Macbook for engineering

[u/Visible-Channel-2094]

Hi i'm a freshman mechanical engineering student thinking about switching from my Windows laptop to a MacBook, and I'd like to hear from anyone running a similar setup. Before starting college, I bought an Acer Predator gaming laptop thinking I’d need it for software like AutoCAD and SolidWorks, but, I’ve literally never used it for engineering software I only end up using it for web browsing and taking notes in lectures. I already have a capable pc at home that handles all my CAD work, plus I have full access to my university’s computer labs whenever I need to do work outside of class. Carrying around the acer predator around has been annoying because the fans constantly ramp up out of nowhere during classes which always irritates me even with the dedicated gpu off and everything tuned down. I also really want the battery life of a MacBook, and since I already use an iPad for class notes, I feel it would fit my school setup a lot better. Has anyone in engineering made this exact switch or any general advice?

[u/cieiskol]

I didn't exactly "switched" but I use my macbook daily for most lectures and only use the windows machine whenever there's a CAD class.

[u/rusticcrossroads97 → u/cieiskol]

I did the exact same thing, macbook for everything and a desktop at home for the heavy lifting

the peace of mind from not having a jet engine in your backpack is worth it alone, those gaming laptops are so obnoxious in a quiet lecture hall

battery life on the macbook is a game changer too, you can go all day without hunting for an outlet like some kind of desperate raccoon

[u/Visible-Channel-2094 → u/rusticcrossroads97]

I had an exam for one of classes last week and all I had open was a window with an online compiler while it was charging and out of nowhere the fans ramped up. I genuinely felt embarrassed and irritated because I didn't even have anything intensive for the fans to kick on. Lugging the big power brick also sucks

[u/FineEquipment0]

I’m in the same boat as you, I got an iPad for notes and an unreliable windows laptop and really contemplating a MacBook Pro for the battery life and reliability / dependability.

[u/Comfortable-Ask-3390]

You can keep both but don’t switch. At least for club work (FSAE), i’d kms if i didn’t have my laptop with me and could use solidworks and ccm whenever I needed to in the club room working with everyone else. If you never touch club work though, it won’t matter that much. I run my mac for all classes and proart for all my fsae stuff, and I could survive easily with just my mac for all classes, in fact it’s so much better than my windows laptop in terms of battery life and stuff that it’s incomparable.

[u/1yrik]

if you only need it for lecture notes and research / lab reports then a macbook is fine. for actual engineering, stick to w*ndows. it's a compatibility nightmare otherwise.

personally, I run a fairly thin and portable Lenovo workstation machine with AtlasOS (stripped w*ndows) with enough power to run what I need, without being excessively heavy or screaming "rgb rainbow thicc af boi gaming laptop"

or if you have the money just get a Zephyrus. sleek, light, and powerful

[u/my-ka]

for CADs windws will work better