Looking for a workstation laptop under $500

[Energycore]

Hey guys!

 

A friend of mine asked me for help with a laptop that can run SolidWorks and Mastercam

 

It doesn't have to run it smoothly, but of course it has to be doable, so what I'm thinking is:

 

- Quad Core CPU is going to be needed probably. 2C/4T Could work fine but really, I'd have to ask someone with experience with those programs.

- Discrete GPU needed for Mastercam. A Quadro or FirePro / Radeon Pro might be out of the scope but you never know, the P400 card is $100.

- I'm wondering if it's even possible to do this under $500. I've already told him to get a desktop, but he's adamant since most of his work hours are spent outside home / office.

- Nothing over $500. This laptop is for his studies and he's running a tight budget.

 

Any information, links or suggestions are appreciated

[Streetguru]

2 minutes ago, Energycore said:

 

Does it have to be a laptop? Because you can get a really good desktop PC for that budget with a few used parts.like an R5 1600 + RX 470-580 8GB

[Energycore]

Just now, Streetguru said:

Does it have to be a laptop? Because you can get a really good desktop PC for that budget with a few used parts.like an R5 1600 + RX 470-580 8GB

I know, I really know!

 

But his stance is "get me a desktop ONLY if the laptop options are impossibly bad".

 

I'm thinking that mastercam does work with the Vega graphics in mobile Ryzen CPUs, so now it's all a matter of finding one

[Streetguru]

1 minute ago, Energycore said:

 

The desktop is just going to be literally 2-3 times the performance at the same cost, can always get a laptop later assuming the engineering thing works out.

If you aren't doing super complex files or rendering though an R5 2500U might be fine, and Matebook D's are cheap on ebay now. around $400 USD, but it's still nothing compared to an 8GB RX 470-580

[Energycore]

4 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

The desktop is just going to be literally 2-3 times the performance at the same cost, can always get a laptop later assuming the engineering thing works out.

If you aren't doing super complex files or rendering though an R5 2500U might be fine, and Matebook D's are cheap on ebay now. around $400 USD, but it's still nothing compared to an 8GB RX 470-580

I know! My PC Gaming Masterrace soul woes at the idea as well.

 

That said he's adamant, and I know him more than most, he spends about 2-3 hours a day at home other than sleeping. I know that for him being able to work from a Starbucks is a bigger commodity than getting a smooth experience in solidworks

[KarathKasun]

This is about as good as it gets for ~$500.

 

https://www.newegg.com/hp-zbook-15-g1-workstation/p/1TS-000D-03Z53

 

*updated*

[Streetguru]

2 minutes ago, KarathKasun said:

This is about as good as it gets for ~$500.

 

https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000A-001P5

That is likely to be slower than a 1050 laptop he might be able to squeeze in for a bit more money.

 

 

21 minutes ago, Energycore said:

I know! My PC Gaming Masterrace soul woes at the idea as well.

 

That said he's adamant, and I know him more than most, he spends about 2-3 hours a day at home other than sleeping. I know that for him being able to work from a Starbucks is a bigger commodity than getting a smooth experience in solidworks

Tell him to save up for a laptop that has at least an i5 8400h or 9400h and 1050

Or just grab the R5 2500U and see if it has enough performance. The matebook D is pretty good.

This one's only $380
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Huawei-MateBook-KPL-W00-14-Display-AMD-Ryzen-5-2500U-8GB-RAM/113901452442?hash=item1a850e3c9a:g:EPcAAOSwRS9disxL

 

 

[KarathKasun]

Nevermind, just dig around in this Newegg search...

 

https://www.newegg.com/Mobile-Workstations/SubCategory/ID-3413?name=Mobile-Workstations&Tid=167908&Order=PRICE

[Streetguru]

2 minutes ago, KarathKasun said:

Nevermind, just dig around in this Newegg search...

 

https://www.newegg.com/Mobile-Workstations/SubCategory/ID-3413?name=Mobile-Workstations&Tid=167908&Order=PRICE

also old workstations are going to be less power efficient with their graphics cards and likely have pretty poor battery life if that's important

[Energycore]

Just now, Streetguru said:

also old workstations are going to be less power efficient with their graphics cards and likely have pretty poor battery life if that's important

That's fair. I'll run it by him