Bringing a laptop in for repair: what to expect
Backups, passwords, quotes and timings: how our service bench handles your machine from drop-off to pickup.
Choosing a laptop for college
What engineering, design and commerce students need, how much to spend, and what to skip.
Every year from June to August our counter fills with students and parents buying a first laptop for college. The right laptop depends mostly on the course, and the most expensive one is rarely necessary.
For commerce, arts and most science courses, the work is documents, spreadsheets, presentations, online classes and a browser full of tabs. A thin-and-light laptop with 16 GB of RAM, a 512 GB SSD and a battery that lasts a full college day is plenty. Expect to spend ₹38,990 to ₹55,000.
Engineering students need more processing power for coding, simulation and CAD in later years. Look for a recent six- or eight-core processor, 16 GB of RAM that can be upgraded to 32 GB, and a full-size keyboard. Mechanical and civil students using 3D software benefit from a dedicated graphics card. This usually means ₹60,000 to ₹85,000. Design, architecture and media students need a colour-accurate screen and a graphics card for rendering and video. Check the course software list before buying. Budget ₹80,000 and up.
Whatever the course, weight matters if it will be carried every day; under 1.5 kg is comfortable. A backlit keyboard helps in hostels. Skip extended warranties sold as add-ons with many conditions, and fancy touchscreens unless the course needs them. Show a college ID at our store and we add a backpack, a year of on-site service and installation of course software free.
