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Photo editing pushes laptop capabilities right to the border. Top-quality piece of work demands a high-resolution, color-accurate brandish, and a fast processor. Simply the rigors of traveling with photo gear plus a computer make small, lightweight machines with long bombardment lives a real plus. Similarly, storing thousands of high-resolutions calls for a big difficult drive, while peak performance is only possible with an SSD.

When nosotros last looked at the best options in the market, there were some articulate leaders. We've now updated our list, with new and improved models that have come on the market over the terminal six months. In particular, Kaby Lake chips, updated GPUs from Intel and Nvidia, and faster SSDs have arrived. In that location are also more high-resolution screen options, including some OLED versions. If yous are in the market and photo editing is a pinnacle priority, ane of these laptops is likely to suit your needs.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga (2nd gen) and Yoga 920

The Thinkpad X1 Yoga delivers a lot of punch, including stylus support, in a sleek package

The Thinkpad X1 Yoga delivers a lot of punch, including stylus support, in a sleek packet

I've lumped these two machines together because they are similar, but also offer some tradeoffs depending on your needs. Both machines are have 14-inch displays, support a stylus, and can fold back on themselves in classic Yoga way. Both authorize as Ultrabooks and weigh in at about iii pounds, with back up for up to 16GB of RAM, 1TB SSD, and a fingerprint reader. Both units also feature excellent keyboards and TrackPoints, and practise pretty well on ports, with USB iii.0, USB-C, and Thunderbolt back up.

After the to a higher place, at that place are some differences. The X1 Yoga has the option of an amazing 2560×1440 OLED display that is almost the best I've e'er used for watching movies or showing off images. The Yoga 920 doesn't offer an OLED pick, just you can get it with upwards to a 4K IPS panel. The X1 Yoga also only comes with a dual-core 7th generation i7 (i7-7600U), while the Yoga 920 can be configured with a quad-core 8th generation CPU (i7-8550U). Video outputs are as well slightly different, with the 920 featuring DisplayPort over USB-C and the X1 Yoga having a more than traditional HDMI port.

Neither unit has an SD carte du jour slot, unfortunately, although the X1 Yoga does have a slot for a microSD in the back. Nonetheless, the slot is hard enough to admission that you'll probably wind upwards with a menu reader anyway.

  • Price: $1,682 and upwardly
  • Buy from Lenovo

Microsoft Surface Pro (newest 2022 version)

If you want a lightweight solution that doubles as a graphics tablet the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 is a good fit

If you lot like to apply a tablet or stylus for your image editing in your studio, and desire to have admission to the same adequacy on the road, the Microsoft Surface Pro may be ideal. It'due south powerful for its small size, and features a pressure-sensitive agile stylus while also offering a reasonable keyboard. You'll probably as well desire to pair it with a Bluetooth mouse like the Microsoft Arc Bear on. Microsoft removed the model number from the most recent version, so don't confuse the new Surface Pro with the original version that as well carried that proper noun.

By itself, the ane.vii pound unit certainly won't give you the same big-screen experience of larger laptops, but its 12.3-inch screen is sharp and high-resolution. While the base model comes with an i3, you can bump up to an i5 or i7 for more power. You'll also want an external menu reader to use with your camera, only with up to 1TB of internal SSD, you may not need an external drive to keep your images while you travel. When you lot're in one location for awhile, y'all can use the mini DisplayPort to drive an external monitor–or fifty-fifty exercise what I do and travel with a portable USB-powered display. The entry level version is now $800, with a loaded model costing upwards to $ii,700 with an i7, 16GB of retention, and a 1TB SSD. You lot'll need to buy a keyboard encompass and stylus on top of that, unless you already accept them.

  • Cost: $800 and up
  • Buy from Amazon

Apple MacBook Pro 15 and MacBook Pro 13

Apple's newest Macbooks feature a nifty Touch Bar and increased hard drive options

Apple's MacBook Pro has long been a favorite among professional photographers. A big function of it is, of course, that it runs the aforementioned macOS many of them run on desktop computers. Only it was also an early on pioneer of ultra-high resolution LCDs with a large colour gamut, and a relatively compact, stylish, design. Nonetheless, many PC vendors have defenseless upwardly in features, and surpassed the now-aging MBP models in raw functioning. Apple tree has fabricated some contempo improvements, including adding a Force Impact trackpad, faster SSDs, a fingerprint reader, and improving the bombardment life–although the lack of an SD bill of fare slot remains a sticking indicate.

The current version of the MBP thirteen with Retina Display starts at $i,500, while the 15-inch Retina model starts at $2,400. As is typical, photographers volition more likely exist interested in the higher-end configurations, which are $two,000 and $2,800, respectively. The new models accept college price points than before, merely with beefier specs. Yous tin can now get upwards to a 1TB SSD in the 13-inch model, and a 2TB SSD in the xv-inch. With 30MP and upward cameras becoming common, and 4K video widespread, these larger hard bulldoze options are a welcome addition. The 15-inch version comes with a discrete Radeon Pro GPU to help maximize prototype processing operation. The thirteen-inch models rely on an integrated GPU, although those have gotten substantially faster over the last couple years, so you lot may not miss having a separate discrete GPU. Both versions characteristic up to seventh-generation Core i7 CPUs–dual-core for the 13-inch, and quad-cadre for the 15-inch.

  • Price: $ane,300 and upwardly
  • Purchase from Amazon

Dell XPS xv Bear upon (2017): Still a WinnerThe latest Dell XPS 15 features a nearly edge to edge display

Spoiler Alert: The newest version of the Dell XPS 15 is once again my favorite laptop for photo editing. I've simply bought my third XPS fifteen, this time the 2022 Bear on edition. Featuring an optional 4K brandish that covers 100 percent of Adobe RGB, a Kaby Lake quad-core Core i7, an Nvidia 1050 GPU, a 1TB SSD, and up to 32GB of RAM, it has just about everything a road warrior photographer could want. Information technology hasn't actually gotten any lighter over the terminal year, as information technology is still over 4 pounds, but it is a petty smaller and sleeker. While starting configurations of the machine run every bit piffling as $1K, configured as above will run y'all just over $2K.

The only things I could meet regretting are that it doesn't have the Kaby Lake Refresh chips yet, and in that location's no stylus support. Also, you lot pay a heavy price in battery life for the 4K display and discrete GPU. Don't count on more than 4 hours of reasonable use, so it isn't the ideal option if you lot're mostly on the get without a power plug. It's also overkill if you don't need a quad-cadre CPU or high-end GPU. For straight ahead benchmarks, some of the dual-core models in this roundup are only equally fast. Just if you want loftier-operation 3D graphics, Photoshop processing, or video rendering without a full-on gaming laptop, this model delivers. If you are willing to expect, I'm sure there will be an update early on next yr, or the not-still-available HP ZBook x2 offers Kaby Lake Refresh and an active stylus, although it is larger and heavier.

The unit has a good selection of ports, including HDMI, USB 3.0, Thunderbolt, and an SD card slot. Starting at a little over 4 pounds, the latest XPS xv is about the lightest laptop yous can find that can pack this much punch, and with the same 100 percent Adobe RGB colour gamut.

Three generations of Dell XPS 15 laptops

To provide some perspective on progress in this category, the higher up image shows iii generations of Dell XPS 15 laptops. Over the concluding 4-five years they've shrunk significantly, weigh 1.5 pounds less, and pack nearly twice as much ability under the hood. The display has besides jumped from a gamut similar to sRGB to one that is almost identical to the much-larger Adobe RGB color space.

  • Price: $i,949 and upward
  • Buy from Dell

HP ZBook x2

The HP ZBook x2 looks to be a creator's dream portable

The HP ZBook x2 looks to be a creator's dream portable

HP has spared nil in designing the ZBook X2 for creatives of all kinds. It has the latest and well-nigh powerful CPU (up to i7-7600U) and a workstation class GPU (Nvidia Quadro M620), but notwithstanding weighs in at less than 5 pounds. At that place aren't any review units to look at yet, but the 4K, 100-percent Adobe RGB, DreamColor display promises to exist gorgeous. Somewhat unique for a high-end auto, not but does it support a total-featured Wacom stylus, but is a 2-in-1 so you tin remove the keyboard and employ the tablet apartment or with the kickstand to prop information technology up.

HP has built some pre-packaged bundles for item uses, such as Lensman, Digital Artist, and Video Editor. HP has also provided some customizable keys alongside the screen, then you can further accelerate your workflow.

  • Price: $ane,749 and upward, pre-orders start Nov 21st

Don't fret if we missed your photo editing favorite

Information technology was hard to choice out just a few machines from the dozens of excellent laptop models out there. For many, apparently small features similar backlit keyboards, multiple USB 3.0 ports, Thunderbolt, stylus-back up, high-resolution display, choice of DisplayPort, HDMI, or VGA output, or battery life tin hands alter which model is right for your particular needs. This is specially true with Windows Ultrabooks–with literally dozens of similar models crowding the sub-four-pound, SSD-powered Windows laptop space.

Unfortunately, some laptop makers are as well making it harder to compare the actual specifications for their units. Manufacturers oft completely fail to land maximum RAM capacity, base CPU speed (they seem to like bragging about the higher Turbo Heave speed instead), or drive RPMs (or interface used in the case of SSDs). Hopefully, though, the models nosotros've described can serve as a baseline for your shopping so you lot'll know what's available and what some of your alternatives are.

If y'all have a very-high-end photography workflow, that involves a lot of multi-layer Photoshop images, and are okay with lugging around something larger, as well accept a look at our best laptops for engineers guide for ideas.

If you lot have a unlike laptop you love for your photo editing work, let the states know about information technology in the comments.

Now read: The elevation laptops for anybody