I need a laptop for the filed. Needs to Run C3D (2012).
We have topcon equipment (if that matters).
What laptop should I get for the field?
I've had a Toshiba for a few years now. It's bullet-proof and dependable. I'm sure there are lots of good ones out there, I've just had good luck with this one.
Make sure it has a screen, keypad and touchpad.....
> I need a laptop for the filed. Needs to Run C3D (2012).
> We have topcon equipment (if that matters).
>
> What laptop should I get for the field?
I wouldn't bother with any toughbook sort of thing. Very expensive, cheaper to just replace an ordinary one more often.
I've had good luck with a Lenovo Thinkpad. I'm told they are strudier than most brands. I prefer a 15 inch screen as a balance of size vs. luggability. Win7 64bit, lots of Ram.
Thinkpads are well built and surprisingly tuff. Ask my 2 year old son, he could destroy an anvil with a loft of bread, but the thinkpad keeps on thinkin.
Agree with the ThinkPad, get yourself a "T" series and you should be good. I run all Lenovo products in our small office, (three systems), they tend to be pretty bullet proof, geared toward the office / professional use rather than consumer and pretty reasonably priced, I am on my 3rd ThinkPad, I rotate them out about every 24-36 months.
You can spend a lot of money on a field ruggedized laptop, but probably not needed.
One thing you can get on the "T's" is a matte screen (or at least you could last time I looked), almost all other laptops have a glossy screen, I don't want to look into a reflective surface in the field, just something to consider.
SHG
You'll need at minimum an I5 processor, I7 if possible. And good graphics board on it. NVidia boards are good.
I totally disagree on the toughbook comments. Surveying in Mississippi in August exposes different problems than most folks run into. Heat and humidity raise cain with many laptops. Our toughbooks just keep chugging along. We have been running toughbooks in these conditions for the last 3 years and not one of them has failed or seen the inside of a repair shop. I have 2 that are 7 years old and have the same track record.
If you want a reular laptop, then look at the Dell Precision series.
One thing to remember about good computers, "you get what you pay for".
running C3D should work fine if you buy a laptop with the right guts. I would get the most ram your budget can guy. We, our company, just bought a new Dell and traditionally I have hated Dell compnuters. But I have to say this one kicks some major butt. Sturdy, fast and extremely fast. Price around $2500. You will need a dedicated video card for graphics and the hybrid solid state hard drives with traditional hard drives actually works really well.
I wouldn't necessarily buy Dell just because they are more expensive than other alternatives. Asus is really good brand if you get the gaming laptops.
This is a really good one.
Asus G73
> running C3D should work fine if you buy a laptop with the right guts. I would get the most ram your budget can guy. We, our company, just bought a new Dell and traditionally I have hated Dell compnuters. But I have to say this one kicks some major butt. Sturdy, fast and extremely fast. Price around $2500. You will need a dedicated video card for graphics and the hybrid solid state hard drives with traditional hard drives actually works really well.
> I wouldn't necessarily buy Dell just because they are more expensive than other alternatives. Asus is really good brand if you get the gaming laptops.
> This is a really good one.
> Asus G73
Your link will not let you back up and return to this site. I REALLY DISLIKE those type of links/sites. Even if I thought they had the absolute best laptop, I wouldn't buy one because of that site.
> Your link will not let you back up and return to this site. I REALLY DISLIKE those type of links/sites. Even if I thought they had the absolute best laptop, I wouldn't buy one because of that site.
1. I could hit the back button and get back to this site using Firefox.
2. Since that site also has reviews of HP, Dell, Apple, Dell, Sony, Toshiba, Lenovo, Acer, and other laptops, you're probably going to limit your computer choice to a used Kaypro if you boycott any computer brand reviewed there 😉
I also use firefox. It wouldn't come back to this site. I didn't really check if it was a retail site or a manufacturer site.
Bad site. I figured out what happened. I opened a sub site that had about 8 pictures of the laptop. I had to back out once for every picture plus one to get back here. Not malicious but down right irritating.
> ...running C3D should work fine if you buy a laptop with the right guts...
There was a time when you needed a special setup to run CAD. Not really the case anymore unless you are doing HD scanning point clouds or the like. Just about any slightly above laptop will run C3d satisfactorily.
>I would get the most ram your budget can guy.
Agree, but anything above 4GB is not accessible to a 32bit system. That is why you need the 64bit setup. Which can lead to a bit of hassle with drivers for peripherals. But the payback in performance is worth it.
I agree. I am just of the opinion that if you are going to use it everyday, which we do, and you want something that isn't complete crap in two years, which most computers are outdated in about two years, spend a little extra and use it for 3-4 ideally. You could possibly stretch it a bit further, but with the advance of technology like it going, in two years it is mostly out of date anyway. With the purchase of a computer with well above average ram and hard drive space, the computer will at least function with everything you will need to do for a good amount of time.
I love the ASUS G73. Been using it for 2 years...recently upgraded to the G75 (16 GB RAM).
Seems ASUS is an up-and-comer...(at least to a non-computer wizard like myself)- half the price of Alien and better specs.
I have an Asus at work and at home. Very good computers. They have been making motherboards since the inception of modern day computers. I like their features and for the price they are tough to beat. I bought my wife an Asus G53, good computer, but the AC port is going bad. So be careful. Seems like there would be an alternative to these crappy charging ports on all laptops by now. I keep hoping some sort of magnetic induction charging system for laptops comes out soon. That would be sooooo sweeeet.
Instead of clicking on links, I usually right-click and pick "open in new tab." Then when I'm done with the link I can delete the tab, and still have my place in the original thread on the first tab.