Looking for a Laptop for University - Budget $2,000

Lsombreserotonin on 11/12/2023 - 16:34
Last edited 11/12/2023 - 16:43 by 1 other user

Hey All! I'm currently looking for a laptop for university, as my old one conked out.

I'm looking around the $2000 budget, and I'd like to continue using it after university is over. I do quite a lot of Virtual Machine intensive work and code compiling, so something with a decent CPU is preferred. RAM would nice too, though as long as it is socketed I don't mind as I can upgrade it later.

I'm currently looking at this laptop on sale from Lenovo as it seems to be pretty decent. RAM is soldered, but it's already at 32GB.

Any other suggestions before I pull the trigger?

Thanks!

Computing Computer Laptop

Comments

  • FoxJump on 11/12/2023 - 17:04

    OLED is unnecessary for your needs.
    Adds cost, reduces battery life, adds burn-in (eventually)

  • Gamer Dad Reviews on 11/12/2023 - 17:11

    I have that laptop and I love it. I won't ever buy another non-OLED screen of any description - for any device - ever.
    Once you go true black - you never go back.
    My current list of OLED panels:
    Lenovo Legion 5 Slim 15 laptop
    Alienware AW3423DWF
    iPhone 13 Pro Max
    Motorola Moto G84
    Lenovo XiaoXin Pad Pro 2022
    LG CX55 OLED TV

    Always on the lookout to pick up more OLED screens, for any purpose. OLED is a game changer. Any other screen tech is dead to me. I can't wait to replace my Dell S2721DGF flank monitors with 27 inch OLEDs one day when the price comes down, and upgrade my 55 inch OLED CX TV with a 65 inch LG G4 or something.

    Regarding the laptop - for gaming it is excellent.
    Spiderman Remastered with Max Raytracing Very High details at native 1800p is smooth all-day thanks to DLSS 3.
    The extra SSD slot will be populated tomorrow thanks to this deal from last week -> https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/819098

    The GPU might come in handy for you if you ever try your hand at ML/AI. the RTX 4060 has the full 8GB of RAM, just like the 4070, so you're not missing out there.

  • JamesGreat on 11/12/2023 - 17:13

    Do you have any ideas if the rooms you will be in will have power points because it's going to be painful running virtual machines on a laptop, draining the battery whilst it gets painfully warm. A lot of the rooms still don't have power points. Even more modern campuses such as business building at usyd doesn't have powerpoints within the rooms because of the way the rooms are setup. It's not in a standard auditorium style and even those might not even have power where you are sitting.

    Would recommend going for something with a larger battery and low power consumption for portable use, and remote into another dedicated computer at home for VMs working remotely.

    I wouldn't get anything with a decent CPU as that burns through your battery, even on power save, and you'll hate it when you are doing an exam and it suddenly turns off, as some exams will allow typing but you cannot plug into powerpoints. I saw a few people's laptops suddenly turn off because of this.

    Think ahead.

    Apparently your model listed only has a capacity around 2 hours, or 45 minutes on gaming mode? Don't take that one into an exam. You'll kick yourself. Although, I believe you can get more time if you switch to igpu mode only, but I'm not 100% sure that is available.

    • Gamer Dad Reviews on 11/12/2023 - 17:21

      Meh just carry a couple of these -> https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/815804
      Battery capacity is really no biggie - however according the Jarrod Tech - the Lenovo Legion 5 Slim 14 has better battery endurance than all other comparable Laptops (i.e. slim gaming laptops with RTX 4060)

      • JamesGreat on 11/12/2023 - 17:24
        -1

        Jarrod Tech isn't accurate, just checking online for battery complaints you will find that guy mentioned a lot.

        https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/Gaming-Laptops/Quick-Battery-Dr…
        https://www.reddit.com/r/LenovoLegion/comments/16g7jws/legio…

        I'm pretty sure it's a similar model.

        Maybe, it's just poor quality control. It would make sense though that the dedicated GPU would burn through the battery even on low settings.

        • Gamer Dad Reviews on 11/12/2023 - 17:25

          Nope - those refer to the Legion 5 Slim 16.

          • JamesGreat on 11/12/2023 - 17:27

            @Gamer Dad Reviews: Same CPU though, and the GPU here is a lower RTX 4060….

            Might save some power, but it's probably just as bad. In general I find these gaming laptops have very poor battery life.

            e.g. From comments

            I bought this computer to work and occasionally game and makes it almost impossible to use it for work with a 2 hour battery span. I'm really starting to consider just taking it back and getting something else that lasts as long as it's advertised.

            That guy is just using it for work (I assume it is basic stuff)… lol.

            Gaming laptop for university, that's just going to end in tears…

            Here is another comparable one, with same specs.

            https://www.reddit.com/r/LenovoLegion/comments/156kfoa/final…

            I am not sure if the comments there are real, lol, move the mouse a little and it goes down to 2 hours.

            There's a lot that goes into moving the mouse. Mainly its the GPU (be it iGPU or dGPU) plus there are a bunch of "mouse enter" events, calculations determining what is under the mouse, checking to see if there are "hover" actions on whatever the mouse is.

    • FoxJump on 11/12/2023 - 18:04

      I also +1 the "remote bigger machine at home" and use laptops as a "disposable" low power device.
      Clearly doesnt work when gaming, unless you're gaming direct on the "bigger machine at home"

      • sombreserotonin on 11/12/2023 - 22:40

        I definitely could remote into my home desktop, I've got a pretty decent 9900KS + 4090 rig.
        Main issue is I'm worried about internet issues when connecting to it, or if my rig crashes at home I have no way to restart it without being there. The VM's would be stored there locally too, so then I'm SOL as I won't have them on my laptop.

    • sombreserotonin on 11/12/2023 - 22:38

      Battery life isn't an issue as far as I can tell, every room I've been in for tests and labs have always had powerpoints for us to use.

    • sombreserotonin on 11/12/2023 - 22:40

      I definitely could remote into my home desktop, I've got a pretty decent 9900KS + 4090 rig.
      Main issue is I'm worried about internet issues when connecting to it, or if my rig crashes at home I have no way to restart it without being there. The VM's would be stored there locally too, so then I'm SOL as I won't have them on my laptop.

      • kiitos on 12/12/2023 - 01:02

        O guess then it comes down to where will you be working most time working with the VMs? If you'll be working with them on the PC then it makes sense to keep them there?

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