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What laptop should I buy for a maths degree

I will be starting a maths degree in September 2025. I am in the process of purchasing a laptop but am unsure as whether to get a Mac or windows laptop as I don't know how the software used in a maths degree responds to the OS of a mac

If anyone else is currently or has done a maths degree id love to know what laptop/ device you used !
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Original post by Jevans7
I will be starting a maths degree in September 2025. I am in the process of purchasing a laptop but am unsure as whether to get a Mac or windows laptop as I don't know how the software used in a maths degree responds to the OS of a mac
If anyone else is currently or has done a maths degree id love to know what laptop/ device you used !

Why don’t you wait to see which uni you firm? They will then contact you and let you know the minimum spec and requirements for your course. On top of that Apple gives student discount from August through to October and you’ll save £100’s
Buy a fully working used business laptop from ebay for under £250.

EG a Dell Latitude 5520 is rather plasticky in its' construction, but they have good internal spec, can take 2 internal SSD's and can be bought for under £200.
With 2 internal drives you could install Windows 11 on one and Linux, eg Debian with KDE Plasma on the other. And select whichever you'd rather use when you powered the laptop on. After a week or two or three you'd probably find yourself using KDE a lot more than Windows.

An HP 845 G7 or G8 for under £250 would also be a great laptop. As would a HP 840 G8.
Or for something smaller and more portable, there the HP 830 G8.

As a maths student, you should be good on logic. Logic indicates that spending more than £250 on a laptop would be a waste of your money.

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