Technology Corner: Do I Need A MacBook To Succeed?

This article is going to focus on the computer hardware you will need to get through college and how to save thousands of dollars on it. Now if you read my article on getting a Hobo education, you know that you can get by without a computer. This becomes problematic at a University because the library isn't always open and if you need to stay up until 3am to finish a paper you're screwed.

Therefore I'm going to assume that you NEED, at the very least, a desktop computer to succeed in college.

Common Purchasing Mistakes

Let me state off the bat I have nothing against Apple products as such, I don't use them and cannot attest to how well they work. That being said, my first tip is this:

Never buy a Mac computer

The reason has once again nothing to do with how good or bad Mac computers are, it has to do with two factors:

1) All Macs are expensive: The cheapest Mac desktop being sold at the Apple store currently costs 1,200 before taxes, ouch. Brand new PCs can go for less than $600.

2. All Macs are too expensive: This is actually my biggest problem with the Apple corporation and that is that all their products cost anywhere from 30-60% more than their equal quality competitors in terms of hardware specifications.

Not only is the cheapest Mac computer $1,200, but let's break down what you get for that money. Let's simplify the computer buying experience by looking at some measurable units of quality, processor, memory, speed and hard drive space.

The Mac in question boasts:

• 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
• 1GB memory
• 250GB hard drive

Now, just to make this personal, my own computer roughly cost the same as this Mac and yet it boasts:

• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Quad
• 3 GB memory
• 750 GB hard Drive

Not only that, but in less than 5 minutes I custom built a Dell computer on their website that matches the Macs specs and it costs roughly $600. Now before you try and catch me on a mistake, let me point out that the Dell does include a 20 inch monitor like the Mac.

Basically, if you want to save money, don't buy any Apple products, ever.

This also applies in the exact same way to MacBook laptops.

Confusing Cost With Value

This point is really a continuation of the last one but too often people assume that if you pay more you automatically get something better. While this may be true sometimes it's not always. In the case with computers if you can get the same exact hard ware from a trusted company for less, you should not worry. Also, people sometimes go overboard assuming they need a computer that has $1,500 of hardware on it. For the average college student they just need a machine that can use a the internet and a word processor.

So in short, you can get a lot of quality at a lower cost, but you should also not pay extra for a computer that does more than you well ever need.

When keeping this in mind I suggest that you look into buying products from Acer and AMD. Acer is a company that produces excellent computer hard ware at far less than Apple, Dell, or HP prices. AMD produces a processor that rivals the Intel except costs far less and can perform toe-to-toe with the Intel Core 2.

How To Buy A Desktop Computer For Under $600

This isn't going to be a complete guide on finding "the computer for you", there are tons of those out theres. This is how to a buy a computer right for YOU, a cheap ass college student.

First I'm going to show you excellent mainstream brand computers for $400-600, lesser known online shops, and finally, used desktop resources.


Dell Inspiron 530
HP a66450z
Gateway GT5670
Acer Aspire M3100

Build Your Own:
This can be a cheaper option and gives you more value for your money too. If you are not very computer knowledgeable, ask someone who is to help you build a PC for you.

AscendTech
AllPcZone


Good online computer shops that also sell refurbished and re certified PCs:
I would recomend these because you can buy a warranty for them for a good price. You end up saving money because it is used and have protection in case the refurbishing job as done badly.

TigerDirect
NewEgg

I personally do not suggest buying anything without some sort of warranty. Therefore I would not encourage you to look on Craigslist for a used computer unless it is so cheap you can afford to have it break down after purchase(i.e. under $50)

Do I Need A Laptop?

The short answer is no, you don't NEED a laptop. If you are comfortable sitting down in one place while you work and can take notes by hand you can survive without a laptop. Laptops have sort of the same problem that Macs do, they cost too much compared to the hard ware you get for your money. Laptops usually cost twice as much as an equal quality PC in terms of the specs. The good news is that unlike Macs, not all laptops are expensive.


Laptops can be useful for a student if they prefer to type out notes rather than writing them, for working wherever they go and for possibly storing books(I mentioned this in the article about public domain books). Another good use for a laptop is that if you have a three-in-one Printer you can store all your class handouts on your laptop(and your PC for that matter), so you never have to carry around any paper.

In terms of saving money, owning a laptop means you really never need to buy another notebook, pen, highlighter, folder or paper except in special cases like when tests require pencils. Are the savings worth it?

Doing a rough calculation, if you buy a a 3-5 subject college ruled notebook for every single class(since you take far more notes than they say one subject needs), you spend roughly 3-5 dollars on each notebook. If you take 5 classes a semester this will cost your anywhere from 15 to 25 dollars a semester. In a four year degree you take eight semesters and end up spending about 200 dollars on notebook alone.

Now this calculation is fuzzy math if there ever was such a thing, but I don't know any other way that would make it seem worth it to own a classroom-use laptop. They will not save you money unless you use several notebook for every single class and lose a pen every 2 hours.

The only other thing I can think of is the value of being able to use the internet in boring classes and getting to write your paper outside during a beautiful day. I personally don't think that is worth much, but everyone has different priorities.

Therefore I will tell you that laptops can be incredibly convenient, but you DON'T NEED TO OWN A LAPTOP AND A PC. Buying a laptop that is powerful enough so that it acts as your only computer is the only way to really justify buying a laptop if you are a cheap college student.

Nevertheless, if you want to buy a good laptop I will tell you do not EVER need to spend a thousand dollars, or anywhere near that.

Here's a tip: At the Wal-Mart near my house they give 20% off the display model laptop. This is the one behind the glass showing you what the laptop looks like. Now, some people take them out and use them for a little bit before deciding to buy them but they are essentially new and the discount can be great, anywhere from 120-180 dollars in savings. Add that to the fact that Wal-Mart usually does not sell high end laptops that go over $800.

I only know this from my own experience so check with your own Wal-Mart or any store near you that sells laptops and has display models.


Other than that I can just tell you to do what we did with the desktop, go to the websites of the top computer companies and look at their cheapest models and pick the best one that fits within your budget. I guarantee you can actually get a great PC and a laptop for under $1,300 both.


Lastly, let me leave you with an excellent website that tracks the prices of electronics and can you navigate different online stores based on what you want and for how much:

PriceWatch

PS:

One last note about monitors. Some of the PCs I mentioned came with monitors and others did not. There are two ways you can save money on good monitors:

1. Suck it up and buy an old CRT. A CRT monitor is the old school style monitor that is freakin' huge. With the popularity of LCD screens you can buy a CRT monitor that is 19 inches for under 100 bucks. Best of all, if you go to a pawn shop or check Craigslist, you will find even huge CRT's are low prices because LCD has made them worthless, no one makes them anyone and hardly anyone buys them.

2. The other thing I would say is that monitors in general are not *that* expensive. Even with LCD monitors, you can get one that is good enough to act as not only the monitor PC but your television as well. You can get a great monitor, like a widescreen 22 incher from Acer for under 250. The thing about LCDs is that there is almost no price drop between quality. The difference between a 19 to 22 inch monitor is less than 30 dollars. Still, you can nab a respectable 17 inch monitor for easily less than $200.