PC for college

[QUin202]

Hi

I'd  like to buy myself a new computer for college (Preferably with a unix-like OS) , my budget is around 1400-1600 USD I'd like for it to be very small (SFF)/or even better a laptop) , run on Linux/\MacOS(would be awesome if it could do both).My computer won't be used for gaming/heavy lifting only web browsing/playing rimworld/word processing/etc.I personally thought of an apple mac/macbook since they seem pretty good though I've heard quite a lot of bad things about Apple's buisness practices.So what would you guys recommend?

 

[NunoLava1998]

1400-1600USD is completely fucking overkill but here's a good build anyway (Capable of running most games):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 3 1200 3.1 GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($94.00 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: MSI - B450I GAMING PLUS AC Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard  ($114.93 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($66.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Samsung - 970 Evo 250 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($87.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($45.89 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX 570 4 GB Gaming 4G  Video Card  ($134.98 @ Newegg Business) 
Case: Silverstone - ML07B HTPC Case  ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair - SF 450 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply  ($85.43 @ OutletPC) 
Monitor: Dell - P4317Q 42.5" 3840x2160 60Hz Monitor  ($725.00 @ B&H) 
Keyboard: AmazonBasics - KU-0833 +MSU0939 Wired Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($14.44 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1453.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-10 06:54 EST-0500

[QUin202]

Just now, NunoLava1998 said:

1400-1600USD is completely fucking overkill but here's a good build anyway (Capable of running most games):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 3 1200 3.1 GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($94.00 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: MSI - B450I GAMING PLUS AC Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard  ($114.93 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($66.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Samsung - 970 Evo 250 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($87.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($45.89 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX 570 4 GB Gaming 4G  Video Card  ($134.98 @ Newegg Business) 
Case: Silverstone - ML07B HTPC Case  ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair - SF 450 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply  ($85.43 @ OutletPC) 
Monitor: Dell - P4317Q 42.5" 3840x2160 60Hz Monitor  ($725.00 @ B&H) 
Keyboard: AmazonBasics - KU-0833 +MSU0939 Wired Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($14.44 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1453.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-10 06:54 EST-0500

What about a laptop?

[NunoLava1998]

3 minutes ago, QUin202 said:

What about a laptop?

If you want MacOS, something like the base MacBook Pro 13" model would do great.

If you don't want MacOS then any normal Windows laptop works, however I'd suggest something like a Surface Pro if you're familiar with touchscreens.

[Tarun10]

19 minutes ago, QUin202 said:

What about a laptop?

If you don't game then 1700$ is crazy overkill for a PC of any sort. You could get by with a 400$ small form factor build and it will more than satisfy your needs however it won't be very portable if you need to use in your classroom. Will you need to use the device in a classroom??? What course are you taking??

 

Your best option is a thin and light laptop. MacBook Pros are more expensive than Windows counterparts but they do have great build quality on the outside, good audio and screens and depending on the processor, decent cooling and battery.

 

However, the internals are custom Apple stuff(poorly designed) which are very quirky and even moisture from the air could brick your MacBook. This won't be a concern right away but repair costs from Apple authorized service centers can be expensive if you have bad luck and might not even solve the issue. Most people don't have these problems and while all companies have such problems none of them are so expensive to fix and the number of problems you will face will be much lesser. You should take a look at this channel to understand what I mean:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl2mFZoRqjw_ELax4Yisf6w

 

So you could get most problems fixed by a similar reputed repair group if you end up with bad luck. However, unless you need MacOS I would recommend getting a Windows Machine and adding Linux or any other OS you want and make it a dual boot system.

 

If you need a touchscreen, a 2 in 1 tablet like the Surface Pro lineup offers very good build quality and battery life with decent performance for much less money. If you don't require a touchscreen, go with a good ultrabook.

 

LG Gram- Battery Life is best in class and good build quality, ultra light under 1 kg(depends on model)

Dell XPS- More premium and better build quality, better performance, heavier and less battery life.

There are other options like the Asus Zenbook but first decide between touch or no touch, and MacOS or Windows.

[Umberto]

Just get a Macbook pro brah