QuestionablyQuiet

Thank you for the advice! I haven't really taken apple products into consideration thus far. I have heard that they can be really good and trustworthy, just a tad bit too much on the expensive side. Both when it comes to buying it brand new, or having it repaired if something goes wrong. Though I would prefer to buy something brand new, I'll definitely take into consideration buying an older macbook (/pro).

I'm going to be attending a programme of programming. I've been wondering what kind of laptop should/could I get for Computer Science. My budget is about $500-$700. I know that the most I can get out of that is something decently ok, along the lines of atleast 8 gigs of ram, 8th gen Intel i5, ssd for storage, decent display and keyboard, etc... Nothing too shabby, just entry level for what It's needed for. I'm trying to gather as much info as I can in regards to viable options of what I should/shouldn't go for to make the decision that would be the best for me. For instance I'm skeptical of HP laptops, used ones, etc.. Any and all help is appreciated.