Where do I start?

[CreativeGenie]

Looking to replace my Desktop PC with a laptop. Most of the time it's just used for basic home admin stuff (Word, Excel, Browsing etc) but occasionally I am a little more creative and use it for graphic design and video editing.

I've looked at the 'minimum requirements' for my video editing software and so I'm using this as the basis for my Laptop needs.

• · 64-bit OS required: Windows 10 recommended, Windows 8.x, Windows 7
• · Intel Core i7 4th generation or later or AMD Athlon A10 or higher
• · 8 GB of RAM
• · DirectX graphics device recommended:
  • - NVIDIA GeForce 700 series / Quadro 600 (Fermi-based) or newer (CUDA-enabled required for CUDA support)
    • - ATI Radeon HD 5XXX series or higher
    • - Intel HD Graphics from Ivy Bridge or higher
• · Minimum 256MB VGA VRAM, 512MB or higher recommended
• · Display resolution: 1024 x 768 or higher

My budget is as cheap as possible 🤣 but thinking around £800.

Any suggestions as to what to build, and where to start?

I would prefer a sophisticated business looking model over the pretty coloured lights of a gaming laptop but my priority is very much the internals.

Thanks.

 

[Sonic]

I noticed you needed to get over 15" to get a number keypad.

I got the 15.6" LAFITÉ III for around £750. That was with i5 and 16GB of RAM.

You can give that an i7 and 8GB of RAM and still have some left. You can then add to to the Storage. Display is 1080P

 

[Oussebon]

The Lafite is a fairly low power system with integrated graphics. For video editing, something with a more powerful -H series CPU and dedicated graphics would be a lot better.

For this budget, that means the Vyper chassis:

Chassis & Display
Vyper Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 45% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 8300H (2.3GHz, 4.0GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB Corsair 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
NOT REQUIRED
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 2 in 1 Memory Card Reader (SD, MMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 120W AC Adaptor
Battery
Vyper Series 46WH Lithium Ion Battery
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-9260 M.2 (1.73Gbps, 802.11AC) +BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.1 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.1 PORTS + 4 x USB 2.0 PORT
Keyboard Language
PER-KEY RGB BACKLIT UK MECHANICAL KEYBOARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00002]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Chassis
TongFang GI5CN5E (4GB GTX-1050 Ti, i5-8300H)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £783.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/vyper-15/BssQRBXAVt/

You can always add more RAM and another storage drive down the line.

 

[CreativeGenie]

That looks like a strong suggestion. Thanks.
I prefer the look of the suggested Latife but wasn't sure about the Intel Graphics. Would much prefer a dGPU and that 1050ti would be great.

How does the i5 compare to the suggested i7 CPU?

 

[Oussebon]

The i5 in the Vyper is more powerful.

I7, i5 etc don't mean anything, they're pure marketing terms.

I won't do the full rant, but as an example, i7 for desktop PCs currently means 8 cores and no hyperthreading. Hyperthreading is (mostly) what used to separate i5s and i7s. If you buy last gens, it still is. Unless you're talking about HEDT desktops where i7 still means it has hyperthreading (I think?) For laptops, i7 can mean 6 cores and 12 threads, or 4 cores and 8 threads. Or .. 2 cores and 4 threads (?) if we're talking about the CPUs with a Y in the name. I stopped trying to keep track a while ago. You get the picture anyway...

For your purposes, the i5 and the i7 in the Lafite are very similar. The lafite i7 is only a little more powerful than the lafite i5, mostly through slightly higher frequencies. They are both 4 cores, 8 threads.

However, they are -U series CPUs, which are low power with 15W TDP.

The i5 8300H etc are 4 core, 8 thread CPUs, but with 45W TDP.

The TDP is the power envelope for the CPU. So the higher TDP lets it sustain much higher frequencies for much longer. And the 1050 ti is vastly more powerful than integrated graphics.

 

[CreativeGenie]

The i5 in the Vyper is more powerful.

I7, i5 etc don't mean anything, they're pure marketing terms.

I won't do the full rant, but as an example, i7 for desktop PCs currently means 8 cores and no hyperthreading. Hyperthreading is (mostly) what used to separate i5s and i7s. If you buy last gens, it still is. Unless you're talking about HEDT desktops where i7 still means it has hyperthreading (I think?) For laptops, i7 can mean 6 cores and 12 threads, or 4 cores and 8 threads. Or .. 2 cores and 4 threads (?) if we're talking about the CPUs with a Y in the name. I stopped trying to keep track a while ago. You get the picture anyway...

For your purposes, the i5 and the i7 in the Lafite are very similar. The lafite i7 is only a little more powerful than the lafite i5, mostly through slightly higher frequencies. They are both 4 cores, 8 threads.

However, they are -U series CPUs, which are low power with 15W TDP.

The i5 8300H etc are 4 core, 8 thread CPUs, but with 45W TDP.

The TDP is the power envelope for the CPU. So the higher TDP lets it sustain much higher frequencies for much longer. And the 1050 ti is vastly more powerful than integrated graphics.

Thanks
Very helpful.

I've got myself well confused over the vast variety of CPUs. Would have been so much simpler if they just made so that an (for example) i5 100 was the bottome of the range fifth generation CPU and an i5 900 was the top of the range, then start again with the next generation being i6 100 - 900 then i7 100 - 900 etc.

Admittedly I see a complexity issue arrising in my idea as a i5 900 could be deemed better than an i7 100

 

[Oussebon]

Indeed. People often get confused thinking the lower tiers of a new generation are always better than the higher tiers of a CPU/GPU series a few years older.

And you of course get situations like when the i5 8400 came out and narrowly beat out the i7 7700k. Despite costing £100-200 less and being called i5 instead of i7, it more or less dethroned the previous gen's gaming champion.

And on top of generational name changes, companies sometimes come up with silly changes apparently for the sake of it.

e.g. AMD having just finished establishing its R5 / R7 / R9 graphics branding, replaced it with RX, and now has a GPU called RX 5700 XT. Not to be confused with Nvidia GPUs called RTX (and sometimes GTX).

This leaves consumers in the position of having to ask "So.. what is this thing I'm actually buying?" :S