I use the Surface Pro. It's technically a tablet, but it runs Window OS, and I use it with a keyboard. I forget that it's a tablet tbh. You can draw directly on the screen and run most software. No waiting for programs to be made into apps with limited functionality. That being said, I also use an iPad. Procreate is bae.

There isn't any secret hidden laptops for creatives. Just go to your local electronics store or browse through Amazon laptop section, and see what is been correctly sold. You don't need to buy an ultra gaming laptop, most mid-range laptops between ~650-950$ should suffice.

I usually get a gaming laptop when I update mine because it has the specks to keep up with my heavier art programs without making the fan sound like a jetplane.

I live in a small apartment so a laptop is better for me

Buy a used one when finances allow. Much cheaper. I’m in your same position,

I would recommend a MacBook for the colour accuracy, and the file system. (Depending on what you’re coworkers use)

My MacBook Pro can handle anything 2D I can throw at it.

Obviously for performance, it’s not the best bang for your buck. But it’s hard to beat apples colour accuracy, and screen resolution. Additionally most people who work in digital arts use Mac file system, trust me it gets old converting files.

For windows I would recommend Dell XPS, again for the screen.

For art programs at this price range I would advise you to check this laptop

laptop name | Acer Swift X --- |---- CPU | Octa core Ryzen 7 5825U GPU ‎| RTX 3050Ti Screen | 14" FHD IPS Ram | 16 GB SSD | 512 GB HDD | 0 Weight | 3.31 Lbs. Battery life | 8.5 Hrs. Pros | USB-C charging. Pros | Very light with a very powerful 8 core CPU. Pros | Great battery life and weight.

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Since you are going to use this for art programs, you are going to need high quality screen, and good CPU and GPU, and you prioritize both performance and build quality, I would recommend Acer Swift X 3050Ti because it comes with :

Specs:

• Screen: 14" Full HD 100% sRGB.
• CPU : AMD Ryzen 7 5800U
• GPU : NVIDIA RTX 3050Ti GPU
• Ram : 16GB LPDDR4X
• Storage : 512GB SSD

Why I am recommending it:

• IMO it has the perfect balance between being powerful enough for gaming on the go while also being small/lightweight/long battery enough to also usage it as a travel/college laptop, so you basically get the best of both worlds.

• Solid Build Quality: Generally built with good materials, ensuring durability.

• Long battery life, and as you mentioned it's the most important thing to you.

• Very good CPU and GPU for Clip Studio Paint .

• Lightweight as it weighs 3lbs.

If you want to explore other options check out my list of Best laptops for each budget and usage

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TLDR: PC is ok, A Mac is easier and more compatible, but go with that they’re comfortable with.

Long Story: Regardless of their chosen major in photography, and areas of interest, for better or worse, Apple is still considered the ”standard” for professional creative fields, and the school computer infrastructure is mostly that. This includes all the but one of the computer labs, creative studios, and the School’s digital print lab. And with few exceptions, most student’s either had an apple computer, or relied on the computer labs. That said, a Windows or other computer is not out of the question (especially if they’re interested in 3D rendering and animation. btw the 3d animation studio is the single windows computer lab on campus), but more often than not, when glitches happen, you/they will need for figure it out own their own.

Finally, at the end of the day, go with that they’re comfortable with using. been using Windows machines since grade school? Go with that! Is this, your home, an Apple household? go with an inexpensive MacBook. do they know how to install a linux distro? why are you asking us, ask them?! 🤣 chromebook? …no, ok this is the one time i’d give a hard No.

Hope all this helps, and congrats on your kid’s journey!

EDIT: Like what u/StatusFruit6830 said, the minimum recommended specks for Mac and PC are on MICA’s site. Link: https://mica.edu/campus-resources/technology/hardware/

A Mac is the way to go for college, doubly so for someone pursuing a career in the digital art world.

They have a far superior battery life when not being used, which is pretty vital when you are constantly switching classrooms. PCs excel at customization and are particularly good for 3D software. If digital sculpting and rendering is a serious interest, a windows machine would be the better fit. In all other cases a mac is better here.

there’s minimum suggested specs for mac and pc on the newly admitted students web page! I’m not sure if it’s started already but apple also runs student discounts in the fall for (i think) all their products

anything that is powerful enough to run an adobe suite + has usb for drives is good. i got through well with a 2022 macbook pro

I work extensively with Creative Suite in my professional life, sometimes running two programs at the same time (PS & Ai or PS & Id). I have a 2022 MacBook Air. The M2 chip is powerful and I don’t regret buying the Air over a Pro for a single second.

May isa pa pong natirang affiliate Mr. Mod u/Downtown_Owl_2420. Paki ban nalang po tnx.

Go for huawei mate d14

Okay ka na sa M1 na Mac. Either pro or air

What if you don't have the means to afford it??? You don't need a Mac to go to MassArt and if any professor says otherwise then they can purchase it for you.

Just gonna point you to a post from a bit ago where someone else asked for a laptop recommendation! Maybe you could ask what that person ended up getting! https://www.reddit.com/r/MassArt/comments/1kkfhc0/laptop_requirement/

–––––––

However, a recommendation I could give would be this Lenovo Thinkpad. With 64gb of RAM and 2TB of onboard SSD storage it seems like it will be pretty good. It's on sale and is just under $1k. https://www.amazon.com/ThinkBook-16-Gen-Touchscreen-Thunderbolt/dp/B09PNJWN6G?crid=20Y6POGQ4PQKT&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.eH2z3ApBjsl_mIwzVb-qJFWRTqf3yHsYzAdfvUvO46mWfqZrwiDK_Qjv7Udrzk99jqdZ5uF3hTlM_j9U941ffeAYPp-_VHwgZUxRcadyQ3m6iwlXh8DKa08OhaybM4sakEAyuEby46WSrNXvcXVls_Rs_gEmSl341GELOeUlXgrHfFdfbB2GQPY1ncw1zS8shZQuBlbN5ievAEENHS0wcAVSiJQ86kCmzju-7mHreXA.1GPc1yNg1L6iFIXxjw4FNKv-lMcpEagyNuZRmWnXmOc&dib_tag=se&keywords=lenovo%2Bthinkpad%2Bp16s&qid=1752605981&sprefix=lenovo%2Bthinkpad%2Bp16s%2Caps%2C111&sr=8-5&th=1

Though it has an intel i5 chip, that chip shares the amount of cores that are present in the i9. Here is a comparison of those CPUs and they both seem great: https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i9-9900K-vs-Intel-Core-i5-13420H/4028vsm2088006

64gb of RAM will do absolutely amazingly for most purposes you'll be doing. It has integrated graphics rather than a dedicated GPU but that's also common for work station laptops. I'd do a bit more research but this seems like a solid pick if you don't want to go Macbook / Mac Studio.

My Dell XPS 15 with all of the upgraded parts cost maybe a third of what the nearest macbook equivalent costs. I've had it for about 5 years now and its still running just as good if not better than most MacBook. I would definitely recommend this, especially as Dell has some pretty solid deals as you get closer to the start of the school year

I know MacBooks are kinda shit in terms of affordability, but I got an M1 air and trust me when I say MassArt is so Mac-forward it’s exhausting. If you want an easier time transferring work and have something optimized for photoshop (which if you get the good professors, you’ll be forced to use over any program..and trust me, please actually learn the program when the time comes instead of Vitoing it like most) my MacBook Air has genuinely been my lifeline here, and Airdropping files will be significantly easier and give you higher quality imagery for digital passing through the computers than emailing them to yourself or using google drive or a hardrive because the process for that is painful and long. You will not need it for foundation year imo, so save up the money over that year and buy a refurbished one even

Comp Sci Major here. Any kind of laptop is fine as long as it can run Microsoft office programs (words,ppt,etc). The only constraint for comp sci is that PC is often preferred because we code but for Global Studies, mac or pc, anything that can run internet browser and words would be fine.

if money is no object, go with what you prefer/what will work for you (sounds like mac). personally i think a PC is much better but it doesn't really matter too much as long as it can do everything you'll need (run office/word processing programs, internet browsing, long-ish battery life)

If I were you I would prioritize having a laptop with an SSD and good battery life (you probably won't be near an outlet in most of your lecture halls).

If you like Apple and have the budget I would recommend the new MacBook Air. It has amazing battery life and is probably the best laptop in It's class. Apple usually runs student deals in August/September as well.

Coming from an ArtSci student, either or, doesn’t matter. Needs to be able to run MS Office, Zoom, exam proctoring software and maybe if you take a Stats course, whatever program they recommend. I have a 2020 Intel MacBook Air and I can attest that the thermals suck - but required programs do run on it quite decently. If you go with Mac, there’s an Education Discount (I believe I got like $100 off and it came to $1500 all in). Not jumping on M1 train yet, I want to see bugs ironed out.

If money is of concern: PC If not: get either, they both run necessary programs

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You want to have a good amount of RAM to prevent lag.

I'm using a Lenovo Legion Y530. It's a mid-range gaming laptop which is able to handle my heavy use on multiple graphic programs. I use Autocad, Sketchup, Photoshop and Illustrator regularly; as well as Blender, Adobe Premiere, and After Effects sometimes. I've had it for more than a year already and I haven't upgraded since I don't really feel the need yet (*and I'm kinda tight on budget rn) but it has 2 memory slots for RAM which you can upgrade to 32gb (16gb each slot). And apparently, HDD/SSD are replaceable too so I'm very satisfied with my purchase then.

Since you prefer a small screen size, I would recommend Acer Swift X because it comes with everything you need, Intel Core Ultra 7 Processor 155H CPU which is one of the best in your budget, 16GB of ram for smooth multitasking, good SSD storage of 1TB for faster boot up and loading, 14.5" OLED 2880 x 1800 120Hz screen which is a must have for this price range, Wi-Fi 6,NVIDIA RTX 4060 Laptop GPU, high build quality, and backlit keyboard.

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Oops forgot questionnaire

• Total budget (in local currency) and country of purchase. Please do not use USD unless purchasing in the US:

Under $1000 USD, though willing to go up to $1500

• Are you open to refurbs/used?

Yes

• How would you prioritize form factor (ultrabook, 2-in-1, etc.), build quality, performance, and battery life?

Ultrabook important, don't care for 2 in 1, high performance and battery life useful

• How important is weight and thinness to you?

Fairly important as portability is in mind

• Do you have a preferred screen size? If indifferent, put N/A.

14 inches, I want it to fit into my backpack

• Are you doing any CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming? List which programs/games you desire to run.

photoshop, indesign, illustrator, the adobe creative cloud pretty much

• Any specific requirements such as good keyboard, reliable build quality, touch-screen, finger-print reader, optical drive or good input devices (keyboard/touchpad)?

Build quality would be nice but i don't need touch-screen or a fingerprint reader, may get a drawing tablet down the line