supplemental laptop for poor college student (Budget buying help)?

Discussion in 'Which Laptop should I buy?' started by winky orlando, Jan 4, 2016.

  1. winky orlando

    winky orlando

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    My college requires that everyone get macbooks, so I've had one for about a year now. But the thought of having to pay for repairs (of possibly worse, it crashing and losing all my work) is enough to give me a small heart attack. I want to buy a supplemental one for entertainment/transportation and use my macbook only for art & schoolwork. With a budget of 150-200 dollars, give or take, I'm looking for a basic windows laptop for entertainment purposes. It would be mostly watching movies, playing small games (nothing graphics heavy), and carrying back and forth between classes. Can you recommend any laptops/brands? I know with that small of a budget things are pretty hit-or-miss. The feature I'm seeking the most is reliability/durability. I know it's a lot to ask for in that price range, but any and all recommendations would be helpful.
     
    winky orlando, Jan 4, 2016
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  2. winky orlando

    something back

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    something back, Jan 4, 2016
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  3. winky orlando

    PingPongCall

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    PingPongCall, Jan 4, 2016
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  4. winky orlando

    winky orlando

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    Thanks! I already have a 1tb external hard drive that i use time machine with, and i back up all my art files again via google drive. the supplemental laptop's just so i put minimum (physical and digital) strain on my mac.
     
    winky orlando, Jan 4, 2016
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  5. winky orlando

    winky orlando

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    winky orlando, Jan 4, 2016
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  6. winky orlando

    Sefie

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    Try a Toshiba one, those are really cheap and very strong! I have had an excellent experience with Toshiba laptops so far, they are perfect for someone in your situation, plus they are not as delicate as other laptops :) My oldest Toshiba laptop is 9 years old already ;)
     
    Sefie, Jan 6, 2016
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  7. winky orlando

    PingPongCall

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    Every Toshiba Laptop I've ever had, burned out out on me and cost me more money to fix than I actually paid for the computer.
     
    PingPongCall, Jan 6, 2016
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  8. winky orlando

    nytegeek

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    It is incredibly short sighted of a college to require the use of a Macbook. You definitely need to get a back up system in place and maybe you should reconsider your choice of schools.
     
    nytegeek, Jan 7, 2016
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  9. winky orlando

    winky orlando

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    Oh yeah, it sucks. But I'm pretty sure it's nearly universal for art schools at this point- it's the students that lose, not them :/ what ya gonna do...
     
    winky orlando, Jan 7, 2016
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  10. winky orlando

    Rezonate

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    If you're looking to find a budget friendly laptop you definitely have to check out groupon you can get a really good one for less than $400 or a little less actually
     
    Rezonate, Jan 7, 2016
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  11. winky orlando

    winky orlando

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    I hadn't thought of that! Thank you!
     
    winky orlando, Jan 7, 2016
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  12. winky orlando

    nytegeek

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    Ah, now I understand. There are a lot of platform specific applications when it comes to art and design. It makes more sense to me now that they require a Macbook. It still sucks though.
     
    nytegeek, Jan 8, 2016
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  13. winky orlando

    nytegeek

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    I never thought about using Groupon for that kind of thing. What an awesome idea!
     
    nytegeek, Jan 8, 2016
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  14. winky orlando

    PingPongCall

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    I once attended a school the required me to use a macbook and it was complete bullshit. I ended up selling the computer and switching back to a windows machine.
     
    PingPongCall, Jan 10, 2016
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  15. winky orlando

    sharatharadhya

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    I would recommend that you get an HP Stream. It is a good value for money Laptop. It has 32GB of memory and it has a 11.6-inch display. The most important thing is that it costs under $199. It comes bundled with Office 365 Subscription for a year, which is roughly the cost of the Laptop. It is like getting a Laptop free for buying Office 365 Subscription. After a year, you can plan to upgrade or keep the same laptop.
     
    sharatharadhya, Feb 2, 2016
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  16. winky orlando

    djtech

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    The HP Stream sounds nice. The fact that it comes with Win 10 and office 365, does make it the ideal candidate for a budget laptop. The build quality is really good for a low cost laptop. Exactly what I was looking for too. Wow, that is amazing.
     
    djtech, Feb 5, 2016
    #16
  17. winky orlando

    PingPongCall

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    Gotta see this HP stream.
     
    PingPongCall, Feb 12, 2016
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  18. winky orlando

    djtech

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    Yepp... it seems awesome. Anyways, I moved on to a much lighter version of chrome OS yesterday.. now my lappy flies...
     
    djtech, Feb 13, 2016
    #18
  19. winky orlando

    Alexandrimh

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    Alexandrimh, Feb 13, 2016
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  20. winky orlando

    djtech

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    Hmm.. Asus is making really solid computers...
     
    djtech, Feb 15, 2016
    #20
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