<p>I'm back from 5 months ago (I've been lazy) but my parents want me to start buying some things before they get loaded with text books/cadet uniforms/fees etc. etc. at the beginning of the year.</p>
<p>I'm debating on whether to buy a Touch Screen laptop or a laptop with a standard Wacom USB thing. </p>
<p>Truthfully, I think the Touch Screen Laptops right now are highly under powered. The GPUs are terrible and the Lack of SSD and hard drive kind of disappoints me. This is partially my opinion that desktops are better than laptops ;) (I've built several and now buying a laptop is almost scary to me)...</p>
<p>Of course, the Virginia Tech site recommends certain computers but neither of them seem quite good. I hear stories of students actually purchasing warranty so they can smash their laptops every upcoming year to get a new one. </p>
<p>Does anyone have experience with the Wacoms in class? I want to know if this will disrupt my learning in the classroom. Virginia tech also recommends purchasing the Wacom with a screen built into it... which are almost $1000. So, I am wondering if the Wacoms without screens will be suitable for the Engineering environment.</p>
<p>I bought the Wacom USB thing and to be honest I think it’s garbage. I used it once and never looked at it again. The problem is you don’t know where on the page you’re going to draw really. I got a cheap touch screen laptop instead a week later. (As a second computer).</p>
<p>Do the touch screen laptops you are looking at include a wacom or similar pen? For many the answer is going to be no. The convertible tablets that the bookstore will sell will meet the specified requirements but they are pricey (we are waiting for hopefully new models to arrive). The other option is to purchase a laptop (touch screen or not) and add a separate USB enabled Wacom tablet. As marcdvl said there are some issues with use because you are not writing directly on the screen. My son used the USB Wacom tablet and had no problems but he did take some time to figuring out how to know where the pen was going to write. After that its just hand-eye coordination. He went through the entire year with only one small item he couldn’t do with the tablet.</p>
<p>v00d00, dont rush making your purchase. Technology advances so often you dont want to buy something that is almost obsolete by the time school starts. I believe they (VT engineering) recommended not making the purchases this soon and I assume that is the reason.</p>