Specifications
When buying a new laptop or desktop, we recommend the following for a medium specification computer.
| Minimum | Recommended (especially for point cloud users) | |
| CPU | i3/i5 – 2.5 GHz | i5/i7 – 2.5 GHz |
| Memory | 8 Gig | 16 Gig |
| Hard Drive | 256 GB SSD | 512 GB NVME SSD |
| Video* | Onboard GPU | 3D GPU – Nvidia or ATI |
| Price Range | R8 000 – R15 000 | R15 000 and up |
| OS | Windows 11 | |
*Select a model based on your design software recommendations
Desktop vs Laptop
| Desktop | Laptop | |
| Cost | Cheaper | More expensive |
| Maintenance | Each component
can be replaced |
Not all can be replaced. Depending on the part,
the whole laptop may need to be replaced. A 2 year next business day warranty is suggested. |
| Expandable | Full | Limited to none |
| Life | Can live forever, since any part
can be replaced |
Average of 3 – 4 years. |
Recommended Brands
Based on personal experience and client feedback we recommend the following brands. There are other brands we did not add, since there are too many common problems with them.
- Acer
- Asus
- Dell
- HP
Understanding Each Specification
The CPU is responsible for complex operations or calculations and directly affects the main operation speed of the computer.
Memory, also called RAM, allows for bigger or more programs and data to be open. Note that Windows 8 or 10, with Office and some anti-virus, can use 3-4 Gig of ram before any design software.
The Video card is more technical and you will need to look at each design software’s supported video card list. Typically, Nvidia cards are the better-supported choice. When buying a laptop, also get dedicated memory, which means it does not use any of the system’s own Memory. Comparing desktop vs laptop video cards, the desktop is much, much better value for money. The following website is a good resource to compare how video cards compare videocardbenchmark.net with each other.