| Rank | Brand | Tablet |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Microsoft Surface Pro 7 |  |
| 2. | Apple iPad Pro |  |
| 3. | Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 |  |
| 4. | Apple iPad Air |  |
| 5. | Lenovo Flex 5 |  |
Top Five Best Tablets for Law School (Summer 2023 Edition)
Below are the top five tablets for law students. Law School Supplies reviewed these tablets for the law school year beginning in Summer 2023. Each tablet has an in-depth review linked below with detailed descriptions and video reviews of the best tablets for law students.
1. Microsoft Surface Pro 7
The Microsoft Surface Pro is the best tablet for law school because it’s loaded with enough processing power and storage to fulfill any task in law school. The Microsoft Surface Pro is great for law students because it is a lightweight tablet with an intuitive design making it easy to carry and easy to configure for note taking in law school classes. Moreover, adding a Microsoft Surface Pro Pen allows you to immediately upload your hand written law school notes to your Microsoft Surface Pro Tablet.
Click HERE for the in-depth review of the Microsoft Surface Pro 7.
✅ Reasons to Buy
- Adaptability – you can use this as a tablet, as a writing surface, and as a regular laptop with the keyboard and mouse attached. The Microsoft Surface Pro is perfect for transitioning between home and the law school classroom.
- Processing power – with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage tacked on to the intel core i5, you’re essentially looking at low to mid range laptop power bundled up in a tablet for a much more affordable price.
- Lightweight – at only 1.1 lbs this tablet will be less than a quarter of the weight of your constitutional law textbook.
❌ Reasons not to buy
- Accessories needed – like most tablets, the Surface Pro only comes with a type cover keyboard. If you want to use a pen, mouse, or normal keyboard with it you’ll have to purchase those separately.
- Battery life – only 10.5 hours of battery life means you need to charge the Surface Pro tablet up at night after you binge watch Netflix. Otherwise, you may not have enough battery life to get through an entire day of law school.
⚖️ Bottom Line
The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is one of the best tablets for law school because it is essentially a mid-tier computer packaged into a lightweight, easy to use, touch screen tablet. Law students can’t go wrong purchasing one of these for law school. The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 will definitely improve your note taking ability and note consolidation for law school exams.
2. Apple iPad Pro 11-inch
The Apple iPad Pro 11-inch is one of the best tablets for law school money can buy. We gave the Apple iPad Pro the runner-up position because it is a premium item that does way more, above and beyond, what is necessary for law school. If you are a law student with a flexible budget and own other Apple products, this will be a seamless integration that will improve your law school note taking abilities, especially if you add the Apple Pencil.
Click HERE for the in-depth review of the Apple iPad Pro 11-inch.
✅ Reasons to Buy
- Apple features – integrates with other Apple devices and accounts you may have, includes Apple’s high end camera lenses, numerous memory storage options, and the M1 chip.
- Display – Liquid Retina Display is going to be better than pretty much any laptop on the market.
- Speed – this law school tablet will be lightning fast.
- App store – you can easily add any of your favorite apps on this machine. Sometimes you just need to play a little Candy Crush during law school lectures, right?
❌ Reasons not to buy
- Price – this is one of the more expensive tablets for law school, especially the models that include 1 or 2 TB of memory or a larger screen.
- Distracting – the iPad Pro can truly be so fun and amazing that you lose focus of what you should be doing – taking notes during your law school classes. We don’t recommend this tablet for the undisciplined or easily distracted law student.
- Accessories – an Apple Pencil and a keyboard can eat into your budget if you aren’t careful. Don’t max out your law school budget to try and get the iPad Pro tablet alone.
⚖️ Bottom Line
Apple’s iPad Pro is an amazing tablet and when used correctly can benefit your law school experience greatly. We recommend this for any law student with a decent, older laptop that will suffice for most tasks. But, the law student wants something different to bring to class for note taking. Preferably, the law student that isn’t quite ready to shell out the dough for a new laptop could purchase the iPad Pro as a great tablet for law school. The iPad Pro is much cheaper than a full fledged MacBook. However, you get the benefits of a new Apple product in the form of a tablet for law school.
3. Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 12.4-inch
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S7 12.4-inch tablet is a more affordable version of a high-powered tablet for law school. Android users will love this because the operating system will be familiar. Law school students who game will love this tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 allow law students to take a break from studying and play Xbox Live with a bluetooth enabled controller, using the tablet as your screen.
Click HERE for the in-depth review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 12.4-inch.
✅ Reasons to Buy
- Pen included – this is huge because other tablets for law school do not come with a pen. No extra money required to get this important note-taking tool.
- Lightweight – only 1.1 lbs for a tablet that packs lots of processing power and includes a lot of memory.
- Audio – the quality of sound on this tablet is great because of the AKG quad speakers with Dolby Atmos Surround sound. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 is best for listening to online law school lectures.
- Gaming – believe it or not, there are many gamers in law school and this tablet may appeal to them. With a bluetooth enabled controller you can play Xbox live using the tablet as your screen.
❌ Reasons not to buy
- Compatibility – if your other devices don’t run on android you may have issues switching between different operating systems and syncing all your notes if you purchase this tablet for law school.
⚖️ Bottom Line
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S7 12.4 inch tablet is a one of the best tablets for law school if you are looking to add another note-taking device but don’t want to purchase one of the most expensive options. Make sure you are comfortable with Android if you decided to purchase this tablet. And, if you buy it so you can play xbox live in the law library, just know that you still need to get that reading done!
4. Apple iPad Air
The Apple iPad Air is a more affordable option for an Apple tablet in law school. The Apple iPad Air has the computing power for the tasks you are using your tablet for in law school and you won’t notice much difference from the iPad Pro. Additionally, this Apple tablet is extremely light weight, offers the same great features you can expect from any Apple product, and it is compatible with the second germination of the Apple Pencil. We break down the iPad Air vs iPad Pro as well.
Click HERE for the in-depth review of the Apple iPad Air.
✅ Reasons to Buy
- Apple features – integrates with other Apple devices and accounts you may have and includes Apple’s high end camera lenses.
- Display – Liquid Retina display is going to be better than almost any other laptop on the market.
- App store – you can easily add any of your favorite apps on this machine. Sometimes you need to pull up iMessage to ask your classmate wtf that question the class gunner just asked, right?
❌ Reasons not to buy
- Newer version coming soon? – the iPad Air was last updated in 2020. This means a new version could be on its way and you don’t want to buy the old version at the last second because the price will drop when the new tablet comes out.
- Accessories – an Apple Pencil and a keyboard can eat into your budget if you aren’t careful. Don’t max out your law school budget trying to get the Apple iPad Air alone.
⚖️ Bottom Line
Apple iPad Air is another one of the best tablets for law school from the top technology company in the world. While it does not boast the same stats as the Pro tablet, the Air can definitely fulfill all your law school needs. Pair the Apple iPad Air tablet with the second generation Apple Pencil and you’ll have the best law school note-taking set up possible.
5. Lenovo Flex 5 14-inch
Lenovo’s Flex 5 14-inch is for the indecisive because it is technically a laptop but it performs so much like a tablet that it can be considered either. Specifically, we love the 360⁰ hinge, the active pen that is included, and the quick charge mode. The hardware inside is top notch and can do everything you’ll need in law school.
Click HERE for the in-depth review of the Lenovo Flex 5 14-inch.
✅ Reasons to Buy
- Price – this is an affordable laptop and also an affordable tablet all in one. Great deal for law students either way it is used.
- Pen included – no need to buy extra accessories to make this work for you. The active pen is included with this laptop and will immediately upgrade your law school note taking abilities.
- Quick Charge – 80% in only an hour.
- You’re indecisive – if you can’t decided between getting a new laptop or a new tablet for law school, get the Lenovo Flex 5. It makes a great option as either tablet or laptop. The 360 hinge will let you switch between whichever mode suits your fancy.
❌ Reasons not to buy
- Weight – at 3.63 pounds this on the heavier side for both laptops and tablets.
- Screen size – 14 inches is getting up there in terms of tablet and laptop size.
⚖️ Bottom Line
The Lenovo Flex is a great option for those that sometimes want laptop and sometimes want tablet with touchscreen in law school. The fact that the Lenovo Flex 5 includes a pen means you will be ready to go for any type of law school note taking once you purchase it. Many law firms use Lenovo for their employee laptops and there is a reason for that. The Lenovo laptops and tablets are great machines that are durable and adaptable for whatever the need.
Frequently Asked Questions – Law School Tablets
The answer to whether it is best for only own a tablet rather than a laptop in law school – it depends. If you want a device to serve you three years of law school and your tablet has a keyboard, then most likely yes.
Students that exclusively own tablets for law school (with no additional laptop) run into issues after graduation because some bar exams will not let you take the bar exam on a tablet. These bar exams will require full laptop only for using the testing software.
Additionally, many law school exams require you to have a keyboard. Thus, no typing on the surface of your tablet screen in law school is allowed. You will need a keyboard accessory for your tablet in law school. And don’t even think about hand writing those exams!
A tablet for law school is likely to be something that aids you in addition to your laptop, rather than replacing it altogether. One of the most powerful combos for note taking and studying is to have a tablet with you in your law school classes. Why? You can hand write your law school notes with a tablet pen directly to your tablet. Those law school notes can upload immediately to whatever cloud computing service you access from any of your other devices. Finally, if the professor moves quickly or you want to capture the whiteboard, you can snap a photo with your tablet and it will insert right into your law school notes.
The key to finding the best tablet for law school is deciding which law school tablets enhance your note-taking ability. This means your tablet should sync with any other electronic devices you own and use as a law student. For example, if you own an Apple laptop or desktop, the best tablet for law school will be one of the Apple iPads below.
Additionally, you need a law school tablet that can easily attach accessories to enhance note taking.
Think about the following questions when deciding on your best tablets for law school.
- Does the tablet include a tablet pen?
- Will this tablet sync with my law school laptop or desktop?
- Can I download application used in law school like Microsoft Word?
- Does this tablet include a keyboard accessory?
- How much will additional law school tablet accessories cost?
- Is this tablet compatible with Zoom and other video conference software used in online law school classes?
Consider these questions when reading the reviews of the best tablets for law school students to decide which is best for you!
Conclusion – Which Is The Best Tablet For Law School?
In conclusion, these are the best law school tablets for law students and law school for 2023. The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is Law School Supplies’ top pick.
A law school tablet is an incredible tool to supplement your other electronic devices. Note-taking abilities will be improved when you buy any of the above law school tablets. You can succeed in law school with only a tablet, but remember you may have technical requirements for exam software. So, check with your law school’s IT department before buying a tablet!
If you are a recent law grad, be sure to check out our guide for the best tablets for lawyers. That list takes into consideration factors an associate may need to consider when buying a tablet.
Finally, check out our rating guide for a detailed description of how the Law School Supplies Team rates products!