Computers for Law School 2012 Forum

[power of a tourney]

Since technology has advanced in the past year, I thought I´d start a new post for those looking for insight about good lap tops/computers to purchase for the upcoming law school year. If you have any thoughts as to what might make a great lap top for law school, please share.

Best

[Nammertat]

Ultimately it needs to come down to how much $$ you want to spend. Within each price range there are different companies/models that would be a clear choice. Personally I went with a Lenovo T420 series, because its really durable/waterproof and gets ~10 hrs of battery life.

[barestin]

One that has internet and Microsoft Word

/thread

[StarLightSpectre]

Brehs I have a first world problem.

Should get a really nice Mac Book Pro or an entry level Mac Book Air AND and iMac?

Don't have to pay for it. Total amount will be a gift just trying to pick something awesome.

[TTRansfer]

Just got my Retina 15" Macbook Pro. Thinner and lighter than my 13" MBP.

[dextermorgan]

Something tells me that this thread's general consensus will be to buy a Lenovo or Mac.

[wbbguy]

Brehs I have a first world problem.

Should get a really nice Mac Book Pro or an entry level Mac Book Air AND and iMac?

Don't have to pay for it. Total amount will be a gift just trying to pick something awesome.

I can't complain with my MacBook Air and iMac combo. If you go that route definitely get the most AppleCare you can. My iMac is a few year old now, but still runs really well and I still can't believe how, in my experience, it runs Windows better than any non-Mac machine I've ever run windows on. (I use boot camp for access to the occasional Windows-only application). Knocking on wood, in over three years I have not had one technical issue with my iMac and the glass screen is still as perfect as the day I bought it. No computer in my entire (and vast) history of computers has performed as well as this machine. Not to mention in that time, it still competes stats-wise with computers today and can run the high-end games I enjoy.

The Air is profoundly fast and yet very travel friendly. It's battery life is amazing, and the visual quality of the screen doesn't disappoint. Its quiet and doesnt get burning hot if you practice proper venting (i.e not running it on a blanket). I've had several technical issues with the Air, but AppleCare has saved me every time, going as far as replacing the Logic Board, power source, and monitor (I basically have a piece-meal new computer now, but it all still works very well). I had a MacBook pro as well but wound up getting rid of it-it was great, but heavy and clunky and wasn't a great laptop for lugging back and forth everywhere I wanted to take it.

The drawback to apple revolves around their price points up front, but if that's not an issue, then I can't argue against it personally. Some people don't like the way the company embraces the "if it's greater than 2 years old, it's time to buy one of our new products" model, but that's the way they run their show and if you embrace it as well, it's hard to be caught disappointed.

Of course, everyone will have their own horror stories, but I've been happy with my experiences. I'm one step away from being an iBorg, what with a iMac, air, iPhone and iPad, but each device has its own particular purposs and each seems to have much more consumer engineering and focus than other products I've seen in the same genre.

I can't even believe I've written this much as a person with no vested interest in the darn company! They're not perfect, but I do believe their better than most. Go with your gut, though: in the end, you're going to be happy with what you want to use versus what other people like using.

Happy technological hunting.

[StarLightSpectre]

I can't complain with my MacBook Air and iMac combo. If you go that route definitely get the most AppleCare you can. My iMac is a few year old now, but still runs really well and I still can't believe how, in my experience, it runs Windows better than any non-Mac machine I've ever run windows on. (I use boot camp for access to the occasional Windows-only application). Knocking on wood, in over three years I have not had one technical issue with my iMac and the glass screen is still as perfect as the day I bought it. No computer in my entire (and vast) history of computers has performed as well as this machine. Not to mention in that time, it still competes stats-wise with computers today and can run the high-end games I enjoy.

The Air is profoundly fast and yet very travel friendly. It's battery life is amazing, and the visual quality of the screen doesn't disappoint. Its quiet and doesnt get burning hot if you practice proper venting (i.e not running it on a blanket). I've had several technical issues with the Air, but AppleCare has saved me every time, going as far as replacing the Logic Board, power source, and monitor (I basically have a piece-meal new computer now, but it all still works very well). I had a MacBook pro as well but wound up getting rid of it-it was great, but heavy and clunky and wasn't a great laptop for lugging back and forth everywhere I wanted to take it.

The drawback to apple revolves around their price points up front, but if that's not an issue, then I can't argue against it personally. Some people don't like the way the company embraces the "if it's greater than 2 years old, it's time to buy one of our new products" model, but that's the way they run their show and if you embrace it as well, it's hard to be caught disappointed.

Of course, everyone will have their own horror stories, but I've been happy with my experiences. I'm one step away from being an iBorg, what with a iMac, air, iPhone and iPad, but each device has its own particular purposs and each seems to have much more consumer engineering and focus than other products I've seen in the same genre.

I can't even believe I've written this much as a person with no vested interest in the darn company! They're not perfect, but I do believe their better than most. Go with your gut, though: in the end, you're going to be happy with what you want to use versus what other people like using.

Happy technological hunting.

Woah. Thanks

[bloobook]

.

[dowu]

Sigh. I bought an 11" Asus EEE PC for ~$250 online and it has been working well for note taking, examsoft, and carrying around with me. There really is no need to spend over $1000 on a laptop. By the time you graduate, it will be outdated and you'll want a new one for professional use anyway.

If you used this logic, it could entail you never buying an expensive laptop for the rest of your life.

Macbook prO is the way to gO.

[minnbills]

I'm looking to spend about 500-600. Hopefully something that can handle civilization or some other older games.

Other than that it just needs to last. I had a toshiba that broke down physically pretty quickly, so not looking to go that route again.

Any recommendations from the pros around here? I have a gift gard to best buy to boot so it would be preferable if I could order it through them.

[bloobook]

.

[20130312]

I'm looking to spend about 500-600. Hopefully something that can handle civilization or some other older games.

Other than that it just needs to last. I had a toshiba that broke down physically pretty quickly, so not looking to go that route again.

Any recommendations from the pros around here? I have a gift gard to best buy to boot so it would be preferable if I could order it through them.

Just got a Dell Inspiron 14z for $500, 500GB 4GB RAM. I'm happy with it and expect it to last through law school no problem.

[dextermorgan]

The drawback to apple revolves around their price points up front, but if that's not an issue, then I can't argue against it personally. Some people don't like the way the company embraces the "if it's greater than 2 years old, it's time to buy one of our new products" model, but that's the way they run their show and if you embrace it as well, it's hard to be caught disappointed.

My almost four year old MacBook runs Lion like a champ, and was approved by Apple today to run Mountain Lion. They build the Macs to last, it's the iOS devices that they force you to upgrade.

[Arbinshire]

Lenovo v. Mac </thread>

Now - what about software?

• Word
• Onenote (Works on both Windows, as well as OSX through Winebottler)
• Dropbox or Google Drive

[2014]

Lenovo v. Mac </thread>

Now - what about software?

• Word
• Onenote (Works on both Windows, as well as OSX through Winebottler)
• Dropbox or Google Drive

Does Winebottler work with Onenote, like have you used it successfully?

The reviews that I can see for Winebottler are very underwhelming so I'm skeptical.

[YYZ]

I'm looking to spend about 500-600. Hopefully something that can handle civilization or some other older games.

Other than that it just needs to last. I had a toshiba that broke down physically pretty quickly, so not looking to go that route again.

Any recommendations from the pros around here? I have a gift gard to best buy to boot so it would be preferable if I could order it through them.

I have a Dell Inspiron with 15.6" screen, and it is fine, but I don't love the keyboard. Make sure that you're comfortable with typing on the keyboard before you buy a new machine. I just bought my wife an HP with 15.6" screen, and I love the keyboard. I wish I would have bought the HP for myself. Just keep in mind that you're going to be typing like a madman during class and exams.

[laxbrah420]

Let's have a discussion about Google Drive's privacy policy. A friend's phd program forbade it for work relating to the program and the policy that basically says they can use your docs for whatever the want seems pretty shady --even though I generally trust google to act responsibly.

[Sunneklaas]

I currently have a 13" mbp from two years ago, one thing I regretted when making the switch was not being able to use onenote. I have tried out (in the most rudimentary of ways) things like the trial versions of omnioutliner, growly, and circusponies, and am pretty underwhelmed. I guess what I am trying to say is in addition to looking to get a nasty setup at home with a peripheral monitor (can I save money by going non-apple here?) I'd like to be able to use onenote without booting up windows and using that OS while in class or outlining- and also without the threat of a mid-brilliance crash- I am in over my technological head. Any recommendations would be much appreciated.

[2014]

Is it worth $100 to go from 4 gb to 8 gb RAM on a MB Air? I imagine that it is difficult/impossible to upgrade after the fact, will I notice a difference and will it make it last longer?

[keladry]

Is it worth $100 to go from 4 gb to 8 gb RAM on a MB Air? I imagine that it is difficult/impossible to upgrade after the fact, will I notice a difference and will it make it last longer?

The conventional wisdom is yes, Macs are RAM hungry. The reality is, it depends on what you use the computer for. I've got a late-2010 Air with 4 gigs of RAM (there wasn't an 8 gig option on it) and I usually have a fair bit of it free.

That being said, for 90 bucks, I'd upgrade it in the newer model. Mountain Lion may be more RAM hungry, and 90 bucks isn't bad. IIRC, the Air's RAM is currently soldered to the logic board, like in the retina MBP (I could be wrong, so you may wanna double check that). My feeling is that $90 isn't a bad investment if you can't upgrade it later. If it is user-upgradeable, hold out and order 3rd party RAM if you need it.

Now I just need someone to remind me that 8 gigs is plenty and I don't need to put 16 in my new retina MBP. (My Air still runs fine, I just want more screen real estate. And AppleCare so I don't have to stress; I forgot to order it with the Air within the first year of owning it.)

[keladry]

I currently have a 13" mbp from two years ago, one thing I regretted when making the switch was not being able to use onenote. I have tried out (in the most rudimentary of ways) things like the trial versions of omnioutliner, growly, and circusponies, and am pretty underwhelmed. I guess what I am trying to say is in addition to looking to get a nasty setup at home with a peripheral monitor (can I save money by going non-apple here?) I'd like to be able to use onenote without booting up windows and using that OS while in class or outlining- and also without the threat of a mid-brilliance crash- I am in over my technological head. Any recommendations would be much appreciated.

You still have to own and install Windows, but the current version of Parallels lets you run Windows apps without a Windows desktop. That is, you open them as if they're Mac-native apps.

Also, you can absolutely save money by going with a non-Apple monitor. You'll probably have to buy an adapter, but a non-Apple monitor will be fine.

[Ohiobumpkin]

Assuming you are buying a laptop strictly for law school and not for another purpose (video gaming, media editing, etc), I wouldn't buy any laptop over $500. It doesn't have to have an an Intel i-series processor to run Microsoft Office Suite. I would stick to buying a laptop at newegg.com . I just bought a $399 Acer laptop with the $100 student edition of Microsoft Office Suite. This is what I got:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6834215371

[2014]

Is it worth $100 to go from 4 gb to 8 gb RAM on a MB Air? I imagine that it is difficult/impossible to upgrade after the fact, will I notice a difference and will it make it last longer?

The conventional wisdom is yes, Macs are RAM hungry. The reality is, it depends on what you use the computer for. I've got a late-2010 Air with 4 gigs of RAM (there wasn't an 8 gig option on it) and I usually have a fair bit of it free.

That being said, for 90 bucks, I'd upgrade it in the newer model. Mountain Lion may be more RAM hungry, and 90 bucks isn't bad. IIRC, the Air's RAM is currently soldered to the logic board, like in the retina MBP (I could be wrong, so you may wanna double check that). My feeling is that $90 isn't a bad investment if you can't upgrade it later. If it is user-upgradeable, hold out and order 3rd party RAM if you need it.

Now I just need someone to remind me that 8 gigs is plenty and I don't need to put 16 in my new retina MBP. (My Air still runs fine, I just want more screen real estate. And AppleCare so I don't have to stress; I forgot to order it with the Air within the first year of owning it.)

Thanks! How reliable has your Air been btw? I'm not in love with Applecare but I'll get it if I need it.

[keladry]

Thanks! How reliable has your Air been btw? I'm not in love with Applecare but I'll get it if I need it.

It's been great, but for the trackpad. I'm not sure what's going on there but it seems like it has gotten less responsive over time. Still works, but sometimes I have to click more than once or move where I'm clicking slightly to get the click to register. That could be my settings, too, but it hasn't bothered me enough to do anything about it.

My only complaints about the Air are that it runs hot (which, uh, that's the world of Mac portables and ultraportables in general) and I want a bit more screen real estate (even on the 13") but hate being tied to an external monitor.

Also, unless this has changed, you have up to a year after you buy the computer to purchase AppleCare for it. I recommend it for stress relief and resale purposes. On any of the Pros with a DVD drive, I think it's essential because the slot-loading drives fail entirely too often. (I had a MBP which required *three* drive replacements, once.)