As a student, you will be very conscious of your study budget. Educational supplies, other study materials and course fees will really add up. All-purpose laptops are expensive. Tablets are becoming a real option.

Educational supplies, other study materials, and course fees will be costing you a lot as a student. You will also need something to work on. Even the most expensive laptops are only around half the cost of most all-purpose laptops. For someone who is very conscious of the money they are spending on their study budget, they can be a real financial-lifeline. There is a lot more to the device when we consider anything computers. And just so, there are more ways you can save by purchasing the right tablet for your needs. Here is a look at the ways you can save more with a tablet, and how they can actually cost you a whole lot less in the long run.

• Do you really need a new device? There is less that can go wrong with a tablet than what can go wrong with a laptop. A laptop has several weak points. They open and close, and this means there are moving parts. Any moving part is a weakness. That includes the keyboard, and particularly the hard drive. A tablet has none of these. There is little that can be wrong with a second-hand device. New models are coming out all the time. This means you can get very good second hand models on trading websites. There are always those who have more than others, and they always want the latest device. This means some items on those sites will be practically brand new. When a manufacturer is going to release, or has just released a new model, you can always find a great bargain as everyone is selling at the same time.
• Applications. Laptop applications can end up costing more than the actual machine. This is not the case with tablet applications. Funnily enough, application prices seem to match the size of the device. Smartphone applications are the cheapest, and most are around 5 dollars, if you have to pay at all. Even the most expensive applications for tablet only cost 20 dollars, and that is a considerable saving when we consider applications like Microsoft Word can cost over 100 dollars. With so much competition in the application market, you won’t be paying for many applications, anyway.
• Smartphone replacement? Everyone wants a smartphone. They are convenient. They make video calls, and you can surf the Internet. Well, as someone who travels a lot, I can tell you they are not that convenient when you are trying to read an online newspaper. It feels like you are staring into a hand-sized makeup mirror for hours. Now that is what I call ‘Google Eyes’. If your tablet has a SIM port, you already have a smartphone. Just make sure you get one big enough so you can stand it on its end, and use it like a laptop with a keyboard. Tablets are great for just about everything. I travel between work and my business courses. I surf the Internet and I don’t need a smartphone. I make all my video calls with a plush screen that makes it feel like I am talking face to face with my friends.

Sure, tablets cannot replace the heavy-duty tasks of graphic design, but for most students, they can be a very good buy. With great battery life, super-fast next-generation networks available just about everywhere, and free wifi at coffee shops along the way, a tablet with a few accessories can replace that costly and cumbersome laptop.