There are several things to take into consideration when purchasing a laptop for school. Space, type of tasks, battery life, size, and price are all important components of your decision. I have had experience with several different makes of machines and I will outline here the pros and cons of each. But first, make note of these general laptop words of advice. Here are 3 easy things to keep in mind when you are making your purchase.

1. WHEN BUYING A LAPTOP, ALWAYS PURCHASE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY.
Why always? Because things happen no matter the brand when it comes to laptops. The last thing you want is to be writing an important paper and suddenly your hard drive craps out on you, and you are stuck one month out of the warranty that it came with.

2. DO NOT THINK THAT A HIGHER PRICE MEANS GREATER COMPUTING POWER
There are brands out there that will stick it to you in the form of fancy software and features that a student just does not need. Find a sales associate and explain the tasks you will be performing with your laptop. They should be able to fit your needs with an appropriate product within your price range.

3. DO NOT BUY FIRST GENERATION PRODUCTS.
I purchased a MacBook when they were first introduced with Intel processors. I had a laundry list of errors and hardware failures that could have been avoided if I had chosen a product that had its bugs worked out. The only thing that was pleasant about it was the customer service that apple is known for.