I'm an incoming freshman, undeclared major (looking into International Affairs, so I probs won't need anything special for a laptop).
I'm definitely looking into PCs (I've heard plenty of good arguments for Macs, but I just want PC rec's).
So what brands should I be looking into? My school said that the only brands they can fix themselves without shipping away are Macs and Dells. I've heard very mixed reviews about Dells, some people saying they're absolute crap and others saying that they're one of the best.
My top priorities are disk space and battery life. I have to fit my 30+GB iTunes library on it comfortably, and I was pondering buying Sims 3, which in the past has completely dominated every laptop/desktop that I've put a Sims game on. Someone told my parents to make sure we get something with a lot of RAM space. And I'll be using the laptop in class, hence the battery life. My family has had terrible luck with Toshiba laptops, and the batteries always burn out and have to be replaced. Our first Toshiba has an overheating problem where the fan will go on after a minute and literally sound like a plane is taking off! Another requirement is a webcam for skype-ing with friends/family.
I have heard that HP is the best brand. I'm just hesitant because of my school's ability to repair Dells. But then again, I'd rather buy a laptop that won't need to be repaired in the first place.
In the Best Buy ad last week, there was a special to buy an HP laptop with a netbook. Would this be worth it? Take the netbook to class and leave the laptop in the dorm (since I won't have a desktop)? I'm not sure what size laptop I want, since it has to be portable but I don't want one too small.
Sorry for the length of this question... I'm not much of a computer person, so I'm open to any and all PC suggestions!
I'm definitely looking into PCs (I've heard plenty of good arguments for Macs, but I just want PC rec's).
So what brands should I be looking into? My school said that the only brands they can fix themselves without shipping away are Macs and Dells. I've heard very mixed reviews about Dells, some people saying they're absolute crap and others saying that they're one of the best.
My top priorities are disk space and battery life. I have to fit my 30+GB iTunes library on it comfortably, and I was pondering buying Sims 3, which in the past has completely dominated every laptop/desktop that I've put a Sims game on. Someone told my parents to make sure we get something with a lot of RAM space. And I'll be using the laptop in class, hence the battery life. My family has had terrible luck with Toshiba laptops, and the batteries always burn out and have to be replaced. Our first Toshiba has an overheating problem where the fan will go on after a minute and literally sound like a plane is taking off! Another requirement is a webcam for skype-ing with friends/family.
I have heard that HP is the best brand. I'm just hesitant because of my school's ability to repair Dells. But then again, I'd rather buy a laptop that won't need to be repaired in the first place.
In the Best Buy ad last week, there was a special to buy an HP laptop with a netbook. Would this be worth it? Take the netbook to class and leave the laptop in the dorm (since I won't have a desktop)? I'm not sure what size laptop I want, since it has to be portable but I don't want one too small.
Sorry for the length of this question... I'm not much of a computer person, so I'm open to any and all PC suggestions!