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Old 03-06-2018, 10:09 PM
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Default Laptop recommendations

What’s a good laptop to mostly just use Photoshop on it. I need it with a powerful video card and RAM I imagine but I don’t know much about what would make it a good one.

Probably a PC because that’s what I’m used to using.

What do you have and doesn’t crash? Brand?
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Old 03-06-2018, 10:11 PM
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I have an acer that is total love! It was pretty pricey but I can run photoshop and Lightroom at the same time which is amazing! I never knew you could that!


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Old 03-06-2018, 10:18 PM
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I have an acer that is total love! It was pretty pricey but I can run photoshop and Lightroom at the same time which is amazing! I never knew you could that!


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Oh nice! Thanks Crystal!
Do you know its info by any chance? Like how much RAM and processor and all that?
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Old 03-06-2018, 10:22 PM
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Oh nice! Thanks Crystal!
Do you know its info by any chance? Like how much RAM and processor and all that?
I’ll check for sure tomorrow when I get t back out I know it has a 1TB solid state drive which is awesome so probably at least 16 RAM? I’ll get deets tomorrow! It really is awesome and probably cheaper now than it was 6 months ago haha!
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Old 03-06-2018, 11:17 PM
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My laptop is a few years old already so I won't make specific recommendations, but I highly recommend a solid state drive. Back when this laptop was a year old I moved the regular HD to the optical drive bay and installed a SSD as my boot drive. It made a huge difference! I run Windows and all programs from the SSD, and I keep layouts I'm working on there. All my data is stored on the nearly full old HD. When I bought this computer, HDs big enough for everything I needed to store were too expensive, but there were some that had dual HDs like what I'm using now. I hope those are still out there or that SSDs have come way down in price!

ETA-Just realized I said that HDs big enough to store everything were too expensive for me. I meant that Solid State Drives big enough to use as my only hard drive were too expensive.
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Old 03-06-2018, 11:30 PM
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Originally Posted by rach3975 View Post
My laptop is a few years old already so I won't make specific recommendations, but I highly recommend a solid state drive. Back when this laptop was a year old I moved the regular HD to the optical drive bay and installed a SSD as my boot drive. It made a huge difference! I run Windows and all programs from the SSD, and I keep layouts I'm working on there. All my data is stored on the nearly full old HD. When I bought this computer, HDs big enough for everything I needed to store were too expensive, but there were some that had dual HDs like what I'm using now. I hope those are still out there or that SSDs have come way down in price!
I’m so sorry I don’t understand all the lingo! SSD? I thought that was sweet shoppe designs haha
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Old 03-06-2018, 11:47 PM
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I’m so sorry I don’t understand all the lingo! SSD? I thought that was sweet shoppe designs haha
LOL-We're at the best SSD, but it also stands for Solid State Drive. It's the name for HDs that work along the same lines as flash drives. They're faster and more stable than the older style. The older style, the ones we all had before SSDs, are the ones where the drive literally spins around. They're prone to failing and they can be described by the number of RPMs (rotations per minute--I think most are either 5400 RPM or 7200 RPM).

I did 5 minutes of research, and this Dell (or something similar) is probably what I'd get if I was buying a new laptop today. It looks like the updated version of what I currently have. The RAM is lower than what I'd like (though adequate, since it's what I have right now) but I worry less about that since it's easily upgraded. It has an i7 processor and a graphics card with dedicated memory, which are things you can't change later. Although I'd love to get only a big SSD, my budget will probably dictate a hybrid like this when I get a new computer.

I hope some people who have very different set ups weigh in. I've always bought what I consider expensive computers since I didn't want to chance PS not running well with an i5 processor or only shared (also called integrated) graphics. I'd definitely consider going for something a little more wallet-friendly next time if other people were happy with those configurations for scrapping.
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Old 03-07-2018, 12:56 AM
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Originally Posted by rach3975 View Post
LOL-We're at the best SSD, but it also stands for Solid State Drive. It's the name for HDs that work along the same lines as flash drives. They're faster and more stable than the older style. The older style, the ones we all had before SSDs, are the ones where the drive literally spins around. They're prone to failing and they can be described by the number of RPMs (rotations per minute--I think most are either 5400 RPM or 7200 RPM).

I did 5 minutes of research, and this Dell (or something similar) is probably what I'd get if I was buying a new laptop today. It looks like the updated version of what I currently have. The RAM is lower than what I'd like (though adequate, since it's what I have right now) but I worry less about that since it's easily upgraded. It has an i7 processor and a graphics card with dedicated memory, which are things you can't change later. Although I'd love to get only a big SSD, my budget will probably dictate a hybrid like this when I get a new computer.

I hope some people who have very different set ups weigh in. I've always bought what I consider expensive computers since I didn't want to chance PS not running well with an i5 processor or only shared (also called integrated) graphics. I'd definitely consider going for something a little more wallet-friendly next time if other people were happy with those configurations for scrapping.
Thank you so much I really appreciate your little research for me
It's too bad it does look like a gaming computer. I mean I'm no teenager lol but it's great advice! And thanks for explaining everything to me too.
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Old 03-07-2018, 02:23 AM
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I have an HP laptop now after a string of a lot of other ones. THis one has held up really well despite being dropped multiple times, the screen coming apart becuase of my kids accidentally yanking it backwards and various other things. honestly I'm surprised it's still working. I keep expecting it to die but it just keeps chugging on, lol! This thing's durability has pretty much won me as a forever customer, lol
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Old 03-07-2018, 05:38 AM
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Now I didn’t “choose” my laptop as it was an insurance payout after a burglary last year but if I was to choose I like it enough I’d probably get it myself.My only issue is it’s a tiny bit light on RAM but there is capacity for another 8GB to max it out which I’ll do once I have a job. I only use PSE but it’s fine for that. I’ve had several laptops around the same price point ($800-1200NZD) and HP win every time over Toshiba - I find HP’s don’t overheat at the drop of a hat, all my Toshiba ones did, HP’s feel sturdier as well. I’d imagine if my first HP laptop hadn’t been stolen I’d still be using it over 3 years down the track.


Anyway here are the specs
Product name
HP Notebook - 15-ay148tx
Microprocessor
Intel® Core™ i5-7200U (2.5 GHz, up to 3.1 GHz, 3 MB cache, 2 cores)
Memory, standard
8 GB DDR4-2133 SDRAM (1 x 8 GB)
Video graphics
AMD Radeon™ R5 M430 Graphics (2 GB DDR3 dedicated)
Hard drive
1 TB 5400 rpm SATA
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Old 03-07-2018, 09:38 AM
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See, that's what's so hard about asking for recommendations--we can all have such different experiences with the same brand! I owned 2 HPs, and both had horrible hinge problems even though they weren't cheap computers. In the 2nd one I owned, the hinge problem led to a fan breaking inside. Long story short, HP fixed the hinges under warranty but not the fan damage it caused, and I had to replace the dead computer in under 18 months. I'll never buy another HP.

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Originally Posted by luan37 View Post
Thank you so much I really appreciate your little research for me
It's too bad it does look like a gaming computer. I mean I'm no teenager lol but it's great advice! And thanks for explaining everything to me too.
The gaming part was on purpose--the way I understand it, the demands of running PS have more in common with the demands of gaming than they do with other computer types, like entertainment or productivity.
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Old 03-07-2018, 10:16 AM
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I’m following this because I’m considering a lap top after years of preference of a desk top. I’m drawn to the gaming lap tops that are loaded because I know those suckers are super fast and can handle the programs we use. Im interested in seeing people preferences and why.
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Old 03-07-2018, 10:50 AM
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Default Laptop recommendations

When looking a few years ago, it was highly recommended to get a gaming laptop. We went that route and it’s honestly been the best computer I’ve ever owned. It has a SSD too. It’s a Lenovo IdeaPad (or something similar). It’s getting slow but that’s because I need to update the RAM...not surprising considering how long I’ve had it.

I always have an Adobe program open on my laptop...whether it’s PS, LR, or ID...plus a million other folders.

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Old 03-07-2018, 11:39 AM
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I bought my HP latest model laptop back in 2013, was working impressively with Photoshop. But then, just a year later hubby gifted me Mac Pro laptop. Guys, it’s soooo much faster! Since then I can’t even touch that HP. Sorry to say but Mac so so so much better - faster in every single move. Everybody gets afraid of transferring to Mac - but it’s so worth it. It’s investment for so many years. I stil use that pro Mac and it’s flying. Can’t even imagine pro Mac laptops of latest years - they must be beyond of imagination.
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Old 03-07-2018, 11:54 AM
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When looking a few years ago, it was highly recommended to get a gaming laptop. We went that route and it’s honestly been the best computer I’ve ever owned. It has a SSD too. It’s a Lenovo IdeaPad (or something similar). It’s getting slow but that’s because I need to update the RAM...not surprising considering how long I’ve had it.

I always have an Adobe program open on my laptop...whether it’s PS, LR, or ID...plus a million other folders.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
My husband swears by Lenovo and says it's the best brand of computers around. It's pricey but I think that's what you need to spend for good quality anyway.

Can I get your specs please? I was looking at a Yoga from Lenovo yesterday.
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Old 03-07-2018, 12:51 PM
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Can I get your specs please? I was looking at a Yoga from Lenovo yesterday.
It's the Lenovo IdeaPad with 1tb HD and a SSD (can't remember the size) & 64-bit Operating System. It needs more RAM now but it's been fabulous until now We'll go to 16 gb soon.

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Old 03-07-2018, 12:56 PM
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Lea here are my specs!



And it has a 2TB Solid State Drive
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Old 03-07-2018, 01:39 PM
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Thanks ladies!

It looks like I need 16 GB of RAM
1TB minimum of solid state drive
i7 processor

what about video card/ graphics card? does it matter?
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Old 03-07-2018, 02:04 PM
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Originally Posted by luan37 View Post
Thanks ladies!

It looks like I need 16 GB of RAM
1TB minimum of solid state drive
i7 processor

what about video card/ graphics card? does it matter?
I have no idea on mine...lol and when I look at settings I can't see that?! When I bought mine I told the guy that I wanted to be able to work in Lightroom and Photoshop quickly and easily. I don't use it for video or anything so I told him that was not a priority. I went more on speed and storage
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Old 03-07-2018, 05:40 PM
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I went to Best Buy to see what was out there and I only looked at Lenovo for some reason.

I saw one that had
i7 processor
16 GB RAM
512 GB Solid State Drive

do you think 512 GB is enough? The girl said they don't carry the 1TB anymore. They had one but pulled it off the market but she doesn't know why.
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Old 03-07-2018, 06:10 PM
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do you think 512 GB is enough? The girl said they don't carry the 1TB anymore. They had one but pulled it off the market but she doesn't know why.
How much of your current HD is filled? It wouldn't be enough for me, but some people do fine with smaller HDs.
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Old 03-07-2018, 06:11 PM
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It would not be enough for me which why I went with a 2TB depends on if you do as much and take millions of photos like I do
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Old 03-07-2018, 10:19 PM
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Default Laptop recommendations

Quote:
Originally Posted by luan37 View Post
I went to Best Buy to see what was out there and I only looked at Lenovo for some reason.



I saw one that had

i7 processor

16 GB RAM

512 GB Solid State Drive



do you think 512 GB is enough? The girl said they don't carry the 1TB anymore. They had one but pulled it off the market but she doesn't know why.


Is there a HD and SSD or just a SSD? I keep all of my photos and digiscrap stuff on an EHD so it’d be ok for me. Not preferred but ok. If it was that much SSD and another HD then it’d be perfect.


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Old 03-08-2018, 12:04 AM
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I think it would be my secondary scrapbook laptop. I use a desktop now with two screens and I don’t think I could ever go back to scrapping with just one screen. So I would just take the laptop on the go and have my EHD with just what I need on it. So maybe that’s enough then.
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Old 03-09-2018, 05:15 PM
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Update:

Hubby ordered me an Ideapad with docking station! I'm super stoked and can't wait to get it!

It has the i7 processor, 1TB of SSD, 16GB Ram and the graphic card doesn't look too shabby either! I'm so lucky!
Thanks everyone for all the great recommendations!
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Old 03-18-2018, 08:08 PM
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Update:

So I’m installing a whole bunch of fonts and my new machine is already reacting slowly! What is happening!!? This is supposed to be a great laptop!
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Old 03-18-2018, 08:30 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by luan37 View Post
Update:

So I’m installing a whole bunch of fonts and my new machine is already reacting slowly! What is happening!!? This is supposed to be a great laptop!


Is it possible it’s installing updates and things? Some things will only be as fast as your internet is.


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Old 03-18-2018, 11:08 PM
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My first guess would also be that your new system is still installing updates. If that's not the case, then I wonder if you've installed something that's causing the problem, like a corrupted font or a program that isn't fully compatible. The other possibility I know of is that the new computer came with a lot of bloatware that launches every time you start up. Every time I get a new computer, I have to go through the settings and turn off things that don't really need to launch on startup. (Google and you'll find tutorials that can walk you through it.)
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Old 03-19-2018, 05:20 PM
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Yes ok guys! I think and hope you are right. For example McAfee keeps popping up even though I installed Avast for antivirus. So it could very well be. I just have to figure out what's happening because I'm freaking out and starting to regret not getting an ugly gaming computer!
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