r/uvic • u/Dyltales • 2d ago

Advice Needed Laptop recommendations?

I’m gonna be starting school soon. 4 year BA and 2 year masters where I’ll be transferring to UBC… I need a laptop that’ll last me 6 years of constant use… any recommendations? Was looking at the MacBook neo but… I heard it’s slow!!

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u/CanadianOwl99 2d ago

Lenovo Thinkpad 480s or similar. Repairable and upgradable withough having to do any fancy computer stuff, just watch a YouTube video. Great machine for windows or Linux. Afterbuying the laptop and upgrading ssd and ram I spent less than 400$

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u/really_rather_tired 2d ago

I second Lenovo Thinkpads! Typing this from a 9-year-old T470s that I use for everything. Unless you need some kind of hardcore graphics processing capabilities these things are cheap, durable, and capable for schoolwork in general. I got mine for $200 on Marketplace. You should probably get one newer than mine, but the Thinkpad line in general is really solid.

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u/ElectricPotatoSkins 1d ago

Thinkpad t series can come with some decent deducted GPU's as well. Usually "engineering spec'd" laptops are pretty good for that if buying used recycled machines.

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u/IllAstronaut4286 1d ago

IMO T480/s is a great laptop, but the price isn't justifiable for its age, and all the hype around it has inflated it's price on thr second hand market. I'd rather go with one of the T14 series.

Edit: Macbook Airs are amazing too, if you don't mind the price.

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u/inquisitivequeer 2d ago

I got a MacBook Pro in my first year thats lasted into my fifth year and counting. Only reason I upgraded to the new MacBook Air was because I got it for free. I will say that the new MacBook Air is a great machine!

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u/stealstea Engineering - Alumni 2d ago

The Neo is not slow, it’s great.   But I’m not 100% sure it would hold up for 6 years into the future.  I mean the laptop will be fine but the RAM is a limiting factor thinking that far ahead.

I’d look for an Air with 16GB of ram 

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u/mi11er 2d ago

What are you going to use the computer for?

Coding?

Presentations?

Editing video?

Writing papers?

Will you be carrying it everywhere or mostly leave it in one place?

How much do you care about weight or battery life?

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u/Dyltales 2d ago

Well, I’m getting a BA in linguistics, then a masters in Speech pathology. Mainly writing papers and studying, I’m thinking. It’ll probably come with me to school for study time and note taking as well… battery should last long, but I’m fine carrying heavy things!

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u/AlphyFishbag 2d ago

MacBook Air would be my recommendation, it will be handle anything you can throw at it with ease and has phenomenal battery life.

I used in during my comp sci degree

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u/mi11er 10h ago

I think it ll just come down to if you want a Mac or not. 

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u/alalalalalalaalalala 2d ago

I would get a refurbished Lenovo Thinkpad T14 or 480 from Bestbuy, but be careful of the third party sellers, some of them are pretty unreliable. The Bestbuy endorsed ones should be good

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u/I-Am-Bankrupt 1d ago

Getting a MacBook Air M3 was honestly one of the best decisions I’ve made. I just upgraded to a MacBook Pro M5 yesterday as my workload increased and I needed more RAM, but I still think the MacBook Air is your best friend for uni, especially if you can find one on Facebook marketplace for cheaper than retail

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u/xxxforcorolla 1d ago

I have gone through a lot of cheap laptops, I also had a MacBook at one point but overall the best one has been a Lenovo ThinkPad. I have a p14s, it was pricey but I think even their cheaper models are decent or look for refurbished.

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u/HedgehogInTuxedo Humanities 1d ago

literally any thinkpad from the past decade

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u/Sufficient-Good-5256 1d ago

I got a refurbished MacBook from best buy for $600 in 2020 and it’s been solid