Laptop computer at DVinfo.net

Michael J. Long · October 25th, 2005, 03:09 PM

I want to buy a new laptop computer for video editing. Any suggestions for a dream computer. Either Sony Dell or Toshiba. Thanks

Chris Hurd · October 25th, 2005, 03:19 PM

Moved to PC Editing forum from Industry News.

David Jimerson · October 26th, 2005, 06:57 PM

I use an HP which I dearly love.

17" widescreen; 1680x1050 resolution
1GB DDR
60GB 7200 RPM HDD
DVD+/-RW drive

Ordered straight from HP.

I keep media on an external drive and I can edit on both the main machine and the laptop.

George Ellis · October 27th, 2005, 05:23 AM

HDD speed is very important. My HP will not log video well with my mainline editor on a 4200rpm drive. Minimum should be at least 5400, 7200 if you can (but I do not like using IBM drives).

Steve Witt · November 1st, 2005, 02:31 PM

All of a sudden, HP has introduced 7200rpm 100GB harddrives in their laptops.
This is especially interesting to me since I just spoke with a customer service (sales rep) on the phone recently asking why 7200s were not available on their laptops and got at least 10mins worth of reasons why not.
These reasons included HP engineering deciding that 7200 was just too fast for laptops and problems would most certainly occur. I know of course that this guy is a "salesman" and would say most anything to keep me on the phone until I would buy what was available. Anyway they have them now.

George Ellis · November 1st, 2005, 04:52 PM

That salesman has no clue. HP did not have them as they had not finished cert on them mostlikely and 100s are new.

Alexey Malyshev · November 3rd, 2005, 04:44 PM

1GB RAM is not a dream but necessity, I'd get 2 GB. Also you've never mentioned what software you are going to use. I would recomend nVdia 6800 at least. Now instead of dumping big money into a laptop I would get a cheaper laptop and a desktop. Unless you must use your computer on the go. You will always have more power in a desktop for the same money. Now if you already have a good desktop that's a different story. Again I'd rather spend money on some other equipment.

Regarding 60GB 7200 RPM vs 100 or 120GB 5400 RPM. The 7200 RPM HDD may not even be faster, but will defently be smaller and use more power. The reason is 100 and 120 GB drives will have more data density therefore faster sustained r/w speeds.

This is just my opinion.
Good Luck
Alex

Michael J. Long · November 3rd, 2005, 05:49 PM

Thanks to all. I have been using Pinnacle for several years. I am about to receive the new Version Studio plus 10 upgrade . I guess i'm one of the lucky ones, but I have not had a problem YET. I have a Dell desktop now, 120 gig, 1 ram . I need the portability . i am considering Sony ,toshiba ,or another Dell . will go withh 2 gigs Ram, 7200 RPM hard drive P4 2.6 .Any other suggestions appreciated '
Mike

George Ellis · November 4th, 2005, 06:39 AM

Look for high-end mobility video with at least 128MB of dedicated memory. I have the X200 chipset and while ok, it is not too impressive. I think the ATI X600 chipset is now mobile as well as the nVidia 6600. After what we just found out about the X1800 chipset, I wish it were mobile (ATI is now working on encode/decode modules for it - will edit with link when I find it.)

Studio 9 captures without dropping frames on a 4200 (my workaround to Liquid dropping frames). I suspect VirtualDub can also capture on even the slowest drive. Not sure about S10 yet. And Liquid 7 is shipping with a new capture tool (Avid's) with low overhead.

Extreme Tech review on GPU accelerated transcoding

Alexey Malyshev · November 5th, 2005, 05:34 PM

Yes get as good videocard as you can find. I have nVidia 6600 on mine. There is also ATI X700 mobile. One thing to note though with mobile video cards, while they might be called same names as their desktop counterparts they may need different drivers and they may not be compatible with other programs as well as desktop cards.

Adi Head · November 9th, 2005, 09:47 AM

I'm a bit confused.
I remember when figuring out a configuration for my desktop, I was told that videocard dedicated RAM is not a big issue in video editing and that I should be more concerned with the other specs of my machine. And that the higher RAM video cards are more for gaming and 3d. I actually ended up getting a video card with only 32MB dedicated memory and it worked fine. Does this change with a laptop?

Glenn Chan · November 9th, 2005, 10:16 AM

A laptop shouldn't be different.

You actually only need very little video RAM. It's the 3d gaming applications that take a lot of video RAM since it's used to store textures and things like that.

Check the recommended specs for the particular programs in question... they should tell you what you need.

Adi Head · November 13th, 2005, 06:14 PM

if that's so glen, then why is it everyone is saying that a strong video card is important and that you should get one with at least 128mb dedicated ram?

my desktop has a matrox 550 which only has 32mb and it works great.

is the dedicated memory really THAT important for video editing and 2D animation? is having 32mb dedicated memory on a video card and 512 ram system memory better than just a shared memory video card (like the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900), assuming i don't do any gaming or 3D stuff at all?

Adi Head · November 13th, 2005, 06:17 PM

FORGOT TO MENTION SOMETHING IN PREVIOUS POST.....
I MEANT TO SAY IN THE LAST PART:
.......is having a 32mb dedicated memory on a video card and 512MB of system memory better than just a shared memory video card (like the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900) and 1GB of system memory, assuming i don't do any gaming or 3D stuff at all?

Glenn Chan · November 13th, 2005, 08:10 PM

Quote:

if that's so glen, then why is it everyone is saying that a strong video card is important and that you should get one with at least 128mb dedicated ram?

Whatever the answer is, I don't think it's particularly important why people are saying that.

In practice, reading the recommended specs is a good starting point. It's also possible to run benchmarks on *relevant* tasks... although there's not really such benchmarks available.

October 25th, 2005, 03:09 PM	#1
Michael J. Long Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 43	Laptop computer I want to buy a new laptop computer for video editing. Any suggestions for a dream computer. Either Sony Dell or Toshiba. Thanks

October 25th, 2005, 03:19 PM	#2
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	Moved to PC Editing forum from Industry News. __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

October 26th, 2005, 06:57 PM	#3
David Jimerson Jubal 28 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 872	I use an HP which I dearly love. 17" widescreen; 1680x1050 resolution 1GB DDR 60GB 7200 RPM HDD DVD+/-RW drive Ordered straight from HP. I keep media on an external drive and I can edit on both the main machine and the laptop. __________________ www.wrightsvillebeachstudios.com

November 3rd, 2005, 05:49 PM	#8
Michael J. Long Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 43	Laptop Thanks to all. I have been using Pinnacle for several years. I am about to receive the new Version Studio plus 10 upgrade . I guess i'm one of the lucky ones, but I have not had a problem YET. I have a Dell desktop now, 120 gig, 1 ram . I need the portability . i am considering Sony ,toshiba ,or another Dell . will go withh 2 gigs Ram, 7200 RPM hard drive P4 2.6 .Any other suggestions appreciated ' Mike

October 27th, 2005, 05:23 AM	#4
George Ellis Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Suwanee, GA Posts: 1,241	HDD speed is very important. My HP will not log video well with my mainline editor on a 4200rpm drive. Minimum should be at least 5400, 7200 if you can (but I do not like using IBM drives).

November 1st, 2005, 02:31 PM	#5
Steve Witt Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: kentucky, USA Posts: 429	All of a sudden, HP has introduced 7200rpm 100GB harddrives in their laptops. This is especially interesting to me since I just spoke with a customer service (sales rep) on the phone recently asking why 7200s were not available on their laptops and got at least 10mins worth of reasons why not. These reasons included HP engineering deciding that 7200 was just too fast for laptops and problems would most certainly occur. I know of course that this guy is a "salesman" and would say most anything to keep me on the phone until I would buy what was available. Anyway they have them now.

November 1st, 2005, 04:52 PM	#6
George Ellis Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Suwanee, GA Posts: 1,241	That salesman has no clue. HP did not have them as they had not finished cert on them mostlikely and 100s are new.

November 3rd, 2005, 04:44 PM	#7
Alexey Malyshev New Boot Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 16	1GB RAM is not a dream but necessity, I'd get 2 GB. Also you've never mentioned what software you are going to use. I would recomend nVdia 6800 at least. Now instead of dumping big money into a laptop I would get a cheaper laptop and a desktop. Unless you must use your computer on the go. You will always have more power in a desktop for the same money. Now if you already have a good desktop that's a different story. Again I'd rather spend money on some other equipment. Regarding 60GB 7200 RPM vs 100 or 120GB 5400 RPM. The 7200 RPM HDD may not even be faster, but will defently be smaller and use more power. The reason is 100 and 120 GB drives will have more data density therefore faster sustained r/w speeds. This is just my opinion. Good Luck Alex

November 4th, 2005, 06:39 AM	#9
George Ellis Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Suwanee, GA Posts: 1,241	Look for high-end mobility video with at least 128MB of dedicated memory. I have the X200 chipset and while ok, it is not too impressive. I think the ATI X600 chipset is now mobile as well as the nVidia 6600. After what we just found out about the X1800 chipset, I wish it were mobile (ATI is now working on encode/decode modules for it - will edit with link when I find it.) Studio 9 captures without dropping frames on a 4200 (my workaround to Liquid dropping frames). I suspect VirtualDub can also capture on even the slowest drive. Not sure about S10 yet. And Liquid 7 is shipping with a new capture tool (Avid's) with low overhead. Extreme Tech review on GPU accelerated transcoding

November 5th, 2005, 05:34 PM	#10
Alexey Malyshev New Boot Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 16	Yes get as good videocard as you can find. I have nVidia 6600 on mine. There is also ATI X700 mobile. One thing to note though with mobile video cards, while they might be called same names as their desktop counterparts they may need different drivers and they may not be compatible with other programs as well as desktop cards.

November 9th, 2005, 09:47 AM	#11
Adi Head Major Player Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 642	I'm a bit confused. I remember when figuring out a configuration for my desktop, I was told that videocard dedicated RAM is not a big issue in video editing and that I should be more concerned with the other specs of my machine. And that the higher RAM video cards are more for gaming and 3d. I actually ended up getting a video card with only 32MB dedicated memory and it worked fine. Does this change with a laptop?

November 9th, 2005, 10:16 AM	#12
Glenn Chan Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 4,750	A laptop shouldn't be different. You actually only need very little video RAM. It's the 3d gaming applications that take a lot of video RAM since it's used to store textures and things like that. Check the recommended specs for the particular programs in question... they should tell you what you need.

November 13th, 2005, 06:14 PM	#13
Adi Head Major Player Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 642	if that's so glen, then why is it everyone is saying that a strong video card is important and that you should get one with at least 128mb dedicated ram? my desktop has a matrox 550 which only has 32mb and it works great. is the dedicated memory really THAT important for video editing and 2D animation? is having 32mb dedicated memory on a video card and 512 ram system memory better than just a shared memory video card (like the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900), assuming i don't do any gaming or 3D stuff at all?

November 13th, 2005, 06:17 PM	#14
Adi Head Major Player Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 642	FORGOT TO MENTION SOMETHING IN PREVIOUS POST..... I MEANT TO SAY IN THE LAST PART: .......is having a 32mb dedicated memory on a video card and 512MB of system memory better than just a shared memory video card (like the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900) and 1GB of system memory, assuming i don't do any gaming or 3D stuff at all?