°Ä²Ê¿ª½±

Supported Hardware

  1. Home
  2. °Ä²Ê¿ª½±
  3. Campus Resources & Services
  4. Supported Hardware

Information about the standard computer hardware configurations for faculty, staff, and computer lab facilities at °Ä²Ê¿ª½±.

 

ITS tests hardware and software for compatibility and functionality to offer recommendations that will meet the campus' computing needs.

Faculty and Staff Computers

Standard Recommendations

These hardware recommendations reflect °Ä²Ê¿ª½± and industry trends. °Ä²Ê¿ª½±'s ITS office budgets for a primary computer per employee every 4 years.

Advanced Needs and Upgrades

These are the minimum recommendations from ITS, meeting the needs of most users for typical daily tasks. Users with specific or advanced computing needs should contact ITS for upgrade options as needed.

Windows

HP EliteDesk 800 G4 SFF (small form factor) PC

  • ENERGY STAR Certified Label
  • EliteDesk 800PLA SFF 250W Chassis
  • Windows 10 Enterprise 64-bit
  • Intel Core i5-8500 3.0 6C 65W
  • 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 2666 DIMM
  • 512GB SATA SSD
  • USB BusSlim Keyboard and mouse
  • HP DisplayPort Port
  • DVDWR

HP EliteBook 840 G7 Laptop

  • eStar Enable
  • 14-in LED UWVA slim
  • Windows 10 Enterprise 64-bit
  • Core i5 G8 Label
  • 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4
  • 512GB PCIe SSD
  • 3 Cell 50 WHr Long Life
  • 45 Watt Smart AC Adapter

Mac

21.5-inch iMac with Retina 4K display

  • 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i5
  • 16GB 2400MHz DDR4
  • 512GB SSD SATA
  • Radeon Pro 560 with 4GB video memory
  • Wired Apple Mouse
  • Wired Keyboard

13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar – Space Gray

  • 2.0GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 
  • 16GB 3733MHz LPDDR4X 
  • 512GB SSD storage
  • Intel Iris Plus Graphics
  • Force Touch Trackpad
  • Four Thunderbolt 3 ports
  • Touch Bar and Touch ID
  • Backlit Keyboard - US English

Video Adapter Cables

Provided upon request, one per user

Laboratory Computers

Desktop computers with specifications similar to the basic standards outlined for faculty and staff computers are installed in public laboratories across the campus. 

HP EliteDesk 800 G4 SFF PC

  • ENERGY STAR Certified Label
  • EliteDesk 800PLA SFF 250W Chassis
  • Windows 10 Enterprise 64-bit
  • Intel Core i5-8500 3.0 6C 65W
  • 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 2666 DIMM
  • 512GB SATA SSD
  • USB BusSlim Keyboard and mouse
  • HP DisplayPort Port
  • DVDWR

21.5-inch iMac with Retina 4K display

  • 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i5
  • 16GB 2400MHz DDR4
  • 512GB SSD SATA
  • Radeon Pro 560 with 4GB video memory
  • Wired Apple Mouse
  • Wired Keyboard

°Ä²Ê¿ª½± Our Hardware Choices

We currently partner with HP and the rest of the  schools for consortial pricing which enables us to acquire better machines for less. In addition to this partnership we have service contracts with HP and Apple which allow us to repair °Ä²Ê¿ª½±-owned devices on premise and give us access to premium support with these vendors.

Supported Software

For information about supported software, see:

Supported software

Recommendations for Students

In making any purchasing decision for computer hardware, in general a college student should consider the battery life of the device, a device that is lightweight, and one that has a fast CPU.  When looking at your individual preferences, you may want to consider if one wants to take handwritten notes, or use a computer/tablet hybrid (also called convertibles or  2-in-1 combination units) to take notes.  

Below are some of the minimum specs you might want to consider.

Processor
Windows - Core i5 - 12th Gen  or AMD 5000 series
Macs - M1 or M1+

Memory
Intel  16 Gig  (32 is better)
Mac M1  8 - 16 GB

Storage
256 GB  (perhaps more for large or heavy media or graphic design work)
Note on storage: use a cloud storage vendor such as Google Drive or DropBox.  That way if your laptop needs repair you can access your files from another computer.

Size
11"-12"  thinnest and lightest
13"-14"  balanced approach (balances performance with size)
15"-16"  larger size, but will also come in as being heavier than the rest (consider this if you plan on graphic or film editing)


Other Considerations

  • a comfortable mouse
  • a well padded backpack or other case
  • if you will be on the move a lot, consider ergonomics
  • headphones with a microphone
  • USB and external hard drives
  • USB adapter and/or hub

 

Printers
Students do not need to bring a printer to campus.  We offer free printing on campus with some spaces available  24/7.  Consumer-grade printers won't work wirelessly on our campus network.
Scanning also offered at several of our public labs and workspaces.

Software
Check out what you are eligible for at no cost at colgate.edu/software before purchasing any software.  You can also see what's available in our public computing labs here.

Need more help?  Contact the ITS Service Desk.

Ask for Help

If you are unable to find the information you need in the documentation available online, the ITS Service Desk is available to assist.