Recommended laptops for Revit

[Wes Macaulay]

Since we have a recommended hardware component thread, the advent of truly powerful mobile computing means that you have no excuse -- you can take your work with you

There are a large number of laptops manufacturers out there and I'm sure some of you are wondering what to drop the bucks on.

As with desktops, the principles are the same: ensure the CPU, video card, and memory requirements are up to par.

WARNING! Only Revit 2008 has been tested with Vista. If you are using Revit 9.1 or earlier, it probably will NOT work with Vista.

CPU

• Intel Core 2 Duo processors lead the pack for performance. Get at least a 1.8 Ghz processor. CPU speeds range up to 2.33Ghz. The Core 2's offer about 10% better performance than Core Duos of the same clock speed.
• Core Duo processors: these dual core processors don't support 64bit computing, which may become a handicap as 64bit computing becomes the standard. You'll save a few dollars and this chipset will suffice for at least a couple of years. You can switch to a Core 2 Duo chipset later since they fit in the same slot. CPU speeds for the Core Duo also range up to 2.33Ghz.
• Centrino or Core Solo: a single processor which again will not support 64bit computing. These CPUs are fine but dual core CPUs will shine when you're rendering or busy with several applications open at once
• AMD Turion 64 X2: a competing 64bit capable dual core CPU from AMD that competes with the Core Duo but is outclassed by the Core 2 Duo; again look for something in the 1.8Ghz range and up
• Sempron and Celeron: single core CPUs to be avoided because of their lack of L2 cache memory on the chip

Video/Graphics Card
If you use your laptop in an office and want to use it with dual monitors or a super widescreen monitor, look for a laptop with a DVI output. Laptops with VGA output can only drive a second monitor (beyond that on the laptop itself) but can't do more than that.

• ATI: Radeon X1300 is a minimum in the mobility series, with good reports from X1400, X1600 and X1800 users; any of the Mobility FireGL cards will also fare well. Almost all ATI cards are compatible with Revit.
• nVidia: any of the QuadroFX cards will do; users of the GeForce GO cards are also reporting good success, especially with the 6000 series cards and higher. Note that some nVidia cards are not entirely compatible with Revit's display system.
• Avoid the nVidia Quadro NVS cards because they are not designed for 3D applications
• Integrated video cards should be avoided, though the Intel 950 integrated video cards produce the best performance results of this type
• See http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-...ist.844.0.html for a comprehensive list of mobile graphics card benchmarks

Viewscreen
Whether you choose the increasingly popular glossy finish or another finish, you need to choose a resolution higher than 1024x768 -- it's just not enough for CAD.

Memory
Some laptop models only allow a maximum of 2GB of RAM. For very large projects (over 100Mb in Revit file size) this may not be enough. 1Gb is a real minimum for Revit or any CAD application. If you're planning to work with Vista then consider a 2Gb minimum.

Hard Drive
Hard drive performance has improved a lot on laptops in recent years, but consider getting at least 80Gb of drive space.

Networking
Many laptops do not come with Gigabit network cards; if your files are always large and your office is Gigabit wired, consider getting a laptop with this capability. On the wireless front 802.11g is the current standard, and perhaps someday the Wireless N standard will be used.

Known Winners
There are several new laptop models that are being used in our area and work well with Revit.

Dell
Dell's value is hard to beat, and if you don't need more than 2Gb of RAM, the Inspirons are a steal. The Latitude series are attractive but aren't available with CAD-capable video cards. Note that Dell models now only ship with Vista.

• most Inspiron models with dedicated graphics cards -- note these have a 2Gb RAM maximum
• Precision M65/M90
• all XPS models

Apple
The MacBook Pro models combine great styling and design with phenomenal performance. They now run Windows XP either within OS X using Parallels or by dual boot using Boot Camp. These laptops provide a 3Gb maximum for RAM, but can be outfitted with 4Gb of RAM. The MacBook Pro uses the ATI Radeon X1600 or on new models nVidia GeForce 8600 video cards.

HP
The US and Canadian sites offer different models, many of which would run Revit well. Simply pick a model with the CPU and video card specs recommended above.

Lenovo
This Chinese company has taken over the IBM laptop line and continue to build the respected Thinkpad notebooks. Some models of the 3000 series, as well as the R, Z, and T Thinkpad models all have sufficient specs to run Revit admirably. The Thinkpads use ATI video cards.

Toshiba
Toshiba's laptops seem a tad overpriced, but are nice to look at. Toshibas suffer from a lack of ruggedness on some models. You will need to choose from the "Multimedia" or "Gaming" categories on their website to find a model with the specs you need to run Revit. Toshibas only use nVidia dedicated video cards.

Sony
Sony sells a wide line of laptops, all of which boast great styling. All models offer a max 2Gb of RAM for memory. You can readily find a model with the specs needed to run Revit. Sony laptops also tend to be more expensive than other brands, and they only use nVidia graphics cards with their laptops.

Other brands
There are of course other makers of laptops such as Acer, Asus, and others whose reputation is not as strong as those listed here.

If you have bought a laptop recently, post your results here with your laptop specs and tell us what you like/dislike about your laptop. Please don't post if your laptop is no longer available, unless you think your post still applies to new models.

[patricks]

We have 2 users in my office on Precision M90 laptops, with dual monitors attached while in the office. They work pretty well for Revit.

[aaronrumple]

We have an HP nw9440 laptop in the office. I've always been a fan of Dell laptops - but this HP is nice. It has 2 gig ram and a wide screen running Nvidia 256 mb graphics card. It has a nice low profile and good keyboard layout. If I needed a new system my self - I'd strongly consider one of these. Runs Revit quite well.

But I'll wait till I can afford decked out MacBook....

[BomberAIA]

I'm using a Macbook pro with 2 gigs of ram and it works fine.

[funkman]

Great thread - we have been needing this for a while


Has ayone used a Sony Vaio ?

I am looking at
17" widescreen - 1920x1200
Core 2 Duo Processor T7400 - 2.16GHz
Graphics is NVIDIA GeForce Go 7600 GT

any ideas on this?

[Wes Macaulay]

That Vaio will scream -- good specs all round. I'd be interested to know if your video card works with Revit with OpenGL acceleration in Revit enabled.

I own a Dell Inspiron 6400 maxed out with all you could get with this model when I ordered it. (Core Duo; Core 2 Duo wasn't available yet.) Performance is 25% better than my P4 3Ghz desktop at the office but the Inspiron's styling isn't great.

[Andrew Dobson]

I have used Sony Vaio S series and SZ series laptops.

They are very fast transportable and light, but the NVIDIA GeForce Go 6200 graphics card on S series laptops and NVIDIA GeForce Go 7400 on SZ series laptops seem to have problems with Revit Hardware acceleration (some lines are not displayed correctly, particularly in the family editor). Turn off hardware acceleration, and its fine (but not as smooth).

[funkman]

Originally Posted by Wes Macaulay

That Vaio will scream -- good specs all round. I'd be interested to know if your video card works with Revit with OpenGL acceleration in Revit enabled.

I own a Dell Inspiron 6400 maxed out with all you could get with this model when I ordered it. Performance is 25% better than my P4 3Ghz desktop at the office but the Inspiron's styling needs serious help!

Installed a demo copy of Revit today at the shops with some large-ish files of around 70Mb.

Awesome! faster than my desktop. It started off fairly normal, but when I turned OpenGL on it did indeed "scream". Around 0.1sec delay for regenerating shadows after spinning in 3d for a large complex file. As for styling - it really is second to none.

Now looking for a good price.

ajd - this model of Vaio was great - perhaps its that model of graphics card?

[Crosseyed]

I picked up an Alienware 5700 about a year ago for Revit and extracurricular activities. Don't do it, the motherboard died after only 11months of use, not over aggressive use either the basic day-to-day. The only way to get it running again is an expensive flight back to the Alienware HQ, a new $600 motherboard and whatever labor would add up to because they charge you by the hour. I now own a $2400 paperweight. And the tech-support/ sales people wouldn't assist me with diagnosing the problem unless I purchased a 1 year extended service agreement ($250.00)

The one great thing about the computer was that it ran a desktop CPU and not a moble version. To say that it would run Revit is an understatement. I don't know if the Dell XPS systems run full size CPUs but if you can afford it (and carry it, 10+ lbs) they are worth it.

[madcadder]

Originally Posted by Wes Macaulay

Dell[*]Precision M90

Rocks. Very good deal. Solid computer.