What computer is best for a college student?

That would depend on your couse of studt, school support capabilities, other student computers, and computers used by professors. You will be working collaboratively on projects with other students and submitting data to professors. You want to be 100% compatible. Call the school and ask the dean of the college you'll be attending what they recommend for your course of study.

It is really hard to answer more definitively without knowing what course of study you plan to pursue.

Regardless, as neither storage nor RAM can be upgraded in a Mac notebook computer after purchase, buy what you may need in the next 2-3 years NOW. That will make it more expensive, but will keep you out of a very larger group of posters here who did not plan ahead and have buyers' remorse.

claudiadilima wrote:

My major is unknown as of right now. The university I will be attending is not like an Ivy League or anything, so there will not be an insane amount of work that I'll need, mostly just for taking notes and writing papers, so how much space would you recommend?

The important thing, in order to have a computer that you'll be able to update for the longest amount of time is RAM (working memory for programs). Buy the computer that has as much as you can afford. I've never heard of anyone regretting getting more RAM.

As stated before, Air works for people who just take notes and write papers. Also smaller, lighter and less expensive. Still get a little more RAM and storage (SSD) than you "think is exactly enough for now, just to save a few $$ now" because it should be able to last 4 years (and longer) and the papers might be longer (and the software more complex) during senior year.

Still, the department heads I think would have some advice for you on this matter.

What is "best" for you will depend on your needs and budget. If you're planning on studying graphic design or video editing, your needs will be different that someone who is studying English Lit. You also may prioritize ease of transport over screen size or vice versa.

Buy the newest model with the most memory that you can afford. Anything else is personal preference. You may want to wait until you get to college as your college may have discount programs.

I'll try again, call the school and ask them for their recommendation. Any Mac computer will be capable of writing a paper. But there may be school, compatibility, course requirement, or other considerations.

If you run the battery dead every day, the battery will be toast within months. If you drop it often, it will die early. If you use it on your lap or on a blanket it can overheat and die.

If you treat it right, regardless of "Pro" or "Air", it should last your entire collegiate time.

Now ... as to "what to buy?" ... find out if your major will be "thinking based" (english literature, art history) or "compute based" (architecture, programming, engineering). Then we can advise you better.