What Laptops are best for editing video?

Question

Judging by history, this gets asked every 6 months or so.

In the past, I've been quite happy with Dell, BUT I worked with pictures (photos) only. Now I'm moving into video, with the possibility of some animation.

Is the Dell Inspiron still my best choice? I love a 1920x1200 screen, BUT- they can only take 2GB (!) This would normally probably be fine, BUT now I'm forced to buy Memory Hog Vista with any new machine.

So- HP, Toshiba, Sony, even (gulp) Apple are options. It's not like I have legacy video software I need to run.

Which machine, and how much RAM / drive space, do you recommend?

ChaChaCHA!, the biggest Mac only takes 3GB, the fastest drive (7200 rpm) only holds 100GB, and the screen resolution tops out at 1680 x 1050.
Rather than just say "Buy A Mac", you could explain why a machine with these limitations is still good enough for video editing. I'm NOT saying you are wrong, I just need a better explanation.

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As I suspected, there's no clear answer.
On the purely HARDWARE side, the most important factors are RAM (size & speed), Hard drive (size & speed again), LCD (resolution) and Graphics RAM.
The critical time is when performing a "render".

Software, however, is rearing it's ugly head. An efficient program on poorer hardware WILL beat a poor program on better hardware. Which is where Windows Vista butts in.

I may truly be better off with a Mac. I'd REALLY like to compare XP, Vista, and OSX on the same hardware, rendering the same material. Until then, I will have to rely on the outcome of a vote.

Answer 1

The higher-end dell xps systems are tailored to do exactly what you are looking for. Push in 4GB RAM, a fast and large HD, and an uber video card and you will have no issues at all. I used to work at a place where we rendered 2GB videos for some on-line advertising purposes, and our 'apple' girl had to use a PC.

There are some pretty good deals for laptops including a 20% off $999 laptop coupon at http://24houredeals.com/Dell-coupons-23-mer.html

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

Any type of laptop will work from any manufacture will work. Primarily, you should look at the specifications. Look for

Intel Core Duo (or any dual core processor)
As much RAM as possible (1GB bare minimum)
As much hard drive space as possible (Video takes a lot of drive space)
Bigger LCDs and higher resolution preferred.

Note: You can always install Windows XP instead of Vista (by yourself). One possible, but not necessarily legal method to get Windows XP is to request a CD from Dell for your old computer. Then use this disc to install Windows XP. Hopefully activation will not be required because the BIOS will have a Dell signature. Try this at your own risk!

Answer 3

Go with the Dell XPS series. They have up to like 4 GB of memory I think and have excellent track records with gaming and video editing.

Answer 4

Apple is the king of video editing software. or you could just buy a windows comp and buy the software from 3rd party people.

If you dont want to jump ship to Apple then get a Sony and buy a video editing software thing they have abunch of them

Answer 5

A Mac