Lenovo Ideapad S405 for designing?

[ankeet]

Hey!

I'm currently looking for a light laptop which isn't too shabby performance wise. While, I'd love to buy a budget laptop which checks the boxes for my need, I realize this is asking for too much.

I'm currently working on a Dell XPS L502x which has a 2nd gen i7, with 4gb ram and a 2gb GPU. It works like a charm, but my only gripe is, its bulky as hell. As I've started riding to work the past month, it's taking a toll on my back and I'd like to go for an ultrabook.

While not an ultrabook, one of the vendors here is giving a great deal on the Lenovo Ideapad S405. Around $450

Here are some of the specs:
Processor - AMD APU Quad Core A8, 1.6 GHz With Turbo Core Technology Upto 2.4 GHz, with a 4MB cache
RAM - 4GB DDR3
HDD - SATA
GPU - 1GB AMD Radeon 7600 HD

The applications that are running a majority of the time are -
- Chrome, 2ith about 5-6 tabs open
- Firefox
- Photoshop
- iTunes
- Dreamweaver
- WAMP

From the reviews I've read, it seems like battery and its performance are the real issue. But in terms of performance, the reviews were looking at hardcore gaming which I hope requires a lot more power than the above.

My current laptop runs this fine. I just don't want to be in a situation where I consider taking my current laptop on a few days because of the performance.

Or if there are other alternatives for my need, I'd love some suggestions.

On a side note, how would the 3rd gen i3 processors be for the apps I want to run?

Thanks!
Ankeet

 

[deadjon]

Its a great little machine, better for gaming than most, especially for the price.

Unfortunately the CPU performance on the A Series APUs leave much to be desired. For heavy CPU based use (What you posted above) I would recommend a 3rd Gen Core i3 with HT. They are much faster than the APUs and although you greatly sacrifice GPU performance, if you're not using it, you're not going to miss it.

Update - something like this
Acer Aspire M M5-581T-6807 15.6" Ultrabook

 

[ankeet]

Thanks!

Awesome, there were quite a few options in the i3 series; I was just skeptical if it would be upto par. And the acer looks pretty slick!
Will review a few more with an i3 then.

EDIT: I forgot to mention, I was under the impression that a GPU always helps when it comes to using softwares like photoshop and sony vegas? Or do they majorly impact games only?

 

[jaguarskx]

Its a great little machine, better for gaming than most, especially for the price.

Well.... in actuality benchmarks have shown that Intel's older HD 3000 is a bit more powerful than a Radeon HD 7600G that is integrated into the AMD APU. Sooo.... that means graphics performance is worse than average especially when compared to the Intel HD 4000 which is on average 35% more powerful than the Intel HD 3000 graphics core.

I would simply look for a laptop with an Ivy Bridge (3rd generation) Core i3 CPU that has the Intel HD 4000.

 

[jaguarskx]

If whatever programs you use can take advantage of the graphics core, then they will perform better with the Intel HD 4000 than with the Radeon HD 7600G.

 

[ankeet]

If whatever programs you use can take advantage of the graphics core, then they will perform better with the Intel HD 4000 than with the Radeon HD 7600G.

Alright, that's awesome information. So an Intel HD 4000 with a 3rd Gen, i5 should be good for the above, right?

Thanks a ton.