Looking for a laptop for CAD

[thefro526]

Originally Posted by Jared

For general CAD work, CPU clock speed is more important that # of cores.

This. A lot of people seem to over look the clock speed, especially when the processor is multi-core. Most inventor functions don't actually use more than a single processor core, so it makes much more sense to go with the faster clock.

The computer I'm sitting at right now (work) has the following specs:

- Intel i7 Processor @ 3.4GHz
- 8GB Ram
- AMD Radeon HD 6450 GPU
- Windows 7
- 500GB Hard Drive (I think)

My personal computer has specs along the lines of:

- Intel i7 Processor @2.7GHz (I think)
- 8GB Ram
- Nvidia GT640m GPU
- Windows 7
- 750GB Hard Drive

Neither of these machines has a problem running AutoCAD/Inventor/ProE (WF4). Things like Autodesk Showcase and certain Simulation Features in Inventor have a tendency to lock the computer up for a while, but much of that should be outside of the FRC realm - at least initially.

I bought my younger brother a computer for X-Mas last year, and it was a decently spec-ed windows 8 machine with internal graphics (Intel HD4000?) and has little problems running Inventor, although he's never done anything (to my knowledge) outside of basic part and assembly work.

If you're looking for a computer that you won't 'grow out of' after a year or two (I had this problem until buying my current PC) look for something that's spec-ed a bit on the higher end. 3GHz or better processor, 8GB of ram (with the capacity to upgrade), a good external graphics card, etc. This should keep you going for at least two or three years before it'll be too slow for the new software, assuming Inventor keeps progressing at the same rate.

Also, it's worth mentioning that whatever PC you buy for CAD needs* a number pad. I've tried to do 'real' CAD work on a computer without one, and it's a night mare. It's probably worth springing for a good wireless mouse with the computer aswell, CAD-ing from a track pad is possible, but it's something that I try to do as a last resort (I.E. while on an airplane).

*Not having a number pad isn't the end of the world, but if you're used to CAD-ing with a number pad, not having one will get annoying after about 20 minutes.

[Maximillian]

what do you guys think of this. Its a gaming laptop so it has pretty good specs and its refurbished.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834231238

[BA SW]

Although I am not familiar with Inventor requirements, I would like to point out that intel cpus tend to perform better than amd cpus of similar specs but you usually get a better deal with the amd cpus.

I have a few links you might want to look at:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/refurbished-15-6-thinkpad-notebook-8-gb-memory-250-gb-hard-drive/1308514947.p?id=mp1308514947&skuId=1308514947&st=c ategoryid$abcat0502000&cp=1&lp=1
- $549
- core i7 quad core @ 1.6ghz
- nvidia quadro fx880m 1gb gpu
- 8gb ram
- 250gb hdd
- 1920x1080 15.6" screen

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung-...eci fications
- $449
- core i5 @ 2.6ghz-3.2ghz
- 750gb hdd
- 6 gb ram
- intel 4000 grahics

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/ideapad-p500-touch-15-6-refurbished-touch-screen-laptop-6gb-memory-1tb-hard-drive/2322036.p?id=1219071842859&skuId=2322036&st=catego ryid$abcat0502000&cp=2&lp=18
- $499
- core i5 @2.6ghz-3.2ghz
- 1tb hdd
- 6gb ram
- intel 4000 graphics
- touchscreen

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/refurbished-15-6-aspire-notebook-6-gb-memory-500-gb-hard-drive-and-24-gb-solid-state-drive/1309407651.p?id=mp1309407651&skuId=1309407651&st=c ategoryid$abcat0502000&cp=2&lp=43
- $539
- core i5 1.8ghz
- 500gb hdd + 24gb ssd
- 6gb ram
- intel 4000 graphics
- 1920x1080 15.6" touch screen with a nice hinge

I would probably go with the first 1 on the list above (lenovo w510) if you intend it just for cad because it has a quadro fx880m graphics card. geforce series is more geared towards gaming and quadro is intended for applications like cad. however, if you intend to do some gaming get a laptop with geforce. if you dont mind paying an extra $200 over your budget i would go with the last asus you listed on the google doc.

[Chris_Ely]

Originally Posted by Maximillian

what do you guys think of this. Its a gaming laptop so it has pretty good specs and its refurbished.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834231238

This should work well. It is refurbished, so you could be taking your chances--you only get a 90 day warranty.

Originally Posted by BA SW

I would probably go with the first 1 on the list above (lenovo w510) if you intend it just for cad because it has a quadro fx880m graphics card. geforce series is more geared towards gaming and quadro is intended for applications like cad. however, if you intend to do some gaming get a laptop with geforce. if you dont mind paying an extra $200 over your budget i would go with the last asus you listed on the google doc.

While the first laptop you linked to does have a workstation graphics card, the processor is slow, which is not good.

[yash101]

2GB RAM minimal. An i5 at 2.5GHz or higher would also be nice. HD3000 is also good enough as long as you don't start playing computer games. HD4000 is much better, though so if you see that, a few bucks might be worth it. I used to run 2013 on a Netbook, 1GHz, 2GB, dual core amd c-30. It wasn't the best experience I had.

As of minimal processor, an i3-2367 will cut it (That is the slowest i* processor that intel produces so you will most likely get something faster)


DONT GO FOR AN ULTRABOOK. THEY ARE SLOW, OVERPRICED AND DON'T GIVE MUCH BATTERY LIFE!

[aldaeron]

If you want a laptop that can handle a large model without much lag the often overlooked item is the graphics card. For higher performance CAD you want a workstation graphics card, not a gaming card. The link below explains the difference fairly well.

http://www.avadirect.com/forum/forum...&PID=3317#3317

I run SolidWorks and use nVidia cards so I can't comment on Inventor or Intel/ATI cards.

I like the nVidia Quadro series - the current mobile series is the Quadro KXXXX (Where the higher the number signifies a better, but more expensive card). The amount of RAM is also important (larger is better, but more expensive) I use a K1000M with 1 GB dedicated RAM on my current laptop.

The cheapest place to get a Quadro K series mobile card I know of is HP refurbished business notebooks:

https://h41183.www4.hp.com/pps-offer...t=notebook_pcs

I have used the HP EliteBooks at work and home and they can handle very large SW models. They are not cheap ($1000+), but will offer great performance. The Elitebooks come with 2nd or 3rd Gen i7 CPUs and 8+ GB RAM which are more than sufficient for SW.

While this is an expensive machine it will work well and allow you to open and work with huge models (like the full Robonauts 2013 STEP file)

-matto-

[mman1506]

Originally Posted by yash101

DONT GO FOR AN ULTRABOOK. THEY ARE SLOW, OVERPRICED AND DON'T GIVE MUCH BATTERY LIFE!

When I can't use my desktop I use solidworks on a 13" Lenovo Yoga ultrabookwith HD 4000 graphics and 4gb of RAM. It actually runs solidworks surprisingly well. Not something id want to design a whole robot in but usable. It also has about 5 hours of battery life which is not bad. Sure i could get a laptop for 200$ less with the same performance but the premium is worth it for the convenience.

[yash101]

Originally Posted by mman1506

When I can't use my desktop I use solidworks on a 13" Lenovo Yoga ultrabookwith HD 4000 graphics and 4gb of RAM. It actually runs solidworks surprisingly well. Not something id want to design a whole robot in but usable. It also has about 5 hours of battery life which is not bad. Sure i could get a laptop for 200$ less with the same performance but the premium is worth it for the convenience.

It does run it well, but not well enough for the price range . My $600 ultrabook gives me quite low performance. It takes a couple seconds (more than 5) to open a part in Inventor, while the software is already open. However, that could be because of my i3-2367!

[theawesome1730]

I have run Inventor 2014 on a MacBook Pro with an i5 at 2.5Ghz and Intel HD4000 graphics with 8gbs of RAM quite well under bootcamp. While a MacBook is well out of your price range, you could expect laptops with similar specs to run it about the same.

[Answer42]

Originally Posted by mman1506

When I can't use my desktop I use solidworks on a 13" Lenovo Yoga ultrabookwith HD 4000 graphics and 4gb of RAM. It actually runs solidworks surprisingly well. Not something id want to design a whole robot in but usable. It also has about 5 hours of battery life which is not bad. Sure i could get a laptop for 200$ less with the same performance but the premium is worth it for the convenience.

I also use a Lenovo yoga. It runs pretty much everything I need it too. Great machine. If you have the cash I highly recommend it.

[Cash4587]

I have been using an ASUS the past couple of weeks and I love it. It is pretty beefy in power so it runs SolidWorks very smoothly with no problems yet. May not be what you are looking for, as it is pricey, but this is just to give you an idea of what I run and what works for me.

Specs:
i7-4700HQ @ 2.4GHz
16.0GB RAM
Nvidia GeForce GTX 760m with 2GB memory
64Bit Windows 8

[AndreaV]

I really like de-comissioned ibm thinkpads workstation laptops. I have a T61p that has a(albeit outdated) dedicated workstation graphics card. It's a 5-6 year old laptop now. Runs solidworks and inventor like a champ, only really has problems with large assemblies, but that's pretty normal.

2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
256MB Nvidia Quadro FX 570M
4gb memory
64gb sata 2 ssd for improved launch times and battery life

I got it 2 years ago for $240, there are a lot of refurbished ibm's like this floating around. the build quality on this one in particular is really good!

[Sabaka]

I have a Toshiba Satellite C855D (AMD A6-4400M @2.7 GHz) with 4 GB RAM. It's comparatively slow at opening files, though it still gets parts open in less than 5 seconds and assemblies in less than 30 (depending on the size). Once the files are open, it has almost no issues past graphics (slow down a lot when I zoom in on objects with a lot of faces).

Wow... I like parentheses.

[Woolly]

Originally Posted by Maximillian

what do you guys think of this. Its a gaming laptop so it has pretty good specs and its refurbished.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834231238

Well, I've had a G55VW for a year now and it works quite well for CAD and certainly helps with compiling LabView code as well.

The only difference between the G45VW and the G55VW (as far as specs go) is the G55VW has a slower-clocked quad core processor in it, and hyper-threading.
Oh, and that G45VW has a larger HDD in it than my laptop.

Also, the cooling on this thing seems ridiculous until you are running Inventor in you lap and realize you aren't being burnt by it like most laptops.
The only complaint I have with it is that it IS a bit heavy. (which wasn't a problem until our bus broke down in OKC last year)

[dcarr]

A quick observation - Autodesk 2014 products are not optimized for the high-dpi 2560x1440 and similar displays that are becoming standard on higher end ultrabooks.

To be readable, Windows runs at about 125-150% DPI scaling by default on displays with this density. Most applications can handle this scaling fine. Autodesk products are a disaster, however - text overflows regions, icons are way off, etc. Basically makes it unusable. So you have to scale down to 100% which makes everything tiny.

With this in mind, if you do end up with an ultrabook or something in the 13" neighborhood, I'd go for 1920x1080 which is the ideal resolution to run at 100% scaling at that screen size.

Give it a few years once all laptops are shipping with hidpi displays when Autodesk will get around to making their apps scale nicely.