What's a good desktop computer for mostly photography use? (Page 3): I would suggest more ram i.e. 16-32GB...

ABJanes Loc: Jersey Boy now Virginia

PixelStan77 wrote:

Bill,

Apple 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display. I have it and love it.

Within your budget.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342558-REG/apple_mne92ll_a_27_imac_with_retina.html

I would suggest more ram i.e. 16-32GB

robert chagolla Loc: San Marcos, Texas

Jerry, you always give good advice with plenty of examples/ links to the people asking for help. Speaking for myself, I'd like to say thanks for your excellent help and opinions!

jaycoffman Loc: San Diego

I have an iMac w/27" display, 8 GB memory and 1TB storage. I like it a lot but . . . 8GB memory is just barely enough--I'd recommend more as it can get slowed down using Lightroom/Photoshop and raw files. Second, the 1TB storage is enough IF you move all your photos and Lightroom/Photoshop to an external hard drive dedicated to photography. I didn't do that and used up almost all the storage within a relatively short time. I just switched it all to a 4TB external hard drive and it seems to be a marked improvement. Finally, if you can get the retinal display I would recommend that. I have it on my iPad and like it a lot.

I think that for how many of us engage with photography we need to pay more attention to how we view, store, catalog and edit our pictures and this means getting a computer that will do a good job. We should consider that part of our photography gear.

I'd recommend going to a store and look at different computers and displays before you decide.

Zeke4351 Loc: Kentucky

tcthome wrote:

Agreat Dell xps system should do the job. Make sure to get at least 16gb of ram, 32 would be better & a video card of at least 4gb. The largest hard drive you can afford ( preferably a nv piec or what ever they are called ). Get a bean monitorthe with the left over money if you can swing it. There monitor for around $600 should be good enough for a hobbyists.

Have fun , Tom

I have this Dell described. It is probably 5 years old or older and it does great. I run Photoshop, Lightroom, Topaz, On1 2019. You can always buy external hard drives for extra storage. I would buy all the ram and upgraded video card I could at the time of purchase. Windows 10 is well done compared to any other Windows. They got it this time.

dick ranez

Set you budget, get a good monitor if you don't have one and spend the rest for a computer. Mac/Windows doesn't matter. Whatever you buy, get the maximum memory you can afford and make sure the systems drive is solid state and fast. Get a second spinning drive or external disk to store your finished products.

dan59019 Loc: Washington Mi

Stick to the major manufacturers off the shelf units - you'll have fewer problems as the motherboard processor and memory type have all been tested warranted to work together. Build from there - I've been in high end PC/workstation business ( multiple brands ) for over 30 years. I've replaced too many well intentioned home built machines because all of a sudden something doesn't work with something that was just added.

Haydon

dan59019 wrote:

Stick to the major manufacturers off the shelf units - you'll have fewer problems as the motherboard processor and memory type have all been tested warranted to work together. Build from there - I've been in high end PC/workstation business ( multiple brands ) for over 30 years. I've replaced too many well intentioned home built machines because all of a sudden something doesn't work with something that was just added.

The last one I built ran 11 years before I retired it. Buying good hardware usually brings a longer life. I still have a custom built XP machine that is now going on 16 years without a hitch. Points of failure come from PSU's and major manufacturers usually under-power their systems and provide a budget PSU. When you use high end chipsets and GPU's, that's taxing to a system. I'm presently using a Seasonic 750 Watt in my new build and it's got a 10 year warranty. You'll never get that from a major manufacturer.

RRS Loc: Not sure

rmalarz wrote:

I've been using a 27" iMac for the past 4-5 years. I would not like to attempt processing on anything else.
--Bob

Bob, do you use only the installed software for editing or other added software? The reason I ask is a friend just bought the 27" iMac and says that he needs no other PP software.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

PixelStan77 wrote:

Bill,

Apple 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display. I have it and love it.

Within your budget.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342558-REG/apple_mne92ll_a_27_imac_with_retina.html

Bad choice in terms of performance/$ (unless you’re dedicated to Mac). Used computer, slow CPU, limited DRAM, a “Fusion drive” and limited upgrade potential.

Instead choose a late Intel I-7 or AMD Ryzen 5 or 7 (3600, 3700 or 3800) processor, 16GB (min) DRAM, 500GB or 1TB internal M.2 SSD drive, a mid range video card with 2GB (min) VRAM, Blu-ray/MDisk Drive, Win 10 64 bit (home) and a good monitor. You can add a large HD for photo storage if you need it. That can easily be done within your budget, especially if you buy the parts and assemble it, which is easy.

BBurns Loc: South Bay, California

RatGMAN wrote:

I'd like to keep the expense to no more than $1500, unless that is unrealistic.

If you are a Costco member check out what they have both in the store and online. They have some real deals around Christmas time.
I bought an Acer Predator fully loaded, GeForce GTX 1070 video card, 32gb of RAM & I7-7700 CPU with a 256gb SSD +1TB HDD.
This was on a special 3 day in-store mark down from $1699 to $1099. It does pay to shop around.
I try to stay away from HP because their customer service is atrocious.

grichie5

RatGMAN wrote:

The computer I currently use for my photography (which I supplement with an attached Dell U2412m monitor) is about 20 years old and starting to show it's age. I'd like to replace it with a desktop (or under the desk) computer. I run Win10, and would like sufficient memory and hard disk size to not have to be concerned with processing speed and/or storage.

I recently purchased a new Dell XPS 8930 with the newest, ninth generation Intel i7 processor. . It came with a 250 gb PLI e x 4 solid state hard drive, (very fast) which I upgraded to a 500 gb unit, an additional one tb hard drive and 16 GB of memory. I added another 16 GB for a total of 32 GB of memory. Total cost was just over $1250 with the modifications. The case had bays for two additional hard drives so I was able to put one of the "storage" drives from my original computer into the case. It has a N Videa Gforce video card with 6 gb of memory and several output ports.

It is extremely fast. It boots in under 20 seconds. Photoshop snaps onto the monitor almost instantly. It has been in use for about a month now and I'm extremely pleased.

xt2 Loc: British Columbia, Canada

RatGMAN wrote:

The computer I currently use for my photography (which I supplement with an attached Dell U2412m monitor) is about 20 years old and starting to show it's age. I'd like to replace it with a desktop (or under the desk) computer. I run Win10, and would like sufficient memory and hard disk size to not have to be concerned with processing speed and/or storage.

iMac 27” Retina display. Order minimum RAM and replace that with aftermarket RAM... cheaper. I’ve used these for years, fast, a natural photo manipulation computer that is drop-dead gorgeous in the desk and intuitive OS.

Cheers!

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

xt2 wrote:

iMac 27” Retina display. Order minimum RAM and replace that with aftermarket RAM... cheaper. I’ve used these for years, fast, a natural photo manipulation computer that is drop-dead gorgeous in the desk and intuitive OS.

Cheers!

But costs 2x the Op’s stated budget...

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

PixelStan77 wrote:

Bill,

Apple 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display. I have it and love it.

Within your budget.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342558-REG/apple_mne92ll_a_27_imac_with_retina.html

The Op is running Win 10, WHY would he want to learn a new system?

adamsg Loc: Chubbuck, ID

PixelStan77 wrote:

Bill,

Apple 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display. I have it and love it.

Within your budget.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342558-REG/apple_mne92ll_a_27_imac_with_retina.html

I heartily second this recommendation. My Mac display is not as large, but has a ton of RAM and handles two post-processing programs with ease. Mine is actually a factory refurb from Apple and it set me back $1,200, with a one year warranty.