The best photo editing laptop
May 23, 2014 05:33:41 #
If you have the green have Dell build you one your way. 17.5 lots of RAM, 1T HD. You need a GAME PC.
May 23, 2014 06:07:37 #
May 23, 2014 06:10:53 #
According to the Wall Street Journal technology analysis I read several years ago, if you want the best hardware platform to run Windows you should buy a Mac!
May 23, 2014 06:13:14 #
May 23, 2014 06:17:11 #
I'm at odds with the majority here, but FWIW, I would discourage the use of a laptop for photo editing if you have a good desktop at home.
First, the smaller screen is a hassle to use after the luxury of a nice, calibrated 24" monitor. You'll get tired pushing pallets and toolbars around to get them out of the way. Then you have to load the laptop up with hardware that it lacks such as a Wacom tablet, a real keyboard and an external massive storage device (if you can afford a monster SSHD it most likely won't fit into the case and would have to be an external one), and perhaps even a printer. That's a load of extra junk to carry around and set up and rather negates the whole purpose of a laptop in the first place.
Then there's the problem of battery drain as all those devices suck your recharge cycles down. Modern laptops are not designed to be run plugged in to AC power as the battery loses its capacity when used constantly at full charge on AC, so you have to cycle them.
Finally, you have to deal with screen calibration. Most new laptops are good for color balance, but screen brightness varies depending on the power conservation settings of the laptop and the level of battery charge. Most of them now will begin to dim the screen depending on how long it has been since the last input. If you lock the screen on the "proper" brightness level (whatever that might be among the 10 or so choices), then battery recycle times are shortened considerably.
I won't get into the Apple vs. PC fight except to say that I abandoned Apple years ago because of the number of software programs they can't run and because I don't like their corporate philosophy of high prices and proprietary attachments, but they make good laptops. I currently own two Lenovo Yoga 2 Pros, both with SSHDs and they are lovely for what they are intended to do - which is not photo editing. Thought you might like a different answer. JMHO.
First, the smaller screen is a hassle to use after the luxury of a nice, calibrated 24" monitor. You'll get tired pushing pallets and toolbars around to get them out of the way. Then you have to load the laptop up with hardware that it lacks such as a Wacom tablet, a real keyboard and an external massive storage device (if you can afford a monster SSHD it most likely won't fit into the case and would have to be an external one), and perhaps even a printer. That's a load of extra junk to carry around and set up and rather negates the whole purpose of a laptop in the first place.
Then there's the problem of battery drain as all those devices suck your recharge cycles down. Modern laptops are not designed to be run plugged in to AC power as the battery loses its capacity when used constantly at full charge on AC, so you have to cycle them.
Finally, you have to deal with screen calibration. Most new laptops are good for color balance, but screen brightness varies depending on the power conservation settings of the laptop and the level of battery charge. Most of them now will begin to dim the screen depending on how long it has been since the last input. If you lock the screen on the "proper" brightness level (whatever that might be among the 10 or so choices), then battery recycle times are shortened considerably.
I won't get into the Apple vs. PC fight except to say that I abandoned Apple years ago because of the number of software programs they can't run and because I don't like their corporate philosophy of high prices and proprietary attachments, but they make good laptops. I currently own two Lenovo Yoga 2 Pros, both with SSHDs and they are lovely for what they are intended to do - which is not photo editing. Thought you might like a different answer. JMHO.
May 23, 2014 06:24:01 #
xzoup wrote:
thanks for your assistance I like the Hp and ASUS, but I also plan on checking out lenova.
I have a W520. I use it religiously. Actually my non-Superman job (aka Clark Kent) is all about software. Non of the stuff runs on Mac. It is business software and it and all it's competitors run on Windows servers, UNIx and ZED. But the W520 works well 16 gig. I am understanding there is a W530 out and I know someone who has 32 gig in it. I believe he said 32 gig. Before I loaded my laptop up with billions of applications it SCREAMED. I do agree on the SSD. I removed my CD/DVD and got a portable. I replaced it with a very large secondary HD in a caddy. I love the extra space. I rarely use the portable CD/DVD on the road. At home I have a burner hooked to my docking station and use that.
May 23, 2014 06:34:02 #
Dell M 3800, Better display and resolution than the Mac. Fast, light, thin, albeit a bit expensive but no more than the Mac.
May 23, 2014 06:39:12 #
xzoup wrote:
I travel around my state photographing different events. Many times 4 hours one way, then I have to travel 4 hours back home to my desktop computer to edit and convert my shots. I am looking for a laptop that can handle my program downloads, speed and a fairly large monitor with adequate IQ. Not concerned about price.
As far as workflow is concerned, using Lightroom will allow you to store image files and catalog previews on a fast external drive, so you will be able to process your images on the laptop to the extent possible in a raw converter, then pick up where you left off on your desktop without missing a beat. All your edits will be there, and Lightroom will be seamless between the two machines.
Your iimage sizes and requirement for color accuracy will determine will platform. People will suggest Macbooks, but their displays are not the best suited for image editing, and they are limited to 16 gb ram, and comparatively small hard drives. If you consider the most maxed out Macbook pro, and compare it to what is possible with a well-spec'd Windows machine, you will see that for the same money you get more with the PC, and if you spend even more, you can get more.
I have been specifying Clevo-Sager notebooks for a few years now. There higher end machines offer up to 32gb ram, NVidia Quadro workstation video cards with 4 gb ram (necessary for 10 bit display depth, which is not possible on Mac, since it is limited to just 8 bits of accuracy), and up to 4 internal drives, 2 of which are SSD and the other two are 7200rpm mechanical drives. You can get them in 13", 15" or 17" and if you need a super fast machine, there are cpu upgrades that will get you close to 5 ghz in speed, plus the manufacturer will do the overclocking for you - you can get copper cooling, better thermal transfer material between the cpu and its cooling device, and other overclocking enhancements.
Sadly, on board displays lack the color bit depth to allow proper editing on a laptop. The ones I have looked at from a variety of manufacturers are limited to 6 bit, with FRC to give the appearance of 8 bit. None offer true 8 bit color depth.
You can come to a reasonable color situation if you profile your screen using a Color Munki or Spyder. I would not try to do any serious photo editing on a display that was not profiled.
You can see them here:
http://www.xoticpc.com/custom-gaming-laptops-notebooks-clevo-sager-notebooks-ct-95_51_162.html
and you might want to start looking at the NP8268 and higher machines.
For the record, the maxed out macbook looks like this:
For $3300 you get : 15" screen, 2.6ghz quad core i7, 16 gb ram, 1Tb SSD, Nvidia GT750 display adapter with 2gb VRAM.
For a little less money ($3263)you get 17.3" screen with 90% NTSC color gamut, 3.1 ghz quad core i7, 32gb Ram, NVidia GTX 870M display with 6 gb VRAM, 1Tb SSD boot drive, and (2) 1 TB 7200 rpm mechanical drives. And you have the option to add one more SSD drive, or mix and match the drive configurations. And you can have your choice of Windows 8.1 Premium or Windows 7 Premium.
I don't know about you, if money is no object, I'd rather be doing photo editing on a 17" screen with 3 Tb of storage (with one of those TB configured as SSD), with a cpu that is 20% (or 54% with overclocking) faster.
The Macbook Pro at its best seems a little outdated to me. Just sayin'
Needless to say, you can configure a laptop to the same spec as the top Macbook Pro, and save about $600-$900 in the process.
OK Macheads, take your best shot :)
May 23, 2014 06:41:41 #
You can also put PCC on it for $10. month. LOOK around for the deal, every thing Photoshop has. I get all up dates and phone help if needed. some one on here should have the link.
May 23, 2014 06:42:29 #
jeryh wrote:
Can't beat a mac Pro !
Just did - see my post below -
May 23, 2014 06:46:25 #
xzoup wrote:
I travel around my state photographing different events. Many times 4 hours one way, then I have to travel 4 hours back home to my desktop computer to edit and convert my shots. I am looking for a laptop that can handle my program downloads, speed and a fairly large monitor with adequate IQ. Not concerned about price.
I strongly suggest a MacBook Pro.
May 23, 2014 06:56:45 #
Your lucky, Photoshop just emailed me this, it one h--- of a deal.
https://creative.adobe.com/plans/offer/photoshop+lightroom?trackingid=KLMOO
https://creative.adobe.com/plans/offer/photoshop+lightroom?trackingid=KLMOO
May 23, 2014 07:02:19 #
billybob40 wrote:
Your lucky, Photoshop just emailed me this, it one h--- of a deal.
https://creative.adobe.com/plans/offer/photoshop+lightroom?trackingid=KLMOO
https://creative.adobe.com/plans/offer/photoshop+lightroom?trackingid=KLMOO
This offer is subject to their terms and conditions - the offer is good until May 31st, and they will automatically renew at the end of 12 months and the price charged from that point forward will be the prevailing rate. So this is a great deal - for now.
May 23, 2014 07:04:50 #
Stanley Fleming
Loc: Maine/Florida
If money is no object then I am not sure I understand why you will not go Apple. The operating system is designed for visuals and is the standard in the graphics world of computing. At least add it to your research models to be sure you make the most informed decision.
May 23, 2014 07:08:37 #
MacBook Pro is the only way to go. Very easy to use and great quality.
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