WindowCleaner

Oh and if you want a laptop that is a little larger than the g14 the g15 exists but it's not as well built as the g14.

Consult above. There is no real website for laptops like pc part picker for desktops. That's why users such as me who memorize useless laptop data are here.

I mean for the price of that dell you can get a zephyrus g14 which is a bit heavier but like absolutely stomps over the xps whilst not compromising in any department part from a little extra weight. For your usecase that xps 13 is just not gonna cut it. It's a word and web machine. You are paying for the looks there and not the performance. The xps 15 basically same story. Sure the cpu is better but it's still lacking gpu power and well intel hd for 3d modelling is very far from the best and in general pretty crud to use.
 
So either way I'd recommend the g14 if you want more power (the 4800hs + gtx 1650 config should be in your budget if not the 4600hs + 1650 is still so much better than either option). Or any of the new ryzen 4000u series laptops. Like the one linus just reviewed a day ago the envy x360. That would be the very lowest I would go and is still better than the xps 15.
 
Also another nice to know fact both the xps13 and 15 overheat when equiped with decent specs as they are using an older chassis that was designed when dual core i7's for the 13 were the norm and quad core's for the xps 15. Not what we have now :p.

Yes, Original Poster.

Ah for coding Macs are pretty great. 
 
Just putting it out there, I know art wise Macs are great but engineering wise key things like solidworks don't have a MacOS version. Saying that bootcamp is a thing... For now 😈
 
I wrote notes on paper and typed them up in my halls... I was doing chemistry tbf so writing stuff like the Schrodinger equation on a laptop at lecture speed would have been interesting. 

It will with that keyboard. They fail, constantly. And used, you won't have a warranty.

It's not bold or arrogant. The OP started at the beginning asking for recommendations for $1200 CAD. I don't think you could even find a functional MBP used for that price. If you could, it would have pitiful specs, and again, the God forsaken butterfly switch keyboard.
 
The OP will 100% , inarguably get more performance per dollar out of a PC, and could actually find a decent one at the price they actually want to pay, new.

Since when do you need your own laptop for school? I went to Uni and only used a desktop. 

VMs work in a pinch. I've never had to use one, but I'd imagine they would never be as good as running a program in a native OS.
That's a pretty bold, blanket, and arrogant statement imo. The Mac vs PC debate is about as old as time now, but there are reasons why someone should buy one vs another. Macs aren't perfect, Windows machines aren't perfect either.  It's up to the consumer to pick whichever team sucks the least for their budget and what they're trying to do.

A good keyboard is in order then. I would then shift my attention to again a Dell XPS or a Lenovo Thinkpad. Both of those have some of the best keyboards in the game since the old style Macbooks.

That's a good point, but it seems like OP is more into art CAD opposed to engineering CAD. In my experience, more artistic software tend to be available, often exclusive to Mac, where the opposite is true for engineering software. Hell I had a program that hosted my homework for a class last semester that exclusively worked on Windows, half the class had to setup bootcamp on their Macs just to do their homework.
 
bro how

Dell XPS 15 is a good bet, but the Zephyrus G14 may also be good. I'm not sure about the build on the Asus but my XPS is phenomenal, second only to macbook build quality.
 
Edit: Obvious question, are you tied to Windows for some reason? It may be in your best interest to look for a used macbook pro 15"

Depends on software they're using for everything. Some CAD software stright up doesn't have a MacOS version

I find that DIY is either the same or a little more BUT it has benefits like good PSUs, Graphics Card coolers, SSDs, etc. 
 
Prebuild seem to cheap out on components often. While this doesn't give you any performance loss, it will be louder, not live as long or not be compatible with future products 

thanks!

There are some good value prebuilt systems out there, but in general, building your own is cheaper, especially if you know where to find good deals on parts.

Depends on the local prices, also the price bracket. 
Depends if buying used is an option, or not.
With high end systems, building yourself will always be cheaper, but on very lowend systems? There sometimes buying a prebuilt is cheaper.
 
The thing with prebuilts is also the warranty, you don't have to troubleshoot yourself, and don't have to rma the specific component, you just send it in and it is fixed.

Man, if only you made this thread a bit sooner, I dun goofed up many of those guidelines when I made my thread a few days ago. Guess that's what I get for being impatient instead of doing the smart thing and lurkmoar.

you should also ask when the person will be buying the computer. sales come and go frequently. a rig made today may be different from another rig made the week before.
imo a three day notice would be ideal.

Sorry dude, there will be no biased opinions on these rigs.
We should always push to what's best for the money regardless of brand fanboyism.

tysm for the advice!! ill go ask my parents to see if they're okay with me getting something new. but if i get approval, i need a budget first and ill probably get a PC instead so i shouldn't ask help here..
plus, i need to wait till black friday when prices go down....
ill get it replaced then unless there's another sale....

tysm for the advice!! ill go ask my parents to see if they're okay with me getting something new. but if i get approval, i need a budget first and ill probably get a PC instead so i shouldn't ask help here..
plus, i need to wait till black friday when prices go down....
ill get it replaced then unless there's another sale....

Let your dad know that your interest in learning 3d modelling sofwares is really interesting and could lead you down a very good career path...so he should invest and get you a decent computer as soon as possible.!
 

scrap it and build a new rig...there's nothing you can with this one.