10 Best Laptops For Computer Science Students (REVEALED!)
Students pursuing computer science often need a laptop for projects, notes, and studying.
If that sounds like you, then you might be in the market for a new computer. While there are plenty of good choices, there are also many poor ones.
Don’t settle for a computer that costs you a fortune in repairs over the life of your program.
We’ve rounded up the Best Laptops For Computer Science Students based on thousands of hours of research and testing.
1. 2021 HP Stream 14″ HD SVA Laptop Computer: (Best Laptops For Computer Science Students)
A strong contender for the best budget laptop, the HP Stream 14 balances performance, multimedia, and value.
The Stream’s solid construction, all-day battery life, and pleasant keyboard make it an excellent laptop for work and play, and its light, compact design makes it easy to take with you.
Plus, it gets good ratings for its impressive multimedia performance, and its battery life is one of the shortest among the competition.
It scored particularly high for sound, and for its performance as a portable media hub, thanks to its HDMI and Bluetooth 4.2 connectivity.
In addition, the Stream comes with a few cool accessories, including a USB headset and a USB memory card, so you’ll always have something to connect.
If the Stream’s 1080p display isn’t for you, HP also offers a Stream 13 and Stream 15 with 1080p displays, which are also great choices.
2. Dell Inspiron 14 5420 14 inch (Best Laptops for computer science students on a budget):
The Inspiron 14 could be the best student laptop on the market. It loads apps faster, and its screen is brighter and sharper than most of its competition.
The built-in subwoofer offers better sound than many of them, and it’s more spacious than the 13-inch laptops that typically dominate the budget end of the category.
It’s also a great value:
The 14-inch model we reviewed has a slightly slower processor, less memory, and a solid-state drive instead of a mechanical drive, but if you were to upgrade the RAM, you could probably get a reasonably powerful laptop for the price of the Inspiron 14.
We ran into an occasional touch problem, but the machine’s accuracy did improve over time.
Our only real complaints are that the speakers can get a little underpowered at times, and that the battery doesn’t last as long as we would like.
3. Microsoft 12.4 Multi-Touch Surface Laptop Go:
The Surface Pro Go is the successor to the Surface 3, but like its bigger sibling, the Surface Pro Go is my first experience with Microsoft’s Surface line of PCs.
Microsoft claims this is the smallest (and lightest) Surface yet, and measuring in at just 0.35 inches thick and weighing only 1.3 pounds, it lives up to the bold claim. The Surface Pro Go comes in a variety of colors, including our tested rose-gold model.
The design language is clean and modern, like its siblings, with a black bezel and a silver body.
The Surface Pro Go includes the same basic set of ports: a Surface Connect port for charging, a 3.5-mm headphone jack, two USB-C ports, a Surface Type Cover USB port, and a microSD card slot.
However, the Surface Pro Go lacks a USB 3.0 port, which may be disappointing to some. The stylus, like the other Surface Pro models, is not included so you’ll have to pick up Microsoft’s newest model separately.
The stylus, which magnetically snaps onto the Surface Pro Go, is a nice touch, and it can be used with the included Type Cover.
The stylus has a comfortable, weighted feel and will work on both Windows 10 and the Microsoft Store apps. Microsoft’s Surface Pro Go is the best of the Surface line I’ve tried so far.
The Surface Pro Go is versatile, powerful, and usable for all of its intended spaces (whether home, office, or travel).
At this price, it’s slightly more expensive than the Surface 3, but Microsoft’s latest model offers more power and more capabilities, making it worth the extra investment.
4. ASUS Student Laptop:
The ASUS ROG Strix Hero II Laptop is a Best Laptops for computer science students on a budget who need a basic laptop that will last them for years to come.
With a durable design, long-lasting battery, and high-end performance, it’s a great choice for students at an affordable price. It’s got a great screen, decent speakers, and a responsive trackpad, and the gaming experience is decent.
Students will also appreciate that the ASUS ROG Strix Hero II Laptop is easy on battery life, and it has a long enough battery life to last through an entire school day.
Students will also appreciate that the ASUS ROG Strix Hero II Laptop is easy to type on, and the backlit keyboard is responsive.
This laptop might not have the performance to match that of the ASUS ROG Zephyrus or the Dell Inspiron 15 7000, but it more than makes up for it with its long-lasting battery, durable design, and premium feel. At just this price range, this is also one of the best deals we’ve seen so far.
5. HP 14 Laptop, AMD Ryzen 5 5500U, 8 GB RAM:
The HP 14-inch Laptop delivers strong performance and battery life, and it has a modern look that’s ideal for business users.
Like our previous pick, the HP 14-5000, our top pick, this laptop also runs cool and quiet, thanks to a tool-free design. (We’d still recommend a cooling pad, though.)
The 1080p display, however, is brighter than the one on the HP 14-5000, and the screen adjustment buttons are located on the back, making them more difficult to access during use.
And although it has more memory and storage than the HP 14-5000, we found the SSD to be significantly faster in real-world tests.
The keyboard and trackpad are also slightly smaller than those on the HP 14-5000; we measured 1.1 to 1.11 inches, respectively.
The 14-fq1025nr’s speakers are louder and clearer than those on the HP 14-5000, but they aren’t as loud.
The 14-fq1025nr also has slightly slower Wi-Fi performance and lower light output, however, which can make it feel like a noisier machine than the HP 14-5000.
And some of the ports, such as HDMI, are located on the rear, making them more difficult to access.
6. Acer Aspire 5 A515-56-702V Laptop:
The Acer Aspire 5 laptop is a well-rounded portable PC that can perform well with business or casual tasks.
The 15.6-inch screen has a resolution of 1920 x 1080, which is good for watching movies or playing games, and its wide viewing angle supports entertainment for a group of friends.
The processor provides extra power for multitasking, and its graphics card performed well on resource-intensive games.
The 512GB SSD is very fast for transferring files. For connectivity, it has 1 USB 3.2 (Type-C) port, 2 USB 3.2, 1 USB 2.0 ports, and 1 HDMI port.
A 2-cell 56Whr battery gives this computer 8 hours and 30 minutes of battery life, which is very good for a 15.6-inch laptop.
7. 2022 Newest HP Laptop with Microsoft Office Included 1-Year:
The HP 15.6″ Laptop with Microsoft Office, AMD Athlon 3050U 16GB RAM 1TB SSD HDMI Port Webcam Gold White Windows 11 is a great laptop for a college student who needs an affordable machine that can meet most needs.
The Windows 10 operating system is easy to install and navigate, and the 1TB hard drive provides plenty of space for all your files and programs.
The laptop features a 15.6″ high definition widescreen LED-backlit display with a resolution of HD 1366 x 768 pixels, which makes for great 1080p video streaming.
It also includes a webcam and microphone, so you can easily communicate with friends and family, as well as stream video to YouTube and other social media sites.
The 4 GB DDR4 RAM memory means you can run multiple programs at the same time without slowing down your computer.
The included Microsoft Office Home 2016 Edition includes Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, Access and Skype for Business, so you can stay connected and productive at work or at home.
The AMD Athlon 3050U processor with 2.3 GHz base clock, up to 3.2 GHz max boost clock, 4 MB L3 cache, 2 cores, and VGA V-Core enable smooth and responsive multitasking.
Need a little extra power? Simply use the AMD Turbo Core Technology feature to increase processor performance on demand. And the built-in AMD Radeon R7 graphics with up to 200 stream processors delivers beautiful visuals and seamless gameplay.
The laptop is equipped with an AMD Athlon 3050U processor, a 16 GB DDR4 RAM memory, a 1TB hard drive and a 1.3 megapixel webcam. This laptop is great for multitasking, with more than enough RAM memory.
The 1TB hard drive provides plenty of space for your files and important data, and you can also upgrade to 2TB of hard drive storage. The AMD Athlon 3050U processor and AMD Radeon R7 graphics ensure fast and responsive performance.
The HP 15.6″ Laptop with Microsoft Office, AMD Athlon 3050U 16GB RAM 1TB SSD HDMI Port Webcam Gold White Windows 11 is great for college students who need an affordable laptop that can meet most needs.
8. HP Laptops for College Student & Business:
Our top pick for laptop buyers, the HP Omen x360 15t, has been updated with a more efficient processor and faster RAM.
As expected, this laptop is faster than the previous model in every way, but it also has better battery life, so it’s great for school or work.
The Omen x360 15t comes with 16GB of RAM, which puts it ahead of the competition, and better battery life, which is great for working all day.
The 15.6-inch IPS display is bright and crisp, and the 180-degree hinge makes it easy to adjust, so you can view the screen from multiple angles.
This laptop also has two USB 3.1 ports and USB charging, two USB-C ports and an HDMI out port, so you can easily connect all of your peripherals.
9. 2022 ASUS 14″ Thin Light Business Student Laptop Computer:
The ASUS 2022 is a quality laptop for the money. It comes with a 14-inch display and a decent processor, as well as 4GB of memory and 64GB of storage space.
The input selection is extensive, with HDMI, VGA, and three other USB inputs. The speakers are loud, and the laptop lasted for 12 hours in our tests.
As for the Bluetooth implementation, it’s a bit clunky, but it’s loud enough to let you hear audio from other devices or headphones.
If your needs are less demanding, this laptop will probably be more than enough.
10. 2022 Newest HP 15.6″ HD Light-Weight Laptop for Home use and Student:
The HP 15.6-inch laptop has a bright, clear full HD display, and it’s a solid performer with an Intel Core i5 processor.
It’s also quite light, weighing in at only 3.7 pounds and measuring just 0.7 inch thick, and it has a nearly full-size keyboard and a comfortable trackpad.
But the HP 15.6 lacks USB 3.0 ports and Thunderbolt 3, and the extra RAM is not upgradeable. The Bang & Olufsen speakers sound good, however, and they’re plenty loud enough to fill a midsize room.
For the money, it’s hard to find a laptop with 512GB of storage, but HP throws in a one-year subscription to Microsoft Office 365 Personal, which makes it easy to create and share documents.
The Lenovo ThinkPad P52s (our current Editors’ Choice) is a little heavier at 4.2 pounds and 0.8 inch thick, but it has a faster Core i7 processor, double the RAM, a USB 3.0 port, and a Thunderbolt 3.
What to look for in a Best Laptops For Computer Science Students?
When you’re looking to buy a new laptop, you need to put a lot of thought into it.
You don’t want to just pick up the cheapest one because you’ll end up regretting it. Instead, you need to focus on finding a quality laptop that will offer you the processing power and the visual quality that you need.
Here’s what to look for in a laptop:
Processor:
When it comes to the processor, you want to focus on speed, not size. You want a laptop that will offer enough processing power to complete all of your projects – which could potentially take hours.
You also want to make sure that the processor isn’t on its last legs because it could fail in the middle of your project and cause you to lose all of your work.
Screen resolution:
When you’re working with complex algorithms and formulas, you need to have a laptop with a screen resolution of at least 1280 x 800.
Higher resolutions will give you a better visual quality; plus, they can help reduce eye strain when you’re staring at a computer screen all day.
Memory:
The memory in your laptop is important, too. The more memory that you have, the more RAM (random access memory) you’ll have for running applications.
Your laptop should have at least 2GB of RAM, and you should also look for a laptop with SSD (solid-state drive) memory, which will offer faster performance than standard hard drives.
Tips on choosing a laptop for computer science students.
When it comes to choosing a suitable laptop for computer science students, there are many options to choose from. However, not all laptops are suitable, and these are five tips to help you choose the right one.
Big screen:
Every student wishes for a big monitor. Laptops with big monitors are convenient, as they have a wider area to view their programs, applications, and notes. This makes them super convenient for students.
Long battery life:
Most students are on the go. They sit in various classrooms or libraries and need to take their laptops with them. Laptops with long battery life provide convenience, as they can continue working for long hours, without charging them.
Faster processor:
Faster laptops are more convenient. They can handle huge programs, applications, and tasks, which are convenient for the students.
Lightweight:
Light laptops are convenient, as they can be carried from one place to another. This can be super convenient, especially for when students need to travel from the vehicle to the classroom.
Price:
Students need affordable laptops. They need to fit their tight budget, while still getting the super features.
Conclusion:
There are many great laptops on the market for computer science students. When choosing a Best Laptops For Computer Science Students for this purpose, it is important to consider the specs that are most important to you.
Some of the most important specs to consider include the processor, the amount of RAM, the size of the hard drive, and the graphics card.
After considering all of these factors, the best laptops for computer science students are the ones that have a high-end processor, a lot of RAM, a large hard drive, and a powerful graphics card.
If you are looking for a laptop that falls into this category, the Dell XPS 15 is a great option. It has a powerful 6th generation Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive, and a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M graphics card.
Another great option for a laptop for computer science students is the Microsoft Surface Book. It has a 6th generation Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB hard drive, and a NVIDIA GeForce 940M graphics card.
