{"id":24042,"date":"2023-09-24T10:18:26","date_gmt":"2023-09-24T08:18:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/g100.us\/?p=24042"},"modified":"2023-09-24T10:18:31","modified_gmt":"2023-09-24T08:18:31","slug":"are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Laptops Good Enough For Video Editing and 3D Rendering?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Are laptops good enough for video editing and 3D rendering?<\/strong> What are the drawbacks of these heavy-duty workloads on a portable PC, and when would you be better-suited with a desktop for editing and rendering instead?<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ll be answering these questions and many more below as we start ripping into the meat of this one, so let\u2019s get into it!<\/p>\n<p>And of course, you can always skip around as desired with the Table of Contents.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_39 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">TABLE OF CONTENTS<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6684560f75a65\" class=\"cssicon\"><span style=\"display: flex;align-items: center;width: 35px;height: 30px;justify-content: center;direction:ltr;\"><svg style=\"fill: #7f11e0;color:#7f11e0\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #7f11e0;color:#7f11e0\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\" \/><\/svg><\/span><\/label><label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6684560f75a65\" class=\"cssiconcheckbox\">1<\/label><input type=\"checkbox\" id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6684560f75a65\" checked><nav><ul class=\"ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 \"><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#What_Video_Editing_and_3D_Rendering_PCs_Need\" title=\"What Video Editing and 3D Rendering PCs Need\">What Video Editing and 3D Rendering PCs Need<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#Are_Laptops_Good_Enough_For_Video_Editing_and_3D_Rendering\" title=\"Are Laptops Good Enough For Video Editing and 3D Rendering?\">Are Laptops Good Enough For Video Editing and 3D Rendering?<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#When_To_Get_An_Editing_and_Rendering_Desktop_Instead\" title=\"When To Get An Editing and Rendering Desktop Instead\">When To Get An Editing and Rendering Desktop Instead<\/a><ul class=\"ez-toc-list-level-3\"><li class=\"ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#You_want_a_cost-effective_Editing_and_Rendering_PC\" title=\"You want a cost-effective Editing and Rendering PC\">You want a cost-effective Editing and Rendering PC<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#You_want_full_PC_upgradeability\" title=\"You want full PC upgradeability\">You want full PC upgradeability<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#You_dont_actually_need_a_laptop\" title=\"You don\u2019t actually need a laptop\">You don\u2019t actually need a laptop<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#You_want_a_full-time_Editing_andor_Rendering_Machine\" title=\"You want a full-time Editing and\/or Rendering Machine\">You want a full-time Editing and\/or Rendering Machine<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#FAQ\" title=\"FAQ\">FAQ<\/a><ul class=\"ez-toc-list-level-3\"><li class=\"ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#Can_you_edit_videos_on_a_cheap_laptop\" title=\"Can you edit videos on a cheap laptop?\">Can you edit videos on a cheap laptop?<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#Is_a_gaming_laptop_good_for_3D_rendering\" title=\"Is a gaming laptop good for 3D rendering?\">Is a gaming laptop good for 3D rendering?<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#Is_16GB_RAM_enough_for_4K_video_editing\" title=\"Is 16GB RAM enough for 4K video editing?\">Is 16GB RAM enough for 4K video editing?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/are-laptops-good-enough-video-editing-3d-rendering\/#Over_to_You\" title=\"Over to You\">Over to You<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Video_Editing_and_3D_Rendering_PCs_Need\"><\/span>What Video Editing and 3D Rendering PCs Need<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Video Editing and 3D Rendering are two very big, very demanding workloads for any PC<\/strong>. They have somewhat <em>similar<\/em> hardware demands, too.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Video Editing and 3D Rendering PCs need the following:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Plenty of RAM for storing active projects, footage, textures, meshes, and more within memory.<\/li>\n<li>Fast SSD storage for mitigating performance loss when the paging file is in use, and boosting save\/transfer times.<\/li>\n<li>High, raw CPU power to push renders through. (Video Editing is more reliant on CPU power, generally-speaking.)<\/li>\n<li>High, raw GPU power to accelerate editing <em>or<\/em> renders. (3D Rendering software tends to get a lot more out of GPU acceleration than Video Editing software.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24048\" src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC.jpg\" alt=\"System Requirements for Video Editing rendering PC\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24048 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" alt=\"System Requirements for Video Editing rendering PC\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/System-Requirements-for-Video-Editing-rendering-PC.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>So, we\u2019ve <em>seemingly<\/em> established an idea of what kind of hardware is needed for a good video editing and 3D rendering experience.<\/p>\n<p>BUT, we have to make one thing clear: Video Editing and 3D Rendering is a very broad field, and many workloads within this field may need an entirely different range of hardware from what we've established above.<\/p>\n<p>I'm talking in particular about CPU and GPU performance.<\/p>\n<p>For one thing, 3D Rendering depends heavily on which render engine you're looking to use as your main renderer. If you're using something like <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/octanebench-benchmark-results\/\">Octane<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/redshift-system-requirements-pc-recommendations\/\">Redshift<\/a>, you need a powerful <em>GPU<\/em> in your Laptop, as such renderers are either extremely slow on CPU, or don't run on CPU at all. If you use a renderer such as Corona, you'll need a high-end multi-core CPU to get the best performance from it, as it's a CPU-based renderer only.<\/p>\n<p>And that's just <em>rendering<\/em>. Chances are, when you're into 3D, you don't just use your Laptop for rendering out stuff, but actually want to model, texture, animate and sculpt your 3D Projects as well. And these workloads, again, need vastly different resources from rendering (high CPU <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/single-core-performance-cpu-list\/\">single-core performance<\/a> for starters).<\/p>\n<p>Then, Video Editing: Again, this is a field consisting of many different workloads, ranging from footage decoding, stabilizing, archiving, to live editing, effects, transitions, SFX, Color grading, tracking, to playblasting, encoding and rendering, converting, DCPs, playback and more.<\/p>\n<p>And, depending on your software of choice, your footage type and codec, for both your source files and your output, hardware requirements can diverge heavily.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So what even is the point of this article if &#8220;<em>it depend<\/em>s&#8221; would have to be built into most of the answers here?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Well, thankfully, powerful Laptops and their accompanying hardware can cover a range of different workloads, and while a desktop PC will always (yes, always) be more powerful in a performance-per-dollar comparison, Laptops don't have as extreme and specialized hardware to choose from on either side of the spectrum (single-core, multi-core, &amp; CPU\/GPU balancing spectrum) as desktops do.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So powerful Laptops will do many things well-enough in typical content-creation workloads, even if they'll never be able to reach the performance of a targeted\/specialized PC built for a very specific workload.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>But let's take a closer look and not get ahead of ourselves:<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Are_Laptops_Good_Enough_For_Video_Editing_and_3D_Rendering\"><\/span>Are Laptops Good Enough For Video Editing and 3D Rendering?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Yes\u2014 at least in terms of raw processing power.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Laptop CPUs and GPUs have progressed in power alongside their desktop counterparts over the years, taking cutdowns to architecture and power in order to work inside laptop computers but remaining shockingly comparable all the while.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Modern laptops, especially high-end laptops, are quite powerful!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The problem is this isn\u2019t solely a concern of raw CPU and GPU throughput<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019d live in a much better world if that was all you had to worry about, but even desktop PCs with <em>far<\/em> more room to breathe need to outfit properly with cooling fans and such to have good airflow. Desktop CPUs and GPUs also have their own dedicated coolers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Desktop PCs are better for sustained heavy-duty workloads in every conceivable way.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-15127\" src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling.jpg\" alt=\"Laptop VS Desktop Cooling\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-15127 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" alt=\"Laptop VS Desktop Cooling\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2022\/01\/Laptop-VS-Desktop-Cooling.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><strong>So, do the fundamental disadvantages of laptops make them not good enough for video editing and 3D rendering? Not necessarily!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>These are just things you should be aware of because chances are you will be forced to work around them if you choose to get a laptop for this purpose.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I would highly recommend getting a <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/laptop-cooling-pads\/\"><strong>laptop cooling pad<\/strong><\/a><strong> and <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/laptop-docking-station-guide\/\"><strong>docking station<\/strong><\/a><strong> if you plan on using a laptop as a workstation PC<\/strong>\u2014 these should help alleviate the downsides, especially a cooling pad.<\/p>\n<p>Gauging performance can be as easy as looking at benchmarks of Laptop CPUs vs. Desktop CPUs, or Desktop GPUs vs. the Laptop GPU variant you're looking to buy.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"When_To_Get_An_Editing_and_Rendering_Desktop_Instead\"><\/span>When To Get An Editing and Rendering Desktop Instead<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"You_want_a_cost-effective_Editing_and_Rendering_PC\"><\/span>You want a cost-effective Editing and Rendering PC<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>If you simply want the most cost-effective Editing and Rendering PC for your money, you should definitely be considering a desktop <em>first<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A high-end laptop with the same performance as a given high-end desktop will always cost considerably more than the desktop.<\/p>\n<p>You will have to pay for your peripherals and monitor for yourself on a desktop, but the power\/pricing of full desktop CPUs and GPUs will still provide a much better bang for your buck.<\/p>\n<p>I recently wrote an article discussing <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/why-desktops-cheaper-faster-laptops\/\"><strong>why desktop PCs are cheaper and faster than laptops<\/strong><\/a> in more detail, in case you want more details about why it works like this.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"You_want_full_PC_upgradeability\"><\/span>You want full PC upgradeability<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-23443\" src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability.jpg\" alt=\"Desktop vs Laptop Upgradability\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-23443 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" alt=\"Desktop vs Laptop Upgradability\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/07\/Desktop-vs-Laptop-Upgradability.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><strong>It\u2019s not a fair competition for laptops, but it\u2019s hard to understate the value of being able to replace literally every component inside your PC<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Whether that means continually slapping it with appropriate upgrades or only replacing hardware when there\u2019s a problem, it\u2019s still a lot more freedom than you get with a laptop.<\/p>\n<p>Plus, while laptops <em>allow<\/em> you to upgrade things like RAM and storage (sometimes), desktop PCs enable you to push your RAM and storage to much farther extremes. <strong>You certainly aren\u2019t running 5 SSDs in a laptop.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"You_dont_actually_need_a_laptop\"><\/span>You don\u2019t actually need a laptop<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>As nice as laptops are, there are <em>many <\/em>sacrifices involved with using a laptop, especially for sustained heavy-duty workloads.<\/p>\n<p>As a lifelong tech guy, I\u2019ve talked <em>many<\/em> people out of getting laptops with the following questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>How often do you run intensive tasks on your computer?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>How often do you run these intensive tasks <em>on the go<\/em>?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Unless a laptop computer is literally required due to lifestyle reasons (ie, college student), most of your heavy-duty computing is already done at home or at the office<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Doing it on a laptop instead of a desktop in these spaces is a suboptimal approach, and trying to do something as extreme as video editing on a laptop battery charge would be pretty suboptimal, too.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"You_want_a_full-time_Editing_andor_Rendering_Machine\"><\/span>You want a full-time Editing and\/or Rendering Machine<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Have you ever just wanted to torture a computer? It\u2019s okay, you didn\u2019t just load onto the wrong page. It\u2019s just a sensible question to ask, because <strong>video editing and 3D rendering workloads can border on torture testing your hardware<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>100% CPU utilization will heat up and slow down a PC <em>quickly<\/em>, regardless of how much raw power and cooling it has to throw around.<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you anticipate that you\u2019ll be dedicating your PC to full-time or near full-time rendering duties, a desktop is definitely a better all-around choice due to its cooling.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-24049 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1.jpg\" alt=\"Desktop or Laptop Workstation Flowchart\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-24049 size-full lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" alt=\"Desktop or Laptop Workstation Flowchart\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%202048%201080%22%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-768x405.jpg 768w, https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1-1536x810.jpg 1536w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/media\/2023\/09\/Desktop-or-Laptop-Workstation-Flowchart-1.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><em>Laptops<\/em> don\u2019t do quite as well with extended torture workloads and require cooling pads or settings tweaks to prevent overheating in heavy workloads like this.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FAQ\"><\/span>FAQ<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_you_edit_videos_on_a_cheap_laptop\"><\/span>Can you edit videos on a cheap laptop?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Yes, but it\u2019s not recommended<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Insufficient RAM and storage will slow down your editing performance, while your actual render speeds are going to be slowed by being on a low-end laptop CPU\/GPU instead of something higher-end.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_a_gaming_laptop_good_for_3D_rendering\"><\/span>Is a gaming laptop good for 3D rendering?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>A gaming laptop certainly has the graphical specs required for 3D rendering<\/strong>. However, other components\u2014 like CPU, RAM and storage\u2014 may not be up to snuff.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Additionally, the high temperatures of a sustained 3D render load make most laptops a less ideal choice<\/strong>, as discussed earlier in the article.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_16GB_RAM_enough_for_4K_video_editing\"><\/span>Is 16GB RAM enough for 4K video editing?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Yes<\/strong>, though it may be strained depending on your background applications and the quality of your 4K media files.<\/p>\n<p>Alex has written a more in-depth breakdown on <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/ram-video-editing\/\"><strong>How Much RAM You Need For Video Editing<\/strong><\/a> elsewhere on G100, should you want to learn more about RAM usage in video editing.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Over_to_You\"><\/span>Over to You<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>And that\u2019s all, for now.<\/p>\n<p>If this article helped you decide between a PC and a laptop for your workstation needs, consider trying the <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/pc-builder\/\"><strong>G100 PC Builder\/Laptop Picker<\/strong><\/a> tool! Our tool will automatically give you a recommended PC build or laptop for your needs depending on your budget.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I hope this article thoroughly addressed whether or not laptops are good enough for video editing and 3D rendering!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Ultimately it does end up boiling to a question of desktop vs laptop (like <em>many<\/em> laptop pieces do), but there are enough ways to make a laptop workstation function that I\u2019m not willing to dismiss them just yet.<\/p>\n<p><em>I think<\/em> laptops are good enough, you just might need to fight them a little bit for the best results.<\/p>\n<p><strong>But what do you think?<\/strong> Feel free to sound off in the <a href=\"#comments\">comments<\/a> section below if you have any thoughts or questions about laptops or PC hardware in general.<\/p>\n<p>You can also consider the G100 <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/forum\/\"><strong>Forum<\/strong><\/a> if you want to engage in longer-form discussions with other Enthusiasts and Experts.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Until then or until next time, happy rendering and editing!<\/strong> And if you\u2019ll be doing it on a laptop,<em> trust me<\/em>: get a cooling pad. You can also consider a <a href=\"https:\/\/g100.us\/the-best-thermal-paste-for-your-needs-beginners-guide\/\"><strong>thermal paste<\/strong><\/a> replacement if you want to enhance your laptop\u2019s existing cooling.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are laptops good enough for video editing and 3D rendering? What are the drawbacks of these heavy-duty workloads on a portable PC, and when would you be better-suited with a desktop for editing and rendering instead? I\u2019ll be answering these questions and many more below as we start ripping into the meat of this one,...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2339,"featured_media":24043,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[173],"tags":[147,124],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24042"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2339"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24042"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24139,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24042\/revisions\/24139"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24043"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/g100.us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}