Switching from Mac to PC

[StewartTower]

I'm a retired graphic designer after 30 years on Macs and I'm giving up my 2017 iMac for a PC laptop (won't bother with the long story why).

I'm thinking of a 2 in 1 laptop like a Lenovo Yoga or a HP Envy. The specs read OK but I thought I would reach out here before I make the plunge in the coming days. I'll get a least 16 GB of memory and 1 TB of storage.

Is any one else using the Affinity suite on similar devices? I know we all have opinions but are there any specific technical issues I should be wary of?

Thanks.

[NotMyFault]

Basicly the specs you mentioned are a good choice.

For Affinity the GPU and Display matter, too.

Apple Laptops (M3, M4) have a noticeable performance edge over most Windows PCs wrt GPU, unless you invest into a gaming laptop which has many disadvantages due to size, weight, display characteristics (not really suitable for Photo editing).

Display should offer good gamut, low Delta-E, calibration, non-glare look, pencil support, good black level and contrast, and today HDR is a plus. 10/12 bit color support is a plus, unfortunately Affinity cannot utilize this currently, but a external image viewer can.

If possible try them out in a shop.

 

[stuck]

12 hours ago, StewartTower said:

after 30 years on Macs and I'm giving up my 2017 iMac for a PC laptop

I've only ever used PCs so I know nothing of Macs but to me it seems odd, very odd, to ditch 30 years of experience, no matter how long the story is that has led you to this decision.

[Bad_Wolf]

I am using several Acers, Aspire, ConceptD and now an Acer Predator Helios gaming laptop with two internal SSD's of 1TB each. I bought the Aspire in June 2020, the ConceptD in November 2022 and the Predator recently. All 3 are still in use and run the Affinity Suite without problems. Only the Aspire is sometimes laggy with Designer.

My last Mac(intosh) was the G4, which I used for more than 19 years until its internal hard disk stopped working in 2019.

I have a Fujitsu Siemens Esprimo 9510 laptop from January 2009, which is still in use. I used it under very cold and desert (+45°C) conditions. It never let me down.

If I can give you one good advice, buy the best laptop you can afford. What NotMyFault said is very true, I have an external display connected to that Acer Predator. For the rest, it is as fast as lightning.

There is some truth in what Stuck says, either; why ditch 30 years of Mac experience? For graphic applications, Mac has an edge over PC's. Maybe you decided in haste. But think twice before making your final decision. Ultimately, you have to work for years with the laptop you decide to buy now. Note that despite the narrower gap, PC/Windows11 is still very different from Mac. There will be a serious learning curve.

Ask the question here in the forum: should I buy Mac or PC for graphic design with Affinity and why? You will be surprised how many people suggest Mac.

I hope you will find the laptop you are looking for.

Chris

[AlainP]

I worked on PC since the IBM PC came out. I switched to Mac OS (and iPad) a few years ago. I will never go back. I still have one PC that is used for gaming only. Every time I turn it on I know why I went to Mac. I began with a Macbook to make sure it was able to do everything I needed, and and six months after I got a Mac mini and turned off the noisy PC. So much faster, quiet, and real "plug and play" without a dozen drivers to download and install, and updates every two days. 

I have M2 and M2 Pro Macs, these days with M4 and up.... and not to mention how it's nice to do something on my Macbook and then everything is available on my iPads, Desktop Mac and even my phone.

The only thing... it's much more expensive.

 

[StewartTower]

Thanks everyone; comments are appreciated. I'm after portability primarily and a less expensive option.

I'm really only tinkering with small projects now, no more vehicle wraps or multi-volume documents.

I suppose I haven't written off Apple completely but the last MacBook Pro I had from my employer developed the swollen battery issue. Almost split the thing in two.

I'll do some more thinking on it.

Thanks again.