Laptop for University, Science/Soft Dev (Australian)

[Jarmore]

I'm heading off to university next year and it's time I buy a decent laptop so I can do all my university work on it and keep it away from my desktop. My desktop is a top of the range build from about a year or two ago. Not that that matters but yeah.

 

My course will be a Bachelor of Science majoring in computer sciences. Therefore I want to be able to compile programs (I doubt the programs will be THAT big, but I want the power to do a decent sized one), word, all that shiznick. I'd love to use a touch screen just for the novelty and the optimizations from Windows 8 for it. Budget is around 1000. I was thinking about it and I don't mind making a decent investment if it only makes university easier.

 

So any recommendations would be great, I've done my own research but with limited knowledge on this side of the tech industry some recommendations from well informed people would be great, thanks so much!!

 

For anyone not familiar with the requirements for programming, etc. Around 8 gig of ram is good, I'm unsure if 4 will suffice, a decent processor, probably I5, or AMD equivalent, and a high resolution is very, very good for reading all the text.

Thanks again.

[Jarmore]

Oh gosh, please don't remind me of my Pentium days. I had a Pentium 4, I swear it was the most sluggish thing in the world. I dunno how you can work with that? haha.

 

I'll add a couple of things in I guess, I'd love an SSD. As my main desktop has one now and I can't live without the snappyness of an ssd anymore.

 

Do you recomend just having some run of the mill system and shoving an ssd in? As you say, you've had no problems compiling or anything with the system you're using now? I just don't want to deal with the hangups I used to have deal with on my old system. haha.

[mr moose]

I have been playing around with some of the education departments lenovos, they are very solid and perform very well for the specs.  I don't know exactly what they cost but definitely worth looking into.

[Jarmore]

That's exactly what I was thinking, perhaps an APU laptop. I've always liked the idea of that and since my Desktop is Intell, I wanted to give AMD a shot as I do have some bias towards them, I want to give them some cash. haha.

 

Any recomendations then? AN IPS panel would be an indulgence, but that's where it gets expensive. haha.

 

Anyone who has played with it, is touch worth it? I mean, I know I said I liked the idea of it, but I'm still not sure if it's worth the extra dollars and cents.

 

Thanks by the way guys, I really appreciate the help.

 

I'll have a look at the Lenovo's moose, I've seen a teacher one and they are quite impressive, ugly, but impressive. haha.

[Jarmore]

Also, where's the cheapest place to buy a laptop in Australia any way? Retail stores are just an absolute joke, so where should I look?

[Hans Christian | Teri]

You really don't need a lot of processing power for a CS degree. I personally study CS and went with a 15" MBP Retina because of exceptional battery life and portability plus an absolutely fantastic screen. Since then 3 more of my fellow students have picked up either a 13" or 15" and just like me they all love it to death. It is however a lot of money to spend, and I see a lot of people with MacBook Air's as well. If Apple is not your thing you're really only left with Lenovo which is also an excellent choice, but about as expensive.

[mr moose]

Also, where's the cheapest place to buy a laptop in Australia any way? Retail stores are just an absolute joke, so where should I look?

Believe it or not the retail store sometimes have deals that make them cheaper or slightly more appealing than some of the online stores.

I'd check out:

 

CPL

MSY

 

 

then compare to current deals from the majors:

 

JBhifi

harvey norman

Office works

goodguys.

[Jarmore]

Cheers guy, yeah Apple is not my thing at all. I really appreciate your time. Tomorrow I'll go through the MSY site and all that and do some more research. Thanks so much. A really nice screen would be good I must say for the CS stuff. Cheers! I'll let you know my decision.

[Jarmore]

Hey guys, I"m really, really liking this, what do you think?

 

http://www.cplonline.com.au/samsung-np740u3e-s01au-core-i5-dedicated-graphic-13-3-fhd-touch-windows-8-ultrabook.html

 

If need be shove 4gb of ram in the swappable spot to gig 6gb for 40 bucks extra, not bad at all.

[mr moose]

Hey guys, I"m really, really liking this, what do you think?

 

http://www.cplonline.com.au/samsung-np740u3e-s01au-core-i5-dedicated-graphic-13-3-fhd-touch-windows-8-ultrabook.html

 

If need be shove 4gb of ram in the swappable spot to gig 6gb for 40 bucks extra, not bad at all.

Is the screen size not too small? and can you save money going for plastic or are you traveling a lot and hard on your gear?

[Jarmore]

True, well, I did just come across this website. I like the idea of a refurbished unit, I can deal with some scrapes and bruises.

 

http://www.graysonline.com/retail/svp13213cgs-r/computers-and-it-equipment/sony-vaio-pro-13-svp13213cgs-13-3-inch-ultrabook-silver-refurbished?spr=true

 

http://www.graysonline.com/retail/svs15136pgb-r/computers-and-it-equipment/sony-vaio-s-series-svs15136pgb-15-5-inch-black-notebook-refurbished?spr=true

 

The second one is looking very sexy.

 

You're right by the way, I don't 'need' the metal at all, and the screen size, I don't know, again, that could make the second one I just linked a very good option

[Jarmore]

Any suggestions on some plastic ones Mr Moose? So pretty much my priorities in this order are, 1920x1080 screen, SSD, whether that be only on the OS with a hybrid drive or full SSD as I can get an external drive, nice keyboard, greater than 4 gigs of ram, Something equal to an I5.

 

Cheers guys

[mr moose]

If screen size isn't an issue then maybe look at this one:

 

http://www.cplonline.com.au/samsung-np740u3e-s01au-core-i5-dedicated-graphic-13-3-fhd-touch-windows-8-ultrabook.html

 

The resolution on this is only 768 however the screen is 15" it has 6G of ram and an ssd + Hdd for storage.

 

http://www.cplonline.com.au/asus-pu500ca-xo053g-core-i5-15-6-windows-7-pro-windows-8-pro-ultrabook.html

[Lyons]

I use a Lenovo X220 for comp sci and it's perfect. Hasn't skipped a beat and does everything need it to (specs in sig.). A Sony Vaio Pro refurb might be a good buy, from what I've seen they're good machines. Unfortunately <=$1000 limits your options for truly good laptops, you really need to spend about $200 more  $1200 gets you a Dell XPS13 which is fantastic, and $1100 would get you an Inspiron 14 which is great too:

http://www.dell.com/au/p/inspiron-14-7437/pd.aspx?c=au&cs=audhs1&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

[LaiLaiNoob]

I'd just get a ultrabook like the Macbook Air 13 inch. Unless your university requires you to code in C++, I'd recommend a light laptop since undergrads don't really start off with anything intense.

[Jarmore]

I see your point Lyons, that is a trend I'm noticing. Might have to increase my budget a little bit. I'll let you know how I go guys, cheers.

[Canoas]

I just got my lenovo ideapad yoga 2 pro and love it. It's 13.3" so it's not too small nor too big, it has a really good resolution so you can still put a lot of stuff on you screen, it has a touch screen, it's light and easy to carry around, you can turn it into a tablet for classes, it lasts 6-7 hours, very nice build quality and both looks and feels awesome.