If you are a college student, especially if you are earning a particularly challenging degree, like Marylhurst’s masters in sustainability, there are a few gadgets that you are really going to need in order to make your life run more smoothly. Here are 5 tech items every college student needs.
- Laptop
There is simply no reason to go through college without a laptop computer. When you are in college, you need to be able to have a lightweight laptop that you can take with you around campus so that you can take notes in class, write papers at the library, or take it with to study wherever you need to be. There’s no telling when you will have a quick break to get some studying or writing done, and if you don’t have a laptop on you, you will not be able to get nearly as much work done throughout the day. Plus, these days you can find lightly used and refurbished laptops at highly discounted prices.
- Smartphone
If you do not currently have a smartphone, then you are not living in the 21st century. Smartphones are especially important for college students because they can be used to record lectures, get directions, download countless educational apps, and textbooks – just to name a few of the main functions. When you are in college, your smartphone is your lifeline, so if you don’t have a good one, make sure you invest in one. It will be worth its weight in gold.
- External Hard Drive
If you want your computer to operate at its best, then its important to keep it light. That means that you don’t want to be storing too much information on it at any given time. Whenever you feel as though you are done with a file for the time being and don’t need to access it on a regular basis, you should either delete it or move it to your external hard drive. If you don’t, then your computer will get heavy, causing it to work slowly and many of your applications might crash unexpectedly at times. If it gets really bad, your whole computer will start crashing unexpectedly, which could have catastrophic consequences.
- Noise Canceling Headphones
If you live in the dorms, you need noise canceling headphones more than anybody. If you are trying to read, study or write a paper, noise canceling headphones will enable you to concentrate much more easily, effectively blocking all audio distractions. You can get the kind that also act as normal headphones so that if you want to listen to music, the music is the only thing you will hear. You will be amazed by how much easier life can be when you don’t have the annoying audio input of people talking, terrible music, and construction noises in the distance.
- Wireless Speaker
Everyone wants to be able to play music and podcasts for themselves individually, but what about when you want to listen to music with others? If you want to be able to enjoy your favorite album or playlist with friends, either in your room or while on vacation, then you want to have a high-quality, wireless speaker. This way you can take it with you everywhere, and you can keep your phone in your pocket while you enjoy the music.