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darry85
darry85
Participant
February 9, 2017
Answered

Best budget laptop for Adobe products.

  • February 9, 2017
  • 14 replies
  • 89608 views

Hello,

I currently have a mid-2012 macbook pro that I'm looking to replace. I'm looking into PC's because I can get more for less.

My current computer has:

Processor: 2.6 GHz Intel Core i7

Memory: 8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3

Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4000 1536 MB

I was looking at something that is $500 or less.

I was looking into the lenovo flex 4 for running photoshop, animate and illustrator.

Is it powerful enough or should I be looking elsewhere? Thanks!

Correct answer Nancy OShea

I don't think a $600 laptop can do the job.  You'll get a lot more bang for the buck with a desktop PC.

 

Don't buy anything that doesn't have sufficient scratch disk storage, RAM, CPU and GPU.  It must support your OS, Creative Cloud and Photoshop + all other apps you use.  An underpowered computer will not give you a good user experience. 

 

Make sure your computer meets the minimum CPU & GPU requirements. Most Creative Cloud apps work on these systems, no more than 2 versions back:

  • Windows 11 (64-bit) versions 24H2, 23H2; Windows 10 versions 22H2, 21H2;
  • MacOS 15 (Sequoia), 14.7 (Sonoma), 13.6.7 (Ventura).

- https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/system-requirements.html
- https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/system-requirements.html
- https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/photoshop-cc-gpu-card-faq.html

14 replies

Show previous replies
mayanks11634245
mayanks11634245
Participant
August 19, 2017

Sadly, you will get features on your laptop as per you pay. The better are the features, the more is the price.

I am having the Acer Aspire E 15 E5-575G-57D4 laptop for Photoshop. With 8GB RAM and an i5 processor, this laptop provides great performance in terms of processing speed and battery life.

Eternal Warrior
Eternal Warrior
Inspiring
February 10, 2017

In answer to your question:

That should be OK (for a budget PC) assuming you get the i5 and you are editing with the full 2GB graphics.

But don't expect miracles - You will get what you pay for (sadly) & certain tasks may prove very intensive.

Best wishes,

EW

gener7
Community Expert
gener7Community Expert
Community Expert
February 10, 2017

Roberto Blake has great advice for a budget design laptop: My New Asus Graphic Design Laptop | Articles from Roberto Blake

I have a Mid 2012 MBP as well. I beefed it up with a 512 GB Crucial SSD for $119 and 16 GB ram for $99 from OWC.

    B
    Bo_LeBeau
    Participating Frequently
    September 4, 2017

    Gener7

    You had a good idea with upgrading your MacBook Pro 2012.

    Its a shame that Apple has moved to soldering in the ram, which requires new buyers to buy the more expensive models with additional ram built in at the time of purchase.

    Off topic, but has anyone been able to desolder the ram and replace it with additional ram, or is it simply not doable?

    gener7
    Community Expert
    gener7Community Expert
    Community Expert
    September 5, 2017

    The upside is that I can expand and even service it. The downside is that the Intel HD 4000 is not a supported card anymore. It's also out of the running if 4k video is important to you.

    As a Photoshop machine it is good.

    sadistica69
    sadistica69
    Participant
    February 9, 2017

    Unfortunately, The better the components in the computer.. the higher the price. I have a CyberpowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA880 Gaming Desktop - AMD FX-4300 Quad Core 3.8GHz, 8GB DDR3 RAM, 1TB HDD, 24X DVD, NVIDIA GT 720 1GB, with Windows 10 that I purchased from Amazon for $485. I, also, purchased a monitor completely separate. It is a gaming PC but it runs programs very smoothly. Personally, I love it!

    However, these are the basics, that I have found in a Google search, for a photo editing computer:

    PROCESSOR: Laptops for photography will need at least an Intel i3 (4th generation or better). Intel i5’s are strongly recommended and i7 will run any photography software in the world without lag.

    GPU: Any GPU with at least 2GB of dedicated memory will be sufficient to run most software. NVIDIA and Radeon are top industry leaders in the GPU world.

    RAM: It is very important to understand that most of the photoshop software will eat up upwards of 2-3GB RAM while they are running. 4GB RAM will NOT be enough. Photo editing laptops require RAM of at least 8GB, preferably 12GB or more for smooth editing.

    STORAGE: At least 256GB of storage. It is good to have hybrid style storage with a little bit of traditional HDD and a little bit of SSD. You then can use SSD for your software and HDD to store the edited pictures. If you have to choose between a laptop with only either HDD or SSD, go for the SSD laptop.

    Hope this helps!

      Eternal Warrior
      Eternal Warrior
      Inspiring
      February 10, 2017
      Tarah Kolb schrieb:
      PROCESSOR: Laptops for photography will need at least an Intel i3 (4th generation or better). Intel i5’s are strongly recommended and i7 will run any photography software in the world without lag.
      GPU: Any GPU with at least 2GB of dedicated memory will be sufficient to run most software. NVIDIA and Radeon are top industry leaders in the GPU world.
      RAM: It is very important to understand that most of the photoshop software will eat up upwards of 2-3GB RAM while they are running. 4GB RAM will NOT be enough. Photo editing laptops require RAM of at least 8GB, preferably 12GB or more for smooth editing.
      STORAGE: At least 256GB of storage. It is good to have hybrid style storage with a little bit of traditional HDD and a little bit of SSD. You then can use SSD for your software and HDD to store the edited pictures. If you have to choose between a laptop with only either HDD or SSD, go for the SSD laptop.

      Just wanted to add my two cents to this...I know this is for a "budget" computer but:

      1. Having a good processor is important but RAM, storage and GPU can still have a massive effect on "lag".
        1. Therefore try and get at least an i5.
      2. I would say from my experience that even 8GB is not ideal - However, I would say 8GB is THE minimum to have - More the better!!
        1. If it's too pricey to include with the laptop buy more RAM separately and invest in better processor or SSD
      3. GO SSD all the way.... Only get a hybrid or HDD if it also comes with an SSD.... then have all your programmes run from the SSD - Store all the other stuff on an HDD...
        1. If working on an intensive project - move it to the SSD while you work on it then move it to HDD or a USB stick etc when finished.
        2. The reason behind this is you don't get bottlenecks with SSD's and they run like lightning.
          1. Also rarely need the SSD version of "Defragging"
        3. Once you go SSD you will never want to go back.

      Best,

      EW

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