I’m hoping that my “Back to School Laptop Buying Guide” will be a post I can point all my friends and family to when they barrage me with questions about “what laptop should I get” for my son, daughter, friend, parent, co-worker, etc. It seems like this time of year people are always seeking advice during the “back to school” time sales – whether it’s for someone in high school, college, or even something for a gift or present later down the road. Its nearly the time that all students dread, and all parents love, back to school time! With back to school comes the need for a new laptop. So why wade through all the garbage when I can do it for you!
Obviously a student needs a light, super portable, and a power house for extensive apps! With that being said most manufacturers laptops are loaded with ad-ware, and junk files when its bought. So make sure when you do get your little electronic piece of gadget lore home you clear it of all the garbage. Now on to the guide.
Budget Laptop Review
Gateway TC7804u Price: 599.99 to 699.99
Generally speaking I wouldn’t normally recommend a gateway anything, but for the price this is one of the best ultra-portable laptops. At 5.3 pounds it a little beefy but with a large 320 gb hard drive, 2 ghz intel core 2 duo processor and 14 inch screen it makes the extra weight very bearable. It also boasts a Wireless N networking so it has great speeds from long range. It also looks very slick and sexy with a glossy black finish, beveled lid, metal trim and glowing orange media controls.
Gaming
Alienware Area-51 m15x Price: 3,249.99(Depends on configuration)
For those you want some stress free gaming time ‘between classes’ or whatever you tell your parents. In all seriousness this is the very best gaming laptop on the market. If you are serious about your gaming hobby and have the cash to shell out, you wont be disappointed with this purchase. It is pretty light for a gaming laptop at a manageable 7.1 pounds. You also get to pick the LED backlight color and even the case design. Aside from aesthetics this bad boy is a beast under the hood, packing a 15.4 inch display with a max 1080p resolution, Intel Core 2 Extreme X9000 CPU running at 2.8 GHZ, Nvidia GeForce 9800M GT GPU, and even a Blu-ray burner.
[nms:Alienware Area-51 m15x,3,0,0,smorgas.alienware.m15x]
Mainstream
Dell Studio XPS 16
Its got a large 16 inch LED-Back light display, and ways in at a 6.4 pounds which is light for comparable models. 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7350 CPU, 3GB of RAM, and you get a 250GB hard drive and slick slot-loading DVD burner. It battery life leaves something to be desired but it makes up for it with great performance and a great price. It displays at 720p so watching HD is also great. For the money its a great price and performace make this a great buy.
Got your own favorite? Then tell us about it in the comments!
