Buying a Student Laptop: Top Factors to Consider

A laptop is a necessity for any university student, and it is also one of the most expensive items that you will need to buy. It is therefore worth spending some time choosing the most suitable model that will last you throughout your time at university.

One of the most important factors to consider is the portability of your laptop. A large laptop will be a challenge to carry to lectures every day, so it is better to stay on the slim side. There are plenty of super-slip laptops available these days, but they often command a higher price tag.

Your other option is a netbook. These are smaller and lighter than laptops, making them easier to carry around with you wherever you need them.

The smaller size of netbooks also happens to be their main flaw. If you are going to be doing any serious amounts of work on your computer (which is likely if you are studying for a degree), the smaller screens and keyboards of netbooks can make them particularly challenging for long periods of work. Not only can they start to strain your eyes, but you may also find it more difficult to type on them quickly.

The solution could be to invest in some useful accessories, including an external monitor, a keyboard and a mouse. With these additions, you could use your netbook as a desktop computer with a nice large screen and keyboard when you are at your desk, and you could then take it out to lectures or down to the café with ease when you need to.

The alternative is to find a laptop that has a large enough screen and full-sized keyboard that you could happily use to work on, but which is light enough to carry with you to lectures.

Price is certain to be a factor, and although you may be tempted by the cheaper price of a netbook, once you have added on all of the accessories to make it more usable you may end up spending more overall than you would with a good laptop.

If price is a concern, consider investing in a refurbished laptop instead. These are laptops that have usually only been used for a very short period of time and are almost new, but the price has often been knocked down considerably. You may be able to find one with a warranty for added peace of mind and it can be a great way to get a powerful laptop for a budget price. www.portableuniverse.co.uk sell a range of refurbished laptops that you may want to look at to find one that could be suitable.

Another thing to consider is the power of your laptop. If you are just using it to write essays then you won’t need the most powerful laptop on the market. However, if you want to play games on it or use it for any more heavy-duty tasks, you should certainly look for a model with a fast processor. If you are planning to store lots of videos and photos, you should also choose a model with a large hard drive. Alternatively, you could invest in an external hard drive instead.

Finally, whatever laptop you end up choosing, make sure you invest in good anti-virus software and always back up your work either in the cloud, on an external disk or both. Even the best laptops can experience problems, and you want to ensure that your work is always protected in case the worst comes to the worst.