Core i7 laptop vs Desktop - Pros and Cons ?

[tjodork]

I've had it with my Dell 8400 ...I think its reached the end of the road (at least for me ..soon to be an upgrade for my wife that has minimal needs)
Anyways, I assumed that I would look for a core i7-2600 system with 8GB DDR3 memory and 7200 rpm drive but my brother said ....why not get a core i7 laptop (i7-2670QM) with 8GB DDR3 and 7200 rpm drive.... and so it makes me think...

My heady duty needs are doing video editing, and picture editing (CS4 and Elements Versions), Lightroom.
I'm finding it hard to get a firewire port on a laptop but I could use my Dell 8400 for that if need be.
I have 2 x 21" monitors (1 vga/dvi and 1 hdmi).

If I chose the laptop, my intent would be to plug both monitors into the laptop and use an external KB and mouse and have laptop closed.....but have the option of taking everything with me.

Looking for opinions on the pros and cons ...whether based on real experiences or what you think.
Thanks

[Chuck Engels]

Hi Tim,
I love my Lenovo Thinkpad W520, pretty much the specs you mention above.
Edits video great and is fast as anything I've seen, for a laptop this is really amazing.

[stanatou]

I have a Dell Latitude with the i7 processer (720QM) that I bought a little over a year ago and haven't edited anything with my old Dell Demension desktop since. It has a 500GB hard drive and I probably should have went bigger...

Stan

[Barb O]

This is a very interesting thread because I have been asking myself the same desktop vs laptop question now that we have an AVCHD camcorder. I am curious :

1 -- attaching external monitors to the laptop
I have attached a single external monitor to laptops I currently have. Is it possible to attach 2 external monitors to a laptop ? If yes, what hardware is required to do this ?

I have a 1080 capable 24 inch monitor where I would use the HDMI connection. However I also have an older VGA connection 17 inch NEC 4:3 monitor that is still my favorite for editing photos.

2 -- second hard drive for use with Premiere Elements 10
There are some laptops with second internal hard drives: however needing a second internal 7200 rpm hard drive both significantly limits the choice of laptops and increases the price. Are USB3 drives a reasonable alternative for the second hard drive (because eSATA ports seem more difficult to find)?

3 -- Chuck, do you have an actual Dock for your Thinkpad or do you use the ports on the laptop ?

EDIT addition
4 -- "I'm finding it hard to get a firewire port on a laptop"
I agree with that observation. Would an Express Card with a firewire port be a solution ?
(yes, needing an Express Card in the laptop seems to also be a limit the choice of laptops but it seems more possible than a firewire port)

[Chuck Engels]

I have a docking station for use in the office, but like now on the road I do not.
The Thinkpad does have a 4pin firewire port
I use only the one internal drive, will probably replace the 500gb with a 1tb but everything has worked fine with just the single internal drive.

The Thinkpad has two monitor connections, VGA and HDMI. With the docking station you can have 3 monitors as it also has a DVI port as well.

[tjodork]

wow, thanks everybody for all the input.....its amazing that a laptop is even a viable option these days....certainly not the case a few years ago.

I bit the bullet and bought a Dell XPS8300 desktop tonight since they have a deal with $500 off...bringing it down to $750.

http://dealnews.com/Dell-XPS-8300-Core- ... 17371.html
There is probably better deals if I was willing to wait but I don't think much better.
I didn't really save over a laptop but decided in the end to get a desktop

I will have to buy a firewire pcie card.... I was hoping there was combo firewire + usb3 cards but they don't seem to exist. ( My previous firewire card had USB2 also when that was new)

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

The main advantage (IMHO) of a desktop is that it is far easier to upgrade/add additional components and also, bang for buck, they are cheaper.

The single, big disadvantage of course is that they are not mobile.