Laptops have long been a preference for many people in architecture and graphic design. For architects and designers, the ability to take our hardware with us, moving seamlessly between home and studio, is vital to our work.
Until recently, professionals were used to making trade-offs between mobility and power, and desktop computers seemed essential for high-demand, intensive tasks such as real-time visualization and virtual reality applications.
This article offers an updated version and includes the what I consider are the best value for money laptops for architects, designers, and architectural students. The former is somewhat more sophisticated, while the latter set is included for those looking for a great laptop on a budget.
What is the most important factor in a laptop for architects?
There are a few key factors to consider when looking for the best laptop for your individual needs. Whether you're an architecture student, a young architect, or a seasoned professional, it's worth researching the following specifications for each option:
● CPU (Central Processing Unit): Any architecture student or professional architect will run powerful CAD and modelling software. It is advisable to get at least Intel i5 or higher to avoid any issues.
● GPU (graphics processing unit): We may be using Rhino, 3ds Max, ArchiCad, Revit, or Vector works. All of them require a powerful graphics card. Therefore, the ideal laptop for the architect will have at least a 8GB GPU RAM for smooth processing, beter16GB.
● RAM: Architecture software will account for a large portion of our RAM, especially when multitasking. To cover these needs, we need a laptop with at least 16 GB of RAM,
● HDD, SSD, and Hybrid Hard Drive: Architectural design files often require significant space, so the larger the storage capacity, the better the results. SSD (solid disk drives without moving parts) is faster and more reliable, but comes at a higher price. To enjoy the benefits of SSD and HDD, we recommend getting a hybrid drive. We can install operating system and architecture software on SSD and all other files on HDD for optimal performance.
● Macs versus Windows: It all comes down to your personal preferences. Both are well prepared to handle the challenges that the job offers. Windows is certainly easier to use, as it supports a wide range of software, but it is exposed to more viruses than Mac. On the other hand, there are professionals who consider Mac to be excellent for graphics applications, but it is also true that many consider it too expensive.
● Screen size and resolution: Size does matter but considering the level of mobility, but not ignoring the attention to detail required, a laptop with a screen size between 15 and 17 inches or bigger is the best size for rendering architectural. The FHD (full high definition) resolution should be sufficient for our work; however, higher resolutions such as UHD (ultra-high definition), 4K or 8K prepare us for the next future trends.
10. MSI Prestige
Processor: i7-8550U
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard drive: 512GB
Screen: 14″ Inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050
best laptops
1.099 €
If you're an architect, graphic designer, this 14-inch laptop with standard dimensions and a graphics card from another planet is perfect for you.
With this MSI Prestige you will be able to use graphic design programs such as Photoshop or Illustrator, as well as programs for architects such as Autocad.
This type of software, apart from taking up a lot of space on your PC, also needs a great response and loading speed so that you do not have problems when using it.
Here we leave you different purchase options such as Amazon, Fnac and Pc Components to get this laptop.
Thanks to its latest generation 7-core processor (Core i7-8550U 1.8 GHz, up to 4 GHz, 8 MB Smart Cache) and 16 GB RAM (DDR4), along with the 512GB SSD digital storage, everything will work for you fluidly.
With this MSI Prestige laptop you will have an excellent screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, a fantastic integrated graphics performance as well as the remastering of photos, videos and games. All this can be carried out thanks to one of the most advanced graphics cards powerful on the market. Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 4GB GDDR5.
This laptop comes equipped with the advanced 64-bit Windows 10 Home operating system, and you can enjoy the autonomy of its lithium battery for 10 continuous hours.
Finally, we can emphasize its cinematic sound capacity thanks to the Nahimic 3 sound system developing surround sound, we can always connect it to external speakers through its Wi-Fi & Bluetooth connection.
The price of this lightweight 1.12 kg laptop exceeds 1,000 euros, but we are completely sure that if you meet the aforementioned conditions, you will be very satisfied.
ADVANTAGE
Recommended for graphic design
High processing speed
Very advanced graphics card
DISADVANTAGES
Not recommended for 3D work with very demanding graphics
9. HP Envy X360
Processor: Ryzen 7-4700U
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard drive: SSD, 512GB
Screen: 13.3″ Inches, LED
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon Integrated Graphics
709€
This Envy X360 is truly versatile. It is suitable for architectural students, an designers
In fact, the high resolution of the screen makes it suitable for those who work with graphics. Windows 10 system is essential for students who often have to exchange files and the large memory makes it perfect for saving and keeping all documents safe.
You can get this laptop at Pc Components, Fnac and Amazon.
Unlike other products, such as the new Apple MacBook Air, it has a 16 GB RAM memory compared to only 8 GB of the MacBook (If we compare its price). Not to mention the hard drive, 512 GB SSD, while the Apple laptop can only offer up to 256 GB.
In fact, by using the Windows 10 operating system, it can easily connect with all kinds of laptops, unlike the MacBook which uses a closed operating system, which makes it less universal.
Compared to the previous HP Envy 13 model, the RAM has been improved, in fact, it has been increased from 8 to 16GB possible.
ADVANTAGE
We highlight the 16 GB RAM memory, very large compared to the competition.
The value for money is excellent.
It is a very manageable and light product.
DISADVANTAGES
The screen resolution is improvable and the LED resolution is still used.
8. Acer Aspire 5
Processor: Intel Core i7
RAM Memory: 8GB
Hard drive: 512GB
Screen: 15.6″ Inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: UMA Graphics
550€
In this ranking there is also room for the ACER brand, in this case the Acer Aspire 5 model, which leaves a very good taste in our mouths.
Like the Lenovo IdeaPad 5, this model allows us to choose a lot of features to our liking to provide us with the greatest comforts and give us the best experience.
The best sales options are found in Pc Components, Fnac and Amazon.
We start with the size of the RAM. We are given four options: 8GB (256GB or 512GB) or 16GB (512GB or 1TB). We can also choose if we want it to come with an operating system or without, in addition to giving us a choice between two excellent graphics cards: UMA Graphics and NVIDIA MX350.
Finally, the processor is also our choice among the most powerful. The screen and resolution of this Aspire 5 are also remarkable as well as excellent: 15.6 inches full HD, so you can see everything with the best quality.
Despite being a very powerful laptop with enviable features, it has a certainly noisy fan and the battery is not one of its strong points either, since it lasts quite a short time, making almost constant charging necessary.
ADVANTAGE
Big screen plus Full HD
Multiple processors possible
It has numerous
DISADVANTAGES
noisy fan
Low battery life
7. New Apple MacBook Air
Processor: Intel Core i5
RAM Memory: 8GB
Hard drive: 128 or 256 GB
Screen: 13.3″ Inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: Intel UHD Graphics 617
1050€
As its name indicates, this new MacBook Air is one of the lightest laptops on the market. From the hand of Apple, it was introduced to the market not long ago.
Apple MacBook Air 13.3-inch weighs just 1.25 kg and its slimness say it all, 1.56 cm thick. It features a retina display providing 4 times the quality of an HD display. This feature will exponentially increase the visual and colour experience of everything you play.
Some viable options to obtain this product are Amazon, Fnac, Pc-Components and especially in the official Apple store.
The keyboard is studied to the millimetre and extremely resistant, presenting a vertical joint that will make your reports much more entertaining. Apple is one of the few competitors of Microsoft, that is why the operating system is iOS, however, Windows can currently be integrated into a Mac.
As for the battery, it has a range of 12 hours and the charging speed is quite high. External connections are made via USB-C ports. Additionally, it has a 5-core processor (Intel Core i5) and SSD digital storage (128 or 256 GB) with 8GB of RAM.
Without a doubt, this is one of the lightest laptops on the market, however, as it belongs to a recognized brand and has excellent features, its price is above 1,000 euros.
ADVANTAGE
Excellent screen resolution
Ultra-light and thin
Great autonomy of its battery
High processing speed
DISADVANTAGES
USB-C external connections
You will have to buy them additionally
6. Samsung Galaxy Book Pro LTE
Processor: Intel Core i7
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard drive: SSD, 512GB
Screen: 13.3″ Inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: Integrated, Intel Iris Xe Graphics
best laptops
2.083€
This Samsung Galaxy Book Pro is really excellent from all points of view: quality, processor, screen resolution and lightness make it truly unique.
Unlike the Huawei MateBook D14 laptop, which has an Intel Core i5 processor, this Samsung laptop implements an Intel Core i7, one of the best on the market.
You can find this product on Amazon and in the official Samsung store.
Another feature that makes it unique is its lightness; it becomes perfect for those who use it daily, take it to work and for students.
The hard drive of the Huawei Matebook laptop is not big enough, unlike this Samsung Galaxy Pro which reaches up to 512 GB.
The graphics card of the Samsung team is always Intel, as is the processor, which makes it more consistent and with less difficulty to adapt between the processor and the graphics card, unlike the Huawei model.
With this product, thanks to its screen, you can watch great 3D images or carry out graphic projects. Unlike the previous model, the processor has been upgraded from the Intel core i5 model to the current Intel Core i7 model.
ADVANTAGE
This laptop is very light, weighing less than a Kg (868g)
It has the Intelligent Performance Manager that makes it faster for tasks,
Great autonomy of its battery, it recharges completely in 30 minutes, holding after 9 hours.
DISADVANTAGES
Not very important… but there is only the blue colour unlike other computers that give you the option to choose between different colours.
5. Huawei MateBook D14
Processor: Intel Core i5
RAM Memory: 8GB
Hard drive: 512GB
Screen: 13.2″ Inches
Resolution: 2160 x 1440 pixels
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon Vega 8
From 649€
Like the LENOVO IdeaPad 5, Huawei Matebook allows us to choose between 6 processors; from the i3, through the i5/R5 and reaching an 11th generation i7 with 1TB integrated or an R7 with 512 GB.
In this case, unlike the LENOVO IdeaPad 5, you cannot choose features separately, once you choose the processor, the rest is default.
You can buy this item on Amazon, Fnac and Pc-Components.
It is worth mentioning that, depending on the model chosen, the price will be variable (the lower the power, the lower the price and vice versa).
On the other hand, the screen has a high resolution of 2160 × 1440 Full HD. The sharpness of your movies and projects will be second to none, as well as being able to see your work in absolute detail.
In turn, this is matte to avoid unwanted reflections on the screen, in addition to avoiding possible traces of dirt.
In addition, this MateBook D14 has a fingerprint sensor, providing user security, comfort and speed.
Despite all the advantages that this laptop provides us, we must mention that there is some disagreement with the position and angle chosen for the integrated camera, located on the keyboard.
ADVANTAGE
Full HD display
Great value for the price
It doesn't make noise
DISADVANTAGES
Angled and awkward camera
Low-capacity disk
4 Lenovo Ideapad 5
Processor: Intel Core i7
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard drive: 512GB
Screen: 15.6″ Inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
800€
This Lenovo IdeaPad 5 is a fascinating product from Lenovo. Throughout this ranking, others from the same brand are mentioned, such as the Lenovo Y520 or the Lenovo IdeaPad 520, but without a doubt, none of them come close to the perfection of this one.
One of the fundamental features that make it stand out among others is the possibility of choosing its features so that you can “create” the laptop that best suits what you need.
If you wish, you can find this article on Amazon, Fnac and Pc-Components.
On the one hand, you can choose between 5 types of processors at the time of purchase. Do you prefer Ryzen 7 to Intel Core i7? Marching. You can also choose between having an integrated operating system or not (as it does not have an integrated operating system, its price is considerably reduced by more than €100).
As if that weren't enough, you can also choose between the sizes of both the RAM and the laptop itself! Choose the one you like best without problem.
Finally, let's not forget to mention its incredible Full HD screen as well as having lavish dimensions (either 15.6” or 14”, it's up to you), designed so that you don't miss a single detail.
ADVANTAGE
Great variety to choose from
Big screen and HD resolution
Powerful processor and choice
Fast charge
clear sound
DISADVANTAGES
Fan a bit noisy
3. LG Gram 17
Processor: Intel Core i7-8565U
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard drive: 2000GB
Screen: 17″ Inches
Resolution: 2560×1600 pixels
Graphics Card: Intel HD Graphics 620
1.900€
If you were looking for the best laptop on the market for architectural work with a large screen, high guarantees and also that weighs little, LG Gram 17 can more than fulfil your wishes.
They are 17 inches which houses its high-resolution screen with a battery that can last up to 19.5 hours. It works through the 64-bit Windows 10 Home operating system.
If you want to get this laptop you can go to Amazon, Pc-Components and Fnac.
Additionally, it presents multiple external outputs for the connection of other devices. There are 3 USB outputs, another USB-C, ultra-fast battery charging, 1 HDMI output, another AUX headphone output and a micro-SD 3.0 card slot.
However, everything does not end here, if you need more space, it has a slot to expand the SSD disk up to 2TB as well as you can expand the RAM memory up to 16GB.
That is, if you like to work, play and fiddle with computers, this 17-inch and ultralight (1.3 kg) laptop has multiple applications. As expected and due to its high applications, the price of this LG Gram does not exceed 1,500 euros, however, the quality is more than assured.
ADVANTAGE
Very advanced processor
Very high level of digital storage (memory)
Very light
Versatile external connections
DISADVANTAGES
Windows 10 Home operating system
2. DELL XPS
"Good laptop for everyday use that covers all your basic needs and leaves no one indifferent"
Processor: Intel Core i5-1135G7
RAM Memory: 8GB
Hard drive: SSD, 512GB
Screen: 13.3″ FullHD inches
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Graphics Card: Integrated Intel
1.099€
The DELL XPS 13 laptop is a great computer that has some very good features to compete against the best.
It has an Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor which has nothing to envy to the Intel Core processor that has the same HP 15-da1013ns, obtaining even better performance than it. The storage of this computer is about 512 GB expandable through SSD memories, which if we compare it with the Lenovo Ideapad 520S on the list we see that it is superior to this.
The best options for your purchase are Amazon, Pc-Components and Fnac.
Another detail to note is that it already comes with integrated Windows 10 Home and 8 GB RAM. In addition to this, this laptop turns out to be very light, weighing only 1.16 Kg.
This product compared to other models of the company such as the DELL XPS 13, stands out in its reduced price for everything it offers and the similar characteristics that both have, since the latter only exceeds it in space, which can be covered by a memory SSD that can hold the DELL XPS 13-9305.
If you are looking for a comfortable laptop that can be used in your day-to-day life and with very good features for an everyday computer at a very good price for the quality it has, this is definitely your best option.
ADVANTAGE
The weight of this computer is very light, weighing only 1.16 Kg.
It has a wide screen, very similar to superior models, as well as a very good resolution that does not envy models more expensive than it at all.
DISADVANTAGES
Its Intel Core i5 processor may lag behind compared to other processors from other competing models.
In addition, it does not stand out excessively in the internal storage section.
1. Microsoft Surface Pro 7
Processor: Intel Core i5-1035G4
RAM Memory: 16GB
Hard Drive: 128GB SSD
Screen: 12.3″ Inches
Resolution: 2736 x 1824 pixels
Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Card
From 1.011€
Possibly the best 2-in-1 laptop on the market. The American giant Microsoft has renewed its famous line of Surface convertible laptops with this model, bringing improvements in all its aspects
It has a screen with an ultra-high resolution of 2736 × 1824 pixels, thus improving that of the previous Surface. Reading text, watching movies, or working has never been more comfortable with the stunning clarity of this display.
In Amazon, Fnac and Pc-Components you can find this article.
As for the processor, in the standard version, we have a 10th generation Intel Core i5 with spectacular performance.
Although we have several possible configurations available, being able to expand it to a latest generation i7 in case we want more processing power.
The RAM of this Surface Pro 7 has been given up to 16GB maximum, ample capacity for all kinds of multitasking. In fact, this configuration is intended for editing professionals who move large workloads at the same time.
If we focus on the functionalities of this product, we can spend all day talking about them. We highlight its built-in cover/keyboard, which fulfils the function of both products in 1. If we want to use it as a computer, we simply open its cover and put it on as a keyboard, also having a trackpad to control the pointer without the need for a mouse.
It includes a touch pen so that we can develop our projects quickly, intuitively and easily. With this two-in-one laptop, productivity will be multiplied thanks to its great usability, processing speed and ease of use.
All this makes it perfect for travel, meetings and product design professionals, as it enjoys maximum portability. Additionally, if you get hold of the Microsoft pen you can take notes and make sketches.
ADVANTAGE
High practicality and versatility
Great power
touch and convertible
DISADVANTAGES
Small screen
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