Budget laptop for a fledgling programmer?

Brian Kozik · May 28, 2013

I'm a high school student who just started programming a couple months ago. I've been using my family's computer but I want my own laptop to program on and do schoolwork, as well as watching movies and light gaming.
Budget: <650 dollars
Screen size, resolution: 15 inces +-1 inch, at least 720p
CPU: idk... 2.5GhZ i5 Sandy Bridge? I need help with this one. I want a fast CPU, but I don't want to pay 200$ extra for an i7 that I don't need
Uses: programming in Java, C, C++, web languages, Python; watching videos/movies; working on schoolwork (word processing, powerpoints, etc); light gaming
Battery life: Above 3 hours? I'll be plugged in most of the time so this isn't big.
Brands: ?
Thickness: under 1.5 inches
Hard drive: don't care about speed, at least 500 GB
Ram: at least 4 GB, I'd like 8 but can upgrade myself if it only has 4
OS: preferably Win8, Win7 is OK too

I would also like a nice keyboard that I could type on for several hours and a decent trackpad.
I've found a couple of laptops that meet these requirements, but they are at the very top end of my budget and aren't very popular... I'm going to buy after Haswell comes out, so hopefully the prices go down.

Thank you!

Prostar Computer · May 28, 2013

I suppose depending on how light "light gaming" is for you, you could get away with getting an i5 or i7 system with absolutely no dGPU and cut down on the cost, while still getting a great system. Also, Sandy Bridge is last gen CPUs; current is Ivy Bridge (soon to be Haswell), so if you found a system with a SB processor, you stand to save a little extra - although I think the little extra between the two would be worth it to go with an IB processor.

MSI has a model: CX61-0NF-257US - it's slightly over your budget, but only by $50 (may vary depending on the seller; ours is $699 so I'm going off that), and it is a really good value. Asus also has a few models that fit your budget, such as the K55A (there are variations of it, all of which seem to hover right around the $650 price point).

Samsung and Lenovo are good brands as well, and Samsung especially - I think with being fairly new to the laptop market - has some good value systems.

Brian Kozik · Jun 2, 2013

I looked at the MSI model, and I really like that... However, you are right in saying that it is a little out of my budget. Now that Haswell processors are out, how much do you think it will drop in price? And I was also looking at the K55A. There are several versions of this, such as the K55A-DS51, that have great specs: IB 3230 processor, 8GB ram, and a 750 HDD, that are available for around $550! However, I cannot find a single K55A with a discrete graphics card. Is it possible that there is a spot for one and I would just have to buy it myself? Because I would prefer that to the MSI. Or are there several with graphics cards that I've somehow missed? And 'light gaming' would be League of Legends, Battefield 2/3, some MMORPGS (old ones, like Star Wars: The Old Republic) at 30-60 FPS on medium/low settings, depending on how graphic intensive the game is.

Prostar Computer · Jun 3, 2013

Brian Kozik :

Yeah, you will probably need discrete graphics cards. No, the K55A does not have any MXM or proprietary slot for a VGA card, and even if it did - to be fair, those cards are flipping expensive (the mobile counterparts tend to always cost more than the desktop ones).

IB systems may have dropped some in price! You will just have to see who stocks them still. Many of ours are phased out already (our ProStar line, that is). Have you considered an AMD system? Their A8 or A10 APUs have better integrated graphics than the Intel processors (although Intel's CPU still easily outperforms the APU in overall efficiency).

Brian Kozik · Jun 3, 2013

Prostar Computer :

After looking through all of the laptops avaliable and comparing AMD vs. Intel, I've decided that I don't want to compromise the other work I'll be doing on this laptop in favor of gaming. Looking at the Intel HD 4000, it seems to be able to play a number of heavy games on low setting above 30 FPS, so I'm looking at a couple of Asus systems between 500 and 550 that have IB processors, 4-8GB of RAM, and have integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics... I've decided to buy an Ouya or similar extremely cheap, portable console in a couple of months with the savings. Thanks for all of the advice, I will definately use what you told me when I go to look for a (more expensive) laptop for college!

Prostar Computer · Jun 5, 2013

Cool! I hope whatever you go with, it treats you well and you enjoy it, Brian!

P.S. If you can swing the cost of a system with a Haswell CPU in it, their integrated graphics are much better than Ivy Bridge/3rd Gen processors from Intel.

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Budget laptop for a fledgling programmer?

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