Computer

[jlau6888]

Hey guys. I'm fairly new to the AutoCAD world and am planning on purchasing a new laptop with the intent on being mainly used for CAD. What is a good computer for this task? I also plan on using SolidWorks on this computer in the future as well. What specifics should this computer have to run both smoothly and seamlessly? Thanks in advance!

[Nellie]

Welcome to CADTutor, I'm sure you'll find this sit full of usefull things.

 

I dont know much about Solidworks but have got the requirments from there website which is below but in the case of normal CAD I use a 3gig ram at home & 8gig ram at work (use point clounds at work) and my machines work fine.

 

http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html

 

Hope it helps

[Scott W]

Agreed the main things when using AutoCAD is RAM and a good Graphics card if going 3D. Most of todays middle to top spec laptops are ok if the above is upgraded.

I use a laptop for all my work professionally, so my company asked our CAD reseller what they would recommend.

 

i persoanlly think it could be better spec'd but hey it works fine and is not too slow, you cant beat a st. for speed and heat loss...

 

my laptop spec...

 

Intel® Core™2 Duo CPU

T7500 @2.20GHz

789 MHz, 1.96 GB of RAM

 

hope it helps....

[jlau6888]

Is a video card with 512meg dedicated ram enough? is 4g of overall RAM enough or should i go higher?

[ReMark]

If you can get a laptop with those two features you should be fine.

[jlau6888]

Well I was planning on get a new Mac Book Pro that comes with 2 GPUs (one on board that utilizes 256m shared an one non with 512m dedicated RAM), 4gb ram, and 2.86 core 2 duo. One of my coworkers seems to think that it might not be enough as he uses a gaming PC thats built to the hilt.

[ReMark]

I prefer dedicated graphics cards in my computers as opposed to graphic chips (GPUs). Personal preference I suppose.

 

4GB RAM sounds fine. What OS will you be using?

 

How much money are you looking to spend here? Xi Computers has a nicely setup laptop aimed at AutoCAD users but I think it runs about $2500.

[tzframpton]

Well I was planning on get a new Mac Book Pro that comes with 2 GPUs (one on board that utilizes 256m shared an one non with 512m dedicated RAM), 4gb ram, and 2.86 core 2 duo. One of my coworkers seems to think that it might not be enough as he uses a gaming PC thats built to the hilt.

Won't work on a Mac. You could probably run it in BootCamp which is the Microsoft Windows emulator but I wouldn't recommend it at all. Stick with a Windows machine.

 

http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html

[jlau6888]

I prefer dedicated graphics cards in my computers as opposed to graphic chips (GPUs). Personal preference I suppose.

 

4GB RAM sounds fine. What OS will you be using?

 

How much money are you looking to spend here? Xi Computers has a nicely setup laptop aimed at AutoCAD users but I think it runs about $2500.

 

$3k is the top of my spending limit.

[jlau6888]

I was going to run BootCamp/ XP Pro

[ReMark]

Xi PowerGo XT - true workstation performance. $2395 before taxes, shipping and handling.

 

http://www.xicomputer.com/products/PowerGoIntelXT.asp

[jlau6888]

thanks for the link. it seems all the laptops with comparable internals all are in the range of $3k. any preferences?

[ReMark]

Not really. It's time to toss that coin. I call heads.

[jlau6888]

now is there a preferred video card you guys like to use?

[jlau6888]

I guess I also failed to mention I plan on using 3D and SolidWorks in the future.

[ReMark]

nVidia...the Quadro series is a good place to start.

[tzframpton]

I was going to run BootCamp/ XP Pro

I would be HIGHLY worried about performance and/or installation issues. Do you have someone who has a Mac Book Pro that you can install a Demo on to test it before spending the money? Maybe call a sales representative might be a good option, too.

[jlau6888]

nVidia...the Quadro series is a good place to start.

 

I will look into those.

[jlau6888]

I would be HIGHLY worried about performance and/or installation issues. Do you have someone who has a Mac Book Pro that you can install a Demo on to test it before spending the money? Maybe call a sales representative might be a good option, too.

 

A friend of mine actually uses AutoCAD 2008 on his Mac Book Pro and has no issues. But, he doesn't use it as extensively as I would be.

[Cad64]

I guess I also failed to mention I plan on using 3D and SolidWorks in the future.

 

And you're spending your money on a laptop?

That's just a waste of money in my opinion. If you're going to be doing a lot of 3D work, then invest in a good desktop PC with a 64 bit OS, a quad core processor to help with rendering and at least 8GB RAM. You'll be glad you did.

 

And forget about getting a Mac. Everone I've talked to that tries to run Autocad on a Mac says it's not worth the hassle. It runs slow and doesn't perform well. As Styk said, stick with a Windows PC.

 

Check my computer Details. The cost was just under $2,400 from XI Computers, and it blows away every other computer that I've ever worked on. Including our machines at work. It actually renders scenes faster than our render farm.