<p>I certainly wouldn’t go with Apple. I don’t know the details, but most likely the vast majority of software that you might have to use won’t have versions for Apple.</p>
<p>In terms of the brand, I would recommend you Toshiba just like two people above. It’s been proven to be quite reliable and good for its price. According to SquareTrade, a company that provides warranties, Toshiba and Asus laptops are the most reliable (<a href=“http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf[/url]”>http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf</a> - the data is relatively old, but I believe that not much has changed). Reliability is very important for a student. </p>
<p>Hard to say anything in terms of a particular model because there are so many of them. Anything in the price range of $600-750 should work for you. If I were you, I would just go by reviews on websites. And don’t forget to add additional RAM to it - RAM today is very cheap, but can significantly improve performance.</p>
<p>Also don’t forget that you can get some software (Office, for example) for free: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-washington/1359155-any-useful-campus-tips-tricks-current-uw-students.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-washington/1359155-any-useful-campus-tips-tricks-current-uw-students.html</a></p>