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College Student Question

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butterwm

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 25, 2012
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Our son is a senior and will be off to college this summer. He is doing an undergraduate degree in biology.

I am researching and shopping for laptops for him. Yes, he does like to game like normal teenagers. However, he has a Windows gaming desktop that we plan on him taking and staying on his desk in his dorm room. We still feel like he will need a laptop for his studies and portability for group studies. In my mind, I see him using the laptop to do his homework, FaceTime, surf on the internet, watch a movie, ect. All these items are very capable on the MacBook Air (would probably hold out for the M4).

With that being said, I am the old Dad and really have no idea what the kids really do with their laptops in college. Anyone with college students regret getting the Air over the Pro? Any college students forced to run Windows on their Air because of school compatibility issues? Both laptops are in the budget range and I am just trying to balance overbuying with also not underbuying if that makes sense.
 
dmr727 said:
It's been awhile since I was in college (a loooooong time - I had a G3 Icebook!), but I can't see any situation where an M4 MacBook Air won't be a great solution. Especially since he already has a gaming desktop.
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Sounds like we both think alike! He really wanted a Windows laptop because he has been doing his homework for the last four years of high school on his Windows gaming computer so I think he is comfortable there. When I started looking at Windows Laptops the reviews weren’t that great and the MacBooks just have the highest reviews and satisfaction with the exception of gaming laptops. He has an iPhone and an iPad so the MacBook is a much better fit into his eco system too. I’m definitely hoping he doesn’t resent the decision and grows to like and use it.
 
I'm a current college student and a part of me wishes I had the Air!

I have the 16" Pro because I'm a long-time Mac user and I wanted that ProMotion mini-LED display and the extra screen real estate the larger size provides (plus this is my primary all-purpose computer; I have a Windows desktop too but I rarely use it). I take my Pro to class all the time, but it's quite heavy and bulky, and a lighter-weight, more portable laptop would be much more practical for this environment. I could honestly probably get by with an iPad Pro and keyboard folio. But I think a laptop has more utility, and the Air would be a perfect option for a student.
 
VisceralRealist said:
I'm a current college student and a part of me wishes I had the Air!

I have the 16" Pro because I'm a long-time Mac user and I wanted that ProMotion mini-LED display and the extra screen real estate the larger size provides (plus this is my primary all-purpose computer; I have a Windows desktop too but I rarely use it). I take my Pro to class all the time, but it's quite heavy and bulky, and a lighter-weight, more portable laptop would be much more practical for this environment. I could honestly probably get by with an iPad Pro and keyboard folio. But I think a laptop has more utility, and the Air would be a perfect option for a student.
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Awesome…thanks! With an Air would you have chose the 15” screen over the 13”?
 
VisceralRealist said:
I think I would have, yeah. It's still quite lightweight and portable while having the benefit of the larger screen.
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What size SSD do you have on your Pro? I won’t get anything less than 512GB but wondering if 1TB might be worth it?
 
This grandmother - who works in IT - bought both her granddaughters Macbook Pro's. The oldest is in Videography so she got the maxed out MBP. The youngest went to college this year. She is in Finance - wants to make money! Anyway, she got the 16" MBP which I tried to talk her out of as I though she would like the lighter 15" MBAir. She also has an iPad Pro and that has turned out to be what she uses in the classroom for notes etc. Because both are Apple they work well together and apps sync well. All her devices have a 1TB SSD.
 
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The MacBook Air has been the quintessential college laptop for years. Light and portable for the backpack. M-series chip for excellent performance and battery efficiency. Not having to plug-in during the day is huge. Silent operation for classroom and library.

I would go with the 13in for portability, since your son has a gaming rig which I assume includes a full size monitor that he can connect to the MBA if he needs more screen real estate.
 
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The M4 Pro is much better for media consumption and gaming due to the GPU and HDR screen. At 1749 right now that model is probably the one I would spring for if I was back in college.

That said, it’s a luxury, and the Air would handle basically everything just fine as well (not to mention the thinner body which a student may prefer for portability).
 
I like the idea of a MacBook Air for weight savings. However, I would prefer the 14” MBP to save weight yet get the better Mac with better display and etc. It comes with 512GB standard so upgrading to 1TB is only one bump. I would think the ports and all could come in handy.

Bought my son the 14” MBP M2 Pro 1TB last school year. At the time, I thought the M2 was inferior and with the M2 Pro getting more RAM and SSD standard it barely cost more to just splurge. He loves it. He also has a gaming desktop, but told me he has converted completely to the Mac. He likes how his data “magically” is available on his iPad Pro. Young adults are very dependent on the magic; I suppose we all are.
 
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dmr727 said:
It doesn't sounds like you're terribly price sensitive - I'd get the 1TB.
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That is what I was kind of think and leaning towards. If I go with the MacBook Air I will probably wait until March and get the M4 chip to future proof it. He really doesn't need it until he goes off to college and that gives him a few months at home to get used to it and setup before he leaves.

Have you found anything at your school you needed to do that wasn't MAC compatible and you had to figure out some kind of workaround? When we did the school tour I asked some of the students and it seemed to be 50/50 MAC vs Windows. We went in the school computer school and while they sell both it's obvious they favor MAC with their store displays.
 
lclev said:
This grandmother - who works in IT - bought both her granddaughters Macbook Pro's. The oldest is in Videography so she got the maxed out MBP. The youngest went to college this year. She is in Finance - wants to make money! Anyway, she got the 16" MBP which I tried to talk her out of as I though she would like the lighter 15" MBAir. She also has an iPad Pro and that has turned out to be what she uses in the classroom for notes etc. Because both are Apple they work well together and apps sync well. All her devices have a 1TB SSD.
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Thanks! Have either of them found the MBP to be too heavy or cumbersome to carry around for class and studying? Still favoring the Air at this point but if there was a fantastic Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale that might make me reconsider. Has fan noise been an issue in a quiet classroom?
 
13” Air would be and was my choice.

Anything larger doesn’t always fit on the seat tables in the lecture theatre depth and length wise. A 15”/16” whilst only marginally heavier is still overall bulkier to carry around between classes (bigger bag etc).
Roaming around between classes you want portability - especially if you have a proper setup elsewhere.

512gb is enough. I can’t imagine needing anything more than 256 to be honest. The faculty wouldn’t expect students to have machines with 1tb SSDs.
That said, 100% go 1tb if you see this turning into their main machine; photos etc.

As for Windows. Just run a VM of ARM Windows if it’s really needed.
I can only imagine they’d need to run some faculty provided apps?
But then again, there’s the main windows computer that they’d use for that in the event of compatibility issues between the 1998 version of the app vs ARM Windows.

Portability and the ability quickly run off for beers is key here. 15”/16” is too large for beer convenience.

14” Pro would also work - and whilst bulkier you could play games at a friends place…

Happy hunting and I hope this opinion helped!
 
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I frequently work on a college campus (research/engineering) and like your guide said, it seems to be 50/50 in terms of students using Mac vs Windows. The school tries very hard to only use cross-platform applications and I really don’t think he will run into any software compatibility problems with a Mac

In fact the only software I can think of that would be Windows only, has such ridiculous licensing terms, the stuff is only available for use in the computer lab. That is to say, kids won’t be installing that on their own laptop anyway.

As for getting the Air or MBP, either would be fine, but honestly, I would recommend the 14” M4 MBP. My main reason for that is the port selection: it isn’t uncommon for students to have to (or want to) connect their own laptop when giving a presentation, and some rooms can only connect via HDMI. I also think the active cooling (no the fan it isn’t that noisy) and screen quality add enough value to make the extra cost worth it.

Again an Air would be fine (they have Thunderbolt dongles for HDMI), but if I had the choice as a student, I would want the MPB form factor.

And ya, definitely get 1TB!
 
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If your lad has to run heavy mathematical models or similar (DNA and what not), it might be advantageous to pack some additional punch and go Pro. If so, screen real estate isn`t a bad thing either.

Just a thought. Might be they`ll always do that on a university HPC cluster, and probably not the first year.....
 
butterwm said:
That is what I was kind of think and leaning towards. If I go with the MacBook Air I will probably wait until March and get the M4 chip to future proof it. He really doesn't need it until he goes off to college and that gives him a few months at home to get used to it and setup before he leaves.

Have you found anything at your school you needed to do that wasn't MAC compatible and you had to figure out some kind of workaround? When we did the school tour I asked some of the students and it seemed to be 50/50 MAC vs Windows. We went in the school computer school and while they sell both it's obvious they favor MAC with their store displays.
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Just be aware that Apple offers back to school gift cards in the summer, and there are likely to be matching discounts at Amazon and BB. So, if your son can wait until summer rather than spring M4 release, you might get a much better deal.
 
SpotOnT said:
I frequently work on a college campus (research/engineering) and like your guide said, it seems to be 50/50 in terms of students using Mac vs Windows. The school tries very hard to only use cross-platform applications and I really don’t think he will run into any software compatibility problems with a Mac

In fact the only software I can think of that would be Windows only, has such ridiculous licensing terms, the stuff is only available for use in the computer lab. That is to say, kids won’t be installing that on their own laptop anyway.

As for getting the Air or MBP, either would be fine, but honestly, I would recommend the 14” M4 MBP. My main reason for that is the port selection: it isn’t uncommon for students to have to (or want to) connect their own laptop when giving a presentation, and some rooms can only connect via HDMI. I also think the fan (no it isn’t that noisy) and screen quality add enough value to make the extra cost worth it.

Again an Air would be fine (they have Thunderbolt dongles for HDMI), but if I had the choice as a student, I would want the MPB form factor. And ya, definitely get 1TB!
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That is a very interesting thing you bring up with ports and the MBP having the HDMI port. I know has has given lots of presentations during HS so I would imagine even more so in college. I see you can buy a USB-C to HDMI cable. Do you know if quality suffers using a cable like that versus a native HDMI port like on the MBP?
 
I bought both my kids macbooks, because thats what I prefer, and they hated them and resisted using them. They told me before I bought them that they wanted windows. They also have iphones and ipads. I ended up having to sell them and buy them windows gaming laptops, which they love. Lesson learned and $$ lost.

Maybe your situation is different, but forcing your adult son to get a mac when he wants windows seems like a terrible idea.
 
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bhirt37 said:
I bought both my kids macbooks, because thats what I prefer, and they hated them and resisted using them. They also have iphones and ipads. I ended up having to sell them and buy them windows gaming laptops, which they love. Lesson learned and $$ lost.

Maybe your situation is different, but forcing your adult son to get a mac when he wants windows seems like a terrible idea.
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Damn...this is exactly what I didn't want to hear...LOL! My biggest issues with the Windows gaming laptops is that they are large and heavy to carry around and bring to class, they generate a lot of heat with the graphics cards and from my previous experiences with Windows laptops are that heat is the biggest issue which eventually kills them down the line. I also fear is he has that in front of him in a lecture he is going to be tempted to play games versus pay attention in class with that temptation right there.

What has been your experiences so far with those gaming laptops?
 
Using a USB-C to HDMI converter should get you the same quality.

It’s more just that’s another thing to remember to carry around with your charging cable. It isn’t just presentations, sometimes you’re studying with a group and it’s helpful to throw something up onto a room projector. Not having to worry about if you have your converter on you for such an impromptu session can be nice.
 
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butterwm said:
Our son is a senior and will be off to college this summer. He is doing an undergraduate degree in biology.

I am researching and shopping for laptops for him. Yes, he does like to game like normal teenagers. However, he has a Windows gaming desktop that we plan on him taking and staying on his desk in his dorm room. We still feel like he will need a laptop for his studies and portability for group studies. In my mind, I see him using the laptop to do his homework, FaceTime, surf on the internet, watch a movie, ect. All these items are very capable on the MacBook Air (would probably hold out for the M4).

With that being said, I am the old Dad and really have no idea what the kids really do with their laptops in college. Anyone with college students regret getting the Air over the Pro? Any college students forced to run Windows on their Air because of school compatibility issues? Both laptops are in the budget range and I am just trying to balance overbuying with also not underbuying if that makes sense.
Click to expand...

My advice: be sure to check the general computer recommendations of the university and the specific hardware + software requirements of the academic department or program before buying anything.

In addition, there may be on-campus bundles, offers, and discounts that are better than Black Friday sales.
 
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