Do you have a laptop that you love?

Sorry, I didn't read the entire post. 

We use Dells at work .. I’ve been underwhelmed. Hard drive failures are common. I would guess roughly 30-40% in my user population. I’ve had a HD failure myself. The only way I would use a Dell at home would be with a daily backup. I have had the same MacBook Air for 9-10 years. I’ve had to replace batteries and power supplies 2-3 times.

You may want to check with his school to see what he needs. Our dd was given a pc to use at college from the college. It was a great brick. We had gotten her a MacBook Pro to use. The college pc remained in her trunk until she graduated. We purchased the laptop for her back in Spring of 2015. The computer is still going strong.

If your son is going to do anything with graphics, video, photography you cannot beat a Mac for it’s capability. 

I bought a Lenovo IdeaPad S340 at Costco. I think it was $750. It's perfect for me. I do the same things you do, plus a few spreadsheets.

It holds a charge a long time, it has a touch screen, it fires up REALLY quickly.

I only buy HP.

Previously we used Dell (desktop and laptops) but they seemed to last only three years or so. We switched to HP because I used them at work and they were in for the long haul workhorses. 

My current machine I bought in 2017, because I dropped my previous one, purchased in 2009, and the housing cracked open.

OP, maybe check into a Chromebook. DH only uses them for "mindless surfing"  and light gaming. And they're pretty inexpensive.

Totally agree with this. I have not had an issue at all switching to a Mac.

I have a HP Spectre x360 that I love. It's a couple of years old with zero problems. However, I probably paid about double of what you are wanting to spend. Through the years, I have owned and had good luck with HP and Lenovo laptops and Dell desktops.

I got a new Dell laptop a few years ago and haven't had any problems with it. The husband of a former co-worker is a certified Dell tech guy, and I gave him the specs I needed/what I needed the laptop to be able to do (run InDesign and Photoshop, plenty of speed and lots of operating power). He (virtually) built a laptop and a desktop, and I decided to go with the laptop.

I have a cheapest HP that does all you describe.

I use an hp workstation for work

I love Asus brand!

I'll be interested in reading responses. I use a laptop for the same purposes as you and I've had three Dells.

I have an HP Spectre. I have had it for 7 years and it still works just as good as the day I took it out of the box.

The problem is not the brand(s) that you purchase, it is the hardware and specs inside the laptops.
A laptop should have an SSD hard drive. It is MUCH faster then a regular hard drive and can hold up to the movement and abuse that a laptop goes through. A better processor is going to help your speed too. And make sure you have enough memory to keep up with what you are running. 8 GB is usually good but any less will often make things run slower. Dell and Lenevo do tend to be a little sturdier then HP. So for those who think HP is junk-that may be why. You should be able to find one in your price range that would have good specs. Although, prices and availability is limited right now because of all the Covid stuff and shipping issues.
MACs seem so much better because they don't put junk hardware in their laptops or PCs. Unfortunately, too many people don't realize there is such a difference in hardware. They just see the prices.
And, just in case anyone questions my knowledge-my husband has been in the IT, computer line of work for over 25 years. Self employed in IT, networking, computer builds and repair etc for 10+.
If you have any questions, I'd love to help and if I don't know, I will run it past him.

I had Dells for several years but since 2012 have had a Macbook and wouldn't buy a PC again.