Laptop Choice for CS + Business + Data Science

Laptops Suggest a Laptop
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I’m starting as a freshman in college this fall, double-majoring in Computer Science and Business with a minor in Data Science.

I have a university grant worth $964.80 (which covers a base Lenovo), but I’m looking to pay the difference to upgrade to one of these two specific school packages:

MacBook Air 13" (M5): 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD.

  • My Upgrade Cost: $325.20

Link (for full specs): https://cci.unc.edu/cci_product/macbook-air-13-m5-w-touch-id/

ThinkPad T14 Gen 6: Intel Core Ultra 7 258V (Lunar Lake), 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD.

  • My Upgrade Cost: $546.43

Link (for full specs): https://cci.unc.edu/cci_product/lenovo-thinkpad-t14-gen-6-integrated-graphics/

My dilemma:
Given that I’m balancing heavy coding/data sets with a need for a professional machine for business school, which upgrade is the smarter move for the next four years? Is the 32GB on the ThinkPad worth the extra $220, or is the M5 efficiency enough to handle a heavy workload with only 16GB? Also, how is the battery life and fan noise on the Thinkpad? I get 4 years of warranty on both laptops as well. Both laptops meet the requirements set by the university for the majors/minors that I will be studying. Thanks everyone in advance!

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Out of those two, the MacBook Air is much more powerful. I’d get that even factoring in the memory difference. Its also just a better machine. Its more polished.

If i was to upgrade anything i’d consider:

  1. Upgrade to 24GB memory ← You will be fine without it but its a nice to have

  2. Upgrade to 15-inch MacBook Air ← Larger screen will be more useful for coding. That being said you can always buy an external display later on to have at home

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I agree with Josh here, I had the same idea.

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