The Fun, but Expensive PartLaptops
Consider your course. What are you going to to need from a computer during your time at Unversity. I did a lot of debating and research before deciding to go Mac. Ask people who are going to do the same course you are via The Student Room.If you aren't doing a course that's going to demand much more that MS Word and Google Chrome (we do all use Google Chrome, right?) the go for whatever you can realistically afford!
Don't go to a brand store! If you go to an Apple store, or to the Sony or Dell website and chat to an advisor - they aren't going to recommend you anything other that what's going to look good on their sales targets. Don't bother.
Do pay PC World a visit at a quiet time, and let them show you all the different makes. They have the luxury of being a little more honest about their stock because they aren't on commission from Dell, Sony, HP etc. Then you can go online and do some serious price comparing, and maybe find the one you want cheaper in Argos!
Printers
Avoid Epson. Like the plague. I kid you not. I won't lie, they are great little printers but my god are the cartridges expensive - and they are temperamental little buggers about taking compatible or refilled cartridges. Don't bother.
Photographer? If you want to be able to print fantastic quality photos yourself then go for a Canon or a Kodak. Easy peasy. Kodak's are much cheaper to run, but I personally think you get a better print quality with Canon.
CVs and Essays only please! Go for a HP. These will last you years and years - oh, and years. They really are the best printers for not breaking down and actually have pretty reasonably priced cartridges. Don't get caught by the 'individual inks' sales pitch however. Go for one that takes 'tri-colour' cartridges because they print more pages per £££. I did the maths with a calculator.Where should I buy from?Get yourself down to your local Ryman store. Not only will you get 12.5% off everything with your NUS card, you'll get 25% off your ink cartridges when you buy your printer, then you get a little discount card which entitles you to up to 25% off your cartridges for your next four visits. Whatever you do, check out how much the cartridges are going to cost you before you buy anything. You wont miss £10 or even £20 in the long run when buying your printer, but you'll notice having to spend £40 on ink when you have an urgent essay to print
Bits and Pieces
Mouse // External Hard drive // Kindle // Camera // USB Stick
Mouse. I didn't bother buying one of these to start with, but I found that it just made my life so much easier when multitasking online. It also kinda makes me feel like I'm doing 'actual' work rather than just browsing the web, like back in the good-old-days at school.
External hard drive. Whether you have an expensive or a cheap and cheerful laptop, this will be your savior. You'll be amazed at how many films you end up downloading or are given and it will just free up so much space on your laptop. I have two, one for backing up my laptop's hard drive and my blog and another for all my music, photos and films.
e-Reader. As a bit of a paper-and-ink book collector, I feel like a traitor for recommending this. However most books come in kindle form these days and when you desperately want or need a book for further reading, it's the best thing in the world to be able to buy it and download it within minutes. Royal Mail doesn't stand a chance. Camera. If you don't already have one, now would be the time to ask for one as a leaving present. I don't really have to explain why you'll want and need a camera, it's a camera. Do try to go for something over 10mp and 10x zoom, just so you get the quality. This Fujifilm one is lovely.USB Stick. I think these are fantastic, they are so cute and come in loads of colours too. They also come password protected, so that if someone nicks it they can't access all your work or photos. Giveaway
If you'd like to win one of the featured USB flash drives in a color of your choice, c/o Ryman Stationers - please enter using the Rafflecopter form below. Give away is open until September 30th. a Rafflecopter giveaway