Need some advice.

[mackie]

Hey guys looking for some advice on what laptop to buy, i dont have the cash for a macbook atm but am in need of a new laptop.
Main things i will be running is photoshop cs5 and lightroom 3.6
looking for something in the range of £500 any suggestions you guys could give me would be great.

Thanks.

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[Big Mike]

Photo editing is best done on a stationary workstation, not a laptop.

[Jeremy Z]

How about a factory refurbished Macbook? I saved $200 off the new price by buying refurbished from Apple.

That assumes you are set on a laptop. Laptops are definitely more handy than desktops. When I go on a vacation during which I'll be taking lots of pix, I always bring my Macbook too, and back up to it at the end of each day.

But if you don't need it to be mobile, then Big Mike is 100% right.

- Laptops have slower processors than the same price desktop
- Laptops have smaller monitors than the same price desktop
- Laptops have less RAM than the same price desktop

Having less memory and a slower processor are not deal breakers, as it just means it takes the computer longer to get the tasks done. If you're not a pro, maybe this doesn't matter. But the smaller monitor, that makes the work much more tedious, as you have to pan and zoom a lot more to get the job done.

So if you get a laptop, get one with the biggest screen you can afford.

Now, I will weigh in with my opinion. Call me a fanboy if you want, but I will never go back to PC. I don't care if it means I have to charge it and pay for it for a year or more. Macs are just so much more stable, and they use high quality hardware as well. In laptops, their battery life is far superior. There are a million little ways they are better. The only places they aren't better are:

- Price, sometimes. If you compare equal quality PC to Mac, there isn't much difference, if any
- Fewer choices in accessory hardware, such as printers
- Not good for gaming
- Fewer choices in software, though the software that is available for Mac is usually very good.

When you decide what to get, please resurrect this thread and let us know what you wound up with!

[IgsEMT]

I use hp laptop. When at home it's connected to external monitor for color-related work. When I'm in studio it's connected to a Samsung tv for present presentation purposes.
It's a win7 32bit 4 gigs of ram (don't remember which graphic card). It isn't the BEST out there ( obviously ). However at the end of the day when images are printed (either albums, prints, posters, etc) results are good

[mackie]

Thanks for the advice guys, main reason i want a laptop/macbook is i hope to be doing some travling soon.
I have a desktop that is custom built for hardcore gaming so that is great with cs5 and lightroom, but i need that portable option.

[Jeremy Z]

Can you use the photo software you have already on a PC laptop?

MacBook?

If you can't install your existing software on a MacBook, then it is an easy decision.