Mickey Jetpur Loc: California

Hi,
I have a LG monitor in very good condition about 4 yrs old, 27" that I was thinking of using with a new desktop from HP. It is from Best Buy, refurbished 8GB and 1 TB hard drive, for under $ 400. Has anyone bought refurbished from Best Buy? Since I already have the monitor, I thought I would go this route, for editing pics in LR. I cannot open pics in raw format on my Vista laptop as it doesn't support my 70D. Windows 7 premium and 7 professional do. Thanks in advance.

mutrock

You need to check what model of video driver is in the computer.

1. What is the maximum resolution the computer can drive? Resolution is expressed by two numbers in pixels, like 3200 x 1800 (pretty high end). or 1920 x 1080 (High Definition) or 1280 x 720 (also called High Definition but not so good). Anything less than that would not be so good on the monitor.
2. What is the maximum resolution of the monitor?
3. Determine if the driver can drive the monitor at its max. If not then you are not achieving the potential of your monitor.
4. Also need to check what video output cable the laptop will support, DVI, HDMI, SVGA, etc. Make sure it supports an output cable type that will also support the monitor resolution. For example SVGA is very old technology and does not support anything near high definition. DVI is generally the best of those three choices.

A little complicated, yes, but you will get the maximum from your monitor. Also, you may want to upgrade monitors at some time. Will the cable or video driver support any upgrades or is it already maxed out?

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I've bought quite a few refurb items, and never had a problem.

Try Dell Auctions. We've gotten good back-up computers from them for around $250.

http://www.dellauction.com/

ralphc4176 Loc: Conyers, GA

If you want to handle digital images quickly, you will need a video card in the machine. At the price you listed, the desktop machine probably doesn't have one. The motherboard in that machine may have expansion slots to support a video card, which you could later add if it does. Windows 7 Professional is the OS I'd choose.

gemlenz Loc: Gilbert Arizona

You can always add more memory. Check the graphics card capability.

pego99

I got this one, love it.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/423699/Envy_700-074_Desktop_Computer_Refurbished

Also got a samsung 27" monitor at micro center

marcomarks Loc: Ft. Myers, FL

You need to know what CPU processor it has. Intel i7 would be best. i5 is marginal if you ever want to edit video. You also need to know what graphics card with accelerator it has and whether that card has on-board memory in excess of 1GB. 1.5 or 2 is actually much better for photo rendering.

Photoshop (and I assume Lightroom as well) likes 16GB of memory more than it likes 8, although 8 will work fine (I know because that's what I have).

By the way, it's more likely Lightroom 4 that doesn't support your 70D, not your laptop. So you'll have to update to a newer Lightroom while you're at it.

Mickey Jetpur Loc: California

Hi, thanks all for your replies. It was very helpful. I found a refurbished HP 8000 Elite, windows 7 pro,Intel core 2 duo, 8GB, 1TB, 3.0 ghz with a one year warranty and can extend to 2 yrs. Will this be suitable for LR 5? My monitor is a LG Flatron wide screen 1680X1050 resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio. If this won't be compatible, I can get a new one.
Thank you so very much for all your replies.

pego99

Whats wrong with i5 16gb 2tb for $530?
A intel core duo is a very old chip.
i5 or you must a i3 is the only way to go.

Mickey Jetpur Loc: California

Thanks again. I'm also looking at Asus. Never owned one, but has great reviews.

pego99

I thought that we were talking about specs not the manufacturer.
Also the ability of LR to open a raw file is a function of LR not the computer.
The current version of LR is 5.6 and 5.7 is expected very soon.

Mickey Jetpur Loc: California

I am looking at specs too, the Asus is the same price and also has Nvidia, more ports etc. 8GB, 1TB
Thanks.