Buying a New laptop, help and advice please?

[Robert Lambie]

I will reply, but it is not very positive with regards to laptops for business use.
I have a couple of laptops, but seldom use them and only have them for work on the go. as in traveling by train etc or at a meeting and need it for reference…

Personal opinion is i can work at least 5+ times faster and more efficiently working from a computer terminal.
Laptops get easily damaged or even stolen. We tend to use them sat on your knee while watching TV or amongst others… which distracts your attention, when i want/need focus when i work.
Then there is the touch pad rather than mouse etc. that just drives me nuts 😆
Anyway, do not get me wrong, my brother uses his all the time and doesn’t seem to mind, but while i watch him balancing it on his lap and his fingers bunched on the pad while hitting keys… i could scream! 😆

I have a computer at work in my office, the same as the one i have at home.
both are sinq’d to the cloud for everything. I walk out work, go home and turn on my computer and both are the exact same. just different environment.
both places could burn to the ground, get broken into or whatever. nothing is lost.

anyway…
if you plan using a sign design software, make sure they are compatible with the Laptop.
Some new laptops/notebooks are APP based, and does not support installing some software.
Make sure you use a cloud based email client and auto-cloud backup of all working files, photos etc
And for MY peace of mind, get at least a bluetooth mini-mouse to work with. 😉 😆 😆 😆

[Jonathan feeney]

quote Robert Lambie:

I will reply, but it is not very positive with regards to laptops for business use.
I have a couple of laptops, but seldom use them and only have them for work on the go. as in traveling by train etc or at a meeting and need it for reference…

Personal opinion is i can work at least 5+ times faster and more efficiently working from a computer terminal.
Laptops get easily damaged or even stolen. We tend to use them sat on your knee while watching TV or amongst others… which distracts your attention, when i want/need focus when i work.
Then there is the touch pad rather than mouse etc. that just drives me nuts [emoji38]
Anyway, do not get me wrong, my brother uses his all the time and doesn’t seem to mind, but while i watch him balancing it on his lap and his fingers bunched on the pad while hitting keys… i could scream! [emoji38]

I have a computer at work in my office, the same as the one i have at home.
both are sinq’d to the cloud for everything. I walk out work, go home and turn on my computer and both are the exact same. just different environment.
both places could burn to the ground, get broken into or whatever. nothing is lost.

anyway…
if you plan using a sign design software, make sure they are compatible with the Laptop.
Some new laptops/notebooks are APP based, and does not support installing some software.
Make sure you use a cloud based email client and auto-cloud backup of all working files, photos etc
And for MY peace of mind, get at least a bluetooth mini-mouse to work with. 😉 [emoji38] [emoji38] [emoji38]

Cheers rob im still looking for the best option but a bluetooth mouse was on the shopping list already haha

[Steve Morgan]

Although I’m now retired I still do one or two jobs for friends and old customers. I used a desktop machine with a proper screen and a cble connected mouse for years, I now manage with an i5 laptop using SignLab. If the going gets serious I add a bluetooth mouse because as Rob says the touchpad is horrible added to the fact that the screen is really quite inadequate.

I think that a proper desktop machine, which you can always upgrade, probably a lot cheaper, linked to a proper screen are really essential if you want to work efficiently and they are almost certainly more reliable when you consider that it may be running for 10 hours a day. Cloud storage; well I never went down that road but I would now.

Hope that’s of some help

[Simon Worrall]

Laptop – macbook pro 15 inch.

It is robust, fast, lightweight.
and the trackpad has become second nature.
and you can run windows on it, with all the windows applications.

I am not a mac fanboy…I only use PCs at work.
But their laptops cant be beat.

[Jamie Palmer]

I use a MacBook Pro i7 for design work its paired with twin 24” screens in the office including a Bluetooth mouse & keyboard. I purchased a dell computer with 17” screen from eBay office clearance (£100) think it’s an optimax and I have had the ram upgraded and ssd hardrive (+£165) to run versaworks rip and act as a second backup to artwork storage. This means your main machine is not idle when ripping etc. I do also use team viewer to setup jobs on the pc remotely from home so print runs are ready to go the next day or even through the night. I also have remote lighting, drying fans and Cctv on the machine so offsite I can keep an eye on what’s printing or not when the ink or media has run dry. I have owned apple laptops for 15 years and my first one still runs today, second one is now my wife’s and never had an issue on any machine ever. But ultimately you need what will give you the best return for your business. Jamie