2-in-1 Laptops For College?

[roninmedia]

This is the time of year when high school students are becoming college students and many are heading to their respective campuses with new laptops.

A family member is wanting me to purchase a 2-in-1 laptop with touchscreen functionality but I've never owned/used a 2-in-1 laptop. She is going to be a nursing student and does absolutely zero gaming. I am trying to weigh if a cheaper laptop + tablet is a better route to go (<$700).

Any first-hand experience or advice? Thanks for any input

 

[mvbighead]

I like your train of thought, as it's probably more in tune with what I would do myself.

Taking notes on a tablet, at least for me, is cumbersome. Tablets are more for consuming content, not creating it. If she is simply going to be reading from it, a 2n1 is probably fine. However note take may differ.

I have had a surface, and it personally isn't for me. If you're sitting at a well sized desk, it's probably adequate. But if the size is constrained, the kick stand may force you to keep it closer than you would like. I personally don'y like the kick stand because I tend to use laptops in my lap, and it simply isn't comfortable.

On top of that, most 2n1 systems are top heavy because the meat is all in the screen area. It's why the surface has a kick stand, as the tablet portion significantly outweighs the keyboard.

That being said, I'd take your approach. You could also opt for the laptops that fold the keyboard out of the way, but the screen anchor to me seems flimsy there as well. I am very much a desktop first, then laptop, then tablet kind of guy.

I'd simply look for a nice, light weight laptop for notes and work. And if the tablet is a need, get a separate device.

 

[TheStu]

I like your train of thought, as it's probably more in tune with what I would do myself.

Taking notes on a tablet, at least for me, is cumbersome. Tablets are more for consuming content, not creating it. If she is simply going to be reading from it, a 2n1 is probably fine. However note take may differ.

I have had a surface, and it personally isn't for me. If you're sitting at a well sized desk, it's probably adequate. But if the size is constrained, the kick stand may force you to keep it closer than you would like. I personally don'y like the kick stand because I tend to use laptops in my lap, and it simply isn't comfortable.

On top of that, most 2n1 systems are top heavy because the meat is all in the screen area. It's why the surface has a kick stand, as the tablet portion significantly outweighs the keyboard.

That being said, I'd take your approach. You could also opt for the laptops that fold the keyboard out of the way, but the screen anchor to me seems flimsy there as well. I am very much a desktop first, then laptop, then tablet kind of guy.

I'd simply look for a nice, light weight laptop for notes and work. And if the tablet is a need, get a separate device.

Often people are talking about the Lenovo Yogas when they are referring to 2-in-1s, the ones where you can fold the screen all the way around to make it into a tablet. Not the ones where the screen/tablet ejects from the keyboard.

 

[XavierMace]

I'm quite happy with my HP Pavillion X2 with the i5.