What Kind of Computer Should I Buy?
The computer. One of the most important pieces of photography gear and one of the pieces to which people give the least bit of thought. After all, you probably already have a computer, right? The question is, do you have one that is designed to handle uploading and editing multiple gigs of data at a time?
There’s a good chance you don’t.
I see people online asking about what kind of computer they should buy all the time. Most of them mean PC or Mac? Here’s the good news. Doesn’t matter in the slightest. Windows 10 is great. The new Macs are getting rave reviews from most tech reviewers. Either one is fine.
Now, if you read up to this point and have decided to get a Mac, please continue reading. Macs are fine. Macs are great. The problem with buying them though is that they mostly aren’t upgradable. Apple wants you to keep buying new computers. The don’t want you taking them apart and fixing/ upgrading simple things at low cost. What this means is that if you are going to buy a Mac, you need to get the right specs when you buy it. More on that later.
Now. Let’s focus on the second most asked question. Laptop or desktop?
A lot of people buy laptops. Unfortunately it’s often a bad choice for everyday data intensive work. Laptops are harder to upgrade when they are able to be upgraded at all. They also tend to have heat problems, since there is very little ventilation in their tiny bodies.
Do not buy a laptop as your main device unless you absolutely need to be mobile. If you’re a travel photographer, get a laptop. Otherwise, make your main editing machine a desktop (PC or Mac).
Here’s the important part- the specs. This is what you need in whatever computer you get.
The Processor:
Intel processors come in 4 types. Core i3, i5, i7 and i9. Core i5 or i7 are fine. You don’t need an i9, but its fine to get one.
AMD Ryzen processors come in 4 primary models, but there are also subsets. The four primaries (current generation) are 5300, 5500, 5700 and 5900. If its a subset, it may say something like 5700X or 5500XT. Those are good too, but let’s focus on the main 4. As with earlier, 5500 or 5700 is the sweet spot. Go higher if you want.
Apple makes its own processors now, so there’s no recommendations there.
Storage:
Get a Solid State Drive. Hard drives are only be used as backup drives. Start with a terabyte. 500 gigabytes sounds like a lot, but with modern cameras, you can easily chew up more than 5 gigabytes of drive space on a single shoot. That’s a conservative estimate, by the way. Go with a terabyte or more.
Memory:
Get a minimum of 6 gigabytes of RAM. 32 would be much better. Go higher if you want.
And that’s mostly it. Just a couple more thoughts.
Again, if you’re getting a Mac… DO. NOT. GO. CHEAP. Get the specs you need. If you can’t afford it, you shouldn’t be buying a Mac.
I built my own computer. Not everyone can do that, but if you know someone who builds computers and is willing to help you, see what it would cost.
If you get a Windows laptop, there are some good brands out there. Razor and Asus are very good. I am currently typing on an Asus laptop. It is worth noting that the track pad on this thing sucks, but I bought the cheapest Asus I could. (Its not for editing, just writing.)
Okay, that’s it. Good luck.
