Laptop for editing on the go

[pearson]

I am in the market for a decent laptop that will run windows to use for photo editing while away from home. I use Photoshop CS5 extended at the moment as I don't have the cash to upgrade to CS6. I would typically need to process around 1000 images for each day's shooting and would then store these on external harddrive so as not to fill up the laptop. I'm not sure which laptop would be best suited to what I'm doing. Can anyone give me any advice on this? Any help will be much appreciated!

[ameerat42]

Yes. What I'm using at this very moment. Asus U500V 15in Touch.
But note: the on-line specs are specious:D. This one certainly does have 2 x 240GB SSDs and a whole 3 of USB3 ports.
You can EASILY - and just as quickly as off the SSDs - work with a decent (like WD Passport) USB3 external HDD.

In case the specs vary, this one has Core I7 3632QM CPU (2.2GHz), 8GB RAM, and... other stuff. Came with Win 8, now Win 8.1.

It'll put you off tea-making for ever.

[arthurking83]

I got my son a 500V ASUS laptop of some type too many years ago.
I remember this laptop had plenty of speed to burn too(through 85+Mb raw files too!)

Of coursse my son is a bit of an idiot and he killed the HDD it came with, so I bought him a new(faster) HDD(mechanical) and it flew even faster!
But as I said, he's a bit of an idiot and broke that HDD within a couple of months .. so the replacement was a much slower HDD I had spare lying around.
(being an idiot, he has to pay for his silliness! :D)

I think his model is a R500V .. but it's not here for me to confirm that .. i7 processor too, but with only 4G RAM.

I remember it cost just a nip under $800 maybe 4 years ago .. so not an unreasonable amount.

[ameerat42]

((Mine cost 15laoiwjdoian;c - :shh:))

[bricat]

If you are editing you should work out what size screen and resolution will suit your needs. ie wearing glasses = bigger screen. Then travelling weight and size might be more of a consideration. Buy the highest spec laptop you can afford or which falls within your budget. Be aware that some specials (laptops) are selling at lower prices to get rid of older spec motherboards/graphic cards, HDD etc. And it is a minefield of different specs by different manufacturers. If you are an older person like me having a son/daughter who is up to date with these things it certainly helps. Above all take your time and it will all fall into place cheers Brian

PS The laptop I bought several years ago had 2x 500gb hard drives.

[ameerat42]

ameerat42 thanked for this useful post because he couldn't click the button twice. You describe exactly what I found.
Beware of garbage, Pearso!

[Boo53]

As a long time Windows user and almost anti Apple person I would normally not ask this, but, in our Eldest Son's belongings that were returned to us 18 months ago was a Mac Book Pro Retina 15", which I now use, so does it have to be windows

I didn't touch it for about 6 months, but it was pointless to waste it so reformatted it (actually had a pro do it) and now use it for photography on the road all the time.For its size and weight its great. Still use a windows PC at home (got home yesterday from 11 weeks on the road and currently moving the files to the PC)

No new licences for Adobe stuff needed, just download the mac version and use your existing licence.

I do use 2 Toshiba "ruggedised" 2TB external hard drives, one as a primary drive and one as a synced backup - these drives are about $100 each.

[Sdison]

A Retina MacBook is a good option or a Dell XPS model. Also don't waste your money on CS6 - sign up to Creative Cloud and you'll get a much more significantly updated version of PS. CS6 is by now quite out of date.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ameerat42]

A Retina MacBook is a good option or a Dell XPS model. Also don't waste your money on CS6 - sign up to Creative Cloud and you'll get a much more significantly updated version of PS. CS6 is by now quite out of date.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sam. Quite a value statement here.
Am.

[Brian500au]

I went through the same thoughts around 18 months ago, and I ended up buying a macbook pro 13" retina. I have been a windows man for the last 30 years but version 8 just killed it for me - I really hated using it. I had never used a mac before and I was not sure if I beleived all the hype about it so I wanted a machine I could at least swap back over to Windows if needed. Well I can say I never have - I still use Windows on my desktop, and I use if for work, but they are a far second to the pleasure of using my macbook.

I like the quality of the laptop itself and the no nonsense operating system (although it did take a while to get used to it). It is fast and does exactly what i need in the photography world. I run both PS and LR CC and the quality of screen makes if a pleasure to edit whilst on the road (and I am always on the road).

[ameerat42]

Brian. Just for interest, how was Win 8.x so bad? Now there's Win 10 and it's not too different from 8.

I'm not against a Mac with Retina system at all, and it was 1 of the 1s I looked at but found a bit $$$.

I'm interested to know why people don't like things and I think it would be useful for people like the OP
to have some "reason" to consider.

Am.

[Brian500au]

Brian. Just for interest, how was Win 8.x so bad? Now there's Win 10 and it's not too different from 8.

I'm not against a Mac with Retina system at all, and it was 1 of the 1s I looked at but found a bit $$$.

I'm interested to know why people don't like things and I think it would be useful for people like the OP
to have some "reason" to consider.

Am.

I cannot quite put my finger on what erked me with Windows 8.x. I have used windows since the early 90's starting with Windows 3.0. I just think it was the menu system which really put me off - I was happy with windows 7 and I even worked in Vista without a problem. I am forced to use windows 8.x at work but I put up with it. I never thought I would become a mac boy but I am just astounded with the ease of using the macbook. I still prefer a windows machine for office but for everything else I would rather use the macbook.

I suppose also the ease of integration between my macbook, Iphone and apple TV also has tinted my view a little. In the end everything just works.

[ameerat42]

OK. Ta.