University of Utah : S.J. Quinney College of Law

Student Laptops (2009-2010)

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Recommended System Specifications for PC's:

Conveniently, today nearly every computer that you can buy off the shelf has the power you will need to run the applications that you will need for law school. With that in mind here are some things to think about when purchasing a new laptop for law school:

• You will be using this laptop every day in probably every class, so get something that feels good to use, that has a screen that is easy to view, and that you won't mind carrying around with you all the time. 
  
• It will have to be sturdy enough to take more wear and tear the typical laptop.  It needs to hold up well.
• Unfortunately, studies say that nearly 15% of all laptops need warranty service during the first year.  That number increases after the first year.  Laptop parts are expensive to replace, and paying people to fix them is expensive.  GET A WARRANTY THAT WILL LAST YOU THROUGH LAW SCHOOL.  I don't know how to say that any clearer. Your other option is to just buy a laptop that is cheap enough to be disposable. 

That being said, if you prefer to use an Apple computer, Apple has worked with us to get excellent pricing on laptops for our students.  This is better pricing than I have found anywhere.  These are available at our campus bookstore and only for our law students.

Apple MacBook Pro 15”

    * 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
    * 2GB of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM, expandable to 4GB
    * 250GB Serial ATA Drive - 5400rpm
    * NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT with 256MB GDDR3 memory
    * 15.4-inch widescreen LED-backlit 1440-by-900 LCD display
    * SuperDrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)

Price = $1,747.08 - Only available to law students
Strongly recommended AppleCare 3-year Protection Plan - $219.88

Apple MacBook (aluminum unibody)

    * 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
    * 2GB of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM, expandable to 4GB
    * 250GB Serial ATA Drive - 5400rpm ( upgraded )
    * NVIDIA GeForce 9400M
    * 13-inch widescreen LED-backlit 1280-by-800 LCD display
    * SuperDrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)

Price = $1,231.88 - Only available to law students
Strongly recommended AppleCare 3-year Protection Plan - $168.36

For law school you will need Microsoft Office, or an equivalent, we recommend Office 2007. Also, especially on PC's antivirus is critical.  Get a "free with tuition" version of McAfee Antivirus at www.software.utah.edu.

Additionally we recommend that you purchase a USB flash drive for transferring and backing up data - it will be invaluable to you. 

Apple Website
Campus Bookstore