Best laptop for school?

Nursing Students Student Assist

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Hey everyone! I start school in January and while getting ready for it, I have been having a debate about what laptop is best for school. I'm a Windows fan but willing to try a Mac. Any suggestions would be wonderful!

Thanks.

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Specializes in LTC and Pediatrics.

Whichever one you want. Keep in mind though that most schools use a Windows based computer. I used a Mac, but anything I turned in I needed to make sure it was saved in a Windows format.

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I use a Mac, and I loooove my Mac. I got the Mac version of Microsoft word for it, so it automatically is compatible. I don't need to change any formatting. Suggestion though, if you get a Mac, get the air not the pro. I NEVER use the cd drive, except for an occasional redbox. It will be so much lighter to carry :)

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I have been a hardcore PC fan my entire life, until about four months ago. I bought my first MacBook Pro for the beginning of nursing school and I LOVE it! There's no turning back now, highly recommend it, but it's all personal choice. I love the reliabily, as well as the compatibility with other apple devices. Yes, they're a bit more expensive, but worth it in the long run - check out refurbished ones on the apple website (or you get $100 with an .edu email for being a student!) Good luck choosing!

Also, I also purchased Microsoft Word for Macs, so conversion is not an issue!

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Specializes in LTC and Pediatrics.

Yeah, I purchased the Microsoft Word for Mac also. Does make the sending and receiving from the profs much easier.

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

I used a laptop throughout most of nursing school. In fact, I'm still using it - I'm typing on it to write you this very response. You need to look at a few things before you plop down money for a laptop to use for school. One of those things is whether or not you intend to use the computer in class for taking notes, not just doing your homework and studying with. I'm going to assume that you'll be using the computer in class too. Most of my classmates used a windows machine, as did I. A couple used a mac or an iPad, but the most common computer was a Windows machine. Most of the time, most of the stuff we had to use in school worked on Windows and Apple platforms. All the computers that we used in lab to go over nursing stuff were all Windows machines. One of the labs that we went to just to take the exams (all were on computer) were Macs, but that wasn't an issue because it all was done through a web browser.

Check with the programs you intend to attend and see if they use computer programs that are Mac or Windows compatible.

Once you know what kind of system the school prefers, you then have to decide how to meet that.

I suggest you look at physical size, usefulness of touch screen (they can be for "drawing" on things), battery life, and whether you can add RAM easily. You should also inquire about being able to plug your computer into a power outlet to keep it charged while in class. Usually I was able to, but not every classroom allows for this. If you do use the computer in class, try to get a computer that has a quiet keyboard. Also consider getting a computer that has a CD/DVD drive because occasionally you may get some of your "stuff" on a disc.

My computer's battery (when on max save settings) would last about 4-5 hours of relatively active use. Most of the time I was able to make it through an entire day of class on battery. If your class doesn't allow you the ability to plug in, you'll need a longer working time with that battery.

Lastly, you'll probably want to sign up for some kind of online storage. I use dropbox but there are others out there. My home computer, my laptop, and my smartphone are all connected to dropbox. I put everything I did for school on drobox so I could always have my material available to me and always have the latest "stuff" available so if one device stopped working, I could pull out another and keep working. If everything went down, I could still go to the school's library and get one of their computers, log onto dropbox's web interface and print anything I needed. That has saved my bacon a few times when my printer at home wouldn't work.

Computers are a very good tool to have in class, but be sure you can use the computer to help you learn. I can type way faster than I can write so taking notes was easier for me to type them on the computer. On that end, I'm glad I learned how to type some 25 years ago. I learned to type on an IBM Selectric III, the keyboarding skills carried over and being able to touch type without having to think about finding the letters was a huge help. That's another thing to consider.

Later, when voice recognition became a lot better, I started using Dragon NaturallySpeaking to dictate a lot of my papers. If I got a faster computer now, I would definitely want to continue using NS on the new computer. Dictation, if trained to your voice, is actually quite accurate and can help you do a lot of your writing in a very short amount of time.

You have a lot of thinking to do... just don't dictate your notes to your computer while in class. Your instructors won't like it very much as they would think you're trying to disrupt their class or talk to your neighbor... ;)

Have a fun time figuring out what you want to do!

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Specializes in Critical care.

I had a pc laptop that I started my nursing program with. It died on me 4 days before finals one quarter and was not even 3.5 years old. It had been running so poorly for so long that I decided to go with a Mac instead. My Mac runs so much better and once I got over the hassle of switching I was happy. I also had friends who were happy with laptops that aren't Mac. It's really just personal preference.

Here's a link to try to save some money on Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, etc.). I was able to put in my school email and get several free downloads :) https://products.office.com/en-us/student/office-in-education

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I have a Mac and don't like it. Its so different from the software I grew up using

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MacBook Pro, they're light, have lots of storage, and are easy to use.

I used an HP in my undergrad and it was just awful, it died a total of 3 times, I had to use the computer lab on my campus to do everything for about 6 months while it was getting "fixed". When it came back, it worked for another 3 months and crapped out. I got my first MacBook after that and never looked back. My first one lasted about 7 years. It still works, just needed a new battery. But I saved up for a new one.

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Thank you everyone for your advice! It certainly helped me!:)

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Specializes in Renal, Diabetic.

You might have already made up your mind but here's my input:

I like the feel of Macs, but I grew up with PC so I found that trying Mac software was harder to get used to. I have a duel processing system where I can boot up my laptop and choose whether to run it as iOS or Windows, depending on what I want to do. I have a Macbook Pro and I got it back in 2008 from a friend, and it was 3 years old when I got it. It still runs smoothly, although it has since retired to school work only since I built my desktop gaming rig.

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Microsoft surface pro 3! Such an awesome device.

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