Laptop

[SprayDxl]

I will be starting university in about 11 months in media film and tv, and I need a laptop for day to day use. I will be using photoshop/premier pro/ after effects regularly as well as a lot of other softwares. I need to buy a laptop that is fast enough and is calibre of running the software smoothly. I have no idea what's the best/ worst brands so need help. The cheaper the better probably no more than £500.

[Peru Bob]

I've moved this from the Using the Community forum (which is the forum for issues using the forums) to the Hardware forum so that proper help can be offered.

[John T Smith]

You need to AT LEAST double your budget, and probably more

This has some laptop discussion, and includes 2 recommendation links from Puget Systems... copied from Peru Bob
https://community.adobe.com/t5/video-hardware/premiere-pro-hardware-articles-to-read-before-you-buy-...

[Nancy OShea]

You'll need to increase your budget. 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/recommended/Recommended-Systems-for-Adobe-Premiere-Pro-143

Whatever you buy, make sure your computer exceeds the minimum system requirements to run Creative Cloud + OS + all other apps you use. Check each one.
- https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/system-requirements.html

- https://helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/system-requirements.html

Also pay attention to Photoshop's GPU requirements.
- https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/system-requirements.html
- https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/photoshop-cc-gpu-card-faq.html

[John T Smith]

Fast i7 or i9 CPU

Discrete GPU so not part of the CPU which uses system ram

MINIMUM of 16 gigabytes of system ram, 32Gig is better for After Effects

SSD for Windows and all programs... 256 Gigabyte MINIMUM

Second SSD for work and video files

And, of course, a screen that will allow using the programs

You will not get a laptop that does what you want for your stated budget

Here is what I built for $2,103 US Dollars... you don't need a 3rd SSD, but a laptop costs more than a desktop

Windows 10 Pro 64bit, currently at version 21H1

Intel i9-10900k CPU in ASUS-Prime-Z490-P motherboard with 64Gig TEAMGROUP-3200MHz Ram
Seagate-FireCuda 500Gig M.2 for Windows and programs and usual Documents files
500Gig SSD for temporary and output files, 1T SSD for video and picture input files
Video MSI GeForce GTX 1650 128 Bit Graphics 4Gig GDDR6 Ram driver 456.71
850 watt power supply (see https://www.newegg.com/tools/power-supply-calculator/)
Full tower case & CPU cooler & DVD writer & extra case fan & monitor & keyboard/mouse
January 2021 total with tax and shipping was $2,103 (cost IS now higher!)

[jane-e]

Spending £500 on a computer that will not support these applications would be a waste of money.

Be sure to check with your school bookstore and / or other sites, as your student ID and proof of enrollment might qualify you for a discount on both hardware and software. When you find a computer that you think will be suitable, feel free to run the specs by us before purchasing.

~ Jane

[RjL190365]

You will not get a laptop that runs Premiere Pro or After Effects well at that price. In fact, the performance with any laptop in your price range will actually border on unusable. You see, the best laptop that you can get at that price point has a fairly recent 4-core/8-thread CPU but only 8 GB of RAM (too little for After Effects, and just the bare minimum that's required for Photoshop and Premiere Pro) and no discrete GPU whatsoever. All of the other laptops that are in your price range have specs that are either substandard (does not meet minimum requirements) or are too old or obsolesced. And this is because right now computer components are significantly more expensive than they were a couple of years ago.

[Nancy OShea]

Post COVID supply chain shortages are not bringing down prices either.  When you can find what you need, it will likely be unavailable for several weeks...  Plan accordingly.