Laptop Touchscreen Worth It? (Now that they've been out awhile)

[apr960604]

I'm going to be heading off to college soon and was wondering that when buying a laptop, is the extra cost of adding a touchscreen worth it over spending that money on slightly better hardware. Does the touchscreen really help that much with note taking, drawing diagrams and lecture stuff like that or is it really just an overrated feature? Do users even use it a lot? Thanks

 

[Bean007]

I'm going to be heading off to college soon and was wondering that when buying a laptop, is the extra cost of adding a touchscreen worth it over spending that money on slightly better hardware. Does the touchscreen really help that much with note taking, drawing diagrams and lecture stuff like that or is it really just an overrated feature? Do users even use it a lot? Thanks

Do you feel the need to touch it? Actual keyboards can be better but they can break as well.

 

[lp231]

Some want it and some don't, all depends on if you want to have it or not. If a laptop has good specs, it's within your price range and it has touch screen, then why not get it. It's something you might not use, but it's nice to have it.

 

[fkr]

i see the kids in the programming classes have the touch screen and it is easier to tap where you want to make a change than to use the touch mouse pad.

pinch to zoom can be really cool for things also.

I like it although I have only watched kids sitting next to me use it

 

[anbello262]

I believe it would really improve the experience compared to a touchpad.
If you compare it to a laptopt+mouse, the story would be different... But in college it might be hard to find somewhere flat to use the mouse, so the touchscreen might offer you some nice comfort...

 

[lp231]

A hybrid laptop would be nice too, convert it to a tablet when needed.

 

[anbello262]

I agree, a convertible would be great! Are those usually in the same price range?

 

[Bean007]

Or you could just decide what's practical over cool for your use.

 

[fkr]

the newest surface pro are really nice i would rec them. there is student pricing discounts available

 

[1shado1]

On a regular laptop: just a gimmick. Just my opinion.

 

[fkr]

On a regular laptop: just a gimmick. Just my opinion.

in applications where you have a 15" or less screen size the ability to pinch and zoom into documents is very useful. while writing code in class the kid next to me (born in the 70's myself) had a touch screen and swiping through pages or selecting a differant tab and also selecting where to make changes was great. he still had the touchpad for mouse control but just another interface to get used to. on a tablet/laptop the screen is already so close to the interface or keyboard that it is easy to just touch the screen.

 

[uachaic]

the newest surface pro are really nice i would rec them. there is student pricing discounts available

There are the Lenovo Thinkpad Yogas. The smaller one comes with a pen if you need it to take notes.