Hey everybody I am looking for a laptop that I can take to college. I will be running local servers and code editors most of the time. I would also like something that can handle music production. My budget is $800 and if required i can increase it up to $50 more.
I would suggest you to get a laptop that fulfils your main requirement first and then the secondary ones. It seems like your main requirement is computer programming?
If yes, get something that has at least 8GB of RAM and also buy a laptop with SSD storage. SSD will affect performance a lot. Also, look for multi-core processor in your laptop.
Thanks for the immediate reply justin. Yes my main requirement is computer programming and I will definitely look for these specs in a laptop but my question to you is will it hold up to music production software as well?
Music producing is also something that I do more often and I spend most of my weekends mixing tunes.
Yes, a laptop with multi-core processor and 8GB RAM will handle your music producing and computer programming requirements without any problem. Just to make sure that your new purchased laptop is all rounder, I would also insist you to look for dedicated GPU in your laptop. That would ensure that both your requirements will be fulfilled.
I have found these 2 lists on affordable gaming laptops and laptops for programming which I think will help you to make an informed purchase. I am saying you to have a look at gaming laptops because they will have good overall hardware which will be beneficial for programming and making music both.
Thanks justin. I will have a look at those lists. What do you think about this Dell - http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/inspiron-15-7567-laptop/dncwf513s I have a coupon through which I am getting extra $50 discount on this one. Will it be good for me?
yeah looks good. I think it would be good for your requirements.
You can’t have too much CPU power and RAM when setting up a developer environment. Keep in mind you might need to run virtual machines for testing, run debugging, etc.
I’d go for a used one, i.e. Lenovo W-Series, like this one (didn’t really check the details, quick search only): Lenovo Thinkpad W530 Laptop Quad Core i7 2.70GHZ 24GB. Add a new Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD and you’re good to go.
If you need extra space, put the HDD you replaced with the SSD in a Ultrabay SATA 2nd Hdd Hard Drive Caddy Module (check model compatibility first).
Also the ThinkPad Series has usually pretty good Linux compatibility, in case you want to swtich the OS.
The T- and W- Series are enterprise grade and you can expect them to run for years… plus, if ever needed, almost all replacement parts are also available… like 57Wh Genuine Original Battery or New 9 Cell Battery For Lenovo
I think ASUS M580VD-EB54 VivoBook would be perfect for you as it comes with i7 processor, 8GB DDR4 RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 graphics, 256GB SSD. You can look for more recommendations about best programming laptops and best music production laptops
850$ and you ask here for a laptop? I don’t have this money but I can afford a good laptop. There are good laptops under 600$, like the ones reviewed by TECHNOXY. I never had enough money, even now I don’t have but I needed a laptop to increase my grades, without it the student life is a nightmare. So I had to loan money and I don’t regret it. Like they say “The one that has the information, has the power” - this refers to students more than anyone else.
For programming and music production you will need a laptop with 16GB RAM and 512GB Storage drive. So that you can run all the necessary software and languages without any facing any lag. If you ask me, I will suggest you to go for MacBook Pro only but in case you don’t have much budget and looking for some other alternatives then you can check these reviews of the best programming laptop under $1000