Buying a computer for college? We don’t require it, but many students opt to buy their own laptop. The table below contains information related to four laptops we would recommend. There’s a whole world of other laptops out there; this is just a slimmed down list with four we would recommend.
Several of the software titles used in Engineering classes are available for install on your computer, but not all. For those we can’t offer, we provide remote options as well as multiple computer labs located throughout the college.
If you have any questions about specific items listed here, please don’t hesitate to Contact Us!
Criteria |
Low-End Mac
|
High-End Mac
|
Low-End PC
|
High-End PC
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Apple | Apple | Lenovo** | Lenovo** |
| Model | MacBook Air | MacBook Pro | ThinkPad X230 | ThinkPad W530 |
| Processor | 2.0 Ghz Intel Core i7 | 2.6 Ghz Intel Core i7 | 2.5 Ghz Intel Core i5 | 2.6 Ghz Intel Core i7 |
| Cores | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| Memory | 4 GB | 8 GB | 4 GB | 8 GB |
| Hard Drive | 256 GB SSD | 750 GB | 320 GB | 500 GB |
| GPU | Intel HD 4000 | Nvidia GT 650M | Intel HD 4000 | Nvidia Quadro K1000M |
| VRAM | 384 MB Shared | 1 GB | 384 MB Shared | 2 GB |
| Vendor Certified GPU | No | No | No | Yes* |
| Optical Drive | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Screen Size | 13″ | 15.4″ | 12.5″ | 15.6″ |
| Screen Resolution | 1440×900 | 1680×1050 | 1366×768 | 1920×1080 |
| Weight | ~3 lbs | ~6 lbs | ~3.5 lbs | ~6 lbs |
| Warranty*** | 3 Year | 3 Year | 3 Year | 3 Year |
| Application Compatibility | Low | High | Low | High |
| Total Price | $1722 | $2373 | $1153 | $1900 |
| Operating System | Mac OS X Mountain Lion | Mac OS X Mountain Lion | Windows 7 Professional x64**** | Windows 7 Professional x64**** |
*The graphics card in this laptop is fully certified to work with all software utilized in the College of Engineering.
**Any PC with equivalent specifications will work, Lenovo is just our preferred vendor.
***Please note that the 3 year warranty is what contributes to the higher price for our laptop recommendations. It is recommended to have a 3 year warranty, but not required.
****Windows 8 has not been fully certified with all our Engineering software, but internal testing has not identified any major problems.
Education Discounts
- ISU faculty, staff, and students have access to education discounts on Dell and Apple computers purchased via Tech Cyte.