I need a laptop!

[alexjt11]

So....

Im at a loss. I need a laptop that is capable of editing 4k video in the cineform codec on premier pro, that is cheap.

I need a cuda enabled gpu for the cineform, so idk a 960m or 970m? Maybe earlier, im not sure.

I also need a 4th gen i7, because I would like hyperthreading for transcoding footage.

 

Does anyone know where I can look to get something like that. Or some good components that are of the generations im talking about? Or am I being stupid wishing to edit on these specs?

[barkloaf]

ASUS UltraBook.

 

I don't think you can really get a 4K video-editing laptop for cheap.

[barkloaf]

ASUS UltraBook.

 

I don't think you can really get a 4K video-editing laptop for cheap.

[Trey222]

This would probably be pretty good. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834233125R

[barkloaf]

ASUS UltraBook.

 

I don't think you can really get a 4K video-editing laptop for cheap.

[barkloaf]

For some reason I keep glitching out, and it is duplicating my posts, sorry.

[alexjt11]

Anyone else got any thoughts before I give up and delete the post

 

[kingatlas]

dell 7559, it has a 6th gen i7 

[alexjt11]

Could I edit on this?

https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/optimusVII-15/

6700 HQ

12GB Ram

960M

 

Considering Linus did this on a 940M with half the cuda roughly speaking and ddr3 rather than gddr5?

[exercutor5]

3 hours ago, alexjt11 said:

Could I edit on this?

https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/optimusVII-15/

6700 HQ

12GB Ram

960M

 

Considering Linus did this on a 940M with half the cuda roughly speaking and ddr3 rather than gddr5?

Yes you can, you just need a scratch disk somewhere for high speed scrubbing. 

[alexjt11]

18 hours ago, exercutor5 said:

Yes you can, you just need a scratch disk somewhere for high speed scrubbing. 

I might disagree with you on that point. In practice I have actually found that I cant tell the difference between my Samsung 850 Evo 250Gb, (450 Read& Write) and my 2TB 3 Years old mechanical HDD (This has been partitioned if you look at the pictures). But Iam using a desktop 970, compared to a 960m? What are youre thoughts though?

 

[exercutor5]

11 hours ago, alexjt11 said:

snip

Try doing 4K video edits, without a fast drive, scrubbing is a pain in the ass. 1080p 30fps is still fine with a HDD.

[alexjt11]

1 hour ago, exercutor5 said:

Try doing 4K video edits, without a fast drive, scrubbing is a pain in the ass. 1080p 30fps is still fine with a HDD.

I was doing 2.7K 60fps, and it was fine. Even on the raw MP4 from a GoPro, not converted into AVI, cineform.

[Hamako]

What is your budget? Any recent workstation will do the job just fine.

[alexjt11]

5 hours ago, Hamako said:

What is your budget? Any recent workstation will do the job just fine.

My budget is £840 or $1213.63 give or take a bit. This needs to be-able to edit gopro footage mainly.

 

My previous post was:

Could I edit on this?

https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/optimusVII-15/

6700 HQ

12GB Ram

960M

 

Considering Linus did this on a 940M with half the cuda roughly speaking and ddr3 rather than gddr5?

 

So I had found this within my budget. I'am in the UK so it helps if you can help me with UK based people!

[Hamako]

You might want to try to get a ThinkPad P50. The low spec models might be within your budget. Alternatively, the Elitebook and Latitude workstations are excellent as well. Try to get a used model from eBay. That can save you a lot of money. Machines like the 8570w don't cost very much but still offer excellent performance.

 

The Clevo you linked is decent as well, but it is mostly aimed at gaming.

[alexjt11]

6 minutes ago, Hamako said:

You might want to try to get a ThinkPad P50. The low spec models might be within your budget. Alternatively, the Elitebook and Latitude workstations are excellent as well. Try to get a used model from eBay. That can save you a lot of money. Machines like the 8570w don't cost very much but still offer excellent performance.

 

The Clevo you linked is decent as well, but it is mostly aimed at gaming.

They seem like great solutions but too costly for the performance. Im also very dubious about buying a machine second hand due to my inability to know what kind of life it has had. I know in the video Linus did, he showed a gtx 940m doing 4k editing. Also aren't gaming graphics cards good for both? I know my 970 is!

 

Just so you know:

HP Elitebook 820 G2 Laptop retailing at £836.40 - i5-5200U, 12.5 inch sceen and 4GB of ram, wouldn't stand close to what I had looked at.

Lenovo ThinkPad P50 retailing at £1,477 - i7 6700HQ, 15 inch screen, Quadro m1000m and 8gb of ram, stil isn't as good as what I had looked at.

Intel Latitude was no way on par at £807 and having AMD FirePro?

I also couldn't buy an 8570w!

 

I don't mean to belittle what you said and I truly appreciate that you commented, but I don't think its good advice. But I would like to know if you think I'm wrong because I can't learn otherwise and knowledge is power!

 

 

[Hamako]

I really like your attitude. I don't come across people like you very often, so I'll try to elaborate my earlier point. You deserve a detailed answer.

 

I understand your reservations about buying second hand stuff. It's normal for most people to prefer new notebooks. However, once you get over it, you will notice that price to performance (and I mean that in a holistic manner), is so much better. I know comparisons with cars are a bit cliched, but it does help to clarify things: It's like buying a new car vs. a used car. A used car will almost always be a much better value than a new car. The catch is that you have to be able to distinguish a good deal from a bad deal. That's probably the reason why most people opt for a new car/laptop instead of a used one. There are exceptions of course, like when you absolutely need a certain feature or have an unlimited budget. Since neither is the case for you, I recommend buying second hand to get a better deal.

 

The reason why you probably find my advice bad is because you believe that the value of a notebook is determined by its specs. However, it's important to consider the whole package. This is a mistake that many people make when they are new to notebooks or have little experience, so don't worry about it.

 

Gaming notebooks focus on gaming and will therefore have a good CPU and GPU specs. The price you pay is usually stuff like bad battery life, weight or a loud fan noise etc. As you have already discovered, you don't need the biggest powerhouse to edit 4k videos. A current machine with a low end i7 and mid range GPU will be sufficient for that, or if you opt for an older machine, a high end i7 and mid to high end GPU will do the job.

 

So instead of trading other aspects of a laptop like keyboard quality, battery life, portability etc. for more performance that you don't actually need, you should look at Workstations. These are special business-grade laptops that were designed for high-performance tasks that are not gaming. Thus, they will get your video editing tasks done, but also offer a durable, high quality chassis, easy maintenance, long support and a couple of other features, depending on the model.

 

This is just a general overview, and there are always exceptions, but that should be clear to begin with.

 

A good place to buy ThinkPads and get the best deals is on forum.thinkpads.com. I get most of my second hand machines from other forum members. They usually give you good deals and you can specify exactly what kind of specs you are looking. It's arguably more secure than buying from eBay, although if you buy from a reseller on eBay, you should be safe as well.

 

Basically, there are a number of choices in terms of workstation models. How mobile does it have to be and what screen size do you prefer?

 

A fairly mobile workstation, based on the old XPS 15, is the Dell M3800. The M2800 and M6800 are beefier models. For HP you've got the ZBook 15 series for example. They also have a 14 and 17" version. A ThinkPad from the same era is the W541, but I do not recommend it, because it's not a good notebook. Either go for the predecessor, the W530 with a i7 and K2000M, or the successor, the P50. The latter is new and will cost more than 900 pounds when equipped with a M2000M, but it's a pretty amazing machine with an unmatched keyboard and build quality.

 

The Clevo you linked is a good machine as well, I own a Clevo myself. However, while the model you have chosen is one of the newer ones with a thin design that is fairly portable, you sacrifice keyboard quality, battery life and cooling. Newer Clevos are mostly well built, but don't expect to easily find any spare parts later down the road, especially if you live in Europe.

[Dackzy]

1 hour ago, Hamako said:

SNIP

Damn I could not have said it any better. I would maybe add that a ThinkPad can last a very long time.

[alexjt11]

1 hour ago, Hamako said:

SNIP

I was really worried that you were going to tell me to go do one, but I respect you coming back and helping me!

Okay I will now probably look into a more workstation oriented laptop, and eBay.

Also I looked at the Quadro as a graphics card. Unless im mistaken (Probably am) the software want's cuda and that the Quadro offers 10 Bit output (http://tinyurl.com/jbakl6c).

So why would I go for one over a GTX series card?

[Hamako]

You can read a bit more about Quadro GPU's here: http://www.nvidia.co.uk/object/quadro-workstation-graphics-uk.html

 

In most cases, the Quadro GPU is identical to a GTX physically, but simply has a different vBIOS which allows it to take different drivers. These drivers are optimized for stability and 3D programs like CAD. The GPU core itself is also optimized for higher reliability and better efficiency than in GTX's. Basically, GTX's are for the masses, while Quadro's for those who mean serious business. You don't loose anything apart from some performance in games (which is not what you are looking for), but you are gaining some things that are relevant for laptops. (efficiency)

 

Linus even made a video about it here:

 

You won't really notice a difference in performance. In fact, the Quadro is not the reason for you to get a Workstation. It's more about the laptop itself and the features that it offers.

[alexjt11]

30 minutes ago, Hamako said:

SNIP

I think I have all the tools to make my decision Cheers!