8 essential gadgets every college student should have in their dorm room
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College is coming. A with it comes long papers, late nights full of junk food, and hopefully many fond memories along the way.
If dorm room days are ahead of you or someone you know, the products on this list will help you chill out, watch Netflix, and get your work done.
Some are more fun than others, but by the end of four years, any college student should be able to see the benefit of having all of them.
An HDTV
Amazon
Whether you're using it to watch movies or play video games, the center of many students' dorm room is the TV. Given the size of most dorms, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to buy a massive one, but this 28" 720P HDTV from Samsung should be the perfect size.
It's still plenty big without being overbearing, has two HDMI ports for whatever devices you'd like to plug into it, and a coaxial jack so you can watch cable. It's not a smart TV, so there are no apps or streaming services built in, but chances are you're going to have a device on hand that can give you access to them.
Samsung 28-Inch 720p LED TV, $187.99, available at Amazon
A Roku
AmazonRoku's latest streaming stick is our pick for the best value in the streaming media box market. Without taking up too much space, the current Roku stick gives you access to hundreds of different apps, including the big ones like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, VUDU, and Google Play with an easy to use user interface.
There are more powerful options out there, but they offer extras like 4K streaming which is overkill for a dorm room.
Roku Streaming Stick, $47.48, available at Amazon
An Ethernet cable
AmazonDorms may have Wi-Fi, but it's terrible Wi-Fi. That's not by design, but if you stick a couple hundred people with multiple Wi-Fi devices who all want to stream Netflix, YouTube, and Spotify, it's impossible to keep up.
It's not particularly cool-looking to have your computer plugged into the Ethernet jack in your wall, but it's a lot better than watching your computer buffer for 10 minutes when you're trying to watch the latest season of "Orange is the New Black."
Mediabridge Ethernet Cable (25 Feet), $7.99, available at Amazon
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