Good news for the young scholars arriving in the Hub of all college towns.

Boston is virtually a bargain basement when it comes to stocking dorm rooms with ``essential'' gadgets, according to a survey released yesterday by PriceRunner, an online price comparison site owned by ValueClick Inc.

Boston was second only to Pittsburgh when it came to the least expensive average costs of back-to-school electronics, the survey of 10 cities found. The results showed Boston had some pretty good deals compared with major cities like New York and Los Angeles.

The survey looked at prices of appliances and electronics, including microwaves, vacuum cleaners, DVD players, TVs, laptops and MP3 players.

The national average for 9 items on the list was $2,751.79. Boston beat that with an average cost of $2,727.40.

Students heading to the Big Apple and buying their gear there will have to shell out more to deck out their dorm rooms with the latest electronics. New York City was the most expensive city for gadgets and appliances at $2,801.36.

Back-to-college spending is expected to surge this year in the United States. A National Retail Federation study released earlier this month predicted consumers will spend over $34 billion. Electronics represent a huge piece of that spending at over $8 billion, second only to textbooks and more than school supplies.

First-time college students appear to be the most tech-hungry.

The average freshman plans to spend over $1,000 on school shopping with almost half of the money going toward electronic products.

But some college veterans question whether DVD players and laptops really classify as ``essential'' dorm room products. ``What is essential is what you need to complete your academic work,'' said David Zamojski, director of residence life at Boston University.

But as the technology changes, the needs of students are constantly being updated, Zamojski said.