I reallyyy don't think so. I mean I guess I can't compare since I never got it lol but then again, I did fine...so I don't think I missed out. The handbook's basically a regurgitation of the podcasts so I guess it's handy if you don't feel like typing/writing notes. I used my upper-year friends' notes and the textbook for the semester and everything I needed for the weekly tests were on either or. I think you should be fine