in this model is limited to about 3 hours or less. Compromising slightly on power capacity is one factor that allows Toshiba to offer the Silver at such a bargain price.

In the selection criteria for the five best college laptops, the three most important factors are cost, size, and power capacity. If smaller screens are fine for you, we recommend a netbook with the best battery you can afford. If you need something larger, both of the two Toshiba models receive top marks. Your ultimate decision comes down to battery life.