© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
As colleges across the country start to reopen for the new academic year, a lot of students lookout for new laptops, which also happens to be their first personal computer. If you are one of them, then, this guide will help you to choose the right kind of laptop that will serve various purposes.
Before going there, let’s understand different types of laptops and how they cater to different use cases. Laptops can be broadly distinguished into four categories, based on their operating system – Windows laptop, MacBook, Chromebook, etc.
Make sure that the laptop meets your requirements both in terms of features and performance. It is best to buy a laptop with at least 8 GB of RAM and SSD-based storage.
If you plan on upgrading these in the future, make sure the device supports the same, as a lot of laptops including the new Apple Silicon Macs do not support memory or storage expansion.
Another important aspect to consider while buying a new laptop is display size. A laptop with a big display is always better, however, if you happen to travel a lot then a laptop with a smaller display, perhaps a 13-inch notebook will be a lot more practical.
If you are a gamer, don’t get a MacBook, instead, buy a Windows machine with a dedicated graphics card. Similarly, also consider factors like I/O options and battery life while buying a new laptop.
Within these categories, brands offer a variety of choices. If we look at Windows laptops, they come in all shapes and sizes and one can easily get a new Windows machine with entry-level specifications for less than Rs 30,000, which should be sufficient for tasks like note-taking, web browsing, and even watching movies.
In this price range, one can consider either the Acer Extensa 15 with Ryzen 3 processor, priced at Rs 29,990. Similarly, the ASUS Vivobook 15 with the Intel Celeron N4020, priced at Rs 28,990 is also a good choice.
Similarly, going up a notch, for around the Rs 50,000 price mark, one can really get a good mid-range laptop with Windows 11 OS, these laptops will be capable of handling heavy workloads like video and photo editing. However, most of these do lack a dedicated GPU, hence, they can be used for gaming.
There are plenty of options in this price range, such as the Acer Aspire 3 with the 12th Gen Intel Core processor, priced at Rs 47,990. Similarly, the Asus Vivobook 16X is priced at Rs 46,990, and the MSI Modern 15 with a 12th Gen Intel Core processor at Rs 58,990 is a good choice. The MSI GF63 is also a good choice and it is also one of the few laptops priced at Rs 49,990 with a dedicated GTX 1650 GPU.
Then comes gaming machines, which can be bought for around Rs 60,000. However, some of the high-end models cost over Rs 2,00,000 and will be as powerful as a flagship desktop PC. These are performance-first laptops and can be used for heavy workloads, gaming, and even for tasks like 3D rendering.
The Dell G15 (review), priced at Rs 72,990 is a good choice and the Asus TUF Gaming F15 that just costs Rs 61,990 is also another affordable gaming laptop that college students can consider.
On the high-end spectrum of things, one can go for options like the Dell Alienware x14, a thin-and-light premium gaming notebook, priced at Rs 1,44,990 or the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 by spending Rs 1,29,990.
Coming to MacBooks, Apple offers these primarily in two variants — MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. MacBook Air is a thin-and-light yet premium portable laptop that can handle most tasks and deliver a stellar battery life.
Apple’s MacBook Air M1 (review), available for around Rs 80,000 is the best gateway MacBook that one can buy in 2023. Similarly, one can also consider the new 15-inch MacBook Air for added performance and extra battery life.
Similarly, a MacBook Pro will deliver top-notch performance and a premium design. These are meant for students who want a MacBook that can do all. The MacBook Pro with M2 Max (review) chip should be more than enough for most students and costs around Rs 2,30,000.
Chromebooks are usually a lot cheaper than Windows laptops and MacBooks. While they can run native Android apps, the whole experience is built around the Chrome Web browser and if you are pursuing a technical degree, then we recommend you skip this and go for a MacBook Pro or a Windows machine.
However, if your course does not require any professional software suite, then go for a Chromebook. The new HP Chromebook 15.6 (review), priced at Rs 28,990 that we recently reviewed is both pocket-friendly and feature-rich.
Again, unlike the other two options, most Chromebooks do not support storage expansion and you might have to buy a high-capacity microSD card to add more storage down the line.
