Back To School Technology Buyer's Guide
by Zach Throckmorton on August 4, 2011 8:55 PM ESTPortable media players
Apple's iPod has become nearly synonymous with portable media players as the line has diversified from the diminutive Shuffle to the 'pocketable computer' Touch—and as its field of competitors has dwindled. There aren't many quality portable media players that aren't iPods anymore. Just about the only notable non-Apple MP3 players are SanDisk's Sansa line of products. The SanDisk Clip+ is available in 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB capacities, and all come with a microSD/SDHC slot for expandability. The 2GB model can sometimes be found on sale for less than $20, and the 8GB model can occasionally be had for $50. As the name implies, the Clip+ players prominently feature a large clip, making them easy to attach to a backpack, shirt, or pocket.
The iPod Touch is remarkably useful on a college campus where WiFi abounds. I can walk across most of UW-Madison's campus without ever losing a WiFi signal—turning the Touch into 'an iPhone, minus just the phone.' Having an iPod Touch on a college campus is basically like having a half-price, no monthly contract iPhone. Putting a Touch in your pocket definitely beats lugging around stacks of notecards—the Touch has access to all of the iOS's educational apps. Plus it's a pretty decent MP3 player!
Headphones
One thing that almost all portable media players have in common is that the stock earbuds are terrible. You don't need to be an audiophile to appreciate how much better even $20 or so earbuds or headphones sound compared to the ubiquitous white iPod buds. A good pair of headphones is a necessity for college: there will be many times when you're still writing or studying late into the night and your roommate is not.
Sennheiser's MX 270 earbuds are very inexpensive, and can be purchased for less than $15. The MX 271 is a slightly smaller version, for those with smaller ear canals who find most earbuds uncomfortably large. Such inexpensive earbuds are not going to provide jaw-dropping sound, but they will be noticeably better than stock earbuds, as well as almost all laptop speakers.
If you're willing to spend more money, and carry around bigger headphones, the Sennheiser HD 202 II is a good option at less than $30. They're a bit bass-heavy, but this can be mitigated by using your device's equalizer. I prefer closed, over the ear headphones to open, on the ear variants mostly because the former tend to mute outside sounds better—an advantage when studying and writing. If you're looking for better sound and portability (at a higher price), Sony's MDR-V6 headphones are an excellent value at less than $65.
If you're a gamer, or will be regularly Skyping with relatives and friends, consider a headset. Logitech's ClearChat is fine for videochatting. Gamers will want to check out Logitech's G330 or Creative's Fatal1ty—at less than $40, they're both affordable.
Of course, there are more expensive earbuds and headphones, but these are notoriously difficult to objectively evaluate. For all the marketing numbers and basic specifications, there is no substitute for listening to actual products. Most importantly, different people find different sounds more appealing, and that's not something you can describe with numbers.
Sound systems
For those times when you won't be disturbing your roommate, consider upgrading your PC's speakers. USB-powered sets are barely adequate for music, movies, and gaming. As with headphones, spending even a few dollars will greatly enhance your listening experience. Again as with headphones, these are recommendations we feel represent excellent values at their price points. If you can, you should listen to these in person before buying.
For less than $30, Logitech's S-220 2.1 speaker system and Altec Lansing's VS2620 2.0 speakers are fine for lower-volume, close-in music listening and movie watching. If your budget permits, the Logitech Z320 2.0 and Z323 2.1 systems sound better to my ears than the less expensive kits, and are usually less than $60. One thing to keep in mind if you'll be living in a dorm is that bass carries, and X.1 systems are more likely to aggravate your neighbors than X.0 systems. At around $150, PC speakers start to actually sound pretty decent, rather than being just functional. The Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 and Edifier S330D produce better sound than anything that's more aggressively marketed toward PC users at the same price point.
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rageguy34 - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
I'm surprised that you would even mention USB keys given how easy they are to lose or an external hard drive seeing as how they can also get lost or have a mechanical failure. Every student should use dropbox or another alternative if not only for cloud storage but for the version history on document saves as wellbrshoemak - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
Losing a USB key is not the fault of the hardware. External drives, like anything else can fail. I agree that Dropbox (or like services) should be a part of a student storage plan but other methods of data redundancy are fine. Keep in mind there are times where you need to go to campus computer labs to print certain specialized documents or need color laser prints, most students aren't rocking color lasers in their dorm rooms. Those lab PC's are locked down so you have no way to install Dropbox to get your files - a flash drive is required in those instances, so they can't be totally discounted.zshift - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
Dropbox has a web interface. I haven't used a flash drive since I created my Dropbox account, and it provides multiple points of backup if you use it on multiple computers. For a student, the spacing limitations shouldn't be too much trouble, especially since referrals net the user extra space. Last I checked, docs, presentations, spreadsheets, and even a few songs or pics here and there don't fill up my Dropbox. I have 2 years worth of material on there, accessible from anywhere I can get an internet connection. Plus, I've lost every flash drive I've ever owned.Zoomer - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
A flash drive is so much faster than mucking around with some web interface, particularly when the paper is due in -10 minutes.nickb64 - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
I bought a 16GB USB Key last year because my school blocked the dropbox domain, and I got it on sale on Amazon for $20, which I felt was a pretty good deal, since it was only a dollar more than the 8GB model by the same company.I can access Amazon Cloud Storage from school, but it's a pain in the ass to keep it and Dropbox with the same files in case I need them. Having something in Dropbox is useless if I have to use it in a lab where I don't have access to the Dropbox site.
I just bought a 4-pack of 4GB USB keys because my old 2GB one was too small for my sister's needs, and I can keep various utilities on another in case I need to use them to help someone I know with a computer issue. Also, they were really cheap.
nafhan - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
Different students are going to have different storage needs. Dropbox will be fine for Word Docs (and has other advantages, as you mentioned), but someone working with large media files will need at least a thumb drive or a mechanical hard drive to get enough space.Procurion - Monday, August 8, 2011 - link
Cloud....meh....I call it pie-in-the-sky. I choose to remain in control of my programs and my privacy, not relenquish it to an unknown group of for profit individuals. Anyone remember Wikileaks???? Nothing on the intenet is "safe".Nataku - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
no offense, but cloud storage just isn't be all end all solutionthere are plenty of reasons, but to name just a few
- >1GB file download or USB transfer? USB is a hell a lot more faster
- firewall blockage + paranoid IT security will own you when u thought u could download ur powerpoint for the presentation happening in 5 min
- no internet connection --> hey my school kept printing stations off the net so u have to use USB drives
- entering ur username/password on a pub PC that may have keylogger and ur dropbox account having personal stuff, (self video of triple x stuff.. j/k lol)
StormyParis - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
As a student, I worked at the Computer Lab. That was back in 5"1/4 floppies day, but the broad 50% of people coming in about lost/corrupted/destroyed data or equipment has stayed about the same.So please kids, do backups. And remember, backups are
- offline, so a virus (or a pissed ex) that wipes your stuff can't get to your backups.
- offsite, so the thief that empties your dorm room nor the idiot that drowns it can get to it
- several, because of murphy's law: your backup will go bad the day your laptop gets stolen.
- tested, because quite often you think you're backuping stuff only to realize that your app does not pout its docs in the user directory.
Also, buy cheap stuff. I know youngsters always need ego-boosters, and branded overskill tech stuff is a nice personnality crutch. Keep in ming though, that it's a waste of money, it's likelier to get stolen, it makes it worse when it's stolen / damaged... and, really, you should try being what you do, not what you own.
techhhhhhy - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
I'm sorry, but this was clearly written by someone who doesn't go to college and doesn't know what's right for a campus.There is no way, 0 chance that you can use a desktop on a college campus / dorm. Does it work? Yes but it is absolutely retarded idea.
I could have made this article in 1 page. Get a 15" or less laptop, 13" is ideal. Portability is key in college. If you can afford it get a Macbook because this is what 75% of your classmates will have.