So we’re all giving OP different suggestions in different directions. Let’s take a moment to wait for OP to respond to what’s already been suggested. This sort of help is borderline not helpful.
No need for anything flash. A modern i5 will do the job. I use an overclocked r7 at home, but work a quad core hyperthreaded i5. The only reason you would need more than a quad core is if you get into graphics and hand development. And maybe some scientific research projects in final year or post grad. But for the most part, you can use the provided computers and if that’s not enough, use AWS for the most power hungry issues
Thanks for all the suggestions. I already have a desktop, 1440p monitor, and raspberry pi for any of those needs. It doesn’t matter to me if it is running windows or Linux. The xps 15 on ebay looks like a great deal @ruffalo. The only issue is I’m not sure if 256gb will be enough. Can the storage in the xps 15 be upgraded if I end up needing more space?
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Yeah, you’ll need a torx screwdriver but other than that it’s easy. Just pop in a new m.2 NVME SSD. You could also just stick in a permanent SDcard for media storage not speed-sensitive.
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Just about any laptop will do fine depending on what your programming, if your doing programming with GPU acceleration and computation is required you will want a laptop with a discrete GPU. Otherwise I would find a laptop with these qualities:
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Good quality keyboard (my laptop has a meh keyboard and isn’t the most ideal for programming or serious typing though it does work decently well).
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A half-way decent CPU in terms of performance. I mean 8th Gen Intel CPU or AMD Ryzen Mobile APU would be ideal (though I would choose Intel for driver support) but if you can get a refurbished laptop cheap like a Dell Latitude or Lenovo Thinkpad, it will save a lot and you won’t even need $1000.
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Oh, and get a laptop with an SSD or buy a laptop for like $800 and spend additional on an SSD. Solid State Drive prices are cheap enough that you can get a 1 TB SSD for well under $200, it’s really worth the buy, especially for a laptop.
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Portability matters, it’s nice to have a good keyboard but you may or may not care for a laptop that weighs 7 lbs. Not a big deal to me personally but I was happy that my new laptop only weighs half as much though that’s about as far as I go.
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If your programming involves using the GPU much for acceleration (graphics) and/or computation, you may want a discrete GPU of some sort to program on, even if it’s a meager MX150 or RX 540. I don’t think you want Intel HD/UHD graphics slowing you down there.
I don’t have time now to search for a good laptop that fits your list. On another note are you looking to use an operating system like Linux or is Windows fine? I find Linux to be great for software development but I think Windows 10 may have stepped up their game a bit.
Yeah, there are a fair few of us who have the XPS 15, and it’s wonderful.
I popped a 970 pro into the laptop before even turning it on. It’s super easy. Just a T5 and a PH0 bits and you’re all set. Definitely worth it, and I’ll say that Linux works wonders on the non-Nvidia models, can’t speak personally to the Nvidia variants.
Some of the people who have the higher models, with the 1050, complain about temps, so you’ll definitely want to repaste it with good paste. (this actually doesn’t void warranty, we’ve checked with dell support!)
This thread might be of interest to you as well:
Even with the thermal issues, I’d still say it’s the perfect laptop, and most of the thermal issues can be solved by undervolting by -150mv. I just don’t want you to get it and wonder why we didn’t mention the heat.
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@DrewTechs I prefer windows, but I have no problem with running Linux and I may end up installing Linux on it anyway depending on what I use it for
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Stick around and you’ll be mainly Linux by the end of the year 
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I would rather have a discreet gpu than not have one because at the college I am going to, they have options to take game design classes or cybersecurity classes as part of the major. I’m more interested in cybersecurity, but I don’t take those classes until the end of sophomore year so my views could definitely change by then. If I need to change out the thermal paste, I should be able to manage that without a problem. @SgtAwesomesauce
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If you have any specific questions, I’d be happy to help, but I think that Ebay unit is a great deal. My recommendation is to snag it, or see if you can get a cyber-monday deal through Dell directly.
My only qualms with the XPS 15 is that I can’t get the 6 core without the 1050.
1050ti is more than enough for 1080p gaming, it’s a great CPU and that is a strong deal.
After looking at the ebay xps 15, it looks like it will come with a 56 wH battery, because it doesn’t have the 4k touch display. What should I expect in battery life from this model? Also, does it have an internal sata port? Since it has the smaller battery, there might be room for a full size ssd. If I added that instead of upgrading the m.2, I could keep the 256gb from the m.2 and it would be cheaper for more storage space. @SgtAwesomesauce
I think that listing is probably wrong; every 9570 with the 1050ti and no secondary hard drive are supposed to come with the 97wh battery. But since it’s on eBay it could be an unusual SKU.
Even with the 56wh battery, since it has the 1080p screen, you’ll probably get 5 hours of light normal use (no dGPU), or more like 7 or 8 watching movies.
Edit: Reading through it again, it doesn’t say it comes with the 56wh battery. It’s listing the weights for both. Since the 9570 with dGPU and no second hard drive normally comes with the 97wh battery, I wouldn’t be too concerned about it.
Edit2: This is the precise model, eb22mpseq4, on Dell’s site. Search for 97, and you will see it definitely comes with the 97wh battery.
Can confirm.
But @bobby3605, you are in college taking other courses. It might be handy to keep Windows around temporarily for the other classes, papers, etc.
The online version of Office is not all that it’s cracked up to be. And I, personally, screwed up an assignment for my group because I used LibreOffice instead of MS Office.
Use a VM. It’s only temporary.
Also, my first two semesters were in Visual Studio
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4-6ish hours is my experience on Linux. You might get slightly more on Windows.
It has internal sata. You have the following options:
- 1x M.2
- 1x SATA
- 54Wh battery
OR
- 1x M.2
- 97Wh battery
I have a 97 wh battery on its way for my 9570.
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I’d look at the XPS laptops, X1’s, and even at sombe System 76 laptops like the galago or the kudu.
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this is one of the most under rated and huge things for comp sci… having a pi plug and play scb’s saved my ass more than once
xps15 battery life tends to be crap, IMHO. Even with the 99Wh/97Wh battery it just gets not enough battery life maybe between 2 and 4 hours of browsing (e.g. compared to a few years old pre touchbar 15" MacBook Pro, or an x1 carbon, or an xps13, or a 2015 Chromebook pixel ls). If you already have a desktop for heavy lifting, I’d consider a laptop with a proper laptop chipset and no discrete GPU, that has a chance of living through your day without being plugged in. (Something using <10W when just displaying text in a browser)
I don’t think you’ll need a GPU on your laptop for game design or cyber security, there’s lots of theory to go through before you get even close to coding software meant to run on a GPU and even then it probably won’t matter as you can do so much before needing to sit on front of a machine with any kind of performance. Just buy what you need in a few years when you end up needing it.
I get 4 hours of browsing with the 54wh battery. Not sure why your battery life is so low.
But, re: the gpu thing, you’re right. I don’t think a gpu is necessary at all. Also, any opencl code can be run by a cpu.