Looking for laptop

narek24

Honorable
Mar 24, 2013
1
0
10,510
I am planning on selling my 15 inch MacBook Pro since it is way too much for my needs.

After I sell this laptop, however, I will need to look for an affordable PC that can fulfill my needs. I will need it only for...

-Basic Internet browsing
-Checking Emails etc
-Typing Word documents, powerpoint, etc (college use)
-coding since I am a Computer Science major in college

What brand/type of laptop would you guys recommend?

my budget is 400-500 dollar range.
 

Rudi Rademacher

Honorable
Mar 24, 2013
5
0
10,510
Sounds to me like these are the most basic requirements that any laptop or notebook would provide - so ultimately, unless you have other requirements such as display size / graphics / sound / storage capacity etc, you can pick pretty much anything and it will do what you want.

I tend to get notebooks for my wife who has similar requirements (email, facebook, browsing, documents etc). Small form factor so really portable, small display so long battery life. Really cheap so easy to replace / upgrade. although for coding I personally prefer a full sized keyboard so that would mean a 15"+ display.

What type of coding? For most non-OS specific languages you should be fine with any OS or configuration (Although I tend to prefer Windows for access to debugging and testing software.) If you are doing something like Actionscript/lingo, then you will need something with a bit more graphical oomph than a notebook (and I would avoid linux).

If these are your only requirements then I would personally recommend the cheapest notebook or 15" laptop (for the keyboard) you can find and get an external hard drive to back up your data. Then you can thrash it and lug it with you anywhere and if it does get broken or stolen then you haven't lost any of your data and can pick up another easily. If you want something a bit more robust and reliable, then lenovo tend to be pretty sturdy and you will find it hard to get more bang for your buck.
 

chinatefeiba

Honorable
Mar 29, 2013
8
0
10,510
Microsoft Office Professional give you a full feature of Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, etc and is an essential tool for college students. However, its price is over $250 at retail stores. You should consider raising your budget to get a decent laptop, because you also can get some money after selling your Apple laptop.

In addition, Windows 7 Ultimate is the most efficient system in Windows series OS. If you can consider buying a light-used laptop that has those software, then you can save a lot of money.

You can check Amazon http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B005KP74JK/ref=dp_olp_used?ie=UTF8&condition=used&seller=A1N5JM9QQ3JFSS