Laptop Recommendation (tysm)

[Mifter]

• Total budget (in local currency) and country of purchase. Please do not use USD unless purchasing in the US:
  500-750$

• Are you open to refurbs/used?
  Sure

• How would you prioritize form factor (ultrabook, 2-in-1, etc.), build quality, performance, and battery life?
  Battery Life > Performance > Build Quality > Form Factor

• How important are weight and thinness to you?
  I'm a strong growing boy (at least according to my aunts) so anything will be fine

• Do you have a preferred screen size? If indifferent, put N/A.
  Preferably 14-15"

• Are you doing any CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming? List which programs/games you desire to run.
  Programming, computer engineering work for college, and light photo editing in Photoshop and Illustrator. Photo-editing on the backburner though.

• If you're gaming, do you have certain games you want to play? At what settings and FPS do you want?
  N/A

• Any specific requirements such as a good keyboard, reliable build quality, touch-screen, finger-print reader, optical drive, or good input devices (keyboard/touchpad)?
  Would prefer no touch screen. My only weird ask is that I want it to look cool. Like the laptop itself. I don't want it to just be another black slab.

• Leave any finishing thoughts here that you may feel are necessary and beneficial to the discussion.
  I'm looking for a lightweight school laptop. I already have a computer I just need something I can take with me so I can be productive away from home. There are a million low-budget options out there. I'm just looking for one that's fun. Whether it be cool colors, retro design, just something funky.

Thank you guys so very much in advance!!!!!

[Crunchy Dragon]

I would probably look for a used/refurbished MacBook Pro.

 

The Intel-based Macs from 2019(most notably) and earlier have been plummeting in price since the release of the M1, and they're still plenty usable. Personally, I bought a 2019 MacBook Pro 16" with a Core i7 off a refurb/reseller site and have been very happy with it.

 

I paid a bit more than your budget, but I'm sure you could find something that suits your needs with enough hunting.

[birdflyer]

I would highly recommend looking into an M1 MacBook. It's pretty easy to squeeze into your budget and is still a bargan by today's standards - https://www.ebay.com/itm/225183999135?hash=item346e03249f:g:8gkAAOSw9ohjNMWa&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA4OjMrvVX0UffPgI%2FaGU7YIwTcFL5NPEpshosUWCWz0a3Fq69vBRcf%2BAM9QzgF1QxH4%2Fg0Q2Jv5og6vGkGsOhzXoXKe2RWOElWeeU3Ty%2FIdNXvBgwCUOuIwg2t2HnmoGPBH%2Fvu3x5aItFol8cqN3eOe3WHqw%2FhnNSWwqp3YshksrGYwljGaXnQ6nQLURTKIN56gDaZa%2BWx02XCtndnY8qfdgCWyc7mZkq3SBqWL3Eidec9AAkiBqUhNBbNPxO5XEBTRTIu7%2F4d7WQm%2BwfQwdspMlCBSRmEvQtwTHR9ggO1WBB|tkp%3ABFBM0KTnh5xh

[powertoys]

M1 Macbook for "computer engineering work" that usually requires plenty of Windows-only software is probably not going to work, but YMMV

[Crunchy Dragon]

11 hours ago, unnerfed cthun said:

M1 Macbook for "computer engineering work" that usually requires plenty of Windows-only software is probably not going to work, but YMMV

This is also why I pointed towards the Intel-based MacBooks.

 

M1 is awesome and extremely capable, but the existence of it doesn't render Intel processors nearly as obsolete as the general public is led to believe. As a result, you can be like me and buy a 16" 2019 MBP for nearly 60% less than when it was new.

 

And if you need to run Bootcamp or something, it'll work better on an Intel Mac than M1.

[Commodus]

On 12/4/2022 at 10:51 PM, Mifter said:

• Total budget (in local currency) and country of purchase. Please do not use USD unless purchasing in the US:
  500-750$

• Are you open to refurbs/used?
  Sure

• How would you prioritize form factor (ultrabook, 2-in-1, etc.), build quality, performance, and battery life?
  Battery Life > Performance > Build Quality > Form Factor

• How important are weight and thinness to you?
  I'm a strong growing boy (at least according to my aunts) so anything will be fine

• Do you have a preferred screen size? If indifferent, put N/A.
  Preferably 14-15"

• Are you doing any CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming? List which programs/games you desire to run.
  Programming, computer engineering work for college, and light photo editing in Photoshop and Illustrator. Photo-editing on the backburner though.

• If you're gaming, do you have certain games you want to play? At what settings and FPS do you want?
  N/A

• Any specific requirements such as a good keyboard, reliable build quality, touch-screen, finger-print reader, optical drive, or good input devices (keyboard/touchpad)?
  Would prefer no touch screen. My only weird ask is that I want it to look cool. Like the laptop itself. I don't want it to just be another black slab.

• Leave any finishing thoughts here that you may feel are necessary and beneficial to the discussion.
  I'm looking for a lightweight school laptop. I already have a computer I just need something I can take with me so I can be productive away from home. There are a million low-budget options out there. I'm just looking for one that's fun. Whether it be cool colors, retro design, just something funky.

Thank you guys so very much in advance!!!!!

As much as I'd like to suggest a refurb MacBook Air, the engineering and programming requirements may dictate a Windows machine.

 

One option might be an ASUS Zenbook 14, preferably with at least 16GB of RAM and enough storage for your creative work. A generally solid laptop, but it also offers a stand-out design with a clever hinge that angles the body (ostensibly for easier typing). The quick-access number pad is a bit of a gimmick (thankfully you can turn this off), but apart from that it might do the trick.

[rikitikitavi]

Here's the thing, I remember that some profs were very adamant about a machine with Windows... In retrospective, sure, some things were more straight forward and wouldn't require me using lab pc's... However, the only time I regretted having a MacBookPro 15" is that it was 15" and not 13", having to carry it whole day around. Portability > any type of performance gain in active/student life.

 

There might be some software that just won't run on an M1 MacBook no matter how many hoops you jump through... but I'd say it worth it. Unless, of course, using lab pc is not going to exceed one subject per semester. Check with some profs/department, check if the software is available etc to be safe.