Best all-around laptop for back to school
June 19, 2020 2:00 PM Subscribe
My friend asked me to look into suggestions for what kind of laptop to get for school. She's doing a PHD in nursing and wants something fast, lightweight, portable & reasonably priced. I've been out of the Windows laptop game for awhile so I was wondering if you guys had any pointers.
I'd say she needs something in between email-and-google-docs-only and super beefy gaming rig. She says she can picture herself needing to do homework on the train and that kind of thing, but I imagine we don't want the screen to be too small either. Being able to plug into a monitor would be great also.
Help me help my brave, wonderful friend! Thank you!
I'd say she needs something in between email-and-google-docs-only and super beefy gaming rig. She says she can picture herself needing to do homework on the train and that kind of thing, but I imagine we don't want the screen to be too small either. Being able to plug into a monitor would be great also.
Help me help my brave, wonderful friend! Thank you!
I have a shared asus zenbook that's at least a year old now - we considered getting two separate ones, but decided to spend on the one good one. Not regretting it now - older stuff just doesn't adapt well to increasing demands.
Some other qualities to consider:
1. Lightweight = ultrabook
2. Using on the move...probably a good idea to get something that doesn't get too hot, and which has a matt screen
3. Plugging in to a monitor - mine has a micro-hdmi rather than hdmi port, and it's irritating to have to use the hdmi to micro-hdmi switcher
4. Does she need a bunch of USB ports? Mine has only 2 ports, so that's troublesome if I hook it up to a keyboard, mouse, and then have nothing else to work with (e.g. plugging in a usb drive, or connecting it to my phone to chare)
5. Solid state hard drives are great for quick booting and shock resistance (e.g. if she's going to be in bumpy transport)
6. Consider the keyboard layout! Mine doesn't have home and end buttons (I have to hold function), which is irritating.
I used https://www.ultrabookreview.com/ and also googled "[model] probllems" extensively when researching, and agree that the xps13 did seem to get great feedback all round both online and from peers who have it.
posted by appleses at 2:53 PM on June 19, 2020
Some other qualities to consider:
1. Lightweight = ultrabook
2. Using on the move...probably a good idea to get something that doesn't get too hot, and which has a matt screen
3. Plugging in to a monitor - mine has a micro-hdmi rather than hdmi port, and it's irritating to have to use the hdmi to micro-hdmi switcher
4. Does she need a bunch of USB ports? Mine has only 2 ports, so that's troublesome if I hook it up to a keyboard, mouse, and then have nothing else to work with (e.g. plugging in a usb drive, or connecting it to my phone to chare)
5. Solid state hard drives are great for quick booting and shock resistance (e.g. if she's going to be in bumpy transport)
6. Consider the keyboard layout! Mine doesn't have home and end buttons (I have to hold function), which is irritating.
I used https://www.ultrabookreview.com/ and also googled "[model] probllems" extensively when researching, and agree that the xps13 did seem to get great feedback all round both online and from peers who have it.
posted by appleses at 2:53 PM on June 19, 2020
I recently upgraded from a terrible 15.6 inch Acer to a refurbished 13.5 inch Microsoft Surface Book for my BSc. I was worried that it would feel odd losing a couple inches of screen but I find 13.5 is absolutely fine. Probably wouldn't want to go much smaller than 13 if it's going to be your primary machine and not just something you take notes on in meetings etc. It's still extremely portable and I fit it in my schoolbag, no worries. Losing the numerical keypad has been a bit of a pain but I cope.
I can't say I would recommend my laptop as it doesn't work with a couple of your criteria (unless you get a refurb, they are pricey plus it's top heavy so it doesn't have great balance when on a lap) but having a touchscreen is excellent when you need to smash out a diagram, which could be relevant to nursing depending on what she's researching. Being able to detach the screen and use it as a tablet is also handy if you want to do a lot of 'handwriting'. I use this a lot when I download journal articles and I want to highlight and take notes on them.
posted by BeeJiddy at 3:46 PM on June 19, 2020
I can't say I would recommend my laptop as it doesn't work with a couple of your criteria (unless you get a refurb, they are pricey plus it's top heavy so it doesn't have great balance when on a lap) but having a touchscreen is excellent when you need to smash out a diagram, which could be relevant to nursing depending on what she's researching. Being able to detach the screen and use it as a tablet is also handy if you want to do a lot of 'handwriting'. I use this a lot when I download journal articles and I want to highlight and take notes on them.
posted by BeeJiddy at 3:46 PM on June 19, 2020
Most of the online sources I trust have agreed for a while that the Dell XPS 13 is the best Windows ultrabook for somebody like your friend, who wants mobility and a decent amount of robustness to different tasks - as long as they don’t mind spending around $1,300. I went with the HP Spectre x360 13, also a previous Wirecutter pick, instead, mostly because I found much better deals on refurbished versions. The HP was given an update in late 2019 that made it pretty much on par with the Dell - maybe slightly less build quality and an aspect ratio some people don’t like, but a touchscreen and touchpad style hinges and old-style USB connector (in addition to other modern ports) and a better-placed webcam. If she’s willing to spend $900+ (that would be getting some kind of sale or refurbished version), those are probably the two to look at.
posted by exutima at 5:15 PM on June 19, 2020
posted by exutima at 5:15 PM on June 19, 2020
If she hasn’t done so already, your friend might also want to check if the school offers laptop deals for students, which can be much lower priced than purchasing typical retail. For example, the U-M computer store offers computing bundles at three levels of expected usage.
posted by needled at 7:08 PM on June 19, 2020
posted by needled at 7:08 PM on June 19, 2020
I love my Dell Latitude 13 7386. It's like an XPS, but less -- less prestige, less hype, less money, etc. It cost me about $1200 new a little less than a year ago. It has one USB-A port, one USB-C port, a micro-SD port, a full-sized HDMI port and a mini DisplayPort...uh, port. The screen is bright and sharp, it's not heavy, it has decent battery life and a fairly nice keyboard. It has Bluetooth, so if external mouse and keyboard are needed, get Bluetooth devices. It's a 2-in-1, so it folds back into a tablet and uses a very inexpensive ($25, if I remember) pen from Dell as a smart stylus. I rarely use it in this configuration, as I don't think Windows is a very good tablet operating system, but there it is.
When I bought mine, it came with the version of the "basic" warranty that included onsite service after remote diagnostics. The trackpad stopped responding about four or five months after I bought it, the Dell guy came to replace it, and it has worked fine ever since. I recently paid for another year of that service and added accidental damage coverage.
I have owned Dell machines off and on for years, purchased and supported them for companies I've worked for, and have another one through my employer in addition to my own. I have always been happy with Dell. You probably can go wrong buying from them, but personally all my experience over the last nearly 30 years has been great.
posted by lhauser at 7:42 PM on June 19, 2020
When I bought mine, it came with the version of the "basic" warranty that included onsite service after remote diagnostics. The trackpad stopped responding about four or five months after I bought it, the Dell guy came to replace it, and it has worked fine ever since. I recently paid for another year of that service and added accidental damage coverage.
I have owned Dell machines off and on for years, purchased and supported them for companies I've worked for, and have another one through my employer in addition to my own. I have always been happy with Dell. You probably can go wrong buying from them, but personally all my experience over the last nearly 30 years has been great.
posted by lhauser at 7:42 PM on June 19, 2020
I just got a Lenovo Yoga and so far I've been very happy. It is incredibly light weight and I love that I can turn it into a tablet. When I took it to the computer guy to transfer my data from my dead 8 year old Dell, he remarked at how good the screen was. The keyboard has been a bit of a learning curve and I generally dislike track pads (I use a wireless mouse instead) but overall, I've been very pleased.
posted by tafetta, darling! at 5:26 AM on June 20, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by tafetta, darling! at 5:26 AM on June 20, 2020 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
I would suggest she check out Wirecutter for recommendations!
posted by maya at 2:29 PM on June 19, 2020 [1 favorite]