An engineer can only be as efficient as the tools he’s using. The kind of software engineers use in their work puts a special kind of stress on a machine and you need to get one that can run these often very heavy applications. Finding a laptop as an engineer will take a bit more time since you have to make sure that the machine is not only powerful but in all the right places. These machines will set you back quite a bit too, so you can’t make too many mistakes there. Here are some of the things that you should look for when looking for an engineering laptop.
The Processor
First, you need to get a machine with a powerful processor. Most engineering students will need something with an i5 processor at the very least with 4 cores/8 threads minimum. The more cores you have, the better your computer will be at completing different processes simultaneously, which is often the case when you’re using software that uses a wide variety of add-ons and modules. The processor will also affect how fast the computer boots and how long it takes for applications to start.
If you’re looking for a machine that will handle everything you need and more, we suggest that you give these Lenovo Intel i9 laptops a look as they have the perfect specs to run heavy imaging, 3D rendering, and CAD applications.
The GPU
Your graphics card will also be of supreme importance. Many of the programs that you’re going to use are going to put a lot of pressure on your graphics card, so stay away from any model that has an integrated graphics chip. It doesn’t matter how powerful the processor is, an integrated chip will simply not be able to handle advanced applications.
So, you will need to look at a machine that has a graphics card like an Nvidia 20 series at the very least, though we would suggest you go for a 30-series card. The price difference will be minimal and you’ll have a machine that will last longer.
RAM and Storage
RAM and storage are also very important for engineers and engineering students, but storage is particularly important here. Engineers work and have to save very heavy files, so your average 500GB hard drive won’t do. Forget HDD drives too, though we don’t even believe you can find a recent laptop with a mechanical drive these days.
For engineers, we suggest that you get something with 1TB of space at the very least. As far as RAM goes, get at least a 16GB stick if you can, though you should be able to get away with 8GB. It will just make everything run much smoother and allow you to switch between different programs, files, and pages easier.
Conclusion
These are the things you should focus on when looking for a laptop for engineering. This is not a decision you can make on a whim because of the significant investment you’re making and the consequences of a bad choice. So, be careful.
