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Photo editing pushes laptop capabilities right to the edge. Height-quality piece of work demands a high-resolution, colour-accurate display, and a fast processor. But the rigors of traveling with photograph gear plus a computer make small, lightweight machines with long battery lives a real plus. Similarly, storing thousands of high-resolutions calls for a large difficult drive, while pinnacle functioning is just possible with an SSD.

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

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga (2d 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 package

I've lumped these two machines together because they are similar, merely also offering some tradeoffs depending on your needs. Both machines are have 14-inch displays, support a stylus, and tin fold back on themselves in classic Yoga style. Both qualify equally Ultrabooks and counterbalance in at about 3 pounds, with back up for up to 16GB of RAM, 1TB SSD, and a fingerprint reader. Both units also feature fantabulous keyboards and TrackPoints, and do pretty well on ports, with USB 3.0, USB-C, and Thunderbolt back up.

After the above, there are some differences. The X1 Yoga has the option of an amazing 2560×1440 OLED display that is nearly the best I've always used for watching movies or showing off images. The Yoga 920 doesn't offer an OLED option, only you can get information technology with up 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-cadre 8th generation CPU (i7-8550U). Video outputs are also slightly different, with the 920 featuring DisplayPort over USB-C and the X1 Yoga having a more than traditional HDMI port.

Neither unit of measurement has an SD card slot, unfortunately, although the X1 Yoga does have a slot for a microSD in the back. However, the slot is hard enough to admission that you'll probably current of air up with a carte reader anyhow.

  • Toll: $1,682 and upwards
  • Buy from Lenovo

Microsoft Surface Pro (newest 2017 version)

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

If y'all similar to use a tablet or stylus for your image editing in your studio, and want to take access to the same capability on the route, the Microsoft Surface Pro may be platonic. It's powerful for its pocket-sized size, and features a force per unit area-sensitive active stylus while also offering a reasonable keyboard. Yous'll probably besides desire to pair it with a Bluetooth mouse like the Microsoft Arc Touch. Microsoft removed the model number from the most recent version, so don't confuse the new Surface Pro with the original version that also carried that proper noun.

By itself, the one.7 pound unit certainly won't give you the same large-screen experience of larger laptops, but its 12.three-inch screen is sharp and high-resolution. While the base model comes with an i3, you lot can bump up to an i5 or i7 for more ability. You'll also want an external card reader to utilize with your camera, only with upwards to 1TB of internal SSD, you lot may non demand an external drive to keep your images while you travel. When you're in one location for awhile, you can use the mini DisplayPort to drive an external monitor–or even practise what I do and travel with a portable USB-powered display. The entry level version is now $800, with a loaded model costing up to $2,700 with an i7, 16GB of retentivity, and a 1TB SSD. You'll need to purchase a keyboard cover and stylus on top of that, unless you already have them.

  • Price: $800 and upwardly
  • Buy from Amazon

Apple tree MacBook Pro fifteen and MacBook Pro 13

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

Apple'due south MacBook Pro has long been a favorite among professional photographers. A large part of information technology is, of form, that it runs the same macOS many of them run on desktop computers. But it was likewise an early pioneer of ultra-high resolution LCDs with a big color gamut, and a relatively compact, stylish, design. Withal, many PC vendors have caught upwards in features, and surpassed the now-aging MBP models in raw operation. Apple has fabricated some contempo improvements, including adding a Force Touch trackpad, faster SSDs, a fingerprint reader, and improving the battery life–although the lack of an SD card slot remains a sticking point.

The current version of the MBP thirteen with Retina Display starts at $1,500, while the 15-inch Retina model starts at $2,400. Every bit is typical, photographers will more than likely exist interested in the college-end configurations, which are $2,000 and $ii,800, respectively. The new models have higher price points than earlier, merely with beefier specs. Yous tin now get up to a 1TB SSD in the 13-inch model, and a 2TB SSD in the 15-inch. With 30MP and up cameras becoming mutual, and 4K video widespread, these larger difficult drive options are a welcome add-on. The 15-inch version comes with a discrete Radeon Pro GPU to assistance maximize image processing performance. The 13-inch models rely on an integrated GPU, although those have gotten substantially faster over the last couple years, so yous may non miss having a separate discrete GPU. Both versions feature up to 7th-generation Cadre i7 CPUs–dual-cadre for the 13-inch, and quad-core for the fifteen-inch.

  • Price: $1,300 and up
  • Buy from Amazon

Dell XPS 15 Bear on (2017): However a WinnerThe latest Dell XPS 15 features a nearly edge to edge display

Spoiler Alarm: The newest version of the Dell XPS xv is once over again my favorite laptop for photo editing. I've merely bought my tertiary XPS 15, this time the 2017 Touch edition. Featuring an optional 4K display that covers 100 percent of Adobe RGB, a Kaby Lake quad-core Core i7, an Nvidia 1050 GPU, a 1TB SSD, and upwards to 32GB of RAM, it has just nearly everything a road warrior photographer could want. Information technology hasn't really gotten any lighter over the last year, every bit it is nevertheless over 4 pounds, but it is a picayune smaller and sleeker. While starting configurations of the automobile run every bit little every bit $1K, configured equally in a higher place volition run you merely over $2K.

The merely things I could run into regretting are that it doesn't have the Kaby Lake Refresh chips still, and there's no stylus back up. Also, you pay a heavy toll in battery life for the 4K brandish and discrete GPU. Don't count on more than than four hours of reasonable utilise, so information technology isn't the platonic selection if you're mostly on the go without a power plug. It'south also overkill if yous don't need a quad-core CPU or high-finish GPU. For straight ahead benchmarks, some of the dual-cadre models in this roundup are only as fast. Simply if you want high-operation 3D graphics, Photoshop processing, or video rendering without a total-on gaming laptop, this model delivers. If you are willing to expect, I'm certain at that place will be an update early on adjacent year, or the non-yet-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 carte slot. Starting at a piddling over iv pounds, the latest XPS 15 is nigh the lightest laptop y'all tin can detect that tin pack this much punch, and with the same 100 percentage Adobe RGB colour gamut.

Three generations of Dell XPS 15 laptops

To provide some perspective on progress in this category, the higher up paradigm shows three generations of Dell XPS 15 laptops. Over the final four-5 years they've shrunk significantly, weigh i.5 pounds less, and pack nearly twice as much power under the hood. The brandish has also jumped from a gamut like to sRGB to one that is almost identical to the much-larger Adobe RGB color space.

  • Price: $ane,949 and up
  • 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 naught in designing the ZBook X2 for creatives of all kinds. It has the latest and about powerful CPU (upwards to i7-7600U) and a workstation form GPU (Nvidia Quadro M620), but nonetheless weighs in at less than 5 pounds. There aren't any review units to expect at still, just the 4K, 100-percent Adobe RGB, DreamColor display promises to exist gorgeous. Somewhat unique for a loftier-end machine, not only does it support a full-featured Wacom stylus, just is a 2-in-1 and so yous can remove the keyboard and use the tablet flat or with the kickstand to prop it upward.

HP has built some pre-packaged bundles for particular uses, such every bit Lensman, Digital Creative person, and Video Editor. HP has besides provided some customizable keys alongside the screen, so you tin can further advance your workflow.

  • Price: $1,749 and up, pre-orders start November 21st

Don't fret if we missed your photograph editing favorite

It was hard to choice out just a few machines from the dozens of fantabulous laptop models out there. For many, plain small features like backlit keyboards, multiple USB 3.0 ports, Thunderbolt, stylus-support, high-resolution display, pick of DisplayPort, HDMI, or VGA output, or battery life can easily change which model is right for your particular needs. This is especially true with Windows Ultrabooks–with literally dozens of similar models crowding the sub-iv-pound, SSD-powered Windows laptop space.

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

If you take a very-loftier-end photography workflow, that involves a lot of multi-layer Photoshop images, and are okay with lugging around something larger, also accept a look at our all-time laptops for engineers guide for ideas.

If yous have a different laptop yous love for your photo editing work, let the states know well-nigh it in the comments.

At present read: The superlative laptops for anybody