[semi-extrinsic]

You're correct that most new studies compare handwritten vs. laptop notes. The effect of handwritten notes vs. no notes was studied quite a bit earlier, and I believe this effect is now as uncontroversial as psychology can be.

A good review of the literature (from 1989) is found here:

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF01326640