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If you are a college student, then you already know having your laptop is one of the best things you can do for yourself, especially during a pandemic.

If you are starting your first year in college, then I’ll be the first to tell you a laptop is probably going to be one of the best investments that you will make throughout your college career.

With most of your work being submitted online, you NEED a laptop.

Just as the cell phone is essential to everyday life, having a laptop has equally become a necessary item to add to your shopping list as a student.

Yes, a laptop can be an expensive investment, but it doesn’t have to be. The good news is that there are so many makes and models of laptops out these days that it is more than possible for any student to find a great laptop that more than suits their budget.

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Tip: You can always get expensive laptops for cheap by opting for a used version of it.  This is a great option if you are on a budget. They still show up in good condition!  All you sacrifice is the warranty option and that “I just got a brand new laptop” feeling.

Laptop Features You Can Skip to Save Money

You don’t need to buy a laptop with all the best features to get the most out of your purchase.

Here are some laptop features that you can pass on to save yourself some money:

Anything higher than a 1080 resolution

Your screen doesn’t need to be full HD (1920×1080 or 1080p) unless it’s your preference. Something as small as opting for a lower resolution can save you hundreds.

Take the Dell XPS 13 with a 1080p screen for example. If you opt-out for a model of it with similar specs but has a 3200 x 1800 screen resolution, your purchase price for that computer drops to $300. Not a bad deal, right?

i7 Core Processor

An Intel i7 core processor is another feature that you can do without.

An i5 processor will still work great for you. Don’t think that because it’s an older version, it will let you down. According to Laptop Mag, the i5 core processor will give you the best balance between price and performance, and there is honestly no need to pay more for an i7.

Yes, the i7 core processor will be better for processor-intensive tasks, but unless you plan on pushing your laptop to the limit every day, you won’t need it.

Plus dropping to an i5 can also reduce your purchasing price by hundreds like the Surface Pro 4, whose i5 CPU costs almost $400 less than its i7 counterpart.

Graphics Card

Unless you plan on playing the latest triple-A titles or doing some high-grade video editing or 3D modeling on your laptop, a graphics card is something that you can do without.

In other words, if your major doesn’t need you to have a graphics card or if you don’t play graphically demanding games, you can do without a graphics card.

Some laptop brands that allow you to configure your own specs will give you the option to choose between an AMD or Nvidia chip or none. But other laptops will come with the chip and will cost you more for it.

Real Sense 3D

Many laptops come with Real Sense 3D that allows you the ability to use facial recognition to unlock your computer.

But be honest with yourself, do you need this?

More than 256GB of Storage

Most people don’t need that much storage today. There are just so many other options where you can store your files: external hard drives, cloud storage services, streaming services to help you save your music.

But if you do like the idea of not having to worry about space and you have the budget for it, then investing in a laptop with a 512GB or 1TB SSD (Solid State Drive) will be your best option.

Not only will you get the extra space, but the SSD will also allow your computer to perform to five times faster than a regular hard drive.

An SSD will be great for all you graphic designers and avid gamers out there.

16GB RAM and Higher

Most people only ever need 8GB of RAM and never notice the difference. The cost of 8GB usually comes already attached to the price of the laptop.

And as a student, you probably won’t need 16 or 32 GB worth of RAM. You will do completely fine without it, and you probably won’t see the difference. But if you would like more RAM, you honestly can’t ever go wrong with too much RAM.

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The 15 Best Laptops For College Students

We researched for you and found the best laptops to add to your college shopping list as you prepare for the 2019 school year. (The list order: Expensive -then-Inexpensive)

HP Pavilion x360 Convertible

Operating System: Windows 10 Home 64

Storage: 8GB -1 TB

Ram: 8GB – 16GB

CPU: Intel® Core™ i5 -i7

Display & Battery: 15.6″ FHD IPS micro-edge WLED-backlit multitouch-enabled edge-to-edge glass (1920 x 1080) —- 13:45 hours of battery life2, and HP Fast Charge9

Weight: 4.24 lb

I will start with this laptop because it’s the laptop I currently own. The HP Pavilion is simply the best laptop I’ve ever owned. The HP Pavilion x360 is a convertible laptop meaning it’s a laptop & a tablet. The screen is crystal clear with a 720 P front-facing camera for your zoom classes. The only drawback with this laptop is its battery. I currently run a triple monitor set-p so the battery tends to drain quickly (yes I know its because of the triple monitor set-up).

This laptop is perfect for the college student & I would put this as number one on my list.

The HP Pavilion x360 is one of the fastest budget laptops you will get your hands on.  Where other devices in its class opt for a slow CPU, the HP Pavilion sports a power Intel Core M processor.

Its flexible design allows for an array of ports: on the right side two USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI port, an expandable Ethernet port, and a headphone port. Then on the left, you have a USB 2.0 port and an SD card reader.

It also has excellent speakers but suffers slightly more when it comes to the colors in its display, which if you are not picky about having the best picture quality laptops can have, shouldn’t bother you much, and you should enjoy this computer as one of the best budget laptops for a student.

BUY IT HERE

Apple 15” Mac Book Pro

Specifications

Operating System: macOS Sierra

GPU: Radeon Pro 560X with 4GB of memory

Storage: 1TB SSD

RAM: 32GB

CPU: Intel Core i9

Display & Battery: 15.4” screen. Up to 10 hours of battery life.

Weight: 4 lbs

Pros:

• High-speed performance
• Potentially fastest SSD in the market
• Thin and light design
• Good sound
• Great Battery life

Cons:

• Very expensive

Another amazingly performing laptop. Unfortunately, this amazing performance comes with a costly price tag. But its impressive power that comes in a thin light design makes its price more than worth it.

Don’t let the initial base price scare you. You can mix and match the different components of the laptop to tailor it to what you need.

BUY IT HERE

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Dell XPS 15

Operating System: Windows 10

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 630. Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti

Storage: 512 SSD

RAM: 16GB

CPU: Intel Core i7

Display & Battery: 15.6” screen. Up to 11 hours of battery life.

Weight: 4 lbs

Pros:

• Strong performance
• Strong battery life
• Great graphics card
• Great design

Cons:

• Webcam placement

Compared to the price of the Mac Pro, the Dell XPS offers just about the same performance for hundreds cheaper.

For its price, this laptop gives you the luxury of the Mac Pro and the performance that comes with windows ten all in one package for a good price.

The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics card makes this laptop a strong entry-level gaming laptop as it allows you to run games on low-to-medium settings.

After a gaming session, the laptop will automatically switch to the integrated Intel UHD graphics 630 to save the Nvidia for when it’s needed. A simple feature that makes it one of the best computers for students, especially gamers.

BUY IT HERE

Huawei Matebook x Pro

Operating System: Windows 10 Home

GPU: Intel UHD 620 (Integrated) + Nvidia GeForce MX150 w/2GB GDDR5

Storage: 512 SSD

RAM: 16GB

CPU: Intel Core i7

Display & Battery: 13.9” screen. Up to 6 hours of battery life.

Weight: 2.9 lbs

Pros:

• Fast
• Good battery life
• Both USB Type-C and Type-A Ports

Cons:

• Hard get one.

Dubbed as an alternative to an Apple’s MacBook because of the similar specs and performance of this machine, the Huawei Matebook pro is one of the best laptops for students.

Its specs and hardware make it uniquely an excellent option for art students.

One thing that might catch you off guard about the laptop is its front-facing camera pops up from a key in the keyboard. Not sure what they were thinking about there.

Full review

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HP Spectre x360

Operating System: Windows 10 Home

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 620 integrated graphics

RAM: 8GB

CPU: Intel Core i7

Display & Battery: 13.9” screen. Up to 12 hours of battery life.

Weight: 2.9 lbs

Pros:

• Great battery life
• Lightweight
• Great speakers

Cons:

• The display could use some improvement.

Even though you won’t be able to run the most demanding tasks on this laptop (like graphically demanding games and programs), it is still built to handle most of the things any students can put it through.

When it comes to performance, you won’t be disappointed here. And with a battery life of over 12 hours, this computer no only dominates its competition but also makes sure you never run out of juice as you go from class to class.

BUY IT HERE

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Lenovo Yoga c930

Operating System: Windows 10 Home

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 620

Storage: 256GB SSD

RAM: 8GB

CPU: Intel Core i7

Display & Battery: 13.9” screen. Up to 10 hours of battery life.

Weight: 3.1 lbs

Pros:

• Great design
• Lightweight
• Good performance
• Great battery life

Cons:

• The display could use some improvement

The razor-thin aluminum slate that covers the body of this laptop gives it an eye-catching sleek and minimal, luxurious look.

It might not be the most luxurious looking laptop out there, but it is still one of the best computers for students who appreciate minimalist design.

But don’t get distracted by the looks because its performance is more impressive. The Intel Core i7 and 256GB SSD in the laptop make sure that anything you do will load smoother without a hint of lag.

One of the laptop’s best features is the mini soundbar that sits between the screen and the keyboard.  This bar houses double-sided speakers that will perform better than you will expect.

BUY IT HERE

Samsung Notebook 9 Pro

Operating System: Windows 10

GPU: Intel UHD 620

Storage: 256GB SSD

RAM: 8GB

CPU: Intel Core i7

Display & Battery: 13.3” screen. Up to 8 hours of battery life.

Weight: 2.72 lbs

Pros:

• Great design
• Good performance
• Strong battery life
• Good price

Cons:

• Underwhelming speakers

In this laptop, you get a machine with healthy battery life, style, and excellent performance for a reasonable price. Which make it one of the best laptops for students.

Its 13.3in display gives you colorful, sharp images and can run videos at 1080p. The computer can also multitask with up to 40 open tabs without a hitch. But the laptop underperforms when it comes to the sound of its speakers. They have been described as “sharp and scratchy.”

For its performance and its price (about $200 lower than its competition), Samsungs Notebook 9 Pro is an excellent choice for a student. Plus its weight of 2.72 lbs means you can comfortably take your laptop anywhere with you.

BUY IT HERE

Microsoft Surface Pro 6

Operating System: Windows 10 Pro

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel UHD Graphic 620

Storage: 256GB SSD

RAM: 8GB – 16GB

CPU: Intel Core i5 – i7

Display & Battery: 12.3” screen. Up to 9 hours of battery life.

Weight: 2.4lbs

Pros:

• Fast CPU performance
• Strong battery life
• Bright n colorful display

Cons:

• No USB-C/Thunderbolt ports

Expect blazing speeds from Microsofts Surface Pro 6. With its light size of 1.7 pounds on the tablet alone and 2.4 pounds when the laptop is connected, its battery life, and its performance, this laptop sets the standard for whatever 2-in-1 laptop should be.

This laptop will give you a bright and colorful display, amazing and clear sounds from its speakers, the surprisingly active surface pen, and the 8th generation quad-core processor makes sure that no matter what you do you will always have a smooth experience.

These features make it one of the best portable laptops you can get and enjoy every moment.

BUY IT HERE

Microsoft Surface Go

Operating System: Windows 10 Home

Storage: 64 GB

RAM: 4GB

CPU: Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y

Display & Battery: 10” screen. Up to 6 hours of battery life.

Weight: 1.15 lbs

Pros:

• A bright, colorful display
• Faster than most budget laptops
• Facial recognition

Cons:

• You have to pay extra for a Keyboard and pen
• Short battery life

If you get this “laptop,” the first thing you’ll notice is that it is a tablet. But don’t let that fool you, it is still able to carry out tasks like it is a laptop.

A significant drawback is that you have to pay extra to get the keyboard.

Other than that, this is an excellent laptop for the price. The 10-inch display is very colorful and offers a lot of pop, it comes with a facial recognition feature, it has good speakers, and the keyboard(should you chose to get it) is very comfortable to use.

It might not be as fast as some of its competitors but the Intel Pentium processor in it is no slouch. It will still be useful for handling your day to day tasks.

BUY IT HERE

Asus Chromebook flip c434

Operating System: Google Chrome

Storage: 64 GB

RAM: 4GB

CPU: Intel Core m3-8100Y

Display & Battery: 14” screen. Up to 9 hours of battery life.

Weight: 3.1 lbs

Pros:

• Great design
• Vivid 14-inch touch screen
• good battery life

Cons:

• Weird touchpad

This Chromebook will give you a comfortable experience in completing tasks, surfing the web, or streaming 1080p HD videos. You can multitask on this device, but if you push it too much with too many tasks, you will start to see some lag. This one of the best laptops for students who are on a limited budget.

Overall this chrome book should do an excellent job of getting you through college as long as you don’t use it for demanding programs.

BUY IT HERE

Acer Aspire E 15

Operating System: Windows 10 Home

Storage: 1TB

RAM: 6GB – 8GB

CPU: Intel Core i3-8130U

Display & Battery: 15.6” screen. Up to 8 hours of battery life.

Weight: 5 lbs

Pros:

• Strong Performance
• Good Battery life
• Extremely affordable

Cons:

• Bulky design
• Bloatware

The Aspire E 15 is the laptop that will probably get you the most value for the money you pay for it as a student.

With a battery life that lasts well over 8 hours, which is pretty impressive for a budget laptop, this laptop will last you all day on a full charge. But I wouldn’t recommend carrying it everywhere with you because of the 5 lbs weight.

Its display isn’t the best, but it will still effectively play videos at 1080 for you. In a performance test, the laptop was able to hold it own with up to 15 firefox tabs open, with videos running in HD in 3 of the tabs, and a twitch stream in a fourth before any lag happened.

BUY IT HERE

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