Need a new laptop

[teefin1]

I was haniging out for a Mac Book or similar Ultra portable, but I've seen this deal:

Lenovo ThinkPad T420 - £399

14" Matte LED WXGA ++ 1600 X 900 SCREEN
i5 - 2520m processor
8GB RAM 7200 RPM
320GB STORAGE
More of a workhorse type laptop, but i think pretty good specs. WOuld this be good for photo editing? i plan to get Lightroom or similar (after ive researched and dithered, of course!)

Any feedback would be much appreciated>

Regards
Tracy

 

[teefin1]

Oh....integrated graphics controller, rather than dedicated. Does that matter??

 

[kevistopheles]

Oh....integrated graphics controller, rather than dedicated. Does that matter??

Not particularly no. Dedicated graphics don't typically come into play using Lightroom and such. If you want a Windows machine that seems like a decent laptop for the price. The faster 7200 rpm HD is a nice touch but a bit small at 320GB. You'd be surprised how quickly that can fill up wit images (and video).

 

[Deadbear77]

External hds are always an option too. Just picked up a 3 TB for under 150 bucks.

 

[Dioptrick]

Coming from a graphic arts background, I'd tend to pick a mac especially when colour correction is involved. I also work on both the windows and macOS platforms and the mac is less problematic to operate... downside about the mac is the price.

 

[nianys]

I totally second Dioptrick. I'm biased though, I can't stand Windows UI, I'm a lifelong Mac user and just can't get used to anything else. To me a friendly and smart UI is an absolute must. More expensive, yes, but way more stable, and I'm saving the hair implants (not pulling it out, LOL).

 

[freddytto]

I love the mac but as Dioptrick says, the price is very high, so I decided to sell mine and buy the New Ipad (especially for my wife) and I bought a HP Pavilion dv7 with Core7 i, 8 GB in Ram and 750gb, and works perfectly with LR, photoshop and more applications, so far I've had 3 HP and I love, I never had problems.

I always shot in RAW and is a lot of information so I'm thinking of buying an external memory, to make some backups, the last time I deleted everything and I lost all my pictures,: (

 

[Amin]

I too have been using Macs for decades, but after a long parade of Powerbooks and Macbook Pros, I got my first ThinkPad (W520) last year, and I absolutely love it. Haven't felt this good about a laptop since my Powerbook G4. I still use Macs alongside my Windows machines, but I've grown to like Windows better.

I can't say enough good things about ThinkPad, and it looks like the one you've spec'd is an excellent deal. The only thing I don't know about is the quality of the display on that particular model. The matte screen on my W520 is excellent.

 

[quezra]

I'm a pure PC user, and for photo editing, I find screen resolution much more important than graphics card (in CS4, I rarely bother turning on the gfx support). I have a 2.5-year-old HP Envy15 with 1920x1200 resolution that is fabulous, and I also have a 28" 1920x1200 monitor for my PC - but maybe counter-intuitively, I find the Envy nicer for general use because at its size, I get a better idea of picture sharpness. But I'm not sure retina-displays are necessarily completely better, as seeing the pixels when you need to kind of helps for a lot of spot fixing (where my big monitor comes in), at least that's my experience.

Your laptop looks like a decent deal, but I agree the HDD is a bit small at 320GB, but anyway, learning to get used to external HDDs is only good for you in the long term - backups are important!

 

[kevistopheles]

I use and support both at work and ran a media design company for a number of years with a stable of designers and developers. I had a split shop of Macs and PCs and while the Macs always tended to be more expensive up front they typically lasted longer, were less hassle to setup and maintain and had far fewer issues day to day. Today I find that of you compare Macs and PCs with the same specs that generally the Macs are not significantly more expensive (unless you happen upon a computer on sale or closeout). I myself prefer using a Mac for a variety of reasons but I always tell my clients that they should go with whatever suits them.

 

[nianys]

Another proof that is forum is a very special place. Go find another place on Earth were a Mac vs PC discussion doesn't turn into WW3 !... lol

 

[Selten]

Another proof that is forum is a very special place. Go find another place on Earth were a Mac vs PC discussion doesn't turn into WW3 !... lol

Amen to that

I have never learned to like the Mac interface. Having grown up with Windows it is my first love. It can be a bit stubborn at times, but there are ways around that - have been using an Acer Aspire 7750G for a year now, a lot of time for photo editing and it has been wonderful!

A friend of mine owns a Lenovo ThinkPad (not sure of the model) and has been very happy with it too.

 

[teefin1]

Ha, I agree Nianys. As much as i like the specs of above mentioned laptop, its not giving me sexy cool, and sadly, i think i want that! THe Windows vs Mac dilemma is similar to the Android vs Iphone, i had the former and now woudlnt give up the latter, me thinks laptop may swing the same way but i will spend some time researching. The HP's, Lenovos and Asus notebooks do offer good Windows alternatives. Thanks to all as always for spot on advice.

Regards
Tracy

 

[Bimjo]

Tracy, you can sometimes score a pretty good deal on a refurbished unit on the Apple web site. They carry the same warranty as a new unit, but they can be considerably cheaper. Worth checking out.

 

[teefin1]

Thanks Bimjo, im off have a look.....though i really ought to stop buying things, whst with xmas and the OH'S 40th just round the corner

 

[Dioptrick]

Ha, I agree Nianys. As much as i like the specs of above mentioned laptop, its not giving me sexy cool, and sadly, i think i want that!

Lol... cool factor aside, there is a gamma display discrepancy between these two systems. PCs are calibrated at 2.2, Macs at 1.8. So photos finely tuned with Macs, will look overly dark when viewed on a PC and the reverse is the same. Most people think that monitor gamma calibrations only affect darkness and contrast... but hue and tint also come into play. Mac's always had very strong ties with the graphic & printing industries back in it's early years of development (where colour standards are vital), whereas PC's were developed in the early days more along the business & scientific data end of things.

I often get a nasty shock when I do Photoshop work on my PC (which I seldom do - only if I have to) - when I open the same file up on my Mac later. Certain hues, especially subtle shades between grey and khaki don't even show up as the same colour! This is one of the reasons why many printing presses (not all) won't accept graphic/photographic work originated from PC's.

Either system doesn't really matter all that much for viewing files in the internet or sending pics to your local photo-lab, but if you intend to manipulate and sell some of your photos commercially (perhaps in the future) - mac is the way to go.

 

[teefin1]

Thanks everyone.

I did see a good deal on HP DV7 yesterday Freddy, rocking same specs as yours, for £500, but have been swung to the Mac side by others input and Dioptrick's info re colour correction. I do prefer the Apple UI, i find it less bloated, but Windows is a lure due to price alone.

All this aside.........my Mac purchase has formally been relegated to spring as ive charged ahead and bought the Nex 7!

 

[Amin]

Today I find that of you compare Macs and PCs with the same specs that generally the Macs are not significantly more expensive

I think that's true for some models, eg iMacs, Macbooks. However at the time that I bought my W520 for just over $1500, it was well over $3000 for a Macbook Pro with similar specifications. Part of that difference was that the top Macbook Pro at the time had only two DIMM slots, so the price of going to 16GB RAM was much higher than it was with 4 slots in my Lenovo.

The other thing about the Lenovo is that it is built to make everything easily removable/fixable/swappable/replaceable. The interior design reminds me of my Mac Pro - from hot swappable drives (up to three of them with 2 in RAID), DVD drive that ejects with the pull of a switch, etc. You can literally pour a glass of water through the keyboard, and it will channel through and drain out the bottom hole without a problem. Plus Lenovo service is known for excellence.

 

[Bruce.B]

Am I right in thinking that Lenovo is what became of the old IBM PC?

 

[teefin1]

I think you might be right Bruce, come to think of it.