To sign up for our daily email newsletter, CLICK HERE
Programming is one of the most preferred skills in the 21st century, and a large population on earth is getting into this. We know how important it is to learn coding to become a programmer, but another essential thing to become a coder is a programming laptop.
Some beginners often end up choosing a very high-end laptop or desktop build, and some of them end up getting a very low-end laptop that makes even the smallest task difficult. Those who have been in this field for a while know that even a laptop under $600 is capable of coding, but those who are going to step into this field should know what kind of laptops do programmers prefer.
Therefore, in this article, we will be discussing more on this topic.
5 Major Requirements of a Programming Laptop
Reliable and Smooth performance
A programming laptop requires heavy software and compilers that use a lot of CPU and memory of the laptop. Therefore, every programmer’s primary requirement is a laptop that is powerful enough to handle the codes. Mostly, a gaming laptop is capable of providing such performance because of high-end graphics card and CPU. If you have a handsome budget, do check out the list of gaming laptops by Geekyflow.
However, if you do not have to move out often and want the best performance, you can build your own PC, as a desktop provides far better performance than a laptop.
Better Battery Life
Secondly, battery life also plays a vital role if you are a college student. A laptop on one full charge provides 5 to 6 hours of battery life only if you are using battery saver mode and very low screen brightness.
Programmers prefer laptops with better battery life, as carrying a charger everywhere is quite uncomfortable. Therefore, if you are getting a laptop for college purposes, make sure the one you choose has long battery life.
Graphics Card
While most programming software does not require a dedicated graphics card, having one makes the process smooth. Android studio basically requires only a high-end CPU and memory to run smoothly, but having a dedicated graphics card will help you run some other software like Adobe Premiere Pro and video editors efficiently.
Furthermore, you can save money by choosing a low-end graphics card and opt for a laptop with SSD.
Storage type
Even if it is not for programming, getting yourself a laptop with an SSD is an excellent deal. The primary function of an SSD is to load data quickly and efficiently; this reduces the read, write and delete time, making the load time better.
On the other hand, HDD is slower but comes with a larger volume than the SSDs. Some laptops have a combination of HDD and SSD, which is an excellent deal, and programmers also prefer a laptop with SSD and HDD both.
Operating System
We know how efficient and fast macOS is compared to Windows, but most programmers use macOS, Windows, and Linux for development. Every programmer has its own requirements, where macOS provides better security and efficiency. Windows provides tools for developing an application for windows, and Linux provides a plethora of tools and utility.
A MacBook is expensive compared to a Windows laptop, and for beginners, it is better to start with windows and later upgrade to macOS.
Wrapping Up
Experienced programmers always prefer a desktop over a laptop as we all know desktop provides better performance than a laptop. Those who have to keep moving from one place to another would want a laptop, as it is easy to carry.
Getting a budget laptop with a less powerful GPU but a high-powered CPU and memory is enough for programming. We have listed down all the details you should know before getting a laptop for programming.
