You may have owned many laptops over the years and you may be sure about what you need in a laptop. But there are chances that you may still end up making blunders when choosing the right one for you. It is advisable to read online reviews about the top laptops for students before buying one for your child when it’s time for them to head to college.

It is common for parents to get enamored by the attractive large screens that many laptops offer. However, the truth is that your child may not need these specs when they are students. So, it is best to consider some things that you should ideally avoid when buying a laptop for your child.

What you should know before investing in a laptops

• It is advised to invest in a laptop for your college-going child simply because the machine boasts of an impressive screen size. When you shop around, you will find laptops with varying screen sizes; while the 11-inch ones are the smallest, the 13 to 15-inch ones are ideal for students. Smaller displays are better for word documentations and portability while a larger display is better for a creative student who likes to experiment with designs.
• Parents often think that buying a laptop that adds the costliest SSD storage is the best thing to do for their college-going kid. A 1TB SSD is undoubtedly the best bet for any college-goer, especially someone who works a lot with media, but it may be expensive. A 128GB storage should be enough for any student. Moreover, external drives are great for when you run out of storage.
• Another common mistake that parents tend to make when buying laptops for their kids is overlooking student discounts offered by retailers. For instance, many stores offer exciting deals on laptops for students. Such student discounts can reduce the price substantially, and you can consider buying premium laptops.
• You must also consider the battery life of the laptop looking at new laptops for students. Most students do not need intel Core i9 processors or 1TB storage. These specs sound amazing but they also mean very high prices. Besides the high costs, these models are known for severe battery drainage. So, it is best to buy a laptop with an Intel Core i5 processor and about 8-16GB RAM.
• Finally, as a parent, you must consider why your child’s need for a laptop. This means looking at what your child will be studying at college and whether the course demands some specific software requirements. For instance, if your child is going into film-editing or film development, or any other computer-intensive task, they will require a model with higher specs than the regular ones that are good for internet-browsing or word-processing.