My daughter is a HS sophomore. She needs a laptop for a summer camp where they will "explore data analytics, market research, and AI... featuring hands-on training in Excel, data visualization, and predictive modeling". The laptop she needs for camp is pretty basic. I don't want to send her with my laptop.

Since I have to buy her a laptop, I'd like to try to get something that she can take to college. Is it reasonable to expect to be able to buy a laptop today that she can take to college for 4 years? So something that's gonna last her for 6-6.5 years?

If you were in the same boat, what would you buy for your kid?

Thanks

I have a Lenovo T490 that I got in 2020 that is still my go to travel and work laptop. I liked it so much I bought another one for my wife. 6 years later and it's been perfect for its use case.

So yes, you can buy a laptop and reasonably expect to get 6+ years out of it. I personally like the Lenovo ThinkPad line, they're sturdy.

Our last Lenovo lasted 10 years. Decided to get another

I keep hearing conflicting reports about Macs… that they will need a Windows machine. I know that's accurate for STEM majors but not sure about others. And so t know what she wants to do yet.

Was it a ThinkPad, IdeaPad, etc?

combat wombat said:

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Was it a ThinkPad, IdeaPad, etc?

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The new one we got was an IdeaPad Pro.

The one that lasted forever (around 10 years) was a Yoga. NEVER used the "yoga" feature. The damn thing is still barely holding on. Battery is expanding, seams are pulling apart, "kill me....KILL ME!"

The desktop I got my old man 10 years ago was also a lenovo. We just replaced that one as well.

Gnome Sayin said:

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combat wombat said:

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Was it a ThinkPad, IdeaPad, etc?

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The new one we got was an IdeaPad Pro.

The one that lasted forever (around 10 years) was a Yoga. NEVER used the "yoga" feature. The damn thing is still barely holding on. Battery is expanding, seams are pulling apart, "kill me....KILL ME!"

The desktop I got my old man 10 years ago was also a lenovo. We just replaced that one as well.

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I would strongly recommend a Thinkpad T-Series, they're absolute workhorses. I'm on my third right now. The quality is substantially better than the Ideapad line (which are essentially consumer grade). My recommendation would be the Thinkpad T14 or T16 with whatever specs are needed for her program.

Thanks; problem is we have no idea what the specs are going to be. For the summer camp, I think anything will work provided and connects to Wi-Fi and can run Excel and PowerPoint.

Maybe not a bad idea.

I'm curious about the camp that your daughter is attending. I also have a sophomore daughter that is interested in that area.

TCU had a data analytics camp; it's too late to apply for this year but they accept Sophomores-Seniors so she can try for next year.

Both kids in college on MacBooks and we have a spare at home in case they are lost, stolen, or they break. With iCloud, you log into any one and all your stuff is there. We've never had a problem. Kid one in year seven and kid two in year three of college. The idea that a PC is needed was bogus ten years ago.

Been a MSFT Surface guy since they came out. Love them.

No, don't buy with the expectation of it lasting thru some college years.

Laptops are disposable devices now. Anything over 4-5 years is major bonus but odds are fantastic that it will be limping to the finish line when she gets to college. Plus, battery life on it will be brutal.

Newegg.com

Don't be afraid of refurb. Look at Lenovo and HP at her range, keep an eye on memory amount and stay far away from the word "Celeron" or "Pentium" on processors (those are hampered, low budget)

You can get something super nice for $300 to $600

As a Mac guy, I hate using excel on it. If that's going to be a big majority of the usage, I suggest looking at a PC. Lenovo or a Dell. However, for the money, you can't beat a Mac neo or air. Not even close.

Wildmen03 said:

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I have a Lenovo T490 that I got in 2020 that is still my go to travel and work laptop. I liked it so much I bought another one for my wife. 6 years later and it's been perfect for its use case.

So yes, you can buy a laptop and reasonably expect to get 6+ years out of it. I personally like the Lenovo ThinkPad line, they're sturdy.

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I bought the wife a Lenovo ThinkPad back in 2015, that thing is still kicking strong. Damn laptop wont die.