iPad or MacBook or what???

I’m going to be studying fashion comms from September in brighton, I just finished fashion diploma. I’ve always had a hp laptop and it’s past its best now and I’m looking to replace it for uni. I’ve looked mainly at iPad Pro/air but are their other models etc that may be better?

Please note I used photoshop a lot and then canva but I’m unsure what Brightons fashion course uses? Possibly indesign in which case iPads aren’t compatible

I’m a bit clueless so if someone can help and breakdown a few of the best options and pros/cons I’d really appreciate that!!

Reply 1

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by Basically Tisha

I’m going to be studying fashion comms from September in brighton, I just finished fashion diploma. I’ve always had a hp laptop and it’s past its best now and I’m looking to replace it for uni. I’ve looked mainly at iPad Pro/air but are their other models etc that may be better?
Please note I used photoshop a lot and then canva but I’m unsure what Brightons fashion course uses? Possibly indesign in which case iPads aren’t compatible
I’m a bit clueless so if someone can help and breakdown a few of the best options and pros/cons I’d really appreciate that!!

Hi,

I don't study fashion nor am I a student at Brighton but thought I could give you some advice!

You are probably best contacting the university directly and asking what software is used and then use this to find what devices are compatible with it. This will narrow down the choices and ensure that the software used can be run on the device you buy and save you from buying something you can't use it on.

I would also recommend seeing if the university has ambassadors doing your course that you could ask what device specifically they have and their experience using it on the course or whether they would recommend something else.

If you do find that iPads are not compatible with the software then sticking with a HP laptop (something that you are used to) is probably the best idea!

Hope this helps, Ella - Lancaster University Student Ambassador

Reply 2

Kingston Reps

Official Rep

Original post by Basically Tisha

I’m going to be studying fashion comms from September in brighton, I just finished fashion diploma. I’ve always had a hp laptop and it’s past its best now and I’m looking to replace it for uni. I’ve looked mainly at iPad Pro/air but are their other models etc that may be better?
Please note I used photoshop a lot and then canva but I’m unsure what Brightons fashion course uses? Possibly indesign in which case iPads aren’t compatible
I’m a bit clueless so if someone can help and breakdown a few of the best options and pros/cons I’d really appreciate that!!

Hi @Basically Tisha

I study fashion comms here at Kingston and I personally just use my hp laptop. However it is not great for using the adobe software, so for that I usually go to the library and use the macs. A MacBook would work well for this. I've also found MacBooks are the most popular among what people on the course use.

Of course it depends on the software you will be using the most and what you find easiest. The software I used the most in my first year was the adobe software such as Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator. I also used Word and PowerPoint and found it useful having a bigger screen to put together presentations, I have a monitor that I often connect my laptop to which really helps. But some do find it easier to put together presentations on an iPad as you can use the pen and taking notes in lectures may be easier to use the iPad pen rather than typing on a mac.

When I have done internships over summer I have found it useful to have a laptop for doing admin work. At one of the companies I worked for they provided MacBooks to use and Canva was the software mostly used for graphics, so going forward I think I will use Canva more in my second year.

Maybe some things to consider are how you work best and what are you going to use it for. For example is it just for during lectures and you will use the library equipment outside of that time or do you want to work from your room.

I hope this helps and I hope you enjoy the course :smile: