These days college students rely on technology a lot. First of all, according to MediaPost, nearly 70% of US households have at least one smart device, and 12% have a few of them. Thus, students get used to leveraging technology from early childhood. Secondly, various devices are now present in nearly every school and college in the US, which means that there is no way you can get through college without technology.
Inhaltsverzeichnis / Table of contents
Traditionally, a laptop is considered to be the primary gadget for college students. It’s powerful enough to let students access learning resources and materials, conduct research, write an essay online, and complete other homework assignments. However, today, we can observe a massive shift toward more portable technology.
More and more students purchase tablets to have a more portable and lightweight alternative to their laptops. If you are among them, read this guide to learn how to select the best tablet for college.
Start With Research
Today, there are hundreds of brands that produce tablets of all shapes and kinds. If you’ve never used a device like this before, choosing your first gadget can be pretty confusing. And that’s why in-depth research should be your first step.
Be prepared that this research will take quite a lot of your time. Thus, if you are already in college and not on your vacation, find a trusted academic writer to write my term paper to ensure that nothing will distract you from this task.
When you have enough time, start by reading about different brands and comparing them. Be sure to learn more not only about the most popular brands like Apple or Samsung but about some lesser known too. We highly recommend leveraging trusted tech blogs and reviewing sites to make your research simpler and quicker.
What should you look for during this stage? You want to learn the basic characteristics of different brands, such as their reputations, the durability of their gadgets, customer complaints, etc. This will help you gain a solid starting point.
Define Your Budget
After you have a better idea of the available options, you need to understand how much you can spend on your new device. This will affect your choice of brand and model a lot.
To define a budget, write down how much money you have in your bank account right now and how much you have in savings (if any). Then, list all expenses that you need to cover. Based on these figures, define how much cash you can spend on a tablet without going bankrupt and use this number as the roadmap for picking the best gadget.
6 Things to Look for in a Tablet for Students
Finally, when you’ve done some research and defined your budget, you can begin looking for suitable devices.
In the list below, a tech expert from one of the top paper writing services collected the core things that you should keep an eye on when making this choice:
- Screen size – Tablets can have screens between 7 and 12 inches. Some gadgets can be even larger in size. To find the perfect screen size, you need to analyze the tasks you are going to complete on your gadget. For example, basic internet browsing and college-related tasks can be done on smaller tablets. However, if you will create detailed visual work or use your tablet to completely replace a laptop, you should opt for at least a 10-inch screen.
- Wi-Fi or LTE connection – While some tablets can only connect to Wi-Fi or hotspots, others have a slot for a SIM card and, thus, support cellular connectivity. As a student, you might want to choose a device with an LTE connection. This is especially important if you don’t have reliable Wi-Fi at home or need to study on the go a lot.
- Memory and storage capacity – These two factors will significantly affect the productivity of your device. To be more specific, the more built-in memory (RAM) your device has, the easier it will withstand multitasking and the faster it will work. Thus, if you need to use several apps simultaneously, you should look for tablets with 4GB and over of RAM. As for internal storage, it will define how many apps and other files you will be able to store on your gadget. As a student, you will probably need more space for your photos, academic materials, and multimedia projects.
- App compatibility – The next point is also very important. As a student, you have access to a variety of handy tools and apps that can make your studies simpler. We bet that you also use some of them already. If so, make a list of all apps that you are already using and the ones you will need to use in the future. Then, compare different tablet models for compatibility with these apps.
- Stylus or pen support – When buying a tablet for the first time, many users consider styluses and pens as not mandatory accessories. However, they can be incredibly helpful. First of all, you will need a stylus or pen if you are a creative student interested in digital art. Besides, an accessory like this will help you take handwritten notes right on your device. Thus, we recommend choosing tablets that support such accessories.
- Battery Life – Finally, one more thing you should look for in your future tablet is solid battery life. As a student, chances are that you will take your tablet with you to campus and other places. In this case, you want it to last as long as possible. Therefore, opt for models with extensive battery life.
The Bottom Line
A tablet can be a very useful gadget in college. Most of them are no less powerful than laptops, meaning you can complete all the same tasks on a tablet that you completed on a laptop. At the same time, they are more lightweight and portable. Use the above-mentioned tips to make the right choice and discover all the benefits of this great gadget!
