Strictly speaking, you don’t need to fork out for a laptop before you go to university. Without a doubt, there will be computers available for you to use in the university libraries, probably even in your halls of residence. But will there also be long queues to use them? Yes. Will the libraries and the computer labs shut just as you are rushing to meet an essay deadline? Yes. And will the thought of leaving your room and lugging all your books to a brightly lit space where food, drink and music are strictly forbidden be enough to put you off? Yes.
准确地讲，你并不需要在上大学之前花钱买笔记本电脑。大学图书馆里毫无疑问会有可用的电脑，甚至宿舍楼里也可能有。但是你会不会要排很长的队才能用上呢？会的。在你赶着交作业的截止日期前图书馆和机房会不会关门呢？会的。想到你要离开你的房间抱着你所有的书到一个亮堂的地方去，在那里食物、饮料和音乐都是被严格禁止的，这些是不是足以让你开始拖延了呢？是的。
All of which means that if you are to get any work done at all, a laptop is the single most important piece of technology a student can own.
这些都说明，如果你真的想做点功课的话，那么一台笔记本电脑就是一个学生所能拥有的最重要的工具。
Two of the options are the Sony Vaio VGN-TZ11 (from £1,499) and the Apple MacBook Pro (from £1,299). The former is light (only 1.19kg), has a good battery life of up to seven hours, and a DVD player that can be turned on without booting up Windows. The latter is heavier (2.45kg) but a lot more stylish, and with a 2.2GHz or 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, it is fast, too. The Intel processor means it can run both Windows and Apple software, making it compatible with most university computers. Both models offer wireless internet options.
有两个选择，一个是索尼Vaio VGN-TZ11（1499英镑起），另一个是苹果MacBook Pro（1299英镑起）。前一种更轻（只有1.19千克），电池续航时间可达七小时，不需要启动Windows就可以使用DVD播放器。后一种要重一点（2.45公斤），但是更时尚，而且配备有2.2GHz或者2.4GHZ的英特尔内核，所以也更快。英特尔处理器意味着它可以运行微软和苹果两套软件，使它能和大多数学校的电脑兼容。这两种都提供无线网络连接的选项。
If you can wait until you are at university, then Apple offers discounts to students on its entire range if you access its website from a university computer.
如果你愿意等到你到了大学再买电脑的话，在学校的电脑上登录苹果网站，苹果的所有产品都会给学生打折。
It is also worth picking up a printer to avoid last-minute scrambles and paper jams at the university ones when a deadline looms. Cheap and cheerful is your best option here: both the Lexmark Z1320 Printer (£33.99) and the Lexmark Z1420 Wireless Printer (£39.99) are available from Staples stores nationwide.
买一台打印机也是值得的，这样可以避免在截止日期逼近的时候在学校的打印机前遭遇最后一分钟的争抢和卡纸。又便宜又好才是你最好的选择：Lexmark Z1320打印机（33.99英镑）和Lexmark Z1420无线打印机（39.99英镑）在全国的Staples商店都有卖。
Even so, there will be times when you have been working so hard you run out of paper or ink cartridges, so it’s worth having a memory stick to hand so you can use a university computer and printer. Get an Integral 1GB High Speed Courier Pen Drive for £3·25 from Amazon.
即使这样，你也可能会碰上好不容易完成功课却用完纸或者墨盒的情况。所以有一个存储设备还是有用的，你可以用学校的电脑和打印机。3.25英镑就可以在亚马逊上买到1GB的高速便携存储器。
Once you’ve done all that work, you’ll want to reconnect with the outside world. Download Skype, an internet telephone network, to your laptop and you can make free calls to other Skype users (there are 200 million of them) and cheap calls to other landlines and mobiles worldwide.
把所有这些都做完后，你还要和外部世界保持联系。在你的笔记本上下载Skype——一个网络电话工具，然后你就可以和其它2亿Skype用户打免费电话了，还可以给其他全世界的座机和手机打便宜的电话。
Aside from that, a mobile phone with a contract will prove essential. Try all the major networks for the best deal, and make sure you get one suited to the way you communicate. Hours of free minutes are no good if you are addicted to texting.
除此之外，一部合约机会是非常必需的。尝试一下各大运营商来找到最好的资费套餐，保证它一定是适合你的通讯方式的。赠送几个小时的通话时间对于一个喜欢发短信的人来说可没什么用。
Insurance is worth getting, too: Orange Care, for example, at just £5 a month, will make sure a replacement phone is sent to you within 24 hours should yours be lost, stolen or damaged – likely on a student night out.
保险也很重要：例如Orange Care每月只需5英镑，就能让你在你的手机丢了、被偷了，或者坏了——在一个派对之夜是非常有可能的——之后的24小时内一部新手机。
On the entertainment front, an iPod is a student staple these days, but if you get a mobile phone and MP3 player in one then there’s a lot less to carry around (and lose). Sony Ericsson’s W880i is their latest walkman phone and one of the best out there, with enough memory to store up to 900 tracks (from free with contract or £195 from Amazon).
在娱乐方面，iPod现在可以说是学生的必需品了。但是如果你有一个手机和MP3二合一的产品的话出门就可以少带（和少丢）很多东西。索尼爱立信的W880i是它们最新的也是最好的随身听手机，容量足够存储900首乐曲（价格从免费的合约机到亚马逊上的195英镑不等）。
Finally, you will need a television in front of which to slump. Tesco has ones so cheap it won’t be the end of the world if you drop yours on one of your many trips to and from university over the coming years. Try and slip a Digihome 14437 with 14-inch screen (just £44.97) into your parents’ weekly shop. (But ensure you have a valid TV licence.)
最后，你需要一台可以在它前面睡觉的电视机。Tesco便宜到如果你在未来几年在学校和家之间的往返中丢了它都不会觉得天塌了。在你父母的每周购物中偷拿一台14英寸屏幕的Digihome 14437（只要44.97英镑）吧。（但是首先你得有有效的电视许可证。）
10 Vital items
10样最重要的东西
1. Passport photographs--for all the random membership and ID cards you have to carry around. Useful to have them prepared for Freshers’ Week.
1. 护照照片——你所有的会员卡和身份证件都需要它们。在欢迎周里一定要记得带着它们。
2. Mobile phone charger--you will lose juice quickly when you first go away because of all the texting and calling back to friends and family that will probably be going on.
2. 手机充电器——刚离家的时候电会耗得很快，因为你很可能要一直跟家人和朋友发短信打电话。
3. Contact numbers--have with you some addresses and contacts of next of kin. Again, don’t rely on your mobile phone for keeping records. You will be moving around a number of locations from lectures to cafes and socialising, and mobiles are the easiest thing to lose. Keep a written record of emergency contacts (and your credit card numbers) at your accommodation.
3. 联系电话——记下来你的亲戚的地址和联系方式。再说一次，别依赖你的手机来保存这些信息。你要一直在从课堂到咖啡馆到社交场所的一系列地点之间穿梭，手机是最容易丢的东西。把紧急联系方式（和你的信用卡卡号）记在纸上留在你的宿舍里。
4. Towels--even if they are supplied you can’t beat having a big, soft bath towel to make you feel at home.
4. 毛巾——即使学校提供你也不能拒绝一条让你有在家的感觉的又大又软的浴巾。
5. A straightforward cookbook--something like Delia Smith’s Complete Cookery Course, or even The Reader’s Digest Cookery Year, with all the basics explained. You will probably need as much information about buying food as cooking it.
5. 一本简明易懂的菜谱——像Delia Smith烹饪教程大全，甚至是《读者》的烹饪年刊，这些都解释了最基本的烹饪要领。你可能需要它告诉你先买什么食材再开始做饭。
6. ID: driving licence, passport, birth certificate--have them with you in a safe place (they are your responsibility now).
6. 身份证件：驾照、护照、出生证明——妥善地保存它们（现在你要自己为它们负责了）。
7. A map--a campus map and a town/city A-Z guide. These are essential for your first few weeks in a new place.
7. 地图——一份学校地图和一本城镇/城市索引。这些是你初到某地的必需品。
8. Alarm clock--yeah, yeah, unless you’re not intending to go to any of those early morning lectures. Think again. Don’t rely on your mobile phone to get you up (if you are always using it as an alarm you will soon lose power).
8. 闹钟——是的，是的，除非你一个早课都不想上。再想想，不要依赖手机叫你起床（如果你总是用手机作为闹铃的话它很快就会没电的）。
9. Corkscrew/bottle opener--need we say more?
9. 螺丝锥/开瓶器——还需要多说么？
10. Kitchen kit--and the essential of essentials is a kettle and mug combo (with a jar of coffee for good measure).
10. 厨房套装——最重要中的最重要的是壶和套杯（还有一罐咖啡粉）。
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