It's that time of year again! Kids are packing up and heading off to college, and they are taking their laptops with them. According to a recent study by Student Monitor, a New Jersey-based research company, the laptop of choice for college students is Apple's Macbook.
The survey consisted of 1,200 college students from 100 different schools and 83% of those surveyed owned laptops. The most popular laptop, by far, was the Macbook. 27% of laptop-owning college students have one. 87% of the students surveyed said they plan to purchase a new laptop in the future and of those, a whopping 47% of those said they planned to purchase a Mac.
Dell laptops came in second place; 24% of the laptop-owners have one. (In 2005, Dell was the top computer brand for college students.) Hewlett-Packard laptops were third-most popular at 15% and Toshiba laptops came in fourth with 10%.
Microsoft has definitely taken notice of the laptop-owning college students' declining interest in Windows-based computers. This week, Microsoft added a new "PC vs Mac" section to its website. It talks about reasons why PCs are better than Macs, with everything from the ability to play Blu-ray discs to the ability to share Microsoft Office documents. Many of the reasons appear to be aimed at young adults.
According to the website, the top reason for choosing a PC over a Mac is "having fun." It goes on to talk about enjoying "movies, games, and HDTV from anywhere in your home," and says "PCs are ready to play." The website also says, "if most of the computers in your office or school run Windows, you may find it harder to get things done with a Mac," another obvious attempt to attract young people.
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Many students know just all too well that being able to work and study while on the go can be the difference between a failing and passing grade. College is riddled with long bus rides, waiting between classes while on campus, pop quizes, cram studying, and long lectures. Put simply, students who are without a laptop are at a huge disadvantage to those who do. Many colleges utilize online interfaces such as BlackBoard to post lectures, assign homework, post grades, have discussions with those enrolled in the class via forums, and even register for classes. Students who attend colleges which emphasize online communications are often limited to only studying either at home or in a library when not in class, and must resort to copying down all notes by hand. As a student myself, I can attest to how helpful a laptop can be when attending college. In terms of being able to study whenever I want and typing up the notes by hand, a laptop is truly an educational lifesaver.
As the school year quickly approaches and parents and students begin the crazy time-consuming job of preparing everything to head off to college, a laptop is likely at the top of the shopping list. As a college student, I can definitely say that I don’t know where I would be without my laptop. I literally use it for absolutely everything. Whether I’m taking notes in philosophy class, writing a research paper for rhetoric, or just listening to music back in my dorm room, my laptop is constantly by my side. 