<p>So I'm still struggling to choose a laptop. I'm getting conflicted reports from people. Some say choose a powerful laptop to run CAD, SolidWorks, etc. Others say engineering students rarely ever use their laptop to work these powerful programs; these programs are only used on lab/school computers and a light laptop is fine otherwise.</p>
<p>But current engineering students: what do you use your laptop for?</p>
<p>I think that you can always use University Computers to do your work but some computer labs are really busy at certain times and sometimes shared resources are bogged down. Having a lot of compute power and the licenses to run the required software can make your homework a little easier as you don’t have to compete with other students for scarce resources. You might also consider a desktop instead of a laptop if you need to do a lot of crunching. You can get more compute power for the buck on a desktop and you don’t have to worry about cooling.</p>
<p>Honestly, students only bring laptops to class just to Internet surf and play games. Some take notes, but the majority of them don’t.</p>
<p>And to run programs like CAD and SolidWorks, you need to buy a license which can cost hundreds to even thousands of dollars. For a student to invest that much money in a program is stupid…unless of course, you torrent the program, but I’m not gonna suggest that out in the open.</p>
<p>As for the kind of PC, it’s all about processor speed, ram, and Windows. Those should be your number 1 priority. Hard drive space is not that big a deal for an engineering computer. The hard drive on my computer at work (engineering job) is only 30 GB cuz I’m on a network server. 30 GB is what every engineer utilizes.</p>
<p>I purchased one from dell outlet and got a great deal. Although I have a computer at home, its much easier for me to stay focused on campus, so I use my laptop a lot! Most schools have a university edition of pricey software that they are able to install on your computer while you go to school there. </p>
<p>Is it necessary to have a laptop? no, but it can be very beneficial.</p>
<p>My son had a homework assignment that he couldn’t do in time because the processing power on his laptop (MacBook Pro Core i5) couldn’t crunch numbers fast enough so I offered him our family cloud (2 Nehalem Core i7s, 1 Sandy Bridge Core i5 and 1 Ivy Bridge Core i5) which got the job done for him.</p>
<p>So you never actually have to use those power-hungry programs in class? Also Mengineer I’ll probably be staying on campus and I work much better off my own laptop (strange as that sounds) in a set place. The university I’m going to has an abundance of free computers at least from what others from there have told me. My only issue is if we actually had to run the software in class I’d be stuck. Oh and I will be having a laptop just a more easily portable one, maybe even a tablet like the Surface.</p>
<p>Son is a top dual engineering major at his school. Graduating this May. He’s been using his Dell (large and heavy laptop) (girft form Grandma who things big is better, easier to see screen, etc) all 4 years. Junior year he added a small, lightweight Asus laptop to bring to class.</p>
<p>Really, just get a laptop that you’re comfortable using. Specs are a non issue. Nowadays, even a cheap $200 netbook can run Solidworks.</p>
<p>^If that’s the truth I guess I’ll get a well rounded ultrabook for around $800. Light, portable and should run the programs if I really need it to. Thanks guys.</p>
<p>I mostly bring my laptop for the pdf books to do homework during breaks. Other than that, useless for me and even so since I have the mini ipad now.</p>
<p>Otherwise, if you were to be participating in engineering extracurriculars (FSAE, Baja, etc) that heavily utilizes them, more likely you’ll need Solidworks, AutoCAD, or other similar softwares on your laptop. At least an average laptop should be able to run them.</p>
<p>So, knowing that you can access the Engineering Department’s computers almost 16 hours a day where my son will be attending (UCLA), what type of Laptop do you suggest (i.e. how much memory, speed, etc…)? Also Windows 8 seems to be having a few introductory glitches, as usual, so can any of you computer aficionados make a recommendation to a father, who isn’t too computer savvy, on what type of laptop to purchase (HS Graduation Gift)?? THANKS!</p>
<p>I’m an electrical engineer and I use Matlab, Xilinx, PSpice,and a few other programs for projects. I currently have a ultrabook from Lenovo that I got for around $800 bucks and I have had no issue running any of those programs.</p>
<p>So, Viterbi, I see that you are a Trojan; could it be that since I posted that my son will attend UCLA that you are leading me astray (haha)…Just joking, I think? I appreciate your input.</p>
<p>ExhaustedDad,</p>
<p>To believe me or to not believe me, that is the question.
Seriously though, I suggest getting your son a laptop that has at least 6 GB of RAM, a dedicated graphics card, Intel Core i5 or i7 processor (3rd generation if possible), and in terms of brands Lenovo and Asus are my personal favorites.</p>
<p>Viterbi, thanks for the advice. While it isn’t engineering related, per se, any thoughts on Windows 7 vs. 8?</p>
<p>I haven’t tried using Windows 8 but from what I hear I would probably stick to Windows 7.</p>
<p>If you are getting a new computer might as well get 8. It runs better and more efficient than 7.</p>
<p>I run W7 and W8. W8 is fine once you add Classic Start. Performance is a lot better. There may be software issues here and there with some software or software configurations not supported on W8.</p>
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<p>BCEagle91, my curiosity forces me to ask - What was he doing as a student that would require that much horsepower? Or was is more of a case where he had a bunch of cases to run that each took, say, 30 mins, and that time just started to add up?</p>
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<p>Computational Biology. Something about genetic analysis.</p>