[Eugenia Gabrielov]

Some of the suggestions above are great. I would like to add a few things for you to consider as you go into your purchase, outside of just computer qualities.

- Portability
Given that you're looking at laptops, especially tablets, I am assuming that portability is a priority to you. Given that, make sure that you are comfortable with the weight of your computer if you want to carry it around to class or between meetings / at robot competitions.

- Wireless capability
I would strongly suggest making sure you have good wireless capability. Very good wireless capability, in fact. While many colleges are currently phasing in strong campus networks, you won't always get a great connection everywhere you go in every building. You might get the worst connection precisely when you need the best one. If this is a priority for you, make sure that you read up on wireless cards. The one that came with my laptop isn't spectacular - but it isn't that hard to make do with everything.

- Warranty and Support
If you are near a campus (I am not sure whether or not you are a university or high school student), you can sometimes get access to university laptop assistance services. The university I attend has an excellent student-run laptop assistance service. You may also want to consider, however, the reputations of various companies for taking care of you as a customer and repairing you computer should you need that sort of service.

- Video cards
You'll find debates about this everywhere. If you're already a gamer you probably know what you're looking for better than I do, but it's something you may want to be confident in prior to purchasing your computer, whether you get one sent with it for your use or you purchase one on your own.

Have fun!