TechRadar reviews and ranks what it thinks are the best laptops for college students across several categories.
This year’s Cyber Monday deals are well under way, and you know what that means – we’re that much closer to the start of next semester. OK, we know you don’t want to talk about your academic career on the verge of a holiday, but when we’re bound to see imminent discounts on the best laptops for students, it’s only fair that you pay attention to the deals. After all, there’s no remedy sweeter for the broke college student than having to spend a little less.
Dell XPS 13 Core i5 now $799 (was $1,099) in the US Not only are you saving $300 on the Dell XPS 13, the all-around best college laptop, you’re getting the upgraded Core i5 version for the same price as its entry-level model through B&H! View Deal
But then, how do you know which laptops are reliable without using them all first? You could take the advice of a random YouTuber who might have only haphazardly used a handful of them, or you could take a look at this heartfelt list curated by our trusty staff. The best laptops for students, as recommended by this list, take modest pricing and combine it with hardy specs that put a lot of these overpriced clunkers to shame.
In the following paragraphs, you will find a notebook computer, complete with all of the features you need for those next four years to fly by without hesitation. If you’re looking for a machine that will help you learn faster and with ease, less the need to break the bank, any of the 10 best laptops for students below will more than suffice. After laborious testing and we-don’t-know-how-many hours of lost sleep, read on for our top picks.
Powerful, functional, aesthetically pleasing
Decked out in an all-black aluminum finish encompassing hardy internal components, the Dell XPS 13 of today is still a force to be reckoned with. And, now that it packs 7th- and 8th-generation Intel Kaby Lake processors as well as improved integrated graphics, it evidently boasts an advantage over competing laptops, aside from giving you the option of a sumptuous Rose Gold finish. The 13-inch screen, crammed into an 11-inch body, makes it a worthy rival to a certain other aluminum laptop line. Ultimately, this leaves the Dell XPS 13’s utility extensive.
The dawn of a new era for 2-in-1 laptops
The Samsung Notebook 9 is what other 2-in-1 laptops have aspired to be since their conception. It hones in on the S-Pen, Samsung’s own proprietary stylus with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity (the same as Microsoft’s new Surface Pen), a nifty little accessory that conveniently doesn’t require charging. Although the touchscreen display is only 1080p, at between 350 and 450 nits of brightness, you won’t be paying any mind to the pixels, or lack thereof. Plus, the lengthy battery life more than makes up for this hybrids few setbacks.
Asus’ premium Chromebook has a modest price
The Asus Chromebook Flip C302 could be seen as an apology for Google’s own missteps with the Chromebook Pixel that preceded it. Rather than costing over a grand for unnecessarily high performance that would put a lot of Windows notebooks to shame, Asus has cut the price in half while adding a 360-degree hinge that effectively makes it a 2-in-1 laptop, but with Android apps from the Google Play Store that only sweeten the deal. Now you can experience a Chromebook whose style rivals that of the MacBook Pro without spending even remotely what you would on one of Apple’s machines.
The tablet that can replace your laptop
The 2017 Surface Pro is – in every way, shape and form – the next-generation Windows tablet we’ve been craving. From its rounded edges to its refined selection of accessories, there’s no denying it’s the next step in the Redmond hardware lineage. There’s also the fact that the Surface Pro draws inspiration from all-in-one PCs insofar as it bends back 165 degrees. The only real downside then (besides having to buy the Surface Pen separately this time) is that only the i7 version of the Surface Pro can compete with Apple’s cheaper, entry level iPad Pro.
MacBook Pro size and power, MacBook Air price
For less than a grand, you could get a MacBook Air, complete with a sub-1080p screen and a Broadwell processor … or you could buy a Samsung Notebook 7 Spin. A 2-in-1 laptop with an HDR, full HD touchscreen, the Spin is home to both a discrete Nvidia graphics chip and a 6th-generation Intel Core “i” CPU. Though the spinning hard drive and 480p webcam aren’t ideal, they keep the price of the Samsung Notebook 7 Spin modest and its reputation positive.
Work hard, play hard, this laptop does it all
Ditching the Alienware moniker for once, the Dell Inspiron 15 Gaming doesn’t cost all that much considering its rather lofty specs. Even if it can’t max out every game you throw at it, the Dell Inspiron 15 Gaming is both cheaper than a MacBook Air and way more capable. And, if you were worried about the battery life, the Inspiron 15 Gaming lasted a whole 5 hours and 51 minutes in our tests, longer than some Ultrabooks priced significantly higher. Whether for coursework or leisure, this laptop can do it all.
The MacBook Pro of the future, right now
The 2017 MacBook Pro doesn’t offer much in the way of distinguishing itself from its predecessor, but it is a testament to just how much you can improve something by simply swapping up internal components and calling it a day. Because it’s finally equipped with the newest generation of Intel Kaby Lake processors and faster-than-ever PCIe 3.0 SSD storage, the MacBook Pro comes easily recommended, undeterred by its reluctance to bring back legacy ports like HDMI and standard USB. This is, through and through, a laptop built for the future.
Feel old yet, MacBook Air?
Now that the MacBook Air is all but dead in the water in terms of innovation, there has to be something to replace it. The Asus ZenBook UX310UA is that spiritual successor you’ve been longing for. Surprising us with the an all-aluminum chassis that follows in the wake of the UX305 before it, this laptop comes stacked with a high quality display and an impressive swath of ports, including the latest USB-C interface. The best news is that it does all of that without slipping above the price point of the current MacBook Air, making it an even better value.
Designed for students from the OS up
The Surface Laptop is Microsoft’s first stab at a “traditional” laptop, if you can even call it that knowing full well that its PixelSense touchscreen and Alcantara keyboard are anything but conventional.
