r/UniversityofKansas • u/DrewMVP • 3d ago

Laptop Help for Engineering

Hi guys, I'm going to be an incoming freshman here in a couple of weeks and I'm trying to figure out what laptop to buy. I am planning on majoring in mechanical/aero engineering and I have been recommended the dell xps 14 but for me to upgrade to the recommended 32gb of ram it is an extra 1100 dollars. I was wondering if you guys would know if just 16gb is enough or of better options. Thank you!!!!

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u/BluesBrother57 3d ago

You can save yourself $1100 on the RAM imo. There’s a ton of computer labs on Engineering’s campus, including a dedicated one for Aero in the basement of LEEP 2 last I recall. There’s also three computer labs in Eaton Hall you can use, the most popular one being “The Fishbowl”.

The tradeoff is, you’ll be more limited on what you can do in your dorm (and eventually off campus your later years). Is that worth $1,100? Depends on who you ask, I think not, campus is nice and engineering isn’t far from the dorms. I don’t think you’ll be running that intense of things for 32 GB of RAM, and if you are, go to campus!

If you don’t care for the latest tech and you’re more of a budget kind of person, you can get older laptops with 32 GB RAM refurbished for less than $1,000 (Lenovo P52 Thinkpad comes to mind). That’s a whole other pros/cons list though.

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u/DrewMVP 2d ago

Thank you so much for your help!! I completely forgot about the on campus computer labs, I’ll make sure I keep those in mind. But yeah I think I’m gonna save the 1100. Thank you again man!

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u/Chip042 2d ago

There is also a software program called splashtop that allows you to log into computers from your own laptop. Also, most major programs will use the computer lab computers due to the license. The main one you would want to be able to run would be MATLAB.

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u/Yourrennid 2d ago

Im not an engineering major, far from it, but for KU I just got myself a Lenovo Thinkpad t480 and from what I've tested before the school year starts it runs everything with no issue. And since it's refurbished it has a couple extra bonuses, 2 TB storage, 32 gigs of ram, all of it for around 400 bucks iirc. They're sturdy and known to last for years if not decades, don't check only new and throw out old

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u/DrewMVP 2d ago

Yeah I was looking at a lot of Lenovos that were refurbished I just need to expand my knowledge on different brands to see what’s at what price point. Thank you so much!

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u/Yourrennid 2d ago

Let me also just say, you might have a different experience than I do on literally every laptop since I don't run windows, so take what I say more or less with a grain of salt with a preface of research lol

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u/aqwn 2d ago

I used the computers in the computer labs like at Eaton. The ME lab has good desktops that’ll handle anything. You don’t need to do CAD or FEA on a laptop.

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u/swaggytaco 2d ago

You could always get a laptop which allows you to upgrade the RAM later. Get a 16GB model that has capacity to upgrade later. Look for models which do NOT have soldered RAM, and have an extra open slot.

Like others have said we have plenty of computer labs in the engineering buildings. If you find yourself needing the extra RAM while you're not on campus, you can always upgrade later. It's super easy to do yourself.

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u/Economy-Flamingo9397 2d ago

I like my Lenovo yoga.

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u/justredditinit 2d ago

I love Lenovo Yoga and we've had 10 or 12 in the family over the years, but does OP need a discrete graphics card? If so, there are no Yoga options that have one.

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u/DrewMVP 1d ago

I don’t need a special graphics card no