Fred Harteis News Articles- If your kid is heading to college this fall, you may be feeling pretty protective of your wallet. But equipping your offspring with one of the cut-rate laptops in those back-to-school fliers is a false economy.
"You can't expect a $500 laptop to last four years," says Yancy Phillips, director of IT user services at Indiana State University.
For a model that goes the distance, Phillips says, expect to spend around $1,000. Take this Laptop Shopping 101 course to find the right notebook for your collegian. Mom and Dad, you may want one for yourself too.
What to buy
See what the school suggests. Most universities publish minimum hardware recommendations on their websites, says Kenneth Green of the Campus Computing Project, a research organization. Some name specific models that work well on the network and that IT people are trained to support. Needs may differ by major, so have your kid check with his department.
Think beyond freshman year. The configurations colleges suggest are normally meant to see students through four years of school. Thus they generally include an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive. Skimping now could cost you another laptop later.
Buy from our picks ... if the college doesn't specify models. They're good values and meet most schools' standards. Just be sure to get the specs listed.
Where to buy
Campus store (if the school has one). On-campus computer stores typically yield good values - 10% to 20% under retail - thanks to bulk purchasing, says Kevin Bailey, an IT director for University of Missouri at Columbia. But what really puts them ahead of, say, Best Buy: Campus stores offer onsite support and repairs.
Online (if the college has no store). Because you're looking for specific specs, it pays to buy direct. Most colleges that don't have campus computer stores do have online discounts with major manufacturers. Check those links. But also visit the small-biz sections of the makers' sites, where models are sometimes cheaper.
Warranty: Why you should get one
Most extended warranties aren't worth the cost. But in this case consider the user, who'll tote the notebook everywhere and use it as a beer coaster. Buy three years of coverage, plus damage protection, from the maker.
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Source: Cnn.com
About Fred Harteis: Fred Harteis leads Harteis International. Fred Harteis has a background in agriculture and has created many successful business ventures.