Laptops?

[katethekitcat]

Does anyone have any laptop recommendations for graduate school in public health? I'm aiming for epidemiology and will likely be running stats-heavy programs. I would have preferred to wait until I know where I'm attending and can check out the school specifications, but my laptop was recently destroyed and I'm hampered without it, so I need to purchase now. Looking for afforadble, high-processing power, don't particularly like Macs.

[Caylynn]

For PCs, Lenovo makes good quality laptops.  Depending on the model, though, they can be rather pricey.

[123hardasABC]

I recommend Lenovo and Asus laptops if you're looking for a good priced laptop that doesn't sacrifice quality. Newegg has a pretty good selection http://www.newegg.com/Laptops-Notebooks/Category/ID-223

[Jessica.allen]

i love my MacBook Pro. I've had it for about 5 years and never had a problem with it.

[juilletmercredi]

I know you said you don't like Macs - but I'm in public health and I run several stats-heavy programs and I have a MacBook Pro.  It can't run SAS though, so if you want to run SAS I suggest a PC (and I know people always say that you can use Parallels, but to be really honest running a virtual machine takes up so much RAM and it is super slow, especially with stats programs.  It's not as convenient as people think).

 

I agree with the Lenovo and Asus suggestions and I also suggest Toshiba.  I would stay away from Sony.  Mixed feelings on Dell, but I would lean towards no on that.

[123hardasABC]

If a Macbook Pro is in your price range, a PC of that equivalent price will run most things under the sun. Do the ol' test-out-laptops-in-Best-Buy/Fry's/etc.-and-buy-on-Amazon/Newegg-for-cheaper trick. I do recommend Lenovo and Asus above all. Their computers generally have a good balance between computing power and portability+battery life. And MSi if you're in the market for something more powerful.

[katethekitcat]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! Ended up going with Lenovo - they were also very helpful on the customer service side and helped me specify exactly what I needed for the programs I want to run.

[stmaan01]

Do you mind if I ask, what model did you purchase from Lenovo? I need to replace my current laptop, and I'm looking at Lenovo, but I can't decide which computer to get.

[katethekitcat]

ThinkPad X230 - customized it to give it more processing power and additioanl memory (with the option of adding more memory later for extra $). Ran about $1,000, but that includes the Microsoft Office suite, which I would have had to install myself AND still pay $150 for. If you're a student, use their chat function to talk to a sales rep - she gave me a great student discount.

[juilletmercredi]

For anyone else purchasing computers, if you want MS Office eventually but don't need it right this moment, think about waiting until you begin your program.  My SPH provides the full MS Office suite for free, and many of your schools might too.

[123hardasABC]

Or you can find it on the Bay of Pirates....if you know what I mean.

[VBD]

The Lenovo ideapad is the consumer version of the Thinkpad and it's been working fine for my stats program usage. I chose it because it was closer to my price range, if cost if a worry stmaan. I have heard that Lenovo customer service is hit or miss though..

During my undergrad and masters, my Dell and HP failed miserably, so I would NOT recommend those.