Good computer for a college student?

Eff everything except Macbook Pro!

macbook

She wants a laptop with a ten key. Nothing in Apple’s lineup offers that. Don’t bother suggesting it.

Regarding hardware, which matters in a laptop. I think Apple and Lenovo make the best stuff. Sounds like you should look at a Lenovo.

Oh right I forgot to include I HATE MACS. So unless you have a better idea don’t bother. =]

Just make sure if you’re going to buy something light/small that it’s not Too small for your hand/fingers (even though you’ll get used to typing on a smaller keyboard, I don’t recommend writing your first novel on it)

Also, why not just get the usb numpad ?

I know you said you h8 Macs but I still have to recommend one.

Why do you not like Macs?

Check out some Asus’ on newegg I know a few people who have recently gotten some there for college. Asus has a 15.4” model with a keypad. It is going to be difficult to find something now without vista, but if you plan to duel boot then you can just wipe the drive and install XP and whatever Linux distro you like. +1 for Lenovos as well.

It would also help to know what you are going to college for and if you will need to be running any heavy applications, and also if you like to game at all.

And a budget would be helpful :).

I’m not a fan of macs either. we have both and I don’t use the Mac. My daughter loves it. I hate Vista more than Mac tho.

Call up Dell and chat with a tech. See what they have to offer.
Dell’s always been good for us.

I am majoring in Zoology/ Wildlife Biology. So a Bachelor Degree in science, so lots of work ahead of me. Full of labs and projects I am sure.

Having a numpad is going to add at least 3 inches to the length of the laptop, which can make it much more difficult to take everywhere with you. I second getting a usb numpad. Also, any laptop with a numpad is going to be top of the line, and probably overpowered for what you want to use it for.

The most intensive software that your degree will require will most likely be some type of statistical package, and it doesn’t take a behemoth rig to crunch a few numbers. Between stats, word processing, web browsing, and the requisite college media activities, I think that something in the netbook range really wouldn’t be a bad idea. Like an MSI Wind or Asus EEE. At least 1.5 ghz, 100 gb of hdd, and 1 gb of ram will probably be all you need.

Here’s a discussion of laptops with numpads, and they’re all big and expensive. Get something that won’t break your back, that’s easy to take anywhere and pull out quickly, and that meets your spec needs.