Which laptop around $300-500 should I get? will a video editing program work?

[kevin2]

This is sort of two questions in one.

I'm going to have to replace my laptop for school soon. I don't want to spend over $400, but if there is a laptop in the price range of $300-500 that could handle Premiere Pro (or some alternative program like it....I would only able to do simple videos, else I'd use a build) without skipping I'd want that. I doubt there are any, though.

I had this a few years ago http://www.cnet.com/laptops/hp-envy-17-3070nr/4505-3121_7-35120322.html and it skipped on playback of videos w/o cuts.


If there are none like that, what is the best laptop on the market at that price range?

 

[tachybana]

that tough. Just an mobile i7 Will run you about 600-800 (on a 17 in screen)

 

[kevin2]

edit to my question- can I just buy a labtop (not any, of course) and upgrade the GPU and RAM?

 

[tachybana]

The problem with this it would still cost you a pretty penny. Its not like you can buy a $200 old laptop and drop in the latest chipset.

 

[Squander]

edit to my question- can I just buy a labtop (not any, of course) and upgrade the GPU and RAM?

While it is technically possible to upgrade the GPU on some laptops, (SAGER's allow you to do this.) Finding a mobile GPU is very difficult. They don't sell them, you have to find a broken laptop and cannibalize it for it's video card.

Almost all laptops allow you to upgrade ram without too much trouble.

Why do you want to do video editing on a laptop rather than a desktop? You could build a decent video editing desktop for $400.00.

Your HP Envy shouldn't be having a big problem rendering video. (I think that's what you're saying about it skipping playback?) I suggest updating your video card drivers if it is.

Is that the only reason you're upgrading? It'd also probably sell for close to 300-600 dollars.

The specs on your current laptop are about the specs you'd get for your budget. It would be hard to find a better computer for $500.00

If your machine is broken, you'll probably have to buy something used with similar stats for that price range. This is what I use and I do light video editing work: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Asus-Gaming-Laptop-G53SX-15-Core-i7-2-20GHz-8GB-ram-2GB-Nvidia-GTX-560M-USB-3-0-/231146223589?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item35d16377e5

It isn't that much better than your envy.

A new machine with the latest i7m & integrated graphics will be able to handle premier pretty well. You don't need a graphics card to do video editing. I know people who do video editing on older integrated graphics and it gets the job done.

 

[kevin2]

I did build a fantastic rig that I had to end up selling in order to afford school.


Of course I don't want to use a cheap labtop to edit video. I just need to get a new labtop for school and was hoping it'd also be cabable of some video editing as a plus


im getting exhausted as I type this and it is probably incoherent, but tomorrow I plan on posting a question on how to get the best labtop for dragon naturally speaking home 12 since I had a stroke and it's a pain to type out all my notes....cya.



nno I sold the Eny years ago as I was told the GPU and/or CPu were weak.

 

[tachybana]

Glad you're feeling better. Remind me again what is your budget? and how large of a screen are you looking to work with?

 

[kevin2]

down to a 12-inch screen, I guess.

I'd say up to $6-700, but I'd prefer not to go over $500.

The recommended system requirements Dragon Naturally Speaking lists are bare minimums, and a little research claimed instead I should go for:

at least a 2.2 GHz Intel dual core or equivalent AMD processor, 2MB L2 cache, at least 4GB RAM and a 7200 RPM hard drive.

the other day I purchased a laptop from Best Buy (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-15-6-laptop-4gb-memory-500gb-hard-drive-white/4196052.p?id=1219096895555&skuId=4196052) because my older one failed to boot at one point, but I plan on returning it ASAP. It's slow and I don't think it'll run dragon. plus I know I could get a better deal somewhere..

 

[kevin2]

hmm..I've considered that one. where is the best place to purchase it..amazon or straight from Lenovo?

 

[kevin2]

"Get it, get a little money together later and throw in a Samsung 840 Evo and a Dual Channel RAM Kit and it will be way, way faster."

fast enough (with those additions) to run Premiere Pro? how about before?
or I just read about Lightworks...

 

[kevin2]

check out the protection plans here from Lenovo's website

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/essential/g-series/g510/?cid=us:sem|se|google|387081997|G510|IIP_NE_Essential+G+Series|65105984&ef_id=UzonAQAABHMMpDDo:20140401025624:s

or the protection plans here, from the amazon link you provided me

http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-IdeaPad-15-6-Inch-Laptop-59406709/dp/B00HIYA9ZM/ref=cm_cd_ql_qh_dp_t

Which of these plans mean regardless of what happens, incidentally or whatever, it would get repaired/replaced..and of those, which is the best value?

I'm returning the ASUS I acquired from Best Buy within two days. It's awfully slow.

 

[kevin2]

Can the 510's CPU be replaced with an i7 down the line?

 

[kevin2]

thank you for all your help.

this is irrelevant, but do you see computers and/or laptops that can flawlessly handle programs such as Premiere Pro affordable within the next decade?

for instance, I had an i7 3930k 32gb ram raid 0 hdd's etc home build...do you think a product of that caliber will be available at stores likes Best Buy marketed towards budget-conscious consumers within the next decade?

 

[kevin2]

"Get it, get a little money together later and throw in a Samsung 840 Evo and a Dual Channel RAM Kit and it will be way, way faster."

fast enough (with those additions) to run Premiere Pro? how about before?
or I just read about Lightworks...

Your options are pretty limited. No matter what, this is the best laptop within your budget.

The upgrades will just speed up your programs. You should be okay with it as it is, but the slow hard drive is going to be a drag for you. The SSD is definitely going to be a huge boost for what you're doing.

I can't seem to find an Ideapad G510 in crucial.com's memory advisor.

 

[kevin2]

If you're looking for RAM upgrades for the G510, you can get this 8GB stick from Amazon.

I emailed crucial anyway.

is it identical to the 1 stick currently installed? 12gb RAM would be great or would I have to remove it?

I'm buying a 120gb 840 evo as we speak. Why should I need more than 120gb?

Do you think I should use the SSD as the primary drive instead of this 5400RPM HDD? This PC's sort of slow. I'd follow these instructions: http://lifehacker.com/5837543/how-to-migrate-to-a-solid...

 

[kevin2]

■ isn't http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-IdeaPad-15-6-Inch-Laptop-59406709/dp/B00HIYA9ZM/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1397004174&sr=1-2&keywords=ideapad+g510 in the essential series, not the IdeaPad series?

Apparently, the G-series are Essential.

ahhhhh, this is why in using Crucial's memory advisor tool the G510 falls under Essential/Value line. What a moronic email I sent them.

 

[kevin2]

You shouldn't have to remove it. You could throw it in there, or get 2 and run 16GB dual channel.

Crucial will just give you a list of ones that are also compatible. They won't tell you what is currently in it.

Yes the SSD I linked earlier would be the best choice and it comes with cloning software. Just get an external enclosure, clone it, then swap the HDD for the SSD and put the HDD in the enclosure and you have a laptop with an SSD primary drive and a nice external hard drive.

hmm...I always thought the RAM sticks had to be identical.

That sounds easier than the directions on lifehacker, but how much does an enclosure cost? what is the benefit of not having it internal? unless this D drive business is a HDD in the second bay.

 

[kevin2]

can I get by without the sub $3 coverage? I'm pinching pennies.... this http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IKMJ9B6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AU7HRQ5QS7YQX

 

[kevin2]

Yeah you don't need the coverage, haha. That's a strange thing to cover.

should I get the 2 year warranty on the 8 gig stick you recommended? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HSOGQSQ/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00HSOGQSQ&linkCode=as2&tag=gameaholicorg-20

is it worth it?

or is there a better stick that I can use my prime membership on


already ordered the ssd and enclosure and they'll be here Thursday.

 

[kevin2]

I don't buy warranties on anything but laptops themselves. If the RAM doesn't work, return it. No need to get a warranty. I've never had RAM die.

hesitant to hit "place order" on the ram. unless you're positive there are no prime-eligible alternatives of identical quality.

 

[kevin2]

The G510 is the highest quality and fastest machine in the price range. I'm positive. I tell everyone I know to get one who wants a laptop in that price range.

I already have it. I meant the stick.

 

[kevin2]

this has happened twice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5osWJ-I-3o4&feature=youtu.be the green stuff



are there no equivalent prime-eligible 8gb sticks that you can see?

 

[kevin2]

IE also randomly shut off once, I'm pretty sure.

I wish I knew how to get the performance scores in 8 like I could in 7.

edit- I just did. You have to do some lame stuff first.

processor: 7.4
memory (RAM) 5.9
Graphics: 4.7
Gaming Graphics: 5.1
Primary Hard Disk: 5.9

 

[kevin2]

It seems I can buy this same laptop directly from Lenovo with twice the RAM and HDD space for $16.13 more. My only remaining concern would be the protection plan. Though both 2 year accidental damage protection plans, I have to be sure Lenovo’s plan protects me from cracked screens. At zdnet it says “Lenovo defines its ADC warranty coverage as the following:
"Accidental drops, spills, bumps, and structural failures incurred under normal operating conditions or handling, electrical surges, and damage to the integrated LCD screen."

But Lenovo’s website says ADP: Lenovo's Accidental Damage Protection protects your investment from operational or structural damage due to common accidents like:
• • Drops
• • Spills
• • Electrical surges
• • Failure of the integrated screen

What constitutes “failure of the integrated screen?” I don’t interpret that as anything more than dead pixels or a failure to turn on, not actual damage to the screen.
Assuming it does, it is totally worth it for me to return my current laptop and wait upwards of a couple of weeks for this one.
It could actually indeed still be worth it if that isn’t covered.

Should have done my homework, as amazon only offers full refunds "provided the item is still unopened and in its original condition."

As an economics student, I realize the opportunity cost of that potential unproductive time. The costs outweigh the small benefits I could have received.

But as a human being coming to terms with the fact I missed out on a potential $100 or so in hardware, I am going to go sob uncontrollably in the corner.




At least until my SSD arrives....

 

[kevin2]

I'm not going to be able to render to the 5400rpm drive (the one currently in the system that I'm replacing with the SSD.) I want to sell that G Drive I showed you above to make up some of this cash, but I need a 7200rpm drive to render to. but I don't think I can use that as the drive for storage as well...this is assuming I don't want to have the SSD, which will be my primary drive, reading and writing at the same time.

I had a drive for the "OS+Premiere"
RAID 0 2 HDD's "Source"
RAID 0 2 HDD's "Render"

and I'd store the finished projects externally on the G Drive.


But I also can't afford Premiere Pro at the moment, and don't know whether or not less costly and less (for lack of a more descriptive term) intense NLE's require such a disk setup...

-use the SSD for the OS+Programs
-Sell the 5400rpm HDD I'm pulling out
-Sell that G Drive
-buy 2 7200rpm HDD's (use one externally and the other will replace the optical drive)

idk how to take out the optical drive though...how much it costs.