2 in 1 Convertible for a student/worker

[Blackref]

Hello guys i ' m Blackref and i ' m new to the forum , is a pleasure to meet you all .
As per title i ' m a student of computer engineering which also works so i ' m searching for a 2 in 1 laptop with these features : power,performance,mobility and stylus .

My main needs are to read and modify pdf files , programming, take notes ,watch movies/videos and occasionaly play something , but since i have a really good desktop is not something important at all (i can play old titles just to have fun sometimes). It 's really important for me to boot at least two OS , and particularly one Linux distro.
I 'd like also to bring the device with me most of the time and that the device would last at least 2 - 3 years .

Key hardware features for me are : good processor possibly i5/i7 , 8GB + Ram preferably DDR4, 256 GB+ SSD , 2+ USB connectors , good trackpad and keyboard and also i ' d like a camera to be present , it turns usefull in many situations .

Also it may happen that i spend many days without my desktop so i 'm searching for a device that would help me to take care about all my student duties and works ,which are programming , modify notes and document and use some simulators withouth any difficulty. It would be also nice if i can stop to carry my notebook with me and do for example all my math exercises on the machine .


Right now i ' m focusing on 2 models :

1) Since i found a really good offer (650 euros) for a NEW hp spectre x360 4136 , i5 6200 U, 8GB RAM , 256 GB i ' m about to take this . The offer will last in less then two days so i need to hurry in my decision .

2) Wait for the lenovo idea miix 510 and see what it has to offer and at which prices .

I ' m open to your suggestions , spend a nice weekend.

 

[RealBeast]

MERGED QUESTION
Question from Blackref : "2 in 1 Convertible for a student/worker"

Hello guys i ' m Blackref and i ' m new to the forum , is a pleasure to meet you all .
As per title i ' m a student of computer engineering which also works so i ' m searching for a 2 in 1 laptop with these features : power,performance,mobility and stylus .

My main needs are to read and modify pdf files , programming, take notes ,watch movies/videos and occasionaly play something , but since i have a really good desktop is not something important at all (i can play old titles just to have fun sometimes). I 'd like also to bring the device with me most of the time and that the device would last at least 2 - 3 years .

Key hardware features for me are : good processor possibly i5/i7 , 8GB + Ram preferably DDR4, 256 GB+ SSD , 2+ USB connectors , good trackpad and keyboard and also i ' d like a camera(internal) to be present , it turns usefull in many situations .

Also it may happen that i spend many days without my desktop so i 'm searching for a device that would be a substitute to it (except for gaming) and allow me to take care about all my student duties and works ,which are programming , modify notes and document and use some simulators withouth any difficulty. It would be also nice if i can stop to carry my books and copybooks with me and do for example all my math exercises on the device


Right now i ' m focusing on 2 models :

1) Since i found a really good offer (650 euros) for a NEW hp spectre x360 4136 , i5 6200 U, 8GB RAM , 256 GB SSD i ' m about to take this . The offer will last in less then two days so i need to hurry in my decision .

2) Wait for the lenovo idea miix 510 and see what it has to offer and at which prices .

I ' m open to your suggestions , spend a nice weekend.

 

[Blackref]

Thanks for removing the second thread .

 

[Enochwel]

I'm also searching pretty much the same thing and for the same reasons. My research has been leading me to the conv. thinkpad also as it has options for video card, you can choose Quatro and error correcting processors or stick with GeForce and i7's. I'm hoping they do a good deal on Black Friday. Some even have active stylus storage built right into the frame. My issue is with the quatro. It's expensive and unnecessary for most engineering students, albeit I'm only sophomore EE, I don't anticipate the need to spend for that type of high accuracy graphics power and I have a titanium ti anyways. Also, I believe Lenovo may be gearing up for new releases, but don't quote me on it.

I'd certainly like to know what other people are looking at. I'd like the ability to play tomb raider, and that does influence me a little bit.

 

[Blackref]

If you want to play "Tomb Raider" i think you will need for sure another gpu and not the integrated one . Anyway which thinkpad models are you talking about ? Not the yoga ones i suppose .

For mobility reasons i prefer a convertible (2 in 1 ) so something that is more like a thinkpad yoga , and from what i ' ve seen they just mount the normal intel hd graphics . The nice option they offer, especially the yoga 260 that is not that expensive like the x1 , is the possibility to upgrade ram and ssd , but i don 't think i can upgrade the gpu in this kind of device . Anyway i have a nice desktop for gaming and other works.
I think that if you want to play also ,you have 3 alternatives : take a really really good convertible at very high price , take a good gaming laptop (which you can also use to study and work) , or just take a convertible with all the specs that you need for your studies and play on another device.

Also i wonder if the pen+digitizer technology as reached the level that can definetely let me to use it as a exercise-book and put EVERY single thing i do in university on it and stop carrying too much things.

 

[velo3100]

The obvious answer I can think of is the surface pro models or the surface book if you need a more powerful gpu. The other 2 in 1 is a toshiba tablet that I have forgotten the name of. It has an i5 or i7 quad core cpus I think.

 

[Enochwel]

Lenovo is always changing their spec on model offerings in their online store. Just a few weeks ago they had one similar to this:

http/shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/p-series/p40-yoga/#SYSTEM

http/www.ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-ThinkPad-P40-Yoga-WQHD-IPS-Touch-i7-6600U-8GB-256GB-SSD-Quadro-M500M-Pen-/152272097985?hash=item23741fd2c1:g:KgoAAOSwkl5XeuAd

I don't really want the Quadro for undergrad engineering as it seems the money is misdirected into something unnecessary, but it does bench a little better than Intel integrated for gaming and the price isn't really that bad. I'll be interested to see if they will make something similar but with gforce.

 

[lemon07r]

Acer spin 7 if you don't mind spending a little extra. It's got a i7 7500u. Lenovo yoga 910 is supposed to have the same cpu as well. If you want a cheap 2 in 1, the cube i7 is great, core m3 for like $200 and has good stylus support (wacom and pressure sensitive. So two things to note when choosing a laptop of this class. If you fanless, you have to get a "m" line cpu, so i7 7y75, m3 6y30 are all m line, these are very low power (4.5w) dual cores. You'll get the best battery and most portable 2in1s with these cpus. The "u" line are rated at 14.5w but are much more powerful, with much powerful integrated graphics, and twice the cores, these don't have as much battery but are quite worth the performance. So take a look at some benchmarks between the two and see what you would prefer more.

 

[Blackref]

I din 't know the icube , but it seems not bad at all , and i think now there 's a new model icube 9 ; anyway i don 't know much about it, especially if you can dual boot win with linux or not on it . Anyway i found a really nice deal for the thinkpad yoga 260 and i went for it . It 's perfect for my needs and i also think it will last long taking care of it and with the right upgrades . As i said i ' ve already a nice desktop to play games and so on , but i think the thinkpad can run something also , maybe old games that doesn 't require that much power .

The lenovo p40 is really nice by the way , but it 's expensive for my needs.