I need help solving my computer situation. Laptop or not?

[PancakeEllie]

Hi,

I am gonna be leaving for university and I need help solving my computer situation.

I currently have computer I build on my own (RTX3070, 32 GB RAM, 5800X) and since i am going to be leaving for uni i need to figure out what laptop to buy or even if i should buy one.

I am going to be studying aerospace engineering. I have 100 / 100 Mbs at home so i can remote into my computer without any problem. I am gonna be studying far from home (I will need to fly home), so taking my pc with me isnt really possible and still i would like to have something better than my ipad air 3. Also I don't want to buy ipad again.

 

There are several ways I can solve my dilema:

1. Buy cheaper tablet for taking notes and just remote for heavier work. Something like samsung galaxy tab...

2. Buy Surface go (i5) and do essentially the same thing as with the tablet, but this would be more versatile and probably i wouldn't need to remote as often.

3. Buy Sufrace pro 9 and hope it will be enough, i could still remote home, but it is more powerfull. But higher end models are pretty pricey.

4. Buy Laptop and forget about taking hand-written.

 

I have a few questions:

Is there any other way to take notes digitally and not break a bank?

Would any of these options be powerful enough for me?

Is there some other alternative aka poweful windows laptop with touch support or notebook with stylus support?

Are there any other options I didn't consider.

I hope you can help me decide and choose.

[Hellowpplz]

4 minutes ago, PancakeEllie said:

Hi,

I am gonna be leaving for university and I need help solving my computer situation.

I currently have computer I build on my own (RTX3070, 32 GB RAM, 5800X) and since i am going to be leaving for uni i need to figure out what laptop to buy or even if i should buy one.

I am going to be studying aerospace engineering. I have 100 / 100 Mbs at home so i can remote into my computer without any problem. I am gonna be studying far from home (I will need to fly home), so taking my pc with me isnt really possible and still i would like to have something better than my ipad air 3. Also I don't want to buy ipad again.

 

There are several ways I can solve my dilema:

1. Buy cheaper tablet for taking notes and just remote for heavier work. Something like samsung galaxy tab...

2. Buy Surface go (i5) and do essentially the same thing as with the tablet, but this would be more versatile and probably i wouldn't need to remote as often.

3. Buy Sufrace pro 9 and hope it will be enough, i could still remote home, but it is more powerfull. But higher end models are pretty pricey.

4. Buy Laptop and forget about taking hand-written.

 

I have a few questions:

Is there any other way to take notes digitally and not break a bank?

Would any of these options be powerful enough for me?

Is there some other alternative aka poweful windows laptop with touch support or notebook with stylus support?

Are there any other options I didn't consider.

I hope you can help me decide and choose.

If you go to the used market you could get something good

[Hellowpplz]

11 minutes ago, PancakeEllie said:

Hi,

I am gonna be leaving for university and I need help solving my computer situation.

I currently have computer I build on my own (RTX3070, 32 GB RAM, 5800X) and since i am going to be leaving for uni i need to figure out what laptop to buy or even if i should buy one.

I am going to be studying aerospace engineering. I have 100 / 100 Mbs at home so i can remote into my computer without any problem. I am gonna be studying far from home (I will need to fly home), so taking my pc with me isnt really possible and still i would like to have something better than my ipad air 3. Also I don't want to buy ipad again.

 

There are several ways I can solve my dilema:

1. Buy cheaper tablet for taking notes and just remote for heavier work. Something like samsung galaxy tab...

2. Buy Surface go (i5) and do essentially the same thing as with the tablet, but this would be more versatile and probably i wouldn't need to remote as often.

3. Buy Sufrace pro 9 and hope it will be enough, i could still remote home, but it is more powerfull. But higher end models are pretty pricey.

4. Buy Laptop and forget about taking hand-written.

 

I have a few questions:

Is there any other way to take notes digitally and not break a bank?

Would any of these options be powerful enough for me?

Is there some other alternative aka poweful windows laptop with touch support or notebook with stylus support?

Are there any other options I didn't consider.

I hope you can help me decide and choose.

Honestly if there's a Chromebook app for remote, get a 2 in 1 Chromebook and get a pen separately. 

[seanondemand]

Buy a decent laptop. You can’t count on your computer or internet at home to work perfectly every time you need it when you aren’t there to troubleshoot when it’s misbehaving. iPad+pencil is a pretty popular solution to hand written note taking - a lot of eng students use it to take pics of the blackboard and then mark them up. 

[Qyygle]

Do you take note digitally now with a stylus? If not, I'd definitely say to get a cheaper tablet and try it for a few days first.

 

At any rate, I'd not recommend not having any computer at all at university. You never know when you'll have issue remoting in or when the school wifi will decide to be on the fritz the night before that thing is due.

Find a used 2in1, and use it as your main machine overall. Or a normal laptop and pair with a tablet for notes.

 

Samsung's galaxy tab models with the s-pen are good options you can find them very cheap refurbished. Another choice could be a stylus enabled e-reader device, like a Boox or Remarkable.

I wouldn't recommend a surface unless you really want just ok pen performance, at the cost of Microsoft's terrible price-performance and poor support. It's not worth it.

If it's just notes and writing, most 2in1s should be ok for your needs. Lenovo Flex/Yogas, HP Envy/Spectre, are good options.