Top 4 #BestCollege Laptops

[TheConverter]

Please, please, please do not get an hp stream 11/13.

 

1. The build quality IS HORRIBLY.  I take care of my laptops but this thing is a scratch magnet and my headphone port died in 2 month (headphone port was fixed by the warranty).   
2. The celeron struggles A LOT, want to watch the latest ltt video in 720P NOPE  frames drop everywhere (fixed with Ubuntu).
3. The heat.  while watching twitch my average temps is 75C way too hot for a passively cooled laptop.
4. Upgrades. The ram and the storage is soldered on to the motherboard. your only chose is using one of the two Msata slots.

Save up and buy a cheap i3 laptop.  and if you truly need the office 365 subscription get a hp strean 7/8.

And one more note, i have used 3 different stream 13s and two were IPS. 

 

I still don't know how people buy that shit when they can get a table with much better performance.

 

I bet a Acer Iconia Tab 8 W1-810 which is 99€ outperforms that shit.

[Commander Llama]

Please, please, please do not get an hp stream 11/13.

 

1. The build quality IS HORRIBLY.  I take care of my laptops but this thing is a scratch magnet and my headphone port died in 2 month (headphone port was fixed by the warranty).   
2. The celeron struggles A LOT, want to watch the latest ltt video in 720P NOPE  frames drop everywhere (fixed with Ubuntu).
3. The heat.  while watching twitch my average temps is 75C way too hot for a passively cooled laptop.
4. Upgrades. The ram and the storage is soldered on to the motherboard. your only chose is using one of the two Msata slots.

Save up and buy a cheap i3 laptop.  and if you truly need the office 365 subscription get a hp strean 7/8.

And one more note, i have used 3 different stream 13s and two were IPS. 

 

 

I still don't know how people buy that shit when they can get a table with much better performance.

 

I bet a Acer Iconia Tab 8 W1-810 which is 99€ outperforms that shit.

 

Yeah HP man... I know all companies release defective units but they take the cake for me personally...

 

My first laptop, $700 HP brick: slow, unstable, and battery life of 25 minutes inside 1.5 years

Parents laptop, $900 HP: two defective units before they got a working one, it runs email and Facebook all right at last

Wifes ultrabook, $1300 HP Spectre 13: keyboard shit the bed ONE MONTH after the ONE YEAR warranty expired, HP wants $450 to "look at it."

 

I wouldn't even accept a free HP notebook at this point.

[Bouzoo]

I have a friend who works at repairing PCs and laptops. The vast majority of the laptops that come in with because of overheating and other problems are HP ones.

 

HP's build quality is terrible, I once owned an HP laptop and it died to overheating too.

 

Seriously, how did you recommend an HP laptop, @LinusTech ? They are the absolute worst.

 

Although I've seen some pretty bad HP laptops, I have at home a 10 years old nx9420. Switched the HDD, put more RAM and voila, it's rocking W7 today w/o a problem. The same goes for a 7 years old some HP that my gf has (I can't remember the model).

I don't personally like HP so not defending them, but one of the reasons that there are most "broken" HP laptops is because they sell the most, and by far. Most people I know think HP is best because marketing and would pick one. Also try more models from 1 brand and you might change your mind, basing a whole brand on 1 laptop that you had and died is not the right way to do it (overheating? Did you clean it? Opened it and everything?). I worked at a repair shop and saw more broken Lenovo laptops than HP but I know which brand I'd pick. 

[Litargirio]

1 laptop that you had

 

Two actually.

 

overheating? Did you clean it? Opened it and everything?

 

Of course, mate. My friend at the repair shop took it apart for me, cleaned it, even redid the thermal paste. It didn't help a bit.

 

but one of the reasons that there are most "broken" HP laptops is because they sell the most, and by far

 

There was a post a few months ago in troubleshooting where someone's PC was refusing to work with a specific set of synthomps, and some other person explained that it's a motherboard problem, that they work for HP and they get people having that problem all the time, because HP motherboards suck, apparently.

 

Although I've seen some pretty bad HP laptops, I have at home a 10 years old nx9420. Switched the HDD, put more RAM and voila, it's rocking W7 today w/o a problem. The same goes for a 7 years old some HP that my gf has (I can't remember the model).

 

Perhaps got lucky there. Perhaps they used to be somewhat better back then.

[Agent181]

While this is true, Best Buy (in Canada and I'm assuming US too) carries Apple laptops, as well as Dell, Asus, and others.

um well first look at the laptops and macbooks there they only carry a few of them and then bump up the price a lot so the deals come from low end pcs or unless it is a manufacturer deal

[Streetguru]

You forgot MBPs

Personally I don't find any macbook to be worth it, you'd get some battery life sure but a college campus there's a plug every 3 feet and most of the higher end latops below the MBP 15r are going to come with better hardware, namely a dedicated GPU, which can help in things like photoshop/sony vegas as well. Or the money saved can easily get a 480gb SSD + enclosure for the extra hard drive you gained. Not to mention peripherals you can buy with the money saved

[SapphireSmith9]

DO NOT GET THE LENVO YOGA IF YOU LIKE HAVING A MICROPHONE AND CAMERA

My sister is using a lenovo yoga for school. It's the handiest touch screen with non-mechanical keys that lock when you flip the screen. But the microphone genuinly sounds like a radio transmission from the moon, and the camera has horrible brightness and gamma. If you dont care about that stuff, then the lenovo yoga is a brilliant choice, but if you like voice chants or video calls, that laptop should be the last of your priorities.

[pasco08]

You went from $200 Laptop to $900 and up that isn't really a good list as there are more affordable and better laptops in between those price points sorry Linus but awful video. Not many College students going back to school are going to drop a grand plus on a laptop unless parents decide to splurge for em. You can get a $700 HP with I5, 8 gb ddr3 GTX 970m and a HD Touch screen as well as a back-lit keyboard. You picked the shittest laptop and then went to the other extreme.

[6God]

I'll just say this - in my tenure through undergrad, post grad and now hospital work there tends to be a common factor. 

 

People buying cheap laptops bitching that their laptops just don't last OR people spending more on either a Apple OR business/enterprise grade version of other brands. There is a reason Dells, Lenovos and others are legendary in business and why they charge as much as Apple does on the MBP - they are built better with better warranties and better post purchase support. 

 

It just so happens that Apple gives the best consumer grade support known to mankind in this segment. Are their laptops pricey? Oh boy, yes they are. But maybe I'm biased. 

 

My first 13" still runs and is used by my brother, who after replacing the HDD with an SSD and upgrading the RAM still has a very competent computer for Office/school use. I bought a 17" to serve as my desktop replacement since I never actually made use of my desktop, yet wanted OTG power. My current 15" came from work and the only downside I've got is that its not as big as my 17", since I loved that size. None have had crippling faults, any issues have been solved within 30 minutes at my local Apple store; thats a boon for both students AND commercial employees. 

 

Apple computers are not THE BEST, contrary to what some would have you believe. They are however very effective tools and should always be at the top of your list because they also happen to be some of the best Windows laptops you can buy (Apple actually puts in serious effort to make Bootcamp work well, they kinda want those Windows holdouts to get one and use both OSs on one device).

 

This video seems disingenuous and misleading for actual college students. I know LTT overall has a, I won't call it hate, but definitely a strong position against Apple products due to many factors, which enthusiasts care abut (which is 100% fair) but to discount them of the general public, especially in a scenario like this on a video that will get general audience and casual users to view it? 

Just my two cents, I respect the positions of those who see differently but I just had to speak my mind on this. 

[6God]

You went from $200 Laptop to $900 and up that isn't really a good list as there are more affordable and better laptops in between those price points sorry Linus but awful video. Not many College students going back to school are going to drop a grand plus on a laptop unless parents decide to splurge for em. You can get a $700 HP with I5, 8 gb ddr3 GTX 970m and a HD Touch screen as well as a back-lit keyboard. You picked the shittest laptop and then went to the other extreme.

 

I'm sorry, but its not just students with rich parents splurging who should consider spending more on their laptop. Read below to see why:

 

 

“The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money.

Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles.

But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.

This was the Captain Samuel Vimes 'Boots' theory of socioeconomic unfairness.”

 

 

No, this isn't justification to go buy a 4000 dollar Sager gaming laptop for school. It is however a reminder that the cheapest option can often be the most expensive, especially on an item you will use day in and day out and during college get a ungodly amount of abuse you rarely see in a person who uses it at a 9-5 job or casually as a desktop replacement at home because they're very light users. 

 

Apple, Dell, Lenovo all make competitively priced laptops (1000-1500) that carry outstanding support and far better quality and build than cheaper alternatives. That is a great price point for a piece of tech that you want lasting you at least ONE degree if not further out into your career. That is not a waste of money, its rather smart purchasing that more people should endeavour to try. 

 

[pasco08]

 

I'm sorry, but its not just students with rich parents splurging who should consider spending more on their laptop. Read below to see why:

 

 

 

No, this isn't justification to go buy a 4000 dollar Sager gaming laptop for school. It is however a reminder that the cheapest option can often be the most expensive, especially on an item you will use day in and day out and during college get a ungodly amount of abuse you rarely see in a person who uses it at a 9-5 job or casually as a desktop replacement at home because they're very light users. 

 

Apple, Dell, Lenovo all make competitively priced laptops (1000-1500) that carry outstanding support and far better quality and build than cheaper alternatives. That is a great price point for a piece of tech that you want lasting you at least ONE degree if not further out into your career. That is not a waste of money, its rather smart purchasing that more people should endeavour to try. 

 

 

I made it through 4 years in college on a 750 laptop. 

[SpaceNugget]

I sold my msi gs70 for an xps13 solely for the battery life. Many gaming laptops barely last an entire lecture, let alone a full day.

[Aniallation]

The problem is the misleading title. It should be called "My favorite laptops from Best Buy".

Agreed

[nzstubbies]

I would highly recommend the surface pro 3 as laptop for uni, i am currently using it and for my needs which involve a lot of graphs and tables due to me majoring in accounting/economics the use of highly responsive pen and great screen it is definitely worth the price. Makes my life so much easier. The downside it the touch cover however not because typing is bad as it is really good but I do tend to miss the hinge that is on every laptop to adjust the screen if i can find a table.

[Scia]

Personally I don't find any macbook to be worth it, you'd get some battery life sure but a college campus there's a plug every 3 feet and most of the higher end latops below the MBP 15r are going to come with better hardware, namely a dedicated GPU, which can help in things like photoshop/sony vegas as well. Or the money saved can easily get a 480gb SSD + enclosure for the extra hard drive you gained. Not to mention peripherals you can buy with the money saved

Plain up wrong.

Dedicated GPUs in laptops are bs, especially in a 13". Battery is dead within minutes.

Im glad ur college does have power outlets everywhere, let me tell you most universities dont.

No they dont come with better hardware, apple gets cherry picked cpus you cant find in other laptops.

Youd be surprised how a Lenovo x250 with way inferior specs costs 200-400$ more than a MBPr13.

Dont blindly hate on something, at the moment, theres not much better in the laptop space.

Oh... Did i mention flawless.OS integration? Better resource usage? Wide support for professional apps? Ever been to a scientific conference? 95% MBPs.

[mooseman]

Hello, I just wanted to say I'm disappointed with @LinusTech for resorting to the random list video. I expect better out of LMG and LTT. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listicle

[Tsuki]

I could be wrong.. but i feel like this video MIGHT have been sponsored by BestBuy..

[Streetguru]

Plain up wrong.

Dedicated GPUs in laptops are bs, especially in a 13". Battery is dead within minutes.

Im glad ur college does have power outlets everywhere, let me tell you most universities dont.

No they dont come with better hardware, apple gets cherry picked cpus you cant find in other laptops.

Youd be surprised how a Lenovo x250 with way inferior specs costs 200-400$ more than a MBPr13.

Dont blindly hate on something, at the moment, theres not much better in the laptop space.

Oh... Did i mention flawless.OS integration? Better resource usage? Wide support for professional apps? Ever been to a scientific conference? 95% MBPs.

We're talking the Macbook pro 15r right? The one that costs 2000 dollars at base?