finish ur homework
play video games
go to work maybe

also go to community college i get like a sick 40 hours/week video games on top of work + school :)

nice desktop + netbook or cheap laptop is the way to go if you wanna game at school

If you can't focus on working in your dorm, and you don't want to hand-write your notes, get a laptop.
If you can resist every urge to play TF2 when you have homework to do, bring a desktop pc.

Or go to a community college like eee and I and you won't really have to worry about it.

What are you going to school for, if it is physical science, engineering, or any math heavy major then I would stay with the PC over the laptop. You aren't going to be taking notes with a laptop for these classes and the reduced power for gaming (using a laptop) will be more annoying.

If you are going for pretty much anything else then a laptop will be more valuable since the majority of your classes' notes can be taken with a laptop. The real problem with a gaming laptop is the ridiculous weight and size along with the short battery life that will be a burden when going to class.

As far as free time, I think on average most classes require 3-5x the amount of hours in class out of class (3hrs in class 9-15hrs out). Up to you to make your own schedule.

I'm a filthy casual and have only owned a lenovo media/gaming laptop 14" for most of college. Its fairly light and I usually get above 120 frames.
To be honest, I wouldn't trade all the CPU in the world for the impromptu dorm LANs I've had and the ability to play with friends in their dorm rooms/apartments. Its especially useful if you plan to go home or travel much.

Places I've played scrims include but are not limited to: the airport, kitchen tables, shitty hotel beds, houses of strange canadian gamers, ect. (Which is always a lark, although beware retribution from your team when you drop all them while giving your gate a quick glance, or if you happen to not play medic or roamer and actually need to aim.)

Doesn't matter what your major is, don't plan on taking notes with a laptop, period.

For my use case, I was able to spend the majority of my money on a desktop and the rest on a cheap laptop, because I use the lab computers at school. Your mileage may vary.

Get a desktop. I had the gaming laptop and it wasn't worth it.

Bring your desktop. If you bring your laptop you'll be tempted to bring it to class, and then you fail every course.

try doing well in school, playing games, going to the gym, getting enough sleep, and maybe having a job

it's fucking impossible

Going to throw in my support for the iPad Mini here.

I bought one recently and it is by far the best educational purchase I have made in a while. Before I would carry around a laptop + textbooks if I was planning on studying + binders. I am on a pretty big campus so I would be sweating just trying to make it to class with the weight + heat.

With the iPad mini, my backpack is a binder and the iPad. It lasts multiple days on heavy use (no "gaming"). Better than all of this however, it replaces textbooks. 190$ for the iPad and some pirating, ive already broken even.

I have a gaming desktop for when I want to, well, play games. I now have a laptop that is stilling on a shelf in the corner and an iPad for day-to-day uses.

So you don't really need a laptop for college? Interesting.

The High-End desktop + Chromebook combination sounds pretty attractive right about now. At this point I'm only debating between whether or not to even take a small little netbook with me.

This is so strange, because so many people I've know say that they use their laptops extensively outside of their dorms. For those that do end up taking laptops, what do you generally use them for?

Laptops are ok, the thing is if I ever really need to do anything then I go to the library or my department's resource center. (or I wait and do my typing on the desktop PC)

It has gotten to a point for me where reducing weight is more important. maybe that will change once the temp gets cooler.

The only good reason for laptops is if you want to browse the web during class, but then again, you have an iPad for that.

You can use your laptop when travelling, watching movies, and playing platform games or whatever.
Speaking from experience.

Desktop/iPad combo is killer. For most introductory courses you can find the textbook online and put it on your tablet with a PDF reader. You will save a huge chunk of change.

I'm going into the professional software development world and am seeing an increasing need to buy a better laptop for work, but students in general have very little need for a powerful notebook computer.

Basically just time management. Unless you're taking an absurd number of credits, you should have plenty of time to get all your homework done and go to class, game, and go out on weekends with friends and stuff. Really gotta manage your time well though.

I was wondering about the desktop/tablet option as well. The only thing that is holding me back is the fact that I would have to bring my monitor and desktop every time I leave to go back home or something, and if you have to take a bus or plane, it could be a real hassle carrying and managing all of that.

right now would be the perfect time to kick your gaming habit to be completely honest
if thats not possible make gaming a social experience with friends at college so you dont become a recluse

in terms of your time:

good grades / job / enough sleep / gaming / social life

choose 3

*2

I went with building a MicroATX PC for my dorm and I got a cheap netbook specifically for bringing to classes/library, it treats me well

I am playing a lot less games than I used to. (quit TF2 etc)

If you want to have a constant ability to play video games then desktop iPad isnt the way to go. The only way thats going to work is buying a gaming laptop. That being said, i usually leave the desktop and gaming behind during breaks.

I've said this many times with this kind of thread, but paper and pen will force you to make better notes in class. A laptop means that you're able to get sidetracked into reddit, tf.tv, whatever, but if you refuse to bring it, you're forced to pay more attention.

Regarding laptop vs desktop in your dorm. It's cheaper, and generally better, to get a desktop. The cost is less, and it's not very difficult to transport as long as someone is driving it there. If you have to Fedex/UPS, then that could be a different story.

"good grades / job / enough sleep / gaming / social life"

It's likely that all of those won't happen.

if ur actually concerned about video games in college its not like social life was a serious condiserding to begin with :\

Take notes with pen/paper, have a desktop for your dorm and a laptop (whatever price range you want).

As far as using desktop/laptop for homework, I would use my desktop for my CS homework and my laptop for other stuff since it would let me study anywhere on campus.

I'm about to go to college next year as well, and I was thinking of getting a MicroATX/MicroITX PC for my dorm and doing pen/paper notes. How did it work out for you?

you'll likely need a laptop for college. IMO, save up $200 and buy a netbook, or buy the ipad mini like some people are suggesting. a google chromebook will cost $200-300. i spent most of my college career taking notes on paper anyways because the gaming laptop was too bulky to use in class and was heavy as hell. a lot of professors don't allow laptops because they know people just browse facebook and reddit.

What do you need a laptop for?

taking notes

some in-class projects

out-of-class projects (or meet at the library and use those computers)

surfing the web when you're bored in class

Even if you're a computer-science major, most classes will take place in a room with computers. If you want to do stuff like work at a friend's place, at starbucks, in a quiet corner at the library, then yes you'll need a laptop. But you won't need a beefed up gaming laptop -- all you need is a netbook to browse the web and open up word/powerpoint.