Will this laptop be enough?

sjrm95 wrote on 4/16/2014, 5:53 AM

Hi, I'm looking to buy a laptop to run Sony Movie Studio 12 Platinum Suite. I only do light editing, few effects.

I am heavily leaning towards this one: http://amzn.to/1hUqEzD
Processor: Intel Core i7-4500U 1.8 GHz (dual core)
RAM: 6GB
Hard Drive: 750GB
Graphics Card: Integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400
Price: £419.99

Will this be enough? I am aware that the processor is only dual core and pretty low clock speed but I do not have a lot of money to spend.

My other option is a custom made Lenovo Z500
Processor: Intel Core i5 3230M 2.60GHz (dual core)
RAM: 4GB (may be possible to upgrade to 6GB or 8GB)
Hard Drive: 1TB
Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce GT 635
Price: £499

£500 is the absolute maximum that I would like to spend. I have read that a quad core is all but necessary - is this true?
I live in the UK by the way, please don't think that I only have $500 to spend! :)

Thanks for reading and hopefully you can help me choose the right laptop :D

Comments

Ivan Lietaert wrote on 4/16/2014, 8:42 AM

The faster the cpu, the better. Not just the number of effects, but also the codec/video file type will decide how smooth things will be running.
I have a 6 year old desktop with a quad core cpu. I think I must confirm quad makes all the difference. Perhaps others can chime in here.
Also, consider a laptop with an SSD. It will make a huge difference.
The gpu won't make a huge difference.

sjrm95 wrote on 4/16/2014, 9:54 AM

Thanks! I have just emailed the shop where I was getting the first one built for me to see about having a quad-core and no dedicated graphics card :) I think that an SSD is too cost-prohibitive for me at this stage but I would definitely like one in the future :)

jetdv wrote on 4/16/2014, 10:04 AM

If you wish to use TitlerEx or Titler Pro, do not get an Intel HD video card. Please get an nVidia or AMD/ATI card instead.