laptop info.....

[snappysi]

Hi all,
i am looking at getting a laptop soon, however must admit that i am not 100% sure on all the system differences. I currently have a desktop that runs everything, internet , email, lightroom, photoshop etc. There isnt anything really wrong with it except it is getting a little slow while editing photos, especially once a few layers are going. The laptop would be primarily as a photo editing tool.
i am wanting a laptop for portability, ( being able to edit anywhere rather than at my desk), running photoshop and lightroom reasonably easily, and be able to shoot tethered in studio.
i dont want to go mac so would prefer windows based.
What i am after is not necesarily a recommendation for a particular laptop, but what i should be looking for as far as graphics cards, processer speeds, how much ram etc......

Thanks in advance..

Simon.

[livio]

Hi Simon,

If you want performance out of a laptop look at the intel i5 or 17 CPU as much ram as you fit in the laptop 8GB sounds about right and a solid state drive. Your O/S CS6 Light Room 4 MSOffice etc should take up around 70GB the rest is free
The downside of the envy range is the battery life very short. Processing and grpahics are really good. Each of the laptop vendors will give you a good top end system Dell, HP, Acer, Toshiba At the end of the day you get what you pay for go for the brand names and you can be assured of support later on. go for the no-name brands you get what you get.

When you start running low on disk space you can always pick up a NAS generally they are around 8TB Raid configuration really handy for backups.

Kind Regards
Livio

[snappysi]

Thanks Livio, sounds about what i have been looking at. Do you have any idea as to the differences of processors in regards to AMd V'S INTEL ( I7 ) ??? Also is there a real benefit to going to more ram or would it be overkill for what i want ?????

Cheers

Simon.

[flashc]

Thanks Livio, sounds about what i have been looking at. Do you have any idea as to the differences of processors in regards to AMd V'S INTEL ( I7 ) ??? Also is there a real benefit to going to more ram or would it be overkill for what i want ?????

Cheers

Simon.

Hi...

Processors are like cars - they all work well and get you from A to B. If you want to get there faster, get a V8 or an Intel I7 CPU or the AMD equivalent. I personally prefer Intel Processors but have installed both in new systems but I have Toyota and Mazda cars too. Plenty of users have Macs too, but they're not my own personal choice.

My own preference if I was to upgrade would be an I5 or I7 processor, 8Gb of Ram memory, dedicated graphics processor with its own dedicated Video Ram memory (some low spec laptops draw their memory from the main laptop's ram and therefore reduce the amount of main memory available to the laptop's main CPU operating system. Cost of an up market I7 - $1200.00, with SSD (solid state disk drive) maybe $1700?

Look for a video graphics adapter name like "Nvidia" with maybe 2Gb of Video ram onboard.

Windows 7 is current but will be superseded by Windows version 8 very soon. I would say this is why laptops are being discounted heavily at present, as new models will be coming soon. Check how much Ram memory can be added to the laptop in the future. To access 8Gb of ram, you will need a 64bit version of Windows. Windows Home Premium is the minimum you would want in any PC laptop.

Two of my Acer laptops have blue ray DVD readers built in and they are 2 years old. They have SD memory card readers but not SDHC or SDXC type readers.

The main laptops I use also have wireless "N" connectivity, bluetooth and HDMI video output. They have 4 USB 2 ports. (USB version 3 is the new current standard to have)

A 15.4" screen or bigger is better. I wouldn't upgrade to a new laptop unless it had a LCD screen with LED backlighting. (probably found advertised as a LED display)

Better batteries with more cells can be bought, but can be costly.

Check the catalogs of the major retail stores for their current specials.

Hope my info helps...

[snappysi]

Thanks flash for taking the time...appreciate the info

Simon.

[flashc]

Thanks flash for taking the time...appreciate the info

Simon.

No problem - hope it helps you to buy the right one.

[ricktas]

For high quality photo editing, make sure you throw in a monitor calibrator and check out the specs of the screen of the laptop model you are considering. Not the pixel resolution, but what type of screen it is. Many laptops use the 'cheapest' option when it comes to the screen added to the device.

http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?89862-The-different-types-of-monitors-available-for-photo-editing

[snappysi]

Thanks Rick, this is exactly the type of info i was hoping to be made aware of. Is this the type of information that a sales person would likely know if asked, or would a bit of "investigation" on my part be required ?????? I have asked about screens before and mostly just get an answer as to the resolution etc. My dad did mention screens to me a few weeks ago during a discussion but i must admit i was unaware of how many versions of the screens existed. One again thank you.

Simon.

[ricktas]

Sometimes it can be hard to find out. But the website of the manufacturer is a good place to start.

[snappysi]

Hey Rick, been doing just that in the last hour..... your not wrong its hard to find, am yet to find a single one that lists exactly what the screen is !!!!!

Simon.

[Tommo1965]

ive just bought a refurbished 17inch Dell L702X...it comes with Two 750 gig HDs, 1 gig of video memory, 6 gig of ram and I7 processor ..I paid $850 ..I upgraded the boot drive to a Intel SSD 240 gig and turned the extracted HD into a portable USB3 drive . upgraded the ram to 12 gig for just $59....also a clean install of windows 7 pro

but heres the thing.. whilst all the hardware is there and its super quick for anything I chuck at it...the damn screen is woeful...with 45.45.15.35 viewing angles...so Im swapping that out for a 70.70.60.60 17Inch 1080x1920 matte display...all for the grand sum of $120 au...all up the rig will have set me back around $1400

[snappysi]

that's good buying Steve, where did you source the original refurb from ???

Simon.

[Tommo1965]

I grabbed it from gumtree..a bloke not two suburbs away from me buys the ex dell gear in job lots...

have a look on your local gumtree.. i saw a used model that i have go on ebay the other day for $650..and that had a better screen than mine

my model is a Dell XPS L702X...I like it as as it has the space for two Hds and plenty of horsepower..very easy to upgrade either the ram or the HDs, plus a very nice back-lit keyboard