I don't think trying to incorp the laptop for primary note-taking is a good idea. Might be better to focus on handwriting. It's a very effective study technique to write it down by hand when first learning (like in a lecture etc), and later typing up those notes. Makes for a great memory technique.
Also, consider that if you are spreading your primary notes across different mediums they will become quite fragmented and difficult to revise from, which is why you take them in the first place. Mech Eng isn't 100% lectures, and you won't be able to bring your laptop into some labs or workshops which means that you'll have half your notes on your laptop (with multiple missing equations and diagrams that you forgot to scan in) and half of your notes on paper that which you ignore because you focus on the laptop.
In short: handwritten for primary notes, typed up on laptop for secondary renditions and revision purposes.