Best College Laptops

College Laptop Guide

If you’re headed to college, besides new clothes, bedding, and a shower caddy, the one thing you definitely want to bring with you is a new college laptop computer. But as a new student dealing with tuition and room and board, you’re also going to want to save money. What are some of the ways that you can accomplish both of these goals?

First, consider that you don’t necessarily have to have the newest and most trendy computer. If you are not going to be doing complex programming—in other words, if you’re like most students, using your computer for word processing, surfing the Internet, sending email, and for music and videos—you can likely get by with a less expensive machine than others might need.

Second, less expensive brands can be just as useful as some of the trendier, more expensive models. For example, you might pay upwards of $1,000 for a basic Apple MacBook, even with Apple’s student discount. But if you’re on a budget and looking to save money on your laptop, why not compare it to models put out by Dell, Toshiba, or even Acer? These days, all of the programs you’d want to run are likely available for just about any machine running any popular operating system, so you’ll probably be just as happy with another brand.

Third, shop online. Laptop computers like the one you’re buying for college are commodities. That means that they’re the same thing whether you buy them from one retailer or another. So, you should use that to your advantage by comparing prices online, and even ordering direct from the manufacturer where that’s available. You’ll be amazed at how much money you can save by doing this.

Fourth, if you’re really on a budget, consider purchasing a used laptop for college. You can often find good deals on eBay and craigsist, where you’ll be able to buy your college laptop for $200 or less. The drawback is that there won’t be a warranty, of course. However, if you do go with a used machine, be sure you’re buying a modern enough version to meet your needs; there’s nothing worse than ordering a laptop only to realize it doesn’t have a wireless internet connection for example, because you’ve never seen one so old that it didn’t have one! Also, be sure to reformat the hard drive and add your own software once you buy the laptop. You never know what kinds of sketchy viruses the previous owner might have downloaded by accident, but by formatting and starting over you can enjoy an almost-new laptop experience!

A word of caution: You may be tempted to consider buying one of the less expensive netbook laptops for college, which can run as little as $300 or $400 for a brand new machine. However, if you’re strongly considering this, make sure you go into the store and play around with them for a while. Those small keyboards and tiny screens might be okay for occasional use while traveling, or as a backup machine so that you don’t have to rely completely on the desktop computer back in your dorm room. But if you’re going to be writing papers and virtually living with your computer as many college students do, you might find that a netbook simply isn’t big enough to fit your needs. Remember, the best laptop for college students makes lie easier, not more difficult.

One last tip: Call or email the bookstore at your new college and tell them that you’re planning to buy a new college laptop. You may find that they have great deals for new students that could beat anything you’d find anywhere else.

© 2010, Best College Laptops
- Laptops For College: Coupon Codes -

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Best College Laptops – HP Pavilion DV6 Notebook

I’ve bought a few laptops over the years and each time I’ve bought a different brand. Why is that you ask? Mostly because of the fact that each one that I’ve bought in the past had something I didn’t like about it. I figure that eventually I’d find the “one” that would feel right without too many software/hardware issues

This last time (three months ago) I bought the Hewlett Packard Pavilion dv6 Notebook with Windows 7 as the operating system. The notebooks size is an acceptable one with it’s 15.6″ diagonal high-definition2 Brightview LED display. The overall thickness of the laptop is just 1.33″. I’ve had keyboards that were thicker than that. It weighs less than seven pounds. This laptop has been the first one that I’ve own that didn’t need a cool pad.

As for it’s ability, I found it to be so much faster than any other laptop that I’ve had. As a matter of fact it has the same amount of RAM (4GB) as the one before the HP. I”m sure using Windows 7 as it’s operating system doesn’t hurt either. The HP Pavilion also came with a 6GB hard drive (it can be expanded to 8GB), which makes it one hell of a stout little laptop. The Pavilion also has 4 USB ports, as well as a HDMI and VGA port. The 6-cell batteries that comes as the standard type will last to up to 5 hours (depending what programs and how many you’re using). It’s one of the top three on the list of the best college laptop for college students.

This post is mainly to talk about the laptop, but I do have to mention that Windows 7 has been a much better operating system than any other Window version. I’ve heard some negative concerns, but on the most part, it’s been receiving praise and positive reviews.

I purchased my laptop at Best Buy instead of going through HP.com. Not only was it cheaper at Best buy, but I was able to have them remove Norton Security program and install Webroot instead. All I had to do was wait a few hours and go back and pick it up. buying a laptop online will always take any where from 4-10 days before you get it. At least that has been my experience every time I’ve bought one online. Either way you buy the Hewlett Packard Pavilion dv6 Notebook PC, it’s money well spent and is one of the best laptops for college students.

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iPad Accessories Make the iPad the Perfect Student Choice

If there is one thing that has changed in recent years when it comes to being at college, it is the use of technology to deliver learning materials. There is also the prevalence of social networking sites such as Facebook, meaning that is now more essential than ever for students to have a laptop or WI-FI enabled device to get the most out of their college experience.

Colleges throughout the world now deliver not only lecture notes, but entire lectures online. Gone are the days of submitting printed or hand written versions of your coursework, as essays and projects are now delivered electronically. Indeed, many universities now make the ownership of a laptop compulsory for all students.

The advent of tablet PCs a number of years ago gave way to a new way to interact with your computer, and ultimately the content it contains. Early adopter technology students saw the appeal of a small touch screen device for taking lecture notes or checking facts on the web during lectures. With the release of the Apple iPad, there is now an even easier and sleeker way to access your entire course and social materials.

You can use your iPad for everything you would need for university. Need to take notes in class? You can use the inbuilt note and word-processing software, along with any number of third party apps available online. If you need to email your friends for a night out or hook up with some family overseas you can do that all from your iPad. Tired of lugging around all those heavy books? No problem, just download them as eBooks from the new Apple iBook store if they are available, or obtain PDF versions online and load them in to the Stanza app from the App store. Imagine, contained within this small device with a very functional 9.7inch screen you can have all your reading material, course notes, social communication, entertainment, music and photos. Packing for university or college has never been so easy. Just toss your iPad in your bag, housed of course in a protective case, add a few clothes and you have everything you need for your semester at college.

If you are concerned about writing long essays on your iPad, there is no need to worry. For those who don’t like the innovative onscreen touch keyboard you can hook your device up to one of the iPad keyboard docks and you have a fully functional external keyboard to tap away on.

The IPad could very well be the best laptop for college students. Compared to a fully fledged Macbook, the iPad is more portable, user friendly and cheaper. When you combine it with all the iPad accessories you have to choose from, it could well be the must have accessory for your college computing needs.

© 2010, Best College Laptops
- Laptops For College: Coupon Codes -

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