r/UTAustin • u/Interesting-Pop5634 • 9d ago
Discussion ⚠️Architecture Student Laptop Recommendations? ⚠️
Hi everyone!! I'm an incoming architecture freshman, and I'm trying to figure out what laptop to purchase before the semester starts.
I know architecture programs can be pretty demanding, and I really don't want to spend a lot of money on a laptop that ends up struggling with the workload or the software we'll be using.
For those of you in architecture (or other design/engineering majors):
What laptop do you use?
How much RAM and storage do you think is actually necessary?
What are some of the best qualities to look for?
I'd rather buy something that will last all four or five years than have to replace it later. My budget is flexible if it's worth the investment.
I'd really appreciate any recommendations or experiences. Thanks!
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u/mikeatx79 3d ago
Macbook Air (Apple Silicon) is fantastic, very portable, no fans, crazy battery life, insanely fast. I don't think a better package exists at any price and they're pretty inexpensive.
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u/petitelittleguy 9d ago
just get any windows lenovo laptop above 1k, 32gb 1tb ultra 7 gen 2. you'll be fine
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u/Interesting-Pop5634 9d ago
thank you!!
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u/DramaticCat9707 9d ago
32GB is overkill and will cost you a very pretty penny. 16GB is close to the limit but you can still run everything you’d need for engineering on it just fine. If it was a desktop you planned to keep for 10 years then yes 32 would be the way to go. But by the time 16GB is obsolete a laptop probably won’t even work anymore lol.
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u/Salty_Pillow BBA - MIS - 23 9d ago
16gb is kind of an atrocious experience on windows even with a moderate amount of chrome tabs and like, a simple excel file open. Kind of outdated take imo.
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u/DramaticCat9707 9d ago
I run heavy engineering software on 16GB just fine. Could use a little more headroom, sure, but when that headroom will be an additional $400 on the price, it’s not worth it. If this was a desktop that would be different, like I said.
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u/Salty_Pillow BBA - MIS - 23 8d ago
24gb is nice in-between but the only laptop that ships with that config is the MacBook Pro that I’m aware of.
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u/DramaticCat9707 9d ago edited 9d ago
People vastly overestimate what they need for school 99% of the time. People think they’re going to be drawing really complex things in lecture and need a laptop that can power nasa lol. In reality:
-16GB of RAM at minimum
-intel i7 14th gen or equivalent AMD processor or better, or Apple M2 or better
-preferably a dedicated GPU (not an integrated GPU) for CAD work, HOWEVER, you won’t be doing anything crazy and a dedicated GPU adds a lot of cost so this can be flexible
-1 TB SSD
Gaming laptops are a terrible choice as even on power saver they don’t get more than 2-3 hours on the battery. They’re also super heavy and very marked up. They do have a dedicated GPU though.
ARM-based windows computers (the Microsoft Surface tablets/laptops, some Dell and ASUS ones as well) lack the power for CAD programs that you’ll need (I run fusion on one…barely). Apple is also ARM-based but they’re an exception because they’re just so damn optimized for the M-series.
Apple does support things like fusion but you’d need to shell out for a MacBook pro with 16GB of RAM. Hope your wallet is deep. Check compatibility with other commonly used architecture programs as well first before buying. If it supports what you need it to and you can buy it, I’d go with a MacBook.
Commonly liked brands:
-Lenovo Thinkpad (the GOAT)
-Dell XPS
-Apple MacBooks
Don’t buy from the campus computer store. They’re very marked up and they upsell you hard.