Computers for Law School 2011 Forum

[beachbum]

LOL Really? You think running word, Onenote, a web browser, and a calendar app at the same time is taxing to a machine? Maybe in 2000. Most machines, including netbooks can run all of that easily. I ran chrome, firefox, opera, one note, a word processor, google calendar, and played music all at the same time. I should know I used a netbook exclusively for an entire year 2009. Today you can purchase a netbook for 200-300 dollars and you can purchase an apple macbook for 1k. They will both run all the apps you just mentioned at the same time with relative ease. So with the Snapple spill how much did apple charge you for the repair. I won't lie going to an apple store is certainly convenient in terms of going there. But I had to go 16 times. And many of the times we had to leave the machine there for days . Do you want to have an out of commission machine for days? Personally, I would use the squaretrade warranty because they just fix it quickly or pay you back for the laptop.

You seem knowledgeable. T410 w/ 6 cell battery for $745 shipped from Lenovo. Am I gonna find a cheaper one within the next 6 months?

The deals are pretty good right now for the T410s, as Lenovo will be releasing the new T420s at the end of the month. I would jump on it, though you might want to upgrade to a 9 cell battery.

FWIW, I recently (just last week) ordered a T410. I upgraded it more than I probably needed to (gotta have that SSD), but what the hell... I need a good, fast, reliable laptop for my 3 years of law school.

[frijoles99]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

[Marionberry]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

Are those pretty rugged? Really, it's not uncommon for me to do stupid, clumsy shit so a tough laptop is a big draw for me.

The deals are pretty good right now for the T410s, as Lenovo will be releasing the new T420s at the end of the month. I would jump on it, though you might want to upgrade to a 9 cell battery.

FWIW, I recently (just last week) ordered a T410. I upgraded it more than I probably needed to (gotta have that SSD), but what the hell... I need a good, fast, reliable laptop for my 3 years of law school.

I didn't see an upgrade for the 9 cell battery, just for the 6. I think it was an additional $40 more than the standard 4 cell.

[beachbum]

Meh, I currently haul my 6 lb Dell everywhere. I'm not sure why people make such a fuss about it.

[Marionberry]

Meh, I currently haul my 6 lb Dell everywhere. I'm not sure why people make such a fuss about it.

Yeah, I don't want to carry extra weight for no good reason, but an extra 2lbs is not that much. When I was in UG I used to keep a ridiculous backpack with like 25lbs of shit in it, and that was bad, but for law school I don't see myself carrying nearly as much stuff.

[Baylan]

Because form factor has no effect on the operation of your hardware...

I consider form factor to be the look of the machine. I don't care what my machine looks like. Does it do the job? Is it reliable? How hard is it to replace?

One of the big advantages to having a netbook over something like a Mac? It hurts a hell of a lot less when it gets dropped/water spilled on it/stolen/ruined for whatever reason. $300 at amazon and I'll have another in two days.

As someone who has personally (accidentally) fried his computer, it sucks to have to pay out to get a new one. It hurts a lot less if you have a cheapo.

[kalvano]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

That's one of the reasons I got the Edge over the T-series. Weight is better.

But really, once you put a Con Law and a Civ Pro book into your bag, you're approaching Army pack weight levels, so an extra pound isn't really noticeable.

[frijoles99]

First off, law school has bigger textbooks than undergrad, so I wouldn't expect weights to go down when carrying stuff around in a backpack.
Second, In terms of reliability Asus is very good quality-wise but they aren't semi-rugged like some lenovos are. On the other hand Asus backs up all its computers with one year of accident coverage in addition to the 2 year manufacturer warranty. So if you drop it, spill water on it, or step on it you'll get it repaired for free. On the other hand I am a big proponent of buying warranties for laptops and cellphones. It's the most used products in our lives and most likely to get dropped and if they break you are out a lot of money and need a replacemnt right away. It's why warranties are valuable in these two circumstances everywhere else your screwed.

I was looking around and saw this.
http://www.laptopmag.com/review/laptops ... -2010.aspx

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.as ... 84&topnav=

This is from HP and it has somewhat similar specs to the T410s, but is about 150 to 200 dollars less. It weighs about a pound and a half less and costco throws in an extra year of warranty in for free. I am weight averse because I had back pain as a result of lugging around a larger laptop. Since I switched to a sub 4lb laptop I have not experienced that pain.

[Marionberry]

Son of a fucking bitch. They upped the price $200 dollars on the T410 since last night. Ugh. I guess I will just wait for another sale, but it seems like every time I try to "wait for another sale" I never end up finding anything. Oh well.

[frijoles99]

For anyone who is looking for a computer, this is the computer I bought specifically for law school.

--LinkRemoved--

I bought it for 750 and it is on great sale right now. The processor overclocks to 1.7 ghz with the push of one button it is really convenient, but you don't need it at all unless you are gaming on it. The battery life is friggin amazing, the build quality is great. I just saw this price so I would suggest anyone look into this. The processor really does last 10 hours. I've put it in lower power consumption mode, and watched movies coast to coast and still had 70% battery life left. At night I play l4d 2 on it without any problems. Oh and i'ts light and cheap.

Oh and if you want lenovo I really like this deal.

http://slickdeals.net/permadeal/48159/l ... win-7-prem

[Marionberry]

For anyone who is looking for a computer, this is the computer I bought specifically for law school.

--LinkRemoved--

I bought it for 750 and it is on great sale right now. The processor overclocks to 1.7 ghz with the push of one button it is really convenient, but you don't need it at all unless you are gaming on it. The battery life is friggin amazing, the build quality is great. I just saw this price so I would suggest anyone look into this. The processor really does last 10 hours. I've put it in lower power consumption mode, and watched movies coast to coast and still had 70% battery life left. At night I play l4d 2 on it without any problems. Oh and i'ts light and cheap.

Oh and if you want lenovo I really like this deal.

http://slickdeals.net/permadeal/48159/l ... win-7-prem

Do you think it's likely to come across better deals than that on the X201 within the next several months?

[frijoles99]

No idea, but they did introduce the 202 so it's possible.

[bk1]

Meh, I currently haul my 6 lb Dell everywhere. I'm not sure why people make such a fuss about it.

This. I have a 15.4" Dell and really don't mind the extra size/weight.

[Marionberry]

Meh, I currently haul my 6 lb Dell everywhere. I'm not sure why people make such a fuss about it.

This. I have a 15.4" Dell and really don't mind the extra size/weight.

Ya, I've decided that the extra pound or two isn't a big issue to me, and it's more important to have a 13"+ screen. I am keeping my eyes out for another deal on the T410 I should have bought two days ago. "I'll just sleep on it", I said. "Decide in the morning, it says the sale lasts til March 10", I said. Fuck.

[FalafelWaffle]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

My laptop weighs about the same. I'm 6' so maybe that's why I don't care about "lugging" around a 15" MBP. But seriously, no one over, say, 5'6" should whine about a 5 pound laptop (first-world problems, etc.)

[champsound]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

My laptop weighs about the same. I'm 6' so maybe that's why I don't care about "lugging" around a 15" MBP. But seriously, no one over, say, 5'6" should whine about a 5 pound laptop (first-world problems, etc.)

Trying to figure out what computer to get for Law School, but this thread makes me think of this again: http://www.whitewhine.com/

[geoduck]

Lenovo makes damn reliable machines, but that thing is too damn heavy. 5lbs 5.1oz I know it may not look like much, but trust me, when you are lugging it around daily. That extra 1lb or 2 lb is going to affect you. There are plenty of machines that are of great quality that weigh a couple lb less. And trust me you won't miss the optical drive. You can lose it. Just use an external one. I haven't had an optical drive in my laptop for 3 years and haven't missed it. I would suggest looking at the timeline series by acer or I saw someone buy this computer. It weighs nearly 2lb less than the lenovo has great build quality and comparable battery life.

http://www.amazon.com/U35F-X1-Light-13- ... 353&sr=8-1

My laptop weighs about the same. I'm 6' so maybe that's why I don't care about "lugging" around a 15" MBP. But seriously, no one over, say, 5'6" should whine about a 5 pound laptop (first-world problems, etc.)

It isn't really the weight as much as the size. There are a lot of bags that a 15" doesn't fit in where a 13" is nice and cozy.

[Tangerine Gleam]

Stoked for the Lenovo T420. Gonna pick one up soon as it comes out (1-2 weeks). My 5-year-old laptop is on the verge of death.

[twozeroseven]

If anyone out there has access to the Lenovo epp site, they are giving away Thinkpads until the 17th - I looked at a couple Edge models that were close to 45% off retail. I assume this is because the new line is coming out. Unfortunately, that also means they are behind the curve ... some are 'loaded' up with 2 whole gb of memory and 32 bit versions of Windows. [Quivers in awe]

Unfortunately, the new line of Dell XPS 15 inch machines looks pretty good even at retail, and i always thought the higher-end Dell machines were pretty well-built.

[mcubberly]

If anyone out there has access to the Lenovo epp site, they are giving away Thinkpads until the 17th - I looked at a couple Edge models that were close to 45% off retail. I assume this is because the new line is coming out. Unfortunately, that also means they are behind the curve ... some are 'loaded' up with 2 whole gb of memory and 32 bit versions of Windows. [Quivers in awe]

Unfortunately, the new line of Dell XPS 15 inch machines looks pretty good even at retail, and i always thought the higher-end Dell machines were pretty well-built.

Lenovo has had awesome sales in the past few months--there are some great buys out now.

However, I would never, ever buy an XPS. Before I worked in college laptop repair for three years, I thought Dells were pretty solid/good. The XPS is one of the computers we see most (the architecture/business kids buy them if they don't want to run boot camp, but the vast majority are apple/asus users). It's at the point that, in the last few months and barring viruses, we have been able to diagnose virtually all of the XPSes we get with a failing/failed hard drive (confirmed by a hardware test). There's a pretty big problem with hard drive failure with both the studio and XPS models. And yeah, hard drive failure is pretty common, but this is waaaay worse than other brands. Like HP and heating/motherboard problems. Just throwing my laptop repair two cents in. We see at least a few each month with dead HDs.

[Marionberry]

About to buy this:

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkp ... 37v26.html

Thoughts?

[twozeroseven]

About to buy this:

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkp ... 37v26.html

Thoughts?

That seems real solid as long as you don't want those higher-end features required by gaming or photo/video editing such as a discrete graphics card. Note the lack of webcam (how will you Skype with mom?) and also the 160gig hard drive is kinda a joke these days, but storage (external or otherwise) is cheap. As previous posters have mentioned there is a new version coming out soon. Even to save some money it sometimes hurts to be immediately one model back.

[beachbum]

About to buy this:

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkp ... 37v26.html

Thoughts?

That seems real solid as long as you don't want those higher-end features required by gaming or photo/video editing such as a discrete graphics card. Note the lack of webcam (how will you Skype with mom?) and also the 160gig hard drive is kinda a joke these days, but storage (external or otherwise) is cheap. As previous posters have mentioned there is a new version coming out soon. Even to save some money it sometimes hurts to be immediately one model back.

Go for it; that's a great deal. The new models will have the Sandy Bridge processors and a couple additional features, but nothing groundbreaking (details are on Lenovo's website if you're interested). What you're looking at here will be a great laptop for law school.

Edit: And speaking of which, my T410 shipped from Hong Kong a few days ago and should be delivered either tomorrow or Monday. Can't wait.

[Marionberry]

About to buy this:

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkp ... 37v26.html

Thoughts?

That seems real solid as long as you don't want those higher-end features required by gaming or photo/video editing such as a discrete graphics card. Note the lack of webcam (how will you Skype with mom?) and also the 160gig hard drive is kinda a joke these days, but storage (external or otherwise) is cheap. As previous posters have mentioned there is a new version coming out soon. Even to save some money it sometimes hurts to be immediately one model back.

Go for it; that's a great deal. The new models will have the Sandy Bridge processors and a couple additional features, but nothing groundbreaking (details are on Lenovo's website if you're interested). What you're looking at here will be a great laptop for law school.

Edit: And speaking of which, my T410 shipped from Hong Kong a few days ago and should be delivered either tomorrow or Monday. Can't wait.

Yeah, the most graphic intensive things I'll be doing is hulu or youtube, and I don't need a webcam. I don't plan on needing much storage, but if I do I can always use an external hard drive or install a bigger one. From the sound of things, the older models don't actually get cheaper when lenovo releases new ones, as the demand increases from companies who issue the last model to their employees. I think it should do everything I would ever need it to do, and I don't know if I would end up finding a T4X0 model with windows 7 64 bit and 4gb of ram for less than $700 any time before school starts. So, i might have found a better deal, but not by much, I don't think. I"m happy with it.

[coldshoulder]

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