Laptop needed for design

[Chaos]

I'm going to be going to Uni in a month to study Illustration and I am looking into getting a laptop. I basically need something with a large screen (preferably 17"+) and something that is generally good for graphic design - using photoshop etc....art things. I have no idea about computers so any advice would be great....or suggestions/free laptops.

I don't want to really spend anything above the £700ish mark, although I need to speak to my parents about that.

I'm also unsure about wether I should go for PC or a Mac...I already have all the software I need for a PC, so I'm leaning more to that, but I know Macs are supposed to be better for graphicy-arty-stuffs.

So yeah - what kind of specs should I look for?
Thanks!!

[Flying Mullet]

If you're looking for a quality laptop that provides good graphic design capabilities, a MacBook (Apple) is the way to go. Apple is used by most of the "visual arts" community as they have always had superior products and software compared to Windows based computers for graphics-based work. As far as price goes, you will be looking at £750 - £1000 for a "lower-end" one, yet it should meet your needs just fine.

http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObjects/ukstore/

[bipper]

Show up with an etch-a-sketch and see what they say!

But I would go with a Mac, like Mac Daddy Bantam said, and don't go cute with the 12' - get all the screen real estate you can.

[Mirage]

Remember the resolution of the screen is just as important as the size. I'd rather have a 15" over a 17" if it had a better resolution.

[bipper]

Good point Mirage. It is not the size, its how you use it.

[Yamaneko]

The Macbook Pro is the only Mac notebook that has a 17" screen. Although the Macbook is a nice little notebook, at 13.3" it would be hard to get all your art work done on there without having to resort to screen spanning.

Size matters when you're in Photoshop or something similar. You need a lot of screen real estate, besides all 17" notebooks have high resolutions, so that's a non-issue.

I would look into some 15.4" notebooks, though. That might be good enough.

[bipper]

I am not sure what mac makes for a docking station, but plan on getting one. I have one for my laptop (a DELL) and I plug into a 21" LCD. Lots of room for graphics and programming [etc].

bipper

[Mirage]

The Macbook Pro is the only Mac notebook that has a 17" screen. Although the Macbook is a nice little notebook, at 13.3" it would be hard to get all your art work done on there without having to resort to screen spanning.

Size matters when you're in Photoshop or something similar. You need a lot of screen real estate, besides all 17" notebooks have high resolutions, so that's a non-issue.

I would look into some 15.4" notebooks, though. That might be good enough.

I've got a 15.4" widescreen, and it's got about the same DPI as 14" 4:3 screens (its resolution is 1280x800). I know, I got ripped off. It's still nice to watch movies on though :).
I've noticed that if someone just say "omg huge 15.4" monitor" and don't brag about the resolution, the res is usually not anything to write home about.

[crono_logical]

If you're doing lots of graphic editing, I would probably also make sure what you get has plenty of RAM, maybe at least 1 GB :p

[Yamaneko]

I'd say 2GB at least with PS.

1280x800 is pretty standard for a 15.4", but you'll see a lot of manufacturers out there starting to use SXGA+ displays.

[Mirage]

Yes, that's what I mean. But you get smaller monitors with higher resolutions than that. And that's better for graphical work

[Dr Unne]

Size of the screen is not the only concern. Some monitors display colors more "truely" than others. Generally a cheap monitor will look too blue or too washed out or will be slightly brighter around the edges than in the center, or something equally nasty. All of those things can screw you up when you're trying to draw something.

For example I have an Apple 20 inch widescreen monitor I paid $700 for last year, and an extremely cheap 17" 'MAG' brand monitor I got on sale for $125. If I take a drawing and drag it from one monitor to the other, the difference in color and sharpness is shocking.

[bipper]

Size of the screen is not the only concern. Some monitors display colors more "truely" than others. Generally a cheap monitor will look too blue or too washed out or will be slightly brighter around the edges than in the center, or something equally nasty. All of those things can screw you up when you're trying to draw something.

For example I have an Apple 20 inch widescreen monitor I paid $700 for last year, and an extremely cheap 17" 'MAG' brand monitor I got on sale for $125. If I take a drawing and drag it from one monitor to the other, the difference in color and sharpness is shocking.

I get this too between a dell laptop and a Dell 21" LCD. It is REALLY annoying. Is there a measure which will help identify "true colors" or any such thing?

Bipper

[Chaos]

Uh there is software you can get that calibrates moniters so the colours are more true to life...its used in high end digital manipulation.
I can't remeber any software names (although Spyder has popped into my head, not sure if that is right, probably not...) and they generally retail from about £50 (US$90 maybe) upwards...I know you can pay hundreds of pounds for this software if you want...

I'm probably going to go with a PC now, simply as Macs are just too much. Again, still havent spoken to parents as regards to priceing, but thanks all as you have helped.

:)