The days of graphics tablets that offered very little functionality are over. Now, artists prefer laptops that convert into tablets so that they can use one device for all their needs.
As an artist, finding the right laptop for your needs will make your life many folds better. Imagine not having to work on one tablet and later transfer your files or connect to another device to fine-tune your work. You no longer have to go through this convoluted workflow.
There are hundreds of convertible laptops on the market that will make your life easier. But with more models, you are presented with a lot of confusion.
We’d be the first one to admit that finding the best laptops for drawing is a tough challenge. We’ve done the research and narrowing it down to a handful of laptops took us a lot of man-hours and intense research.
Without making you wait any longer, here is the list of laptops that are great for drawing.
| IMAGE | PRODUCT | FEATURES | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
EDITORS CHOICE
 | Microsoft Surface Pro 7 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
BUDGET PICK
 | Apple iPad Pro 12.9 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
TOP CHOICE
 | HP Pavilion x360 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
 | Lenovo Yoga C940 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
 | Acer Spin 3 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
 | Lenovo Flex 5 |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
 | Microsoft Surface Go |
| Check PricingRead Reviews |
Best Laptops For Drawing
Our top picks for drawing are
- Microsoft Surface Pro 7 (Editor’s Choice)
- Apple iPad Pro 12.9″ (Best Apple Device)
- HP Pavilion x360
- Lenovo Yoga C940
- Acer Spin 3
- Lenovo Flex 5
- Microsoft Surface Go
1. Editor’s Choice – Microsoft Surface Pro 7
- Next gen, best in class laptop with the versatility of a studio and tablet, so you can type, touch, draw, write, work, and play more naturally
- Faster than surface pro 6, with a 10th gen intel core processor – redefining what’s possible in a thin and light computer. Display Resolution - 2736 x 1824 (267 PPI)
- More ways to connect, with both USB c and USB a ports for connecting to displays, docking stations and more, as well as accessory charging
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is our choice for the best laptop for drawing.
The laptop comes with an excellent design language and is one of the best portable devices out there when it comes to specifications. Without the keyboard, the laptop weighs just 1.7lbs which is the best portable device you can get as a student. If you are someone who travels a lot, you will not feel anything extra with this laptop on board. There is also a difference with this model as you can easily remove the keyboard and use this as a tablet whenever you want to.
The display on this laptop is a 12.3” one that comes with a resolution of 2736 x1824 pixels. This gives a display with an effective pixel density of 267 pixels per inch and that’s a very good number. The display comes with crisp images and has excellent color accuracy, which is want you need in a drawing laptop.
The touchscreen sensitivity of the display is excellent. Whether you are using the stylus from Microsoft or an external stylus, the touchscreen sensitivity is suitable and there is almost a negligible input lag which helps in making designs and drawings easy.
This laptop comes with exceptional battery life. With simple use, you can stretch the battery life to about 11 hours which is fantastic. The battery life makes this laptop an ideal choice for those who travel a lot and also students. When you start drawing, this battery life might go down a bit depending on the complexity of the projects, but it is still one of the best in the industry.
There is no lack of CPU power in this Microsoft Surface Pro 7 model. It comes with a 10th generation Intel Core i5 processor that has 4 physical cores and 8 threads. This is a powerful processor and can handle your drawing needs without any issues. You can open a file with tons of layers and this processor will handle it fine. And since we are in the Windows ecosystem, there are countless applications that can do the heavy lifting for you and this Intel chip takes care of all of them without breaking a sweat.
The memory department on this Microsoft laptop is filled with 8GB of RAM. This is like the starting amount of memory you should have any drawing tablet. It will help you handle projects that have many layers and are more complex in nature. This memory will also be handy when you are dealing with multiple applications running at the same time.
The storage on this device is a 256GB solid-state drive. This storage is fast and can move even gigabytes of data in just a few seconds. For a laptop that is dedicated to drawing, you need to make sure that you don’t waste any seconds doing simple stuff. This solid-state drive ensures that you will get the performance you deserve as an artist. We don’t have a discrete graphics card like an Nvidia GeForce on this device and it works just fine.
The keyboard and the touchpad or a bit of a disappointment. We do not have a solid keyboard and touchpad on this device and they are made up of soft material. This laptop is primarily designed as a tablet and you can add the laptop functionality whenever you want by attaching the keyboard. The typing experience is not that great but the amazing drawing experience on this device made us overlook it.
Thanks to all these excellent hardware choices and features, the Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is easily one of the best laptops for drawing.
2. IPad Pro 12.9” – Best Apple Device For Drawing
- 12.9-inch edge-to-edge Liquid Retina display with ProMotion, True Tone, and P3 wide color
- A12Z Bionic chip with Neural Engine
- 12MP Wide camera, 10MP Ultra Wide camera, and LiDAR Scanner
If you are a part of the Apple ecosystem and are looking for one of the best laptops for drawing, then we can’t help but recommend the latest iPad Pro. We know that this is not a laptop but it is one of the best mobile devices you can get for an artist when it comes to making drawings and illustrations. We see more and more artists switching over to the iPad Pro so that they could avoid graphics tablets like Wacom and use this for every single need of theirs.
The iPad Pro is easily one of the most portable tablets out there. This is a great advantage if you are a student as you can simply slide this into your backpack and take it with you wherever you go. You will enjoy taking handwritten notes on this device as there is very little input lag on the display. With a weight of just 2.25lbs, this is a great mobile device for artists who love to travel.
The display on this laptop is one of its best features. We have a 12.9” display that comes with an edge to edge Retina display and it has an amazing pixel density that just screams high-quality. There are more than 4 million pixels on this display and you will not be able to find a single pixel even when you look at it from a close distance.
The display comes with support for the P3 color gamut which means you will get more accurate colors that will be helpful for artists. You also get True Tone technology that gives you dynamic images depending on the ambient color temperature. You might want to turn it off in your drawing but in every other place, this feature is very handy. The ProMotion technology on the iPad gives you a fluid user experience and makes it very hard to use any other device that doesn’t have this frame rate.
The iPad Pro also comes with the advantage of extraordinary battery life. With simple use, you can easily squeeze out 10 to 13 hours of battery life from your iPad Pro. If you are going to spend most of the time drawing, then you can expect this number to dive, but it will be still in the range of 6 to 8 hours which is super impressive. This battery life alone makes this a shining contender for most artists out there.
Apple has been making great strides when it comes to processors. This iPad Pro comes with its in-house CPU, the A12Z bionic chip that comes with 6 cores and is one of the most powerful processors we have observed in a tablet. The processor comes with desktop-class 64-bit architecture and is one of the best processors as you can get your hands on right now from mobile devices.
Since we are dealing with iPadOS, we are mostly dealing with a stripped-down version of the desktop application. Even then, this iPad Pro deals with some powerful applications and you can handle them without breaking a sweat. The overall experience of drawing and post-processing your product is so smooth. The only caveat here is that we iPad Pro supports only the Apple Pencil which works with it like a champ.
The touchscreen sensitivity of the device is a lot better than its first iteration. When you draw a line, you will observe almost zero input lag which is amazing. Regardless of the application, you are using, you can expect the same performance between the Apple Pencil and a touchscreen which is proof of Apple’s engineering. Because of this fluid performance, a lot of users have dropped their Wacom tablets and have switched sides to the iPad Pro as it gives a more cohesive user experience.
In addition to all these amazing features, the iPad Pro is the only Apple product that comes with a USB Type-C connector. This makes it easier to connect with external devices and also to use storage devices. The iPad Pro also comes with FaceID which is super secure and a much-improved version of Touch ID. Overall, the iPad Pro is a stunning mobile device for artists and people who are interested to get into the world of drawing and graphic design.
3. HP Pavilion X360 – (14 Inches)
- 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G1 mobile processor 1.0GHz (with Max Turbo Speed of 3.6GHz);Ultra-low-voltage platform. Quad-core, eight-way processing provides maximum high-efficiency power to go. Intel...
- Beautiful 14" Full HD multitouch screen:The 1920 x 1080 resolution boasts impressive color and clarity. Touch, tap, glide and make the most of Windows 10. IPS technology for wide viewing angles....
- 8GB DDR4 Memory for full-power multitasking; 256GB PCIe SSD + 16GB Optane Solid State Drive (PCI-e) Save files fast and store more data. With massive amounts of storage and advanced communication...
For an artist, getting a bigger computer will not make any sense as it only makes your workflow more cumbersome. The maximum size you can go is up to 14”, and this HP Pavilion laptop is the right choice for it.
This new HP Pavilion x360 laptop comes with the latest specifications and delivers excellent performance when it comes to drawing as well as other everyday activities. The screen is one of their better features and the touchscreen offers excellent sensitivity which makes it a great two in one laptop for drawing.
With a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, the pixel density of the screen is quite good. The color quality of the display is also on point and working on this display will be a smooth experience. Apart from drawing, you can use the space for media consumption as well.
The design of the laptop computer also deserves a special mention. The hinge is very smooth and allows you to transition from one mode to another in a smooth movement. This is also a very portable device. It weighs just 3.55lbs and is easy to carry from one place to another. If you are a student or someone who frequently travels, then this laptop will be a good choice.
A 10th generation Intel Core i5 processor is the CPU and it handles everything on this laptop. This is a quad-core processor that can clock up to a maximum of 3.6 GHz which is a lot of power. It gets ample support from the 8 GB of RAM in the memory department and the 256 GB SSD also chimes in whenever it can.
The laptop also comes with excellent battery life. With light use, you will be able to get around 6 to 8 hours of battery life which is pretty good. If you are always on the move, this battery life will come in handy and you will be able to draw wherever you want and whenever you want.
4. Lenovo Yoga C940
- 14.0 in Full HD IPS touchscreen (1920 x 1080), 10-finger multi-touch support, Intel Core i7-1065G7 1.3 GHz up to 3.9GHz Processor
- 512GB PCIe SSD, 12GB LPDDR4 3733 MHz RAM
- Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.0, 720p webcam, 2 in 1 Full HD IPS Touchscreen Laptop/Tablet
If you are a fan of Lenovo computers and don’t want to break your relationship with the company, then the Lenovo Yoga C940 is an excellent laptop for drawing and an artist. This is a 14” laptop that comes with a touchscreen and gives you the ability to draw any time and anywhere.
The Lenovo Yoga laptop comes with a beautiful design and impressive specifications. The building materials and the way they have used it make it look premium. When you pick the laptop up, you know that this is a premium laptop. It is also a very portable device with a weight of just 2.98lbs. So if you are a student or a travel buff, you will love this laptop.
Let’s talk about the display. We have a 14” display that comes with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. The pixel density of the display is quite good but what is this the show is the color accuracy. At the price point, we are getting the laptop, this is one of the most color-accurate displays we have seen. You will enjoy drawing and media consumption on this device.
The touchscreen is a pretty good one. It comes with multitouch support but what is more important is the sensitivity it provides for external styluses. As an artist, you need to have minimal input lag and this touchscreen provides just that. It may not be as good as the iPad Pro, but it is right up there.
There is no lack of processing power in this Lenovo model. We get a quad-core i7 processor from Intel as the CPU that can handle some serious work and it is well complemented by 12GB of RAM in the memory department. This hardware set up will help you work on complex projects and will not give you any hiccups.
The storage on this device comes with a capacity of 512GB and in the form of a solid-state drive. This is a very fast drive and provides excellent reading and writing speeds. The battery life of the laptop is also excellent. With regular use, you should easily be able to get around eight hours of use which is excellent for an artist.
5. Acer Spin 3
- 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G1 Processor at 1.0GHz
- 256 GB SSD, 8GB RAM
- Touchscreen 14" Widescreen IPS LED-backlit FHD (1920 x 1080) Display
If you love Acer laptops, then the Acer Spin 3 is the best laptop for you as an artist. This is an ultrabook that comes with excellent features and an affordable price tag. The hardware inside the laptop is worth the price and some value additions are just awesome.
The display on this laptop is a 13.5” one with a resolution of 2256 x 1504 pixels. This is what we call 2K resolution and it gives the display a much higher pixel density which is fantastic. The color quality of the display is excellent and you will enjoy working on this. Thanks to the suitable and near-perfect viewing angles, streaming online content on this device is a pleasure.
The touchscreen does a very good job. For an artist, having a good touchscreen on my laptop is probably the most important thing, and this one nails it. The screen from its good sensitivity for all external styluses. You also get a rechargeable external stylus with this laptop which saves you some money. It may not be up to your standards but if you are beginning your career as an artist it does come in handy.
The battery life of this laptop is another show-stealer. With light use, you will be able to get more than 15 hours of battery life which is just extraordinary. Even if you work on complex projects that are very demanding, you can expect the laptop will last for about 4 to 6 hours which is again very impressive.
The Acer Spin laptop comes with a quad-core Intel Core i7 processor from the 10th generation of Intel chips. This processor comes with a maximum clock speed of 3.6GHz which is a lot of power for most artists. The processor caters to your everyday needs without breaking a sweat and handles even heavy applications with ease. Whether you are a beginner or a student or a seasoned professional, this processor can take care of your daily needs.
The memory department on this laptop comes with 16GB of RAM which is more than enough memory. This memory will allow you to multitask without any hindrance whatsoever. You will be able to run multiple apps together and continue drawing on an application of choice. The solid-state drive has a capacity of 512GB which is excellent for everyday use.
6. Lenovo Flex 5 – (AMD Chip)
- Thin, light, and stylish – This 2-in-1 laptop weighs just 3.64 pounds and is only 0.82" thick. It's soft and comfortable to the touch, with a durable paint that creates a better user experience....
- The 10-point, 14-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS touchscreen allows the Lenovo Flex 5 14" 2-in-1 laptop to be comfortable, fun, and easy to use. It's also great to look at, with 4-side narrow bezels
- The 360⁰ hinge lets you use your 2-in-1 touchscreen laptop in whatever mode works best for you; Use it in 'Laptop' mode for everyday computing, 'Tent' mode for sharing things, 'Stand' mode for...
If you’re looking for an artist’s laptop that has an AMD processor as opposed to an Intel chip, then the Lenovo Flex 5 is the right choice for you. This processor comes with an affordable price tag and has a pretty good spec sheet. If you are trying to save some money by taking the AMD route, we could not find a better laptop to satisfy that need.
This laptop comes with a neat design. The pulse quality of the device is impressive and it is also a super portable one. With a weight of 3.63lbs, taking this laptop along with you will not be a problem in any way. The hinges on this laptop are the unsung heroes. They offer such a smooth moment that transitioning from one moment to another on this convertible laptop is such a breeze.
We have a 14” display that comes with full HD resolution. This LED-backlit display is an IPS panel and it offers excellent colors with beautiful viewing angles. The screen also doubles up as a touchscreen that comes with multitouch support. The laptop comes with a digital pen included which is pretty good for people who are just starting their drawing career.
The battery life of the laptop is also fantastic. On average, the laptop manages to give you 8 to 10 hours of battery life depending upon your usage. Another good thing about this device is that it supports fast charging. You can charge to 80% of the battery is capacity in just one hour which is a feature that will be utilized by a lot of artists out that.
The processor that powers this Lenovo Flex model is an AMD Ryzen 5 chip. This is a part core processor from AMD and comes with excellent performance. It has a base clock speed of 2.1GHz and can clock much higher whenever you need extra power. The processor compares with a 10th generation Intel Core i5 processor and offers similar performance for less price.
The memory department on this Lenovo laptop is flush with 16GB of RAM. This memory is more than adequate for most artists out there. Utilize this memory to the fullest, you should be working on complex projects, and even then, you would have a bit of memory left Idle. The solid-state drive on this laptop comes with a capacity of 512GB which is spacious and also speedy. You will enjoy working on this laptop daily as it is fast and doubles up as multiple devices.
7. Budget Choice – Microsoft Surface Go
- High res 10 inch PixelSense: Display designed to be viewed, touched, and written on
- Lightest surface yet, starting at 1.15 pounds. Touch: 10 point multi touch
- All day battery life, with upto 9 hours of unplugged power. Ambient light sensor
A tight budget should never stop an artist from getting the best laptop that will make his work easier. This Microsoft Surface Go is one such laptop that comes at an affordable price with decent specifications and brings you all the goodness of an artist‘s device.
This Microsoft Surface Go is an excellent entry-level touchscreen tablet that comes with all the necessary hardware you need for a good drawing experience. More than anything, this is probably the most portable device on the list for the weight of just 1.15lbs. You can easily take this with you wherever you go without feeling anything extra and that’s awesome students and travel lovers.
The processor comes with a 10” display with a Pixel Sense resolution. This resolution is excellent for everyday use and has a nice pixel density to it. You will enjoy working on this display though it is a bit small when compared to the other models on this list. For the price, the display quality is just fantastic and there is nothing to complain about.
The process that we have here is an Intel Pentium gold one. This is not an Intel core processor and is made for entry-level devices. The good thing about this processor is that it provides excellent support for drawing and should allow you to show your creativity with simple applications if not the industry standards. The 8 GB of RAM in the memory department will give you excellent support when you need to run heavy applications.
The storage option on this laptop is a bit stingy with 128GB of SSD but it is fast and helps with performance. The laptop comes with a battery life of 10 hours. This number is consistent with light use and will take a nosedive if you’re going to do something heavy. You also get a USB Type-C port on this device which makes it easier to connect with external devices and also for data transfer. When it comes to going for an affordable device, this laptop is one of the best laptops for drawing.
Best Laptops To Draw On – Ultimate Buying Guide
If you’re not happy with the model provided above, you can always find the right convertible laptop on your own. We made this buying guide to help artists that are looking for a new laptop so that you don’t waste time on unnecessary things.
This buying guide will also tell where to focus and how to pick the right hardware for your best laptop. Let’s dive in.
Design And Portability For The Best Laptop For Drawing
Design is one of the most underrated factors when it comes to selecting a laptop for drawing. As an artist, you cannot work with a clunky machine in your hands. You need a slender device that is easy to hold so that you can express all your creativity without having to adjust your grip every few seconds.
Make sure you get a laptop that comes with good build quality. Plastic is ideal and helps in reducing the weight of the laptop, but it does not make a device feel premium and sometimes you need a bit of weight on your laptop to hold it at a certain angle. Also, a durable laptop will be able to handle some physical damages better.
You also need to make sure that the laptop is a convertible one. The traditional design of a laptop is not suitable even with a touchscreen in it. When you try to draw on the screen, it wobbles and shakes the entire device making the drawing experience pathetic. A convertible laptop can transition into a tablet and will allow you to draw freely.
Getting a portable laptop is a must. As an artist, you have no idea when creativity will strike you. You will find inspiration anywhere and everywhere and once you get the spark, you have to whip out your laptop and get to work. This is only possible when you have a portable, slim device in your hands.
Most portable laptops are found in the 13” size category. If you want better portability, there is a hybrid breed of laptops that are around 12” and will give you a free hand when it comes to drawing. The Microsoft Surface Pro and the iPad Pro are excellent examples there are both powerful and portable at the same time.
At any cost, do not go for 15.6” or 17.6” laptops. These laptops are way too big and are super heavy for an artist. Getting a portable laptop is necessary for an artist. But if you are an art student, then getting a portable laptop is the only choice you have. With a portable laptop, you can easily move around inside the campus and start working on your latest idea anywhere without hesitation.
Operating System
This is another easily overlooked area. Getting the right operating system on your laptop will make your life much easier.
If you are a Windows person, then there is no sense in going after a macOS device or a Linux device. You should, by all means, get a Windows laptop so that you can use applications that you are familiar with.
The same is true if you belong to the Mac camp. If you are familiar with the Mac operating system, then the best you can do is to go sideways with an iOS device. Switching over to Windows operating system will only be counter-intuitive and will make your learning curve much steeper.
Over the last few years, iPads have been slowly becoming the device of choice for a lot of artists. iPads run on iPadOS and the selection of applications they have is very vast. If you are looking to become an iPad artist, there are a lot of resources online that can teach you how to use an iPad effectively for drawing. When compared, iPadOS isn’t far behind Windows and macOS in terms of offering full functionality for an artist.
Good Display
Having a good display is very important for an artist.
The first and foremost thing to look for in a display is to make sure that it is a touchscreen. As an artist, you are going to use a stylus to draw on the surface of the display. If your laptop display is not a touchscreen, then there is no point in getting that laptop as you will have to use an external tablet to draw and then transfer the files onto this laptop for the final touches.
If the laptop comes with a touchscreen, make sure that the touchscreen has good sensitivity. The input lag should be ideally zero or at least be as minimal as possible. It is impossible to find a touchscreen with zero input lag, but you will be able to find some excellent touchscreen laptops with next to zero input lag which is ideal for drawing.
The best touchscreen we have used on a portable device is that of the iPad Pro. It comes with almost zero input lag and the Apple Pencil is an amazing instrument when it comes to drawing. You cannot compare this with a professional drawing tablet which is going to cost you a lot more money, but for a consumer-grade tablet, this is excellent for even professional artists.
Let’s talk about the size of the display. As far as a drawing laptop is concerned, the smaller the display the better. It makes it easy to carry around and you will also be able to draw freely on a much smaller device. The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 and the iPad Pro or excellent choices as they offer 12.3 inches and inches screens respectively. The biggest screens you should go for should be restricted to 13.3” as anything about that could become very clunky.
Another advantage of choosing this screen size is portability. You can easily slide this laptop into your backpack and take them with you wherever you go.
Let’s talk about the resolution of the display. Since we are talking about a drawing laptop, the higher the resolution you can get the better. The minimum we recommend getting is a full HD resolution laptop. For a 13 inches screen, a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels will give you an excellent pixel density, and working on it will enable you to produce high-quality graphics.
If you have the budget for it, you should always try to get a higher resolution display. Both the Surface Pro seven and the iPad Pro have high-resolution displays that will eat a full HD resolution display for breakfast. The pixel density of these devices is out of the world and you simply cannot beat these displays when it comes to quality.
The color accuracy of the display should also be high end. Having an IPS panel will ensure color accuracy to a certain extent. You need to make sure that the device comes with a good contrast ratio and should be able to display as many colors as possible. Almost all the laptops on our list come with excellent color representation and are well suited for artists.
If possible, you should also try to get an antiglare display. Having a glossy display will give you a lot of reflections on the screen which can be very distracting. If you are someone who is going to draw nature scenes, you are going to be spending a lot of time outside in natural light. This is going to give you a lot of reflections and shadows that can be quite annoying.
An antiglare display will help you combat this and will let you work better. Beware that antiglare display might affect color accuracy so make sure you do enough research to find the best antiglare display without losing colors.
Another important factor to note when selecting the display is brightness levels. The display should have a good maximum brightness so that you can crank it up when you’re working in a brightly lit environment or just under the sun. If you are someone who works a lot in public places like parks or cafes, having a good brightness level on your screen will surely come in handy.
Best Processing Power
Always go for a laptop that comes with excellent processing power. Drawing as a processor-intensive task and you cannot compromise here.
When it comes to selecting the processor for your laptop, make sure you go for a minimum of four physical cores on the CPU. Dual-core processors are ideal for entry-level work and light computing, but they will fail you miserably when you have to do something as intensive as a drawing and graphic design.
If you have the budget for it, we highly recommend going for a quad-core or even a hexa-core processor. Most modern-day processors with these many cores will offer excellent processing power for your drawing needs. In addition to the number of cores, make sure that the processor has come with good clock speed as well. If the application you use for drawing depends on single-core performance, you need to make sure that you have a good clock speed for better performance.
The base clock speed of your laptop should be around 1.5 to 2.0 GHz. The laptop should be able to clock much higher when there is a need for more power. Anything around 3.5 to 4.0 GHz is acceptable. These clock speeds are just a guideline and feel free to choose something that will fit your workload.
The final question is which brand to choose. Should I go with an Intel CPU or an AMD CPU? The simple answer to this question is that you will not go wrong with either of those chips. Both Intel and AMD are excellent companies and are doing very well when it comes to performance.
Gone are the days where Intel used to rule the roost. AMD has caught up in the processor race and now makes some amazing processors that give Intel a run for its money. If you want to save some money, we recommend going for AMD processors as they are a bit cheaper when compared with Intel. Alternatively, he could also spend the same amount of money on the AMD CPU to get a higher level of performance.
Let’s talk about the memory situation on your laptop. Your laptop needs to have at least 8 GB of RAM in the memory department. Anything less than this is unacceptable and you shouldn’t settle for it. If we are going to work on entry-level and mid-range projects, this memory is fine. But if you are a professional who is going to work on more complex models and illustrations, then you should go for a laptop with at least 16 GB of RAM.
Make sure that the memory is of DDR4 type and not DDR3 type. The former is the latest you can get and it is a lot faster when compared with the latter.
Storage
Getting a good storage device on your laptop is very crucial. When looking at storage, it is common for people to go after something huge. The common mistake people make here is going after a mechanical hard drive which will give you a lot of storage for a minimal cost. While having a lot of space is good, a mechanical hard drive will pull you down when it comes to speed or performance.
We highly recommend getting a solid-state drive for storage. A solid-state drive does not have any moving parts and is a lot faster when compared with a traditional mechanical hard drive. We are talking about huge improvements in speed and performance which will make you doubt why you are stuck with these mechanical hard drives for so long.
The only caveat here is that solid-state drives are very expensive. You will be able to buy a very limited amount of storage space in a solid-state drive but for the same price, you will get a very generous mechanical hard drive.
If having a lot of storage space is very important to you, then we recommend going for a laptop that supports a fusion drive. This way, you will get a spacious mechanical hard drive as well as a solid-state drive on your laptop. You can store all your files and information on the mechanical hard drive and load all your frequent applications from the solid-state drive to get the best of both worlds.
If you don’t want anything to do with a mechanical hard drive but still on a budget, then we recommend going for 128GB configuration. This might not look like a lot of storage space but if you are a student or a beginner, you will do well with this amount of storage. You can also have a backup secondary storage in the form of a mechanical hard drive.
Graphics
And having a dedicated GPU on your main laptop is not that important. The presence of a discrete GPU like an Nvidia GeForce GPU will surely bring advantages but you could do a job just as well even with the integrated GPU. Drawing on a laptop is mostly a processor-intensive task and it doesn’t involve the GPU much.
If you are a gamer, then you need to worry about having a dedicated graphics card like an Nvidia GeForce one. Since we are going for ultra-portable devices, most of them are not going to get you a dedicated GPU which makes it difficult for gaming. So you will be restricted to light gaming or mid-range gaming in most cases.
And if you are a serious gamer, then we highly recommend to get separate devices for drawing and gaming as doing both in the same device is highly improbable. If gaming is necessary, then finding the best laptop with a dedicated Nvidia GeForce graphics card would be a wise choice.
Connectivity
Having the latest connectivity options on your laptop is always a plus.
Make sure that your device comes with the latest USB Type-C port. This port will become the standard in the coming years and having one or two of the sports will surely help. USB Type-C ports are fantastic for data transfer as they support super high-speed data transfer. They can help in charging your device and will also play a role in connecting your laptop to Hai and display. Without a doubt, this is one of the most versatile ports we have seen.
Since most of us have not completely shifted to USB Type-C, it is also advantageous to have a couple of USB Type-A ports that are fast. Having these ports will prevent us from investing in adapters that we have to carry everywhere. Even the latest flagship laptops have this problem so be sure to select a model that doesn’t leave you hanging with adapters.
Other Everyday Ports
In addition to these connectivity options, the presence of an HDMI port, an ethernet port, and SD card slot, and also an audio jack will always come in handy. If you are going to be using external tablets, make sure that you have the right connectivity configuration to embrace the junction.
The laptop should also come with the latest WiFi built-in. WiFi 6 is the latest we have and it comes with excellent range and stability. It also reduces ping greatly which is important for gamers. You should also make sure that your laptop comes with Bluetooth 5.0 which also has extraordinary range and connectivity when compared to older versions.
Battery Life
The battery performance is another very important element for an artist’s laptop.
This is true especially when you are a student. As a student, you will want to use your laptop all day long without having to charge it in the middle of the day. Having a laptop that has all-day battery life will give you that freedom so that you can charge it once in the morning and go back home with a bit of charge left.
We highly recommend this as finding a charging port on your campus is going to be a very difficult challenge. We can guarantee that the charging ports are going to be crowded and even if you get one, the crowd is not going to let you charge your laptop for more than a few minutes.
If you are a professional artist, you would still be benefited from a laptop that has all-day battery. Imagine traveling and suddenly you have this inspiration that you need to put on a screen. A laptop that holds the charge for a long time is always available to cater to your needs.
We know that all day laptops are a bit expensive. Even if you can’t afford expensive laptops, you can always go for mid-range ones that provide at least 6 to 8 hours of battery backup. This way, you will be able to use your laptop in sessions and continue where you left at a later time.
A pro-tip is to take a power bank with you that has good capacity. Even when your laptop is about to run out of juice, you can charge it with the help of the power bank and get back to work. Most laptop power banks can hold up to 2 full charges which are awesome.
Input Devices
The very first input device your laptop should support is your finger. As an artist, you are going to need a laptop with a touchscreen. Though you won’t be drawing with your fingers, having a touchscreen is very essential.
The screen should have excellent support for external styluses. You should be able to write and draw on your laptop screen without any hiccups. If you are a student, having a touchscreen and a stylus will also give you the freedom to take handwritten notes during lectures.
Keyboard And Touchpad
The keyboard on your laptop might look like something that doesn’t matter in a laptop for an artist, but it is just as important. The keys should have a good layout and a neat travel distance. Make sure that the typing experience on the laptop is decent and doesn’t affect your speed or accuracy. Having a backlit laptop is a solid advantage and so ensure that your laptop has one.
The touchpad on your laptop should also be a good one. If you are going for a Windows laptop, make sure that you have a Windows precision trackpad on the device so that you will have excellent support for all the gestures. If you are going for the Macs, you don’t have to worry about anything as they have the best touchpads on the market.
Budget
While all other factors are important, the budget you have is the only factor that is going to decide the laptop you can. If you are an artist, you should have a decent budget when it comes to picking up a laptop.
If you are on a tight budget, then we highly recommend checking out our budget recommendation. The Microsoft Surface Go is a very good option and it provides an excellent touchscreen laptop for artists who draw professionally.
If you are not bound by a budget, then you should check out our best laptops and see which one suits you best. We also include a lot of laptop models for people who are in the middle. If you have a decent budget that won’t fetch you a flagship device, we are sure you will find a mid-range laptop that suits your needs.
Conclusion
That’s all we have to say about finding the best laptops for artists.
If you have any doubts, do let us know and we’ll help you out.
As always, come back for more useful posts and buying guides.