Which Laptop Is Good for Students in Singapore?

It’s that time of the year again where university students are frantically searching for student discounts to upgrade their laptops in time for the new school year. While many students choose to skip the hassle of researching different laptops and go with a MacBook, there are actually many other options that offer the same functionality, but at a better price.

Others may also have unique needs due to the nature of their course and want to source for more options. No matter which camp you are in, we are here to take away the stress of searching with our guide to the best laptops for students in various courses.

Considerations

When you are buying a laptop, there are a few features that you want to take note of and compare between different models. 

Screen size and resolution

Screen size refers to the length of the screen measured by the distance between diagonally opposite corners. This typically ranges from 11 to 17 inches, with the more popular screen sizes ranging from 13 to 15 inches. Generally, a 13-inch laptop should fulfill your needs – it is portable and yet large enough for most detailed work.

On the other hand, screen resolution refers to the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. 4K is preferred for those who frequently edit photos or videos, as the images appear much clearer. However, it is also important to note that this improved screen resolution doesn’t come without a compromise – laptops with 4K displays are more expensive and have shorter battery life. For most people, a full-HD display is sufficient and offers a good balance between clarity, battery life, and price.

Also read: Planning to Buy an HP Laptop? Know the Latest Models, Deals

Weight

Weight is a key consideration for college students as you will always be on the go! Rushing from one class to another or lugging your laptop to the library for a study session are oh-so-common in university life. For a more convenient commute, a laptop weighing around 1.4kg or less would be a good choice to prevent you from getting backaches.

Battery Life

Battery life is also important, since you will likely be using your laptop in class or while studying outside, where charging ports may be scarce. Generally, 8 hours is considered sufficient.

Central Processing Unit

The central processing unit (CPU) is responsible for the primary logic operations, which means that it interprets instructions from the program you are running and creates the corresponding output that you interface. CPUs are commonly made by Apple, Intel and Qualcomm. 

Considerations for CPUs are more complex, as there are multiple factors affecting its speed. 

First, let’s look at cores. With developments in technology that allow for multi-core processors and hyper-threading, a dual-core laptop is sufficient for basic use such as writing, browsing the web and streaming. For heavier use such as media creation, a quad-core would be the minimum. 

Then, we have frequency, which affects the number of instructions the chip can process each second. As a rule of thumb, 2 Gigahertz is sufficient.

Storage

With cloud storage becoming more popular, laptop storage is less of a concern. Generally, 256GB is more than enough for most people. Solid state drives, or SSDs, are preferred over traditional spinning hard disk drives (HDDs) as SSDs have no moving parts and can offer faster boot-ups and program launches.

RAM

RAM stands for random access memory and is essentially the laptop’s short-term memory. It is important in determining the system’s performance as it stores the information your computer is actively using so that it can be accessed quickly. 4GB of RAM is considered the minimum, while 8GB is typical.

Laptop Recommendations

Now that we’ve unpacked the key considerations when purchasing a laptop, let’s move on to the recommendations!

Great for Multitaskers

These laptops are a good choice for multitaskers who have an average of 20 tabs open at once, while streaming music, furiously typing out essays and sipping on a cuppa joe. They work fast and offer great battery life for tasks that don’t stress out the processor too much, such as web browsing, streaming videos, essay writing and even coding. Students studying courses ranging from liberal arts to computer science can consider purchasing these recommendations.

Budget-friendly Choices

If you’re a student on a tighter budget and only need basic processing power for light work, such as essay writing and web browsing, these laptops won’t let you down. Students in liberal arts or business can consider purchasing these great deals.

Also read: 7 Best and Cheap gaming laptops

With Great Power, Comes Not-so-great Prices

Students in courses such as engineering, architecture and media may require more power in their laptops due to the complex softwares that they use. These are laptops that deliver that power, but with great power, comes not-so-great prices. If you’re not on a tight budget, these will definitely make your work much more of a breeze.