JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

One other important thing I look for is the number USB ports. I have 4 on the front and more on the back for things that don't change very often. But those 4 on the front get used a lot. And often all 4 at the same time.

photoman43

I like windows computers. Get a SSD drive, 1 TB or larger. My laptop has 32 GB RAM. Mt desktop has 64 GB RAM and the video cards have their separate RAM too--minimum 4 GB. If you have space for a desktop get one. Have it custom built for you too. In my desktop I have large internal HDD drives for image storage.

This site will help you decide on what is needed:

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Adobe-Lightroom-Classic-12th-Gen-Intel-Core-vs-AMD-Ryzen-5000-Series-2246/


I had my desktop built for me at MicroCenter in Houston where I live.

Expattyke

Gaming PC or laptop. At least 16GB of RAM, i7 processor, and discrete graphics card. SSD at least 512GB. Desktop add a large 2TB or better conventional drive for storage.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Memory -
https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/how-much-ram-does-your-pc-need-probably-less-than-you-think/
http://www.zdnet.com/article/how-much-ram-does-your-pc-need/

Processor -
http://gizmodo.com/dont-waste-money-on-intels-top-processor-1791426602
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404674,00.asp
https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/intel-core-i5-vs-i7/
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/intel-core-i9-vs-i7-vs-i5-cpu/
https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/intel-core-i5-vs-i7/
http://www.laptopmag.com/articles/core-i5-vs-i7
https://www.extremetech.com/computing/210703-intel-core-i5-vs-core-i7-which-processor-should-you-buy

Graphics -
https://www.newegg.com/insider/how-to-choose-graphics-card/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xif6O8ekxuU
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-buying-guide,5844.html
https://techguided.com/how-to-choose-a-graphics-card/

radiojohn

Forgive me if you already know this, but "just in case." The advertised Kodak negative/slide "scanners" are not scanners. They are copy cameras not suited for other than the most casual use.

Others can suggest flat-bed true scanners or other devices.

TheShoe Loc: Lacey, WA

Mine is Ryzen 5 5600X usually running at 4GHz, 32 GB memory, RADEON RX 6700 XT GPU, 1GB SSD NVM2 System drive. Currently Windows 10 and will be until June or later. AI is speedy as the GPU has 12GB. For PP, I use DxO PhotoLab 5.

Nikon1201

When you purchase software you need to read the specs. Your pc has to have OPEN GL high enough to run The program . I believe Topaz Impressions has to have OPEN GL 4.2 or higher . Regardless of your pc power if you don’t meet these requirements the program will not run.

jimnyc1 Loc: New York, NY USA

Best machine I have ever bought and used since the early 80s. https://www.pugetsystems.com/recommended/Recommended-Systems-for-Adobe-Photoshop-139

cahale Loc: San Angelo, TX

All the above are just like money. You can never have to much. RAM and processer speed are the most important. Storage is a matter of taste, but SSD is usually faster. Decide what you can spend, add 20% and go to town.

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

Should also mention that a 512GB SSD seems to be too small and I was too close to filling it up. Imaging software use up lots of disk space. I have now changed to a 1TB SSD and it is sufficient for the near future. And I do not store images on the SSD.

The SSD is now C:

The original 2TB hard drive is now D: Be sure to learn how to manage disk drive "volumes" and how to copy the operating system to C:

And I added two additional 4TB drives into the cabinet. Someday, I will use larger ones.

Nikon1201

The OPEN GL is just as important as all the other features . For example Topaz Impressions require an OPEN GL of 4.2 or higher ( I think ) . If you don’t have it your programs won’t run . Always check the system requirements before you buy and Make sure your computer has the capacity to run it.

Phil Singer Loc: Beautiful Downtown Brighton Michigan

I know I'm a niche of a niche technologist here, but some of my recent considerations are probably relevant. I've always used a home built computer for the last 16 years. As my current box is nearly 6 years old, I've been slowly saving up to replace it. Then, I discovered that cases with slots for optical drives are getting verrryyyyy hard to find. And finding a R/W optical drive to go into such a slot is almost as difficult. I'm going to assume that you have no intention of building your own, but there are some takeaways from my research which apply to you:

1) If you are like me, and you archive your files onto DVD's, and you don't have an external device, you may need to buy one. Soon.

2) If you are used to using a tower rather than a laptop, be aware that the current market for towers is with gamers, for whom the three most important features are Looks, Video Speed, and Looks. Usability comes in fifth.

3) I don't know if Adobe (I assume you use Adobe software) increases their fee if you use two computers.