Smart Kids needs a laptop

[Jellyghost]

I know a smart kid that is going to college in a few weeks, and he plans to major in computers science. But.... he does not have his own computer. His uses his mom's work computer whenever he needs one. My wife and I would like to get him a laptop, but I need some advice. I always use Mac products, and I think he needs a pc.
What would you buy an incoming freshman, and what programs/operating system need to come with it?

[shooter311]

Hey, I have a Master's in Information Systems Engineering, but it has been ten years or so since I have been in College.

You will absolutely not want a Mac, you are right about that. It is a safe bet to go with a PC for the first couple of years at least. For me I started with Windows then moved over to Linux and finished most of my work that way. Most any brand is going to make a computer that will work for him. so for my advice I would just say make sure it has Windows 10 (not S), after that I think it comes down to system requirements.

It depends on what you are looking to spend. If you are trying to keep it under $500 and want him to get a laptop that will get him by, or something more expensive that will last him 5 years and not bog him down at all. Let me know what you are looking for.

As for programs, luckily I don't think you need to buy much. Google Docs is free and can do most of what he will need to do for the first couple of years. As for programming most environments will be free. If he needs Adobe Suite or anything like that I would just use the school computers as those get expensive.

You can shop around online, but I think most college campus computer stores run deals for students and have good pricing on stuff.

Let me know budget and I can help further.

[Seajay]

Good on you! Anything in the $600 will be fine honestly with today's tech. If he hasn't already he really needs to look at Student offerings (grants/scholarships) if purchasing one is cost prohibitive.
He will then need Microsoft Office, which is often given to students for free or at huge discounts through the school.

The laptop just needs to be able to email, and run simple applications, type an essay. Most of the homework will be done for computer science at the lab.
Any specific applications will be assigned by the school itself.

for technical specifics I'd try to find something with lots of USB ports, and at least 1 HDMI output. A larger keyboard is generally preferred by most people using a laptop to write long papers.
Look for Wifi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 (these are the newer-er connection options). The HDMI output will allow to connect to an extra monitor which would be way more useful than say a more expensive and "powerful" laptop.

[Shaftski]

I'd first check with the school they are enrolling at. There may be system requirements for the courses, or proprietary software written by the college/university. They also quite often have a standard system build for purchase directly from them, with lower cost student versions of software preinstalled. Engineering software pro versions are insanely expensive, but the "lite" student versions are very low cost. Just not allowed to use the software to develop commercial products.

Other than that, preference really. If it were me buying for a student like that I would look at Linux laptops. You learn to run/administer that system and you have an advantage in the post-grad hiring process. Everyone knows macs and windows, few know linux well, and a LOT of engineering work is done exclusively on Linux/Unix.

[JonM]

I'd first check with the school they are enrolling at. There may be system requirements for the courses, or proprietary software written by the college/university.

This is absolutely the case. Some schools also require students to run their specific security software in order to even connect to their network. Find out what the school wants and go from there. As for brands, just about any will do these days. Laptops are pretty much commodities now where one one brand is often as good as another.

[Cdn_Cuda]

Just make sure to use the student discounts for purchases! Software is way cheaper and often hardware is discounted as well.

[Jellyghost]

Thank you for all of this advice. He is going to a SUNY school that isn't very big, and the campus store only sells macs. Do you guys have any preference in brand? Or just any laptop with good specs?

[punkncat]

Pretty much any operational laptop. Don't worry about programs, as most of what is needed is free with an .edu email. For instance, the whole MS Office suite (among others).
Many schools will push the AV thing as being required, but then also have you install tokens and anti cheat programs that any AV worth it's salt will trip out on. Use Windows Defender as it's included with 10.

I HIGHLY suggest taking a look at 'refurbished' high end laptops from a couple of years ago. Keep in mind that schools are a breeding ground of theft, so something really nice will just have a target on it. Side note, enable the 'find my device' options where you can.

My son did his last two years of school on (mostly) an iPad. I am not that proficient with it, but he liked it's portability, battery life, and the pen. I am left handed and it works like shit for me. Anywho....

[ford]

How tech savvy is this kid?

If he's serious about going the programming route he may want a Mac or linux box after college. If you were to purchase him a dell notebook, those generally have pretty good linux support drivers as well.

It's been almost 10 years since I did college so take with some salt, but I had a Mac in a sea of PC apps and often I would do most of my work on the Mac, then finish it up in a on campus computer lab where I would have access to virtually any program I needed under the sun.

PC computers I like, Are Asus, Acer and Dell.
PC companies I hate are HP and Lenovo.

[RAZRBAKK]

Much like the cellphone market, the currently laptop offerings are nearly identical in each price range. Everyone here has said pretty much everything that needs to be said on the subject, though. I imagine for a CS degree there will be some required hardware specs that the school has outlined, but if not anything with a relatively modern processor and 8gb+ of ram will be sufficient.

[ford]

I mean, you could probably just do a chrome book for 90% of the kids class work, and just rely on the computer labs for the odd-ball assignments.

just depends what he wants to get done in his dorm vs the library.

[shooter311]

I push Chromebooks really hard for most people. They are fantastic, and I still run my 2013 Google Pixelbook at home. However, for a Computer Science major I would say he really needs to run programming environments. I would say in this case a Chromebook will not cut it for a majority of his core classes.

[THE_Incredible_Hulk]

Jellyghost Go to Micro Center. You can find a laptop there. Don't get Eset anti virus. It's as good as the aol cd's aka coasters.

[shooter311]

Thank you for all of this advice. He is going to a SUNY school that isn't very big, and the campus store only sells macs. Do you guys have any preference in brand? Or just any laptop with good specs?

I used to pretty much only buy Lenovo, but about 3years ago I ordered a laptop with three docking stations for my CEO. The order got all messed up, and I spent 8 hours with tech support and no one could help me. Their final resolution was return everything (after waiting 2 months for it) and reorder, or live with what I got.

We pretty much only use Dell now and have been really happy with them especially their support. HP, Acer, ASUS make decent products too, we stick with dell because we have an account with them and get rewards.

You could also check Bestbuy for open box items. I bought my $1,400 desktop as an open box for $900, and it was as good as new. I told a buddy about it, he checked it out and bought the same desktop for $600 because it was "Missing Core Components." He figured he would have to put Ram or something into it. Turns out, it was missing the keyboard and Mouse. He saved $800 because it didn't come with a $5 keyboard and mouse...Check your local BB, you never know!

[Seajay]

Thank you for all of this advice. He is going to a SUNY school that isn't very big, and the campus store only sells macs. Do you guys have any preference in brand? Or just any laptop with good specs?

I'd find out what the kid is used too. Mac's are weird if you are not familiar with them, while Windows can seem tedious or intuitive for the same reasons. It doesn't matter, the software will run on either one.

Dell has the best support, and has a monopoly on schools. Asus and Acer are fine options for what you are looking at, they all are pretty similar. What you are buying is support and layout differences.

They all come with a stupid amount of bloatware.

[Jellyghost]

Thanks everyone. I just got him a Dell that's around $650. Your advice was very appreciated.