{"id":1762,"date":"2017-02-02T07:33:34","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T13:33:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/picknotebook.com\/blog\/?p=1762"},"modified":"2023-04-12T07:38:45","modified_gmt":"2023-04-12T13:38:45","slug":"best-laptop-for-4k-video-editing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/picknotebook.com\/blog\/best-laptop-for-4k-video-editing\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Supreme laptops for 4K video editing in 2023 (March edition) ($730-$3,820)"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\"4K\n

Have you ever tried editing 4K video<\/strong> on a sluggish computer? Trust me, it's no picnic. However, if you're serious about your 4K video editing game, you need the proper hardware to do it. That's where this guide comes in handy. I'm here to help you find the best laptop for 4K video editing<\/strong> without breaking the bank.<\/p>\n

This guide will delve into the most significant factors to consider when selecting a laptop for 4K video editing. We'll take a deep dive into hardware specifications and what they mean for editing 4K video. Moreover, I'll also provide you with some tips and tricks to make the most of your editing experience.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

By the end of this guide, you'll have a better understanding of what to look for in a laptop for 4K video editing and a few recommendations to start your search. So buckle up and get ready for a ride. Let's get started!<\/p>\n

Processor<\/h2>\n\"4K\n

The world of processors is a constantly evolving market; with so many different products, choosing the right one can be quite challenging. In late 2022, the landscape has changed significantly from the early 2021's, with AMD taking 20% of the market and Intel releasing their 12th-gen CPUs, while Apple's M-series of ARM-based processors offer exceptional performance and battery life.<\/p>\n

For 4K video editing, you need a more powerful processor than for regular CPU-heavy tasks. Since most video editing tasks are multi-threaded, having a high core count is important, but you should also pay attention to the single-core performance. Benchmarking is an essential part of the evaluation process; I usually use Cinebench R23, but you should also check the single-core and multi-core scores.<\/p>\n

For budget options, I'd recommend looking at gaming laptops; they offer good performance at an affordable price. But don't expect them to have a long battery life or to be lightweight, as they can sometimes sacrifice display quality in favor of power.<\/p>\n

If you have the budget, I'd recommend looking at Intel's 12th-gen H-series<\/strong> CPUs or the Apple M1 Pro\/Max<\/strong> for 4K video editing. However, if battery life is important to you, go for a laptop with an AMD Ryzen\/Intel Core non-H-series processor<\/strong> (like U or P series CPUs); these offer reduced power consumption at the cost of some performance.<\/p>\n

If you're looking for specific models for every price range, here's a table of my recommendations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Price range<\/th>\nRecommended Processors<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Minimum<\/td>\nRyzen 5 6600H; i5-12450H<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Recommended<\/td>\ni7-12700H; Ryzen 7 6800H; Apple M1 Pro\/Max<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
High-end<\/td>\ni9-12900HX; Ryzen 9 6900HX<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Laptop GPUs for 4K Video Editing<\/h2>\n\"4K\n

Looking for a laptop GPU to support your video editing workflow? You have come to the right place! Let's review the current laptop GPU market and figure out which one is the best for your needs.<\/p>\n

As of late 2022, Nvidia RTX 30 series is the go-to choice<\/strong> when it comes to video editing. The RTX 3070, RTX 3080, and RTX 3060 are all great options, depending on your budget. Nvidia GPUs offer superior performance in video editing applications, such as Adobe Premiere Pro. However, do keep in mind that the performance of any laptop GPU will be limited<\/strong> due to the power constraints.<\/p>\n

The AMD RX 6800M and 6800XT are also great choices for 4K video editing. AMD GPUs provide a lot of bang for your buck, though the actual performance may vary from laptop to laptop depending on the configuration.<\/p>\n

If you're buying a laptop for video editing, you should take into consideration more than just the GPU. Nvidia Optimus support<\/strong> is a great feature to have if you don't need to rely on dedicated hardware for encoding. Also, if you're editing with raw 4K footage, then you'll need to make sure that you have enough VRAM<\/strong> to handle all of your files. Finally, if you're into high-end effects such as ray-tracing, then you'll need a GPU with real-time ray-tracing support.<\/p>\n

To sum up, here's a table of recommended GPUs for video editing, depending on your budget:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Price Bracket<\/th>\nRecommended GPUs<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Low (under $1000)<\/td>\nRTX 3060<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mid (up to $2000)<\/td>\nRTX 3070; RX 6800M<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
High (over $2000)<\/td>\nRTX 3080<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Laptop storage options<\/h2>\n\"laptop\n

It's no surprise that SSDs dominate the laptop storage market nowadays, with HDDs and even SATA SSDs becoming a thing of the past. As a result, for 4K video editing, we'll want an M.2 drive (preferably NVMe) with at least 1 TB of capacity<\/strong>. Unfortunately, many budget laptops come with only 500 GB, mid-range ones are 1 TB, and high-end ones can reach up to 2 TB – so you'll want to make sure you buy a laptop with enough capacity for your needs.<\/p>\n

When deciding on the SSD you need for 4K video editing, it's not just about capacity. For example, with large files such as videos and audio files, we need to look at their sequential read and write speeds<\/strong>. You can ignore the numbers manufacturers throw around – such as [TBW](an article on understanding terabytes written) – as they don't tell you anything about performance. In addition, laptop owners with limited upgrade options should consider external storage or [RAID configurations](a guide on setting up raid configurations)<\/strong> (managed through a NAS system) to create redundancies.<\/p>\n

Finally, what do all this mean in terms of price ranges? Let's have a look at the recommended specs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Price Range<\/th>\nRecommended Storage<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Budget (< $900)<\/td>\n1 TB<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mid-range (~$1k)<\/td>\n1.5 TB<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
High-end (~$2k+)<\/td>\n2 TB+<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Regardless of which laptop you end up buying, you should always make sure that you have enough storage to store your 4K projects. If you think 1 TB won't cut it, you should go for a 1.5 TB or even a 2 TB+ SSD – or if that's not an option, go for external drives or RAID configurations.<\/p>\n

Selecting the Right Laptop Display<\/h2>\n\"laptop\n

As a video editor, you know better than most that a good laptop display is essential for getting the job done. The current standard for laptop displays is an IPS or IPS-level screen<\/strong>, and with the ever-growing popularity of 4K video editing, the importance of having the right laptop display is becoming more and more apparent.<\/p>\n

In late 2022, if you\u2019re looking to invest in a laptop display that can handle 4K editing, you\u2019ll want to pay close attention to its size, resolution, and panel type. A larger display size generally means a higher resolution, but be mindful of its weight and portability – 15" is a good compromise between portability and performance. As for the resolution, Full HD is still the most common display resolution<\/strong>. To edit 4K video content, look for laptops with a QHD or 4K display.<\/p>\n

Then comes the panel type – I prefer IPS panels<\/strong> because they offer wide viewing angles and good color reproduction. Furthermore, I pay attention to the display\u2019s color gamut coverage and contrast ratio – the higher, the better. And if you\u2019re looking for something high-end – OLED displays have exceptional contrast ratios and the deepest possible blacks. Though, be aware that OLED displays are more expensive and rarer than IPS panels.<\/p>\n

A professional-grade display would be ideal for a complete video editing setup – but if you can\u2019t afford that kind of display, here\u2019s what you can expect at each price point:<\/p>\n