<p>DS is a rising HS Junior & needs his own laptop for school. There’s a sales-tax-free weekend coming up and we plan to buy it then. Would appreciate recommendations and/or suggestions re: what to look for, what brand your student has liked, etc. DS is fairly laid-back, so he’d probably be happy with anything functional - but we want to purchase with an eye toward passing the laptop down to a younger sibling if DS goes to a college that has specific computer requirements. TIA for any advice!</p>
<p>We are a house divided. Spygirl and I love our Macs. Max and Spyboy cling to their pc’s.</p>
<p>I would say a lot depends on what he wants to do with it. When my son was a rising Jr. we chose to buy him an Apple refurbished Macbook Pro, this was mainly because of his interest in music technology. Also staying with the Apple products, he was able to transfer stuff easily from his other devices (that he has purchased). </p>
<p>A functional, less expensive option might be a Dell. My Dad has purchased several refurbished products for very reasonable prices. I think these would be good for most kids that would just want something functional.</p>
<p>If you are looking to pass it down to younger siblings, make sure you get a new model…you don’t want it to get outdated any sooner than it will!</p>
<p>Thanks, parents! We’ve discussed a Mac, but have also heard good things about a Lenovo ThinkPad. Has anyone had good/bad experiences w/the ThinkPad? That Mac price-tag is pretty steep! I should add that DS has an iPhone, and shares an iPad w/his middle-school brother, but we have a PC for the family computer (which DS has been using for school up until now). So we have no real Mac/PC preference & DS doesn’t either, at least so far.</p>
<p>Consider some kind of ultrabook if your son doesn’t need a lot of processing power. A laptop bought now will probably last into college, and having something lightweight with a long battery life is very nice. I agree that I wouldn’t want to pay mac prices for hardware, and haven’t found the Apple products I do have to be problem-free.</p>
<p>We picked up Acers for both kids (now rising juniors - hs & college) last summer when target was having a great sale. Think we paid $329 each. Have heard no complaints from either one and they use them everyday.</p>
<p>After doing tons of research, DS just sold his 2008 Mac and replaced it with a Lenovo Thinkpad. He is thrilled with it! He is a pretty computer savvy kid, and felt the Lenovo provided the most bang for the buck. It cost $771 with upgraded memory, including sales tax and free shipping.</p>
<p>My husband uses a Thinkpad at work. He loves it. I just bought one for DS who starts college in August. If your son has ANY idea where he might want to go to college check out that schools laptop requirements. However two years is a long time in laptop years … DS’s high school lap top which is just 2 years old just barely meets the college requirements which is why we bought him a new one.</p>
<p>[HP</a> - ENVY Touch-Screen Ultrabook 14" Laptop - 4GB Memory - 500GB Hard Drive - Midnight Black - 4-1105dx](<a href=“http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+ENVY+Touch-Screen+Ultrabook+14%26%2334%3B+Laptop+-+4GB+Memory+-+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Midnight+Black/6879218.p?id=1218810021588&skuId=6879218]HP”>http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+ENVY+Touch-Screen+Ultrabook+14%26%2334%3B+Laptop+-+4GB+Memory+-+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Midnight+Black/6879218.p?id=1218810021588&skuId=6879218)</p>
<p>At $500, that touchscreen HP Envy with back-lit keyboard is a great bargain. I wouldn’t spend a penny more.</p>
<p>Google Chromebook. So light, so dependable, so inexpensive. Battery lasts forever.</p>