I vote against getting a computer for the college-bound daughter until you know what school she is going to and what requirements they have. Many schools have standard machines they want the students to buy, sometimes it is even required that students have a machine that meets certain standards. You do not want to find yourself buying her another computer in the fall! Also, it makes her life easier if she has the same setup on her computer as everyone else at the school. It may increase the availability of tech support for her, as well.
This seems like a good approach: Buy a desktop computer for both to share, then buy a different system for our daughter before she leaves for college
I’m a senior in college typing on the laptop my parents bought me in the middle of freshman year (they sent me to school the first semester with my mom’s laptop to make sure that I would actually need/want one). My laptop has been really useful. I could escape my loud roommate to write papers in the lounge or friends’ rooms. Since I have to fly home I can bring my laptop home with me on school breaks. And I even took it to Europe when I studied abroad.
I’d suggest a warranty and also checking out what computer support the university provides. My university computer store fixes apples and dells, so my parents bought me a dell. When I dropped my computer and broke the hard drive (I guess that’s what happens when you spend the whole day studying powerpoint slides about plant development), the computer store fixed everything for free and I didn’t have to leave campus.
I think we’ve made our decision - replace the kids’ computer now and wait to see what our daughter needs later on. I really appreciate all the advice and suggestions from everyone. Thank you so much!