Computers and Monitors
Mac or Windows?
If your major uses Solidworks or Inventor software, such as most engineering majors, you should buy a laptop with windows on it. Although dual-booting is possible, it is far slower and more problematic than just having Windows 10. (I'm not so sure about this; see Talk:Computers and Monitors)
Intel Processors
When you see "Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor", the numbers and letters are actually codes for basic information about the processor. There are four generations of Intel processors: i3, i5, i7, and i9. Most laptops under $1000 will have i5 or i7 processors, with high level laptops having the newer i9 processors. Although there are a few i5 processors that are faster than some i7 processors, generally, i7 processors are faster than i5 processors. The next two numbers in the label (11 in this case) are the generation of the processor. The newest generation is the 11th generation, which is kind of like buying an iPhone 12. Most cheaper laptops that college students will buy have 9th or 10th generation processors in them, but make sure to not buy an 8th gen processor (comparable to an iPhone 7), as they are mostly outdated. The next numbers are called "SKU Numeric Digits", which are basically numbers assigned to processors as they are produced, with the higher number being better. After the numeric digits, the processor title will either say G1 to G7 or a letter; please consult the following chart from Intel(Source 1) to understand what the suffix means.
| Suffix | Meaning |
|---|---|
| G1-G7 | Graphics level, G1 being the lowest, G7 is the highest |
| E | Embedded |
| F | Requires discrete graphics |
| G | Includes discrete graphics on package |
| H | High performance optimized for mobile |
| HK | High performance optimized for mobile, unlocked |
| HQ | High performance optimized for mobile, quad core |
| K | Unlocked |
| S | Special edition |
| T | Power-optimized lifestyle |
| U | Mobile power efficient |
| Y | Mobile extremely low power |
| X/XE | Unlocked, High End |
NVIDIA Graphics Cards
If you are an engineering major that will be using SolidWorks or Autodesk, you will need a dedicated graphics card. The main producer of graphics cards is NVIDIA, and their two main lines are GTX and RTX. There are also MX graphics cards from NVIDIA, such as the MX450, but these will struggle with most gaming and 3D Modeling programs. The GTX graphics cards are the cheaper of the lines, which are usually in laptops around $1000, and the RTX are the top-of-the-line cards, which usually are overkill for most gaming and 3D modelling applications. GTX graphics cards are arranged by numbers, with the larger number equaling a better graphics card.
RAM
If you plan to use your laptop for 2-3 years, get 8GB or 12GB of RAM. After that, you may need to upgrade your RAM to 16GB, especially if you multitask (Solidworks/Matlab and Chrome). On the other hand, if you plan to use your laptop for 4-5 years, get 16GB of RAM. Upgrading RAM in a desktop computer is extremely easy: just remove the old RAM sticks and insert the new ones. Upgrading the RAM in a laptop is more complicated, as the RAM is sometimes below the keyboard, causing you to have to remove the entire board. Basically, upgrading your RAM is easy, provided you have an easily upgradable laptop. Some higher-end laptops have 32GB of RAM, but this is overkill for most of today's applications.
The one exception to this rule is for Computer Science majors. It is effectively required to get 16 GB of RAM if you are planning to get a new machine, because you will most likely be running at least one VM for either a class or a club, and good VM performance is highly dependent the amount of RAM allocated to the virtual machine.
SSD or HDD
A solid state drive, or SSD, is a drive with no moving parts. Thus, it is usually faster and quieter than its counterpart, the HDD (hard disk drive). Most laptops either come with a 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB drive. Most people opt to purchase a laptop with 512GB or 1TB of storage, so they have enough room for files, games, and programs.
Sources
1. https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/processors/processor-numbers.html
