Form Factor: Notebook (A netbook or tablet should not be used as the primary computing device*). A minimum of 4 hours of battery life is recommended.
Processor: 64 bit Multi-core processor or better. **
Memory: 8 GB or more. For best performance, we recommend that you install as much memory as affordable at the time of purchase.
Operating System: The recommend operating systems are Windows 10 or Mac OS X (10.11.14)
Browser: The recommended browsers for web-based browsing would be the latest version of Internet Explorer/Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.
Primary Hard Drive: 500GB minimum. The larger the better as you may work with large datasets. Solid-state drives (SSDs) are recommended as they are much faster than hard disk drives (HDDs).
Backup Device or Service: For local backup, an external hard drive with double the size of the internal hard drive or a subscription to a cloud based backup solution like Dropbox or OneDrive is needed. Having a quality backup of your important files is vital to your success as a student. While external drives are acceptable forms of backup, cloud based solutions are also an excellent alternative. A quality backup service will run continuously as you work and will back up your documents to a cloud based storage location. Even if your laptop becomes unavailable due to loss, theft, or physical failure, the files will have been saved and are fully recoverable. The cloud-based backup will be accessible from any computer with an Internet connection.
Networking: Dual-Band (2.4 GHz/5 GHz) Wireless 802.11n capable.
System options: Webcam and microphone are needed in order to communicate effectively with faculty and classmates during live sessions and group work.
*Note that most netbooks and tablets (e.g. Apple iPad, Galaxy Tab and others that run on an operating system designed specifically for the device) do NOT meet the minimum hardware requirements above. While they may initially provide sufficient performance for basic tasks such as web browsing or simple word processing, use of technical software in courses may not be possible.
**The use of VLAB (a Virtual Lab that provides GT students a way to access 'virtual machines' on campus and use software such as MATLAB and AutoCAD from any computer with Internet access) does not diminish these requirements. Your system will still need to independently support the required software, as you will have access to install a subset of the software locally to your notebook.