Hi everyone,
My son is trying to figure out whether or not to go with a larger, touch-screen Lenovo Laptop or a lighter 15" with no touchscreen. He’s pretty set on all the requirements needed in terms of the machine itself, just isn’t sure if a 17" would be “too big”, etc. He will likely be connecting an additional desktop monitor, especially if he gets the 15".
Thoughts?
Thanks in advance,
Capecodlady
*Hoping to order asap. We’re really behind on this whole getting ready for college thing. A month with Lyme Disease for mom has not been pretty!
17" is pretty big for a laptop. He needs to remember that he’s going to be lugging that sucker all over campus - and on site trips - and vacation - and so on.
If the school has not mandated screen size and you can get a 24" or larger second monitor for studio and one for dorm/apartment, he’s all set. 17" is way too large. I just bought one for my daughter whose school saw fit to require such a beast. She also has a MacBook Pro 13" for light work or travel.
The 17" is not a bad deal if you have a car (she does) and don’t plan to walk a lot with it (she’s a grad student) but if you have to lug it uphill both ways… not so good. Make sure you can get the same graphics processor on the 14 or 15 inch. Anything with a quad core i7, Nvidia Quadro k2000+ or better, and 2gb graphics.
I’d say go for mobility to start and plan on adding power and size later. My son also had a MacPro laptop for everyday use. As noted, the laptop will put in a lot of miles.
Once he was more familiar with the requirements of the architecture program, my son bought second hand a powerful desktop with a large screen which he found useful for more complex projects. After graduating, he was able to sell the desktop for not much less than he paid for it.