Are Budget Laptops Really Good Enough for Students?

If you are heading to university this September, then one of the best things that you can invest in for your studies is your own laptop. While most universities have libraries and study rooms where you can use their computers free of charge, most free university computers are desktop PCs, so you can’t take them home with you. Plus, there’s no guarantee that you’ll get one around busy times like exam season, since they often operate on a first-come first-serve basis. Having your own laptop can make the university experience easier since you can complete your assignments at home, use it for easier note-taking in class, and more. But, can you get away with a budget laptop for uni or should you spend more?

What You Are Studying?

When it comes to choosing your laptop for college, the first thing to think about is what you are going to be studying. Some courses rely more heavily than others on computing power, so you’ll need to budget for a laptop that is going to be suitable for your course. For the most part, a budget laptop will do just fine for courses like Sociology, Sciences, English, and other courses where most of the work will usually require writing assignments and essays or downloading and using basic software programs. On the other hand, you might need a more powerful laptop if you’re studying subjects like computer science.

Durability

Are you simply looking for a laptop that you can count on to get you through the first year of university, or do you want something that is going to last much longer? The more you pay for a laptop, the more durable you can usually expect it to be. If you want a laptop that you can rely on for the entire time you are studying and maybe get a bit more out of it after you graduate as a work laptop, then spending a bit more on a device that is designed to stand up to a lot of use with excellent specs might pay off in the long run.

Personal Use

Another factor to consider when choosing your university or college laptop is what you plan to use it for outside of your education. Chances are that you’re not just going to use your laptop for completing assignments and researching. If you play a lot of video games in your spare time, then you might want to use your laptop for this. In this case, it might be worth spending more on a gaming laptop, which you can often get cheaper than paying for both a laptop and another gaming device like a console. Or, if you are working online while studying, a basic laptop might not be able to withstand that kind of heavy use – a business laptop could be worth investing more in, since these are designed to be used for hours every day.

When it comes to choosing your university laptop, you can definitely get what you need from a basic, budget model. However, there are some instances where it might make sense to pay for a little bit more.