The school has a deal with Dell and I believe it is now required that you buy the model they say. (My class was able to buy a different brand if you wanted.) The dell computer is not terrible, and they take care of servicing it for your 4yrs of school which is really nice. So when you accidentally drop it down the stairs, they fix it. They should send you some info sometime soon about it. I think they sent us a mailing in April or early may giving us the website to go and order it. Hope that helps.