Laptop

dunno about CS3, I have CS2. Spec can vary alot but it would help if you had a price-range! you can usually work-around some issues from there. (though I am not the most renowned tech-wizzard around....)

my dell XPS has 2.4ghz intel p. duo processor. 500gb hard drive and... damn can't remember the graphics card.... 8800 gt or something like that. I know its more than enough to run stuff like CS2 and most pc games!

Ive taken this from Amazon.com (for cs3):

* Intel Pentium 4, Intel Centrino, Intel Xeon, or Intel Core Duo (or compatible) processor
* Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise (certified for 32-bit editions)
* 512MB of RAM
* 64MB of video RAM
* 1GB of available hard-disk space (additional free space required during installation)
* 1,024x768 monitor resolution with 16-bit video card
* DVD-ROM drive
* QuickTime 7 software required for multimedia features
* Internet or phone connection required for product activation
* Broadband Internet connection required for Adobe Stock Photos and other services
 
I am thinking about selling my laptop if you are interested? It is a HP 6530B full spec Here

Only difference being that mine has 4GB RAM. It is in absolute pristine condition and would pass for being brand new out the box. Could also come to an agreement to meet your budget so if your interested then PM and we can talk about it.
 
well for 500 pound I would doubt you would find a laptop that won't do that, I think the important thing would be getting a suitable screen in the laptop as some are better than others I read a review of laptop screens (in terms of photo editing) online a while back but I can't remember where
 
Reading this post with interest, as I also have been looking for new laptop to present pictures to clients on. The Sony Vaio was also on my shortlist. Its supposed to have some clever new screen which is supposed to be the best available for pictures & video viewing (but then this is according to the Sony blub)....i was hesistant as its another £100 more than the Dell and about the same spec..although Dell has 4gb compared to the sony 3gb.

Another thing...Ive noticed the amount of reflectivness on the screen, the Hp, Samsung and toshiba's all had huge amount of reflections in the shop and the Toshiba's reflections were quite distorted which were very distracting, The Dell scored well on my screen reflection test - it was a 1525, which is last year's model - quite hi spec and on offer at staples at the mo.

Good luck with your search, would be very interested in the outcome, oh and what deal have you found on Sony? It does look good.

Hope this helps a little
 
For the price, I probably wouldn't worry too much about the quality of the screen - most subjects won't notice the difference.

More important to me would be the size / resolution of the screen so that I'd have enough space to work (allowing for Photoshop toolbars &c) and performance, so that your RAW files open quick enough and your colour corrections, crops & straightening apply quickly. Make sure you get at least a Core 2 Duo (or AMD equivalent?) as last time I checked there were a lot of laptops on the market sporting Pentium & Celeron processors.
 
One thing to consider, once you have all-but decided which one to go for, look for a forum for owners of that model, and ask whether the screen gets marked by the keys.
I have had 3 laptops, all of which had nice screens, but, after a while the keyboard buttons marked two of the screens.
It would get quite off-putting for your customers possibly if the screen is marked like this.
Another possibility, if you can stretch to it, and it is suitable for your application (I don't get whether this is studio work or on-the-road/show/exhibition), is to get a cheap laptop, with a semi-decent graphics card, and a separate larger monitor. A 19" monitor would give a bit more wow-factor possibly than a 14" laptop screen. Whilst you are shooting/away from the computer, you could set it up for a slideshow and grab people's attention.
 
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