Should I get tablet PC or normal laptop for NYUCD?

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Ewok1984

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I am going to shop for a new laptop soon before dental school starts. Are all the class notes in pdf format? Is it worth the extra money to buy a tablet PC? It would be nice to hear current NYUCD student about this issue. Thanks

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I heard from some Indiana students who have to make the same choice that tablet is the way to go.
 
If I could go back and re-buy, I would definately have gone with the tablet. They're great for taking notes when the prof doesn't post anything(Like Dr. for Schiff's lectures), nice for drawing figures (Like for Dr. Singh lectures), etc.

Spend the extra, you won't regret it.
 
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Anatomy lectures would be a lot easier to take notes in if you could take notes right on the slides. I don't really take many in-class notes, so I wouldn't have changed my mind, but if you're an avid notetaker the only alternative to a tablet is printing out every lecture...
 
I second the previous two statements - its great for many courses. How fast can you type on a tablet pc?

because for some PROFESSORS, you need to type.
and for some, a tablet PC would be AMAZING!

Really, I see those tablet guys and I wish I had that for CERTAIN professors.
 
if tablet is the wayto go, can anyone recommend a model or what model is popular among students?
 
I've got a Gateway convertable tablet and, combined with Microsoft Onenote, it's brilliant for taking notes. I can leave it in the keyboard configuration for the most part, but if a professor starts drawing a figure, I can quickly and easily include it next to my typed notes. It's also easy to change ink colors and move drawings around with the lasso tool. (This really helped during a particularly fast figure-drawing explanation of how reverse transcriptase does its thing....) This program also syncs up audio recordings with keyboard strokes, so if you want to hear a particular part of the lecture again, just click an icon next to the relevant notes, without having to search through the recordings.

I'd love it if UTHSCSA picked it for our pc option (we get to choose between pc or Mac), but I'm not holding out too much hope...

(I think Dell just came out with one as well, but it's much more expensive)
 
I've got a Gateway convertable tablet and, combined with Microsoft Onenote, it's brilliant for taking notes. I can leave it in the keyboard configuration for the most part, but if a professor starts drawing a figure, I can quickly and easily include it next to my typed notes. It's also easy to change ink colors and move drawings around with the lasso tool. (This really helped during a particularly fast figure-drawing explanation of how reverse transcriptase does its thing....) This program also syncs up audio recordings with keyboard strokes, so if you want to hear a particular part of the lecture again, just click an icon next to the relevant notes, without having to search through the recordings.

I'd love it if UTHSCSA picked it for our pc option (we get to choose between pc or Mac), but I'm not holding out too much hope...

(I think Dell just came out with one as well, but it's much more expensive)

wow, that gateway convertable tablet is nice. i didn't realize how overpriced dell was until i was checking this one out. thanks for the recommendation.
 
I used a tablet for the last two years in undergrad and it is definetly worth it. You can type on a tablet just as fast as a regular laptop, whenever you want you can pull out your pen and start writing on it.
I am not a big gateway fan (laptop or desktop). Nothing personal, in my oppinion they are just not as good. I would go with a new toshiba, they have been making them the longest and have worked out almost all of the bugs. Toshibas can be a bit more expensive, but when you think about having one laptop for the next four years you'll want one that will last. You get what you pay for.
Good luck!
 
I used a tablet for the last two years in undergrad and it is definetly worth it. You can type on a tablet just as fast as a regular laptop, whenever you want you can pull out your pen and start writing on it.
I am not a big gateway fan (laptop or desktop). Nothing personal, in my oppinion they are just not as good. I would go with a new toshiba, they have been making them the longest and have worked out almost all of the bugs. Toshibas can be a bit more expensive, but when you think about having one laptop for the next four years you'll want one that will last. You get what you pay for.
Good luck!

is the keyboard on the 12 inch laptop a problem for you?
 
I have used a tablet pc for the first two years of dental school and have found it to be a really easy way to take notes. In a classroom setting, I think it's very useful to be able write the notes out and draw pictures/diagrams.

The usefulness of the laptop or tablet will also depend on how "electronic" your school has converted to and if the professors make many of their powerpoints or lectures available electronically.

Overall, I think a tablet is the way to go.
 
Udonzilla, I believe you are refering to the keyboard on the tablet with the 12.1" screen... Although the screen is fairly small (and might I add very portable for the same reason), the keyboard is about the same size as a normal laptop keyboard. You probably wouldnt notice a difference.
 
Udonzilla, I believe you are refering to the keyboard on the tablet with the 12.1" screen... Although the screen is fairly small (and might I add very portable for the same reason), the keyboard is about the same size as a normal laptop keyboard. You probably wouldnt notice a difference.

tablet PC's arent all that expensive...you just need to shop around

for instance costco has 12.1 hp tablet pc's for $999 with pretty good specs too!

here's the link: http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11274372&whse=BC&topnav=&browse=&lang=en-US

amd dual core processor tl-62
2 gigs of ram (more than enough to run windows vista)
12.1 " WXGA brightview screen (very nice)
160 gigs hard drive
dvd burner
geforce 6150 graphics card
integrated webcam (yes very nice)
fingerprint reader (also very nice)
wifi internet card and also lan card also
4.2 lbs!!!

$999!!! just need to know how to shop around....
 
tablet is the way to go. only a few ppl have it but they are very comfortable with it, especially when u start classes like histology where u have to point on cells and label them, yah try labeling using powerpoint, what a nightmare, especially when dr. roy speaks 500 words a minute lol. so get it and make sure u get the ibm tablet not the cheap hp one.
 
I love my tablet PC. I put all the lectures into Onenote 2007. It takes color slides and you can zoom if you need to...good for Histo.
 
My brother-in-law actually just got the "cheap hp" one to use in chiropractic college. I still think toshiba is the way to go, but ill update again after he has had time to use it - might not be so bad after all...
 
Hey just bumping up this old thread to be a bit more up to date. Any D1 or D2s able to tell me what they think is best overall to use for NYU?
 
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