Chromebook for med school?

[freedoctor17]

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I know different schools might have different requirements but for general purposes would a Chromebook be ok for most medical school? Macs are way too expensive and I feel like reasonably priced windows laptops never last too long.

 

[smukke]

I wouldn't. Not unless you are ready to be your own IT support.

For one of thing Chromebooks can't run Java by default which means no UWorld.

 

[freedoctor17]

I wouldn't. Not unless you are ready to be your own IT support.

For one of thing Chromebooks can't run Java by default which means no UWorld.

Chromebooks can run Android apps now and i see uworld has an Android app from a quick search.

I'll also have a desktop computer at home which I probably should have mentioned but I just meant in terms of my portable device I take to classes and stuff with me. I really like that they're light, fast, and cheap but wanted to make sure there isn't anything essential I'd be missing out on that I may need during classes.

 

[smukke]

Chromebooks can run Android apps now and i see uworld has an Android app from a quick search.

I'll also have a desktop computer at home which I probably should have mentioned but I just meant in terms of my portable device I take to classes and stuff with me. I really like that they're light, fast, and cheap but wanted to make sure there isn't anything essential I'd be missing out on that I may need during classes.

Like I said, if you're willing to be your own IT support, go for it. I don't know if there's things like wifi, shared drives and printer access at your school that you may need to set up yourself. Easy enough to do, you just need to know how to do it yourself and not expect the IT to do it for you.

Forgot about Android UWorld. I've used it a couple of times on my tablets but preferred using it on Windows/OSX computers.

My philosophy for starting med school is make it as easy as possible, it's hard enough as it is without sandbagging yourself.

PS I have a Chromebook too (in addition to Windows and OSX), they are hard to resist for the price 🙂

 

[freedoctor17]

Like I said, if you're willing to be your own IT support, go for it. I don't know if there's things like wifi, shared drives and printer access at your school that you may need to set up yourself. Easy enough to do, you just need to know how to do it yourself and not expect the IT to do it for you.

Forgot about Android UWorld. I've used it a couple of times on my tablets but preferred using it on Windows/OSX computers.

Ok thanks for your perspective! Hmm maybe I'll just wait and see what the back to school deals look like and try for a decent windows laptop. I did a search and noticed Harvard requires a windows or Mac due to certain Java applications so maybe other schools are the same way. I guess once I actually have an acceptance I can check the requirements with that school before buying since I still have all year. Was hoping to take advantage of the beginning of the year sales though.

 

[smukke]

Ok thanks for your perspective! Hmm maybe I'll just wait and see what the back to school deals look like and try for a decent windows laptop. I did a search and noticed Harvard requires a windows or Mac due to certain Java applications so maybe other schools are the same way. I guess once I actually have an acceptance I can check the requirements with that school before buying since I still have all year. Was hoping to take advantage of the beginning of the year sales though.

Beginning of year deals tend to be OK, nothing spectacular.
If you really want a deal keep an eye on deal websites like slickdeals, I just scored a Apple Watch 3 with LTE for $76 😎

 

[s_tian]

Not sure about your school, but mine specifically notes that chromebooks and Linux OS are not sufficient to meet their requirements! It’s in the accepted students info packet.

 

[kamakazi5]

Most require a Mac or windows laptop for software and testing. Highly doubt a chromebook would suffice but check the technology requirements in the last student handbook. It'll be in there.

 

[mdphdNYC]

I use Linux, which Chromebook is based on (and increasingly cross-compatible with). So far I have had no problems accessing the resources I need (AMBOSS has been my favorite one so far and is entirely web-based, so portable on any platform, UWorld works fine on WINE which exists on Chromebook too). For a few things it's useful to have access to a windows/mac (for example if your school does exams on the computer, some of my friends used Complete Anatomy but I didn't), but often an iPad or rented library computer works well enough.

 

[freedoctor17]

Not sure about your school, but mine specifically notes that chromebooks and Linux OS are not sufficient to meet their requirements! It’s in the accepted students info packet.

do they require an actual laptop or would a windows desktop suffice? I'll have a windows desktop but I just needed something portable as well. From what I've been hearing though I'm leaning towards a windows laptop. I've been seeing some decent deals on lightweight asus laptops although they'll still cost me almost twice as much as getting one of their chromebooks.

On that note does anyone have any suggestions for a decent windows laptop that weighs under 3 lbs? The chromebook I was considering buying costs $400 so ideally I'd like something within 100 dollars of that, but most of the windows laptops in that price range are over 5 lbs.

 

[863168]

@freedoctor17 If I'm not mistaken you can trial run laptops if you have a brick and motor Best Buy via their return policy. In other words, you have two weeks with a laptop and if you're not satisfied you can return it for a full refund as long as you have the receipt. I feel that with the chrome book series many do not have enough RAM to handle multi-tab browsing and multi-tasking which has become an expectation these days when it used to be considered a luxury.

 

[smukke]

On that note does anyone have any suggestions for a decent windows laptop that weighs under 3 lbs? The chromebook I was considering buying costs $400 so ideally I'd like something within 100 dollars of that, but most of the windows laptops in that price range are over 5 lbs.

Amazon product ASIN B01N3SIWW8

 

[sunshine859]

N=1, but Duke charges a technology fee and then provides laptops for its students.

 

[freedoctor17]

@freedoctor17 If I'm not mistaken you can trial run laptops if you have a brick and motor Best Buy via their return policy. In other words, you have two weeks with a laptop and if you're not satisfied you can return it for a full refund as long as you have the receipt. I feel that with the chrome book series many do not have enough RAM to handle multi-tab browsing and multi-tasking which has become an expectation these days when it used to be considered a luxury.

Oh I'll check that out. I want to try using a program to connect to my desktop over internet and run apps from on there. I was just reading you could do that. If it runs smoothly then I'm definitely going for the Chromebook.

 

[Isoval]

Hard pass.

I have a Chromebook and would never substitute either my MacBook or my iPad with it.

- Chromebook build quality is arguable at best compared to most mid-range tablets and computers. Good luck getting that thing to last long treks through the library.
- The software is extremely limited. I used it for about a week before I realized that Google’s office suite is extremely gimped compared to Microsoft Office. It’s not even close. Furthermore, there are web applications that are unable to run on Chromebooks which may further limit functionality, and the fact that it runs Chrome OS precludes you from running anything that isn’t a web app.
- I can’t speak for all Chromebooks, but my keyboard was total garbage. I would not recommend taking notes on it to anyone.

I have an Acer C720. It is now a glorified streaming box.

I would recommend taking the dive and doubling your budget to get something worthwhile.

 

[freedoctor17]

Hard pass.

I have a Chromebook and would never substitute either my MacBook or my iPad with it.

- Chromebook build quality is arguable at best compared to most mid-range tablets and computers. Good luck getting that thing to last long treks through the library.
- The software is extremely limited. I used it for about a week before I realized that Google’s office suite is extremely gimped compared to Microsoft Office. It’s not even close. Furthermore, there are web applications that are unable to run on Chromebooks which may further limit functionality, and the fact that it runs Chrome OS precludes you from running anything that isn’t a web app.
- I can’t speak for all Chromebooks, but my keyboard was total garbage. I would not recommend taking notes on it to anyone.

I have an Acer C720. It is now a glorified streaming box.

I would recommend taking the dive and doubling your budget to get something worthwhile.

hmm i think newer chromebooks like the asus c302 are much better than what they used to be. If I could multiply my budget by 5 I'd get a surface book 13 without a second glance haha but I'll definitely consider some other windows laptops. There are some nice asus zenbooks for about 650-700 so I'll keep an eye on those as well. I guess it would suck to buy a chromebook now and have to buy a windows laptop later depending on whatever school I end up at anyways. I'll keep doing my research for now and look at the requirements for all the schools I've applied to.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I have a chromebook and got another laptop for school. IMO, it just isn't enough. Not being able to do anything unless you have wireless access was a huge pain in the arse for me. I also don't like having to do everything through Google sheets/pages/etc.

 

[freedoctor17]

I have a chromebook and got another laptop for school. IMO, it just isn't enough. Not being able to do anything unless you have wireless access was a huge pain in the arse for me. I also don't like having to do everything through Google sheets/pages/etc.

see that's the thing, you no longer have that issue. There's offline access to all these things. I use google docs for everything and even if I didn't the android apps are now available allowing for microsoft word access as well. It's really the only reason I'd even consider it. Without the android app compatibility I'd not be as interested.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

see that's the thing, you no longer have that issue. There's offline access to all these things. I use google docs for everything and even if I didn't the android apps are now available allowing for microsoft word access as well. It's really the only reason I'd even consider it. Without the android app compatibility I'd not be as interested.

That makes it better, but I still don’t like that you can’t use a lot of stuff on chrome because they only work for windows, Mac, or Linux.

 

[863168]

@freedoctor17 Honestly, it sounds like you're going to be working backwards on so many things just to make the Chromebook investment work. It's great that you are being money savvy, however if there was anything that I'd identify as a justified luxury purchase it would be the learning device that you will be using to compete and complete your four years of professional education.

 

[freedoctor17]

@freedoctor17 Honestly, it sounds like you're going to be working backwards on so many things just to make the Chromebook investment work. It's great that you are being money savvy, however if there was anything that I'd identify as a justified luxury purchase it would be the learning device that you will be using to compete and complete your four years of professional education.

Honestly I don't think I'd regret dropping 1500 on the surface book 2 13 inch if it lasted me for a good 5 to 6 years but I'm worried about having money to pay for interview costs so I didn't want to spend that much. I'll see what I can figure out though. You definitely have a point. I'll forget about the Chromebook for now since it sounds like it'll overcomplicate things.

 

[sunshine859]

You are also allowed to put the purchase of a laptop into your medical school financial aid budget (through the school you end up attending) once during your four years. So, if you want, you're able to use financial aid, whether loans or scholarships, to pay for your laptop purchase.

 

[freedoctor17]

You are also allowed to put the purchase of a laptop into your medical school financial aid budget (through the school you end up attending) once during your four years. So, if you want, you're able to use financial aid, whether loans or scholarships, to pay for your laptop purchase.

That's good to know! If I just purchase something cheap to hold me over for now I can get a decent laptop once it's time for medical school. Do you know if that works with every school?

 

[sunshine859]

That's good to know! If I just purchase something cheap to hold me over for now I can get a decent laptop once it's time for medical school. Do you know if that works with every school?

Yes, that's a solid plan! I would say I throughly looked through the financial aid materials at about 10 schools (both online and the materials provided on interview day), and that was the case at all of the schools. Can't say for sure if it's true across the board.

 

[freedoctor17]

Yes, that's a solid plan! I would say I throughly looked through the financial aid materials at about 10 schools (both online and the materials provided on interview day), and that was the case at all of the schools. Can't say for sure if it's true across the board.

Ok awesome, thank you! This'll allow me to save more money to use for interviews in the meantime. I guess worst case if the school I end up going to (assuming all goes well) doesn't allow it, being accepted to a medical school will make me feel a lot better about having to buy a new laptop anyways haha.