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AnchorDesk

Patrick Houston
Top tech buys for back-to-school time

Patrick Houston
Editorial Director, AnchorDesk
Friday, August 22, 2003
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For me, even in my middle age, summer ends not according to the celestial calendar but to the academic one. Yes, I have my own children now. But that only reinforces the fact that summer always has--always will--come to a close at the end of August. It's back-to-school time.

Many of you are parents, like me. Or you've got nieces or nephews or friends with kids. More and more, with each passing year, getting ready for school doesn't mean just stocking up on pens and paper. It also means shopping for technology. For college-bound kids, a computer is pretty much a must. And while it's not yet mandatory for secondary school students, there's a growing expectation that their homework will be done with a keyboard and a Web connection.

One of my faves
If I had to choose one desktop for a student, it'd be the HP Media Center PC. It works as a computer, stereo, and TV.
With that in mind, I'd like to provide you with some buying advice, based on a back-to-school guide we've assembled at ZDNet. What follows are our recommendations for tech products--computers, cell phones, PDAs, printers, monitors, and storage devices--you might want to consider for the student in your life.

I'm making these suggestions with practical considerations in mind. My eldest is still five years from university. But, as part of my ongoing savings plans, I've been looking at college costs. They make me cringe. For those of you who have kids heading back to college, I feel your pain. You must be proud, but it can't be easy. So I'm offering recommendations with a sensitivity to financial considerations.

The computer
Our guide recommends three laptop systems and, separately, three desktop systems. Of the desktops, I like the HP Media Center PC. It's not only a computer, but a TV and a stereo, to boot. So it offers even a starving student in a cramped dorm room all the conveniences of home in a single package. There are several different configurations available, from several different sources; we found the 873n for $899.

But, if you're buying a student a computer, I'd actually advise you to go with a laptop. It'll handle just about every basic computing need. It'll take up less space in a dorm room. And your student can carry it into the classroom, the library, wherever--an increasingly important consideration as wireless connections proliferate on campuses.

Of the three laptops in our guide, I like the Dell Inspiron 5100. You can get a base system for just $999. If you add more bells and whistles, including a service plan that'll last a typical four-year college stint, be prepared for some sticker shock: When we upgraded the system to include 512MB of RAM, a 40GB drive, a 2X CD/DVD burner, and other goodies including a four-year limited warranty, the system priced out at $2,155.

A phone or PDA
Our back-to-school guide considered cell phones and PDAs separately, but I think you should think of them together.

Because time management is such an important life skill, you might want to consider gifting the student in your life with a PDA. They excel as organizers and they've come down in price. The Toshiba PocketPC e330, for example, is a mighty mite that can be had for as little as $178. But conventional PDAs have an Achilles heel: They don't communicate--not as naturally, anyway, as cell phones. What's more, many phones now come with rudimentary organizing applications--calendar, contacts etc. And then there's the new crop of phone/PDA combo devices for you to consider.

Buying a phone, a smartphone, or a combo device entails a tangled Web of considerations, including network coverage and all the different pricing plans each carrier offers. So it's impractical, if not impossible, for me to make any specific recommendation. Nevertheless, it's probably worth your while to at least take a look at one of the options in our guide: the T-Mobile Sidekick. It represents the kind of device particularly appealing to a generation in which short-text and instant messaging have become standard social tools. One drawback: A Sidekick ain't cheap, pal. The best price we found: At MobilePlanet, it'll run you some $300 with activation.

Peripherals
Sure, the students in your life can generate, store, and transmit digital versions of their school work. But chances are they'll still, eventually, have to hand in assignments the old-fashioned way--on paper. So printers are a necessity. Our guide looks at three, including an Epson Stylus Photo 2200 that weighs in at $500 or so and a Canon i70, which is meant to be carried with you in your backpack. But I've got to recommend the Samsung ML-1710, which offers all the basics. While it usually costs around $200, eCOST.com is selling it for $114.01 (after a $70 rebate).

Maybe your student already has a system but you just can't bear the thought of packing that humongous CRT into the car with everything else you've got to haul back and forth to Whatever U. In that case, consider a flat-panel monitor. Of the three LCDs in our guide, I like the Samsung SyncMaster 151S, which we found at Gateway for $297.95, with free shipping.

Since burning disks is all the rage among youngsters these days, you might want to consider buying an external drive that does just that. The market is moving away from CD to DVD. So of the three drives in our guide, I'd recommend the Sony DRU-510A, which we found for as little as $243 (plus shipping).

Your student may have other, more specialized needs beyond these basics. Their institution of learning might offer connectivity that requires networking equipment, for which we offer some recommendations. Maybe the youngsters in your life express themselves through digital images, whether still or moving. So we've included some recommendations for digital cameras and camcorders.

Perhaps some of you have recommendations, too. Maybe you've just finished some back-to-school tech shopping. Or maybe your student is a senior or headed to grad school and you, by now, are an experienced vet. If so, give us your advice in TalkBack.

What do you think of this back-to-school tech? What would you buy or have you bought for the students in your life? TalkBack to me!

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