Need Laptop for 3D Modelling University - Budget up to $2,000

LItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 18/11/2022 - 17:12
Last edited 18/11/2022 - 17:22 by 1 other user

Hi, I need a laptop for a 3D modelling University course I am doing.

It needs to be able to run Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter, Substance Designer, Unreal Engine & Unity, Nuke, and finally, Marmoset. Most of these programs are just random compositing and rendering stuff, the main programs are Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter and Unreal Engine.

It needs to be able to last around 8 hours whilst running one or multiple of these applications at once, and I'd like it to be able to last a long time. I know a lot of laptops die out after 2-3 years, but I'd like it to last longer than this, obviously I will be cleaning the inside of it to further it's lifespan.

My budget is $1,500-$2,000. Somewhere in this range would be nice. Please link sites or names of laptops. Thank you.

Note: I'd love to just buy a Mac, but I can't due to issues with software not being compatible. So Windows is preferred.

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  illogicalerror on 18/11/2022 - 17:28

  +1

  As a sysadmin I've been buying exclusively enterprise Dell Latitude laptops for the last 3 years. I have literally hundreds of them and not a single one has failed.

  It won't always be like this, they will start cutting corners and increasing profits… but at the moment Dell enterprise machines are #1

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    ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 18/11/2022 - 17:30

    I'll check them out. I've always thought Dell was bad because of friends experiences with laptops. Thanks.

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      illogicalerror on 18/11/2022 - 17:32

      They were bad at one stage, and I would not buy their consumer grade stuff. HP ruled for about 5 years in enterprise, but then they started cutting costs to increase profits and it went to shit, now it's Dell's turn to be the top dog.

      Lenovo is weak at the moment, even their enterprise stuff, avoid. ASUS is also weak at the moment, avoid.

      pro tip: don't ever buy consumer grade computing gear, always buy the enterprise stuff. Next day on site warranty service, better build quality, just better.

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        ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 18/11/2022 - 17:44

        Do you have any specific laptops you could recommend? Ones I look at don't seem great, it started listing Vostro's which don't seem bad, but also don't have many reliable reviews on them and supposedly get really hot.

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          illogicalerror on 18/11/2022 - 17:48

          +2

          @ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge: I've been buying the latitude 47xx series, been very reliable.

          Recently got in some latitude 5530's. Really solid machines with slightly bigger display than the 47xx series. Also have dedicated 4GB GPU.

          Vostro's are consumer… don't buy that, Buy Latitude, XPS or Precision models

          For your use you probably want XPS model…. might have to cough a little more. But you won't regret it.

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            ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 18/11/2022 - 17:55

            @illogicalerror: Thank you.

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            ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 20/11/2022 - 21:56

            @illogicalerror: I think I settled on this. Could you give some feedback? It's a latitude, and seems good for the price.

            https://www.centrecom.com.au/dell-latitude-7520-156-touch-i5…

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    Hybroid on 18/11/2022 - 19:28

    Completely agree with this, Dell Latitudes (7000s) are rock solid for business productivity use but they all have integrated graphics and not sure ideal for OPs use case.

    Our 3D modellers all use Precision 5550s which are far higher spec and more suited to those intensive tasks.

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  AndyC1 on 18/11/2022 - 19:40

  +1

  I think you have 0% chance of running any of the apps for 8hrs straight off a battery as they use allot of power.

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    ItsOnlyAMouseGeorge on 18/11/2022 - 19:53

    Yes but I made it as high as possible so that people know it'd prioritises battery life.