Choosing the right laptop for university

Sponsored content

What will you be using your laptop for?

Preparing for university can feel overwhelming when planning what to pack and bring with you. For most students, the biggest purchase you’ll have to make will be a laptop. This will come with you to lectures, be used for games in the common room, you'll use it to watch Netflix on at night, and it will be your companion to the many new hobbies you’ll discover during your time at university. It’s important to know some of the things you’ll likely need your laptop to be capable of so you don't end up choosing an unsuitable laptop you may regret.

• Coursework and university projects: Most subjects will have the need for lots of writing and research, both during lectures and in your own time. Some courses might even require the use of specific programs, which you’ll likely be able to use university computers for but it’s always nice to have another option. Having a laptop that you know can handle your university workload can stop some of the stress you’ll feel while managing multiple assignments.
• Entertainment. Many students won’t have a TV in their accommodation, so your laptop might be how you log into Netflix, watch Love Island with your friends or play video games. When you have a free evening, or two hours between lectures, having a laptop that you can watch movies or game on might be an essential factor.
• Giving you access to new hobbies. At university you’ll be able to join dozens of clubs and societies, from photography, to 3D design, to coding. You might also be able to get access to apps like Adobe Photoshop, Premier Pro, Blender, or Unity. These programs can be demanding on a laptop, so you’ll want to make sure you choose one that has enough performance to keep up.

Understanding what you’re likely to be using your laptop for is the first step in the process. Once you know that, there are some key features that can tell you if a laptop is right for you:

• Screen: No matter what laptop you get, you’ll be spending most of your time looking at the screen. Making sure your laptop has a screen that fits your needs is key. If you’re a gamer, something with a high ‘refresh rate’ (measured in Hz) will be important. If you’re planning on watching a lot of movies, or maybe trying your hand at photo or video editing, something with a 15 or 17 inch screen might be the way to go.
• Performance: Feeling like your laptop isn’t up for the tasks you’re giving it can be incredibly frustrating. So, checking the parts of the laptop that give an indication of what sort of tasks it can complete is important. Checking a laptop’s CPU (central processing unit) and the amount of RAM (random access memory) can give a good indication of what that laptop might be capable of.
• Graphics card: Another important thing to check is if a laptop has a dedicated graphics card (GPU). This is the part of the computer that helps handle work like graphics, effects, videos, gaming, and AI. If you’re into gaming, want to try your hand at photography, graphic design, 3D animation, or use some locally run AI apps, you’ll want to make sure your laptop has a dedicated graphics card. There can be some trade offs, however in 2024 there are plenty of great choices for a suitable laptop with a GPU. GPUs built by NVIDIA have a number of tools that help speed up apps like Photoshop, eliminate background noise from voice calls and even use AI to make games run better.
• Style: As you’ll be carrying around your laptop for most of the day, the look and feel might be quite important to you. Some laptops have a bigger form factor and feature RGB lighting, especially those dedicated for gaming, which might be your style. However, there are also several manufacturers that make more understated laptops, with big trackpads, aluminium bodies, and backlit keyboards.
• Battery life: Understanding what you’ll be using your laptop for and for how long you’ll need to be able to use it unplugged is very important. The trade-off for a powerful laptop can be a shorter battery life, and if you need to go a full day without charging you might want to consider something with more modest specifications. Certain manufacturers also include specific technology designed to adapt how hard your laptop is running to make sure you get the most out of every charge.

These are just a few options, and you should definitely do your own research. Check sites such as Currys, Argos and Very as with summer deals on with students in mind, now might be the best time to pick up one of your most important university purchases.