Cheap Small Laptop/tablet

[RealSteveB]

I'm going to Disney in October for my wedding, no motovlog there but plenty of videos for vlogs. We'd like to upload a nightly video while we're there. Can anyone recommend a small cheap laptop/tablet that can run a basic editing program? I use powerdirector on my pc, not sure of it could also be installed on another computer-doubt it. I do however, have a older gaming laptop. I played Battlefield 2142 and bad company on it, shows how old it is, but it ran Photoshop no problem. Maybe I can resurrect that old beast? The Surface 3 is now about $325 on amazon which is what I'm considering, but I'm not sure it can handle it. I have a external USB hard drive for the files.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Matt Leech]

Sorry I can't recommend a laptop/tablet, but if it's going to be video and photo editing...don't forget your mouse!

 

[scooterwuf]

That might be a challenge. If you're running HD footage -- 1080p - you're going to need a robust graphics card for processing. Working with lower res footage will probably be fine, but I have a feeling you'll want something better for your wedding. Working with an external is a good idea, but it still comes down to the graphics card.

- Wuf

 

[F4celess]

Editing on the cheap is a big challenge. At best I can only recommend compact gamer laptops but then they cost a bit. Your old laptop will certainly do the trick. I have a nVidia 780m in my laptop and it edits HD video just fine.

 

[2WV]

Whatever you decide to get, you will want something with a fairly decent GPU for rendering. And something with more than 4gb of ram for processing time. If you want my honest opinion, take a Laptop with a large SSD/HDD or even an external HDD or large flash/thumb drive/memory stick and just back the recordings onto them then edit when you get home..

Ive never tried but you can always get a fairly decent android tablet and browse their appstore..will be plenty of basic video/photo editing programmes on there. Obviously not as sophisticated as computers though

 

[RealSteveB]

Thanks guys. I fired up my old laptop and damn it's still fast, of course there's nothing on it right now cause I wiped out clean last time I used it.
It does have Power director, version 6 (lol) but it should atleast be able to cut video and add some small effects without too much trouble. Has Photoshop also. This was the top of the line gaming laptop 9 years ago.

I also found a cool wireless external hard-drive, My Passport. Allows you to just stick in the SD card and it copies the files automatically without a computer. For $135 I might just get it. Just for backup purposes if I decide to lug this laptop down. I'm not sure I'll have enough energy to produce a video each night like we were talking about. Especially with drinks and whatever else added.

 

[SighBored]

Interesting, but the thought of lugging around a laptop while riding does not sound that appealing to me. Hope all goes well with your attempt to edit and upload on the fly.. You didn't mention what Internet connection you will be using. If you are going to be relying on the hotel's free Wi-Fi I wouldn't trust it that much at giving decent upload for big video files..

 

[whingnut]

WITH THIS POST I RESURECT THEE!

I like long rides and on my really long 2800 mile weekend in 2018 i found that i had a lot of downtime and just had video piling up from the daily group rides. some 35 hours of videos that became (5 )1 hourish videos. i'm thinking about doing editing on the road as a way to trim the finished work flow and also making videos while i'm deployed next year and then uploading them as i hit ports. so i needs a machine i can easly carry on the ship, in my saddle bags or hard panniers (when i get my ADV for the TAT). but still be able to edit a video using filmora pro. i then found this article ADV travel laptop but my wife and I where looking at buying something more robust. like a gaming laptop for the GPU and she sent me this link Best for FIlmora Pro for my software

your thoughts peoples?

 

[HippoDrone]

I think you will want at least 8Gb of RAM, preferably 16Gb. My PC has 64Gb. The SSDs are fast, but you'll also need space, and 256Gb will not take long to fill.
I like Filmora Wondershare 9 it is simple and does all I need it to do. I only just upgraded to it from 8 and it allows higher bitrate videos which I need for the current GoPro cameras.

 

[whingnut]

I think you will want at least 8Gb of RAM, preferably 16Gb. My PC has 64Gb. The SSDs are fast, but you'll also need space, and 256Gb will not take long to fill.
I like Filmora Wondershare 9 it is simple and does all I need it to do. I only just upgraded to it from 8 and it allows higher bitrate videos which I need for the current GoPro cameras.

So i currently do the subscription on FIlmora ($29.99 per year) so i get the new updates but Pro offers more stuff i would like to play with. so funny enough i'm a welder working in an IT dept as ships liason (i speak boat) and i also hit them up and the response i got was if you want to do anything it will be more than a few hundred bucks.
We found this laptop Asus Tuf it meets the requirement for me. and it is not cheap though. but i need something that can take riding in my panniers, riding in my truck to sites, in my sea bag and being used on the road so to speak. the SSD is small but if i add a SSD 2t stand alone drive i can make up for it. this will be only while traveling not my main setup. i have killed laptops while traveling from the harddrives failing from being bumped or dropped. the great thing about filmora is you can choose to run your GPU for rendering and it makes it quite easier to do. so CHeap is a fail on this. but should last me for a long timeat least until i'm done with Sea duty.

 

[TBRD]

I'm using an ASUS Zenbook 14. Cheap - under $600. I use Filmora 9. The machine is running AMD Ryzen 4000 series and Nvidia card. It works pretty well. It has a SSD and only 8 Gigs but it seems to do the trick on the cheap.

 

[City Bob]

Whats cheap? Do you have a budget in mind? Something "cheap" to one person, is expensive to another. Its relative.

Most devices are capable, it just a matter of what compromise. You can even film and edit and post just from a mobile nowadays, and actually get some fairly good results. But its a bit fiderly and its hard to know the end result until its posted. What might look good on a small screen might not translate to a bigger screen, or you might miss little errors on a small screen when editing. Which I guess is the compromise there. But from your mobile using apps might be your Cheapest option? It also might work in your favor, depending on what sort of feel and theme you are going for. Sometimes a RAW post from a mobile with minor editing is right on the money, as it gives the viewer a feel of involvement that feels more LIVE. So what do you want to achieve in the videos, professional quality edited or RAW and Live?

Like with anything, You can normally have TWO of the below, but not all three.

1. Quick
2. Cheap
3. Good results

Which one are you willing to Compromise?

 

[WEB]

I have a 2013 MacBook Air (4GB RAM) with a 1TB Samsung SSD stuffed into it. Works fine. I use FCP. Obviously nowhere near as good as editing on my workstation but for on the road it's perfect. On the flip side, as long as I turn the brightness down, even editing I get a solid 5 hours of life from it and this is a laptop that's 7 years old with an unknown history.

It cost me $200 off a friend of mine as it has a large watermark on the screen but I don't care as it's only used on the road anyway. I had to add the SSD ($320 + $15 adaptor, 2017 SSD prices, i've owned it a while) myself though so the $200 is a bit of a cheaty lie.

 

[City Bob]

I have a 2013 MacBook Air (4GB RAM) with a 1TB Samsung SSD stuffed into it. Works fine. I use FCP. Obviously nowhere near as good as editing on my workstation but for on the road it's perfect. On the flip side, as long as I turn the brightness down, even editing I get a solid 5 hours of life from it and this is a laptop that's 7 years old with an unknown history.

It cost me $200 off a friend of mine as it has a large watermark on the screen but I don't care as it's only used on the road anyway. I had to add the SSD ($320 + $15 adaptor, 2017 SSD prices, i've owned it a while) myself though so the $200 is a bit of a cheaty lie.

Do you partition the drive at all?
I find if I have lots of footage on mine, the laptop is unusable. I have to partition mine to keep the operation system separate from the footage.

 

[WEB]

Nope, all project files are imported into the FCP library which is just a big ol' file amongst everything else on the drive

 

[CVentures]

I edit everyone on my ipad pro 11 2020 and it handles all of it like a champ!

 

[CVentures]

*Everything