Chromebook for college student

Started by DCurry, July 21, 2021, 11:41:41 AM

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DCurry

Somehow I've managed to raise a daughter to college age without ever having to buy her a laptop. Now that she's entering community college in the fall, it's time to get her one of her own.

We decided a Chromebook should be sufficient for her needs, so since I've never shopped for one I thought I'd ask here if anyone has any recommendations?

Prinect • Signa Station • XMPie

Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a night. But set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life!

DigiCorn

"There's been a lot of research recently on how hard it is to dislodge an impression once it's been implanted in someone's mind. (This is why political attack ads don't have to be true to be effective. The other side can point out their inaccuracies, but the voter's mind privileges the memory of the original accusation, which was juicier than any counterargument ever could be.)"
― Johnny Carson

"Selling my soul would be a lot easier if I could just find it."
– Nikki Sixx

"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut."
― Ernest Hemingway

jwheeler

If I were going back to school, my two biggest concerns would be battery life and weight. She won't always be able to plug in, so you'll want it to last as long as possible on its own power. And she'll already be carrying around enough text books that you don't want to add a ton of weight. Beyond that, most of them will be plenty fast these days. Another splurge if it's in your budget would be a backlit keyboard. Teachers often dim the lights to do a powerpoint presentation. Lastly, since it runs off an internet connect, which may not always be available, make sure her phone can do a hotspot as needed.

DigiCorn

#3
I have two Chromebooks. A 13" Samsung (2017) I bought new at a school auction, and a 15" Acer (2019) I bought used last year. They basically have no hard drive, nor do I believe the options exist for larger HDs. They are both thin, light and compact and boot up quickly. The 2017 model is only 2.4ghz but the 2019 has 5.0ghz AC wifi speed. Also, the 2017 model is a bit glitchy on streaming/zoom. Both have extended battery life... something like 8 hours unplugged and in use.

Basically saying to get the newest model was to be a smartass, but also being truthful. I believe Chromebooks are made by various manufacturers in a variety of sizes, but for all intents and purposes, I think all the processors are Intel so the only differences are the video hardware, RAM brands and cameras. There's Dell, Lenovo, Samsung, Acer, HP... some have touchscreen/tablet capability like an iPad. They all have extended battery life (8-10 hours), so essentially any extra cost is for the video... otherwise they all cost about the same. Basically pick a brand you trust, and go for that one... and pay more for a better screen, if that's what you want/need.

[edit] right after I wrote this, I googled it... and the top 10 models are all AMD, so fuck me, right? Here's the article (#1 is $289 at Amazon): =b&google_params[network]=g&google_params[device]=c&google_params[creative]=484930847888&google_params[keyword]=&google_params[adposition]=&google_params[adgroupid]=76772379734&google_params[campaignid]=6490998898&bs=&google_params[feeditemid]=&google_params[targetid]=dsa-19959388920&google_params[loc_interest_ms]=&google_params[loc_physical_ms]=9032424&google_params[devicemodel]=&google_params[target]=&new_api=true&dest=0&sys_id=0|254&gclid=CjwKCAjwi9-HBhACEiwAPzUhHJ9Ou0P54beF4j47ggmEMXUXIPY_hgTfRQNq7HMiDeX6sFOlf683gRoCly8QAvD_BwE]Top 10 Chromebooks July 2021
"There's been a lot of research recently on how hard it is to dislodge an impression once it's been implanted in someone's mind. (This is why political attack ads don't have to be true to be effective. The other side can point out their inaccuracies, but the voter's mind privileges the memory of the original accusation, which was juicier than any counterargument ever could be.)"
― Johnny Carson

"Selling my soul would be a lot easier if I could just find it."
– Nikki Sixx

"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut."
― Ernest Hemingway

DigiCorn

sorry - I can't get the hyperlink to post right
"There's been a lot of research recently on how hard it is to dislodge an impression once it's been implanted in someone's mind. (This is why political attack ads don't have to be true to be effective. The other side can point out their inaccuracies, but the voter's mind privileges the memory of the original accusation, which was juicier than any counterargument ever could be.)"
― Johnny Carson

"Selling my soul would be a lot easier if I could just find it."
– Nikki Sixx

"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut."
― Ernest Hemingway

DCurry

Thanks, good info. All her textbooks are digital so no hauling books around!
Prinect • Signa Station • XMPie

Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a night. But set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life!

DCurry

Quote from: jwheeler on July 21, 2021, 02:25:20 PMmake sure her phone can do a hotspot as needed.
Phone? What phone?
Didn't get her a phone til she was 17, and that one is a pay-as-you-go plan with no data - any and all surfing happens on wi-fi. Obviously she's old enough (and also has a job) so she can upgrade her plan if she wants, but I never subscribed to the idea that kids need the internet in their pocket 24/7.
Prinect • Signa Station • XMPie

Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a night. But set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life!

bornrd

Quote from: DCurry on July 22, 2021, 07:47:58 AM
All her textbooks are digital

That gave me physical pain none the less
macOS Catalina 10.15.7/Windows 10 - Adobe CC - Fuji XMF 6.13 - Luxel T9000 CTP E - KBA Rapida 105 universal - Heidelberg GTO - Heidelberg Windmill - Heidelberg Cylinder - Heidelberg Speedmaster 52 - Schelter & Giesecke PHOENIX A - Rockstroh VICTORIA - Lenpoligrafmash NEOTYPE N-7F - Konica Minolta C3080 - HP DesignJet ZP6810 - Epson Stylus Pro 4900 - Heidelberg Stahlfolder - Müller-Martini APOLLO - Müller-Martini PRESTO II - PERFECTA Cutting System

I have no idea what the f*ck I'm doing in prepress but here we are

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