Best Laptops for Graphic Design and Animation (2022)

If you are out for the best laptops for graphic design and animation in 2022, there are a number of things you would be looking out for. Extreme power is cool in a laptop, but all you really need is a device that can run animations and graphics well enough for sustained periods.

The memory and processors should be big, but not exorbitantly so. This article lists out some of the best laptops you can buy for graphic design and animations in 2022.

Apple MacBook Pro 15

There is a reason Apple laptops are a go-to for just about anything. They’ve found the perfect combination of comfortability, simplicity, and power. The MacBook Pro 15” is a laptop for work and play, and can be used for graphics design and animation.

Under its hood, the MacBook has a supple 16GB. You can get more elsewhere, but that’s what you need to carry out standard graphical and animation processes. It is paired up with 256GB of SSD storage.

An Intel Core i7 processor powers the laptop, churning out 2.2Ghz when you get down to work (it could go even higher than that). There is something to be said about the OS as well. MacOS makes it easy to do graphic editing and animations, making it a no-brainer if you’re a creator. It’s got software suites and applications that run smoother on the platform than other OSes.

On top of all that, the MacBook Pro 15” has a chassis that is stylish, simple, and familiar. It is indeed a laptop you want to carry around for graphics design activities.

Microsoft Surface Book 2

Let’s assume you don’t fancy Apple products, there is an approximate equivalent on the Windows side of things. Microsoft intended the Surface Book 2 to compete with MacBooks, but it does have some unique features.

It is a special kind of laptop; a tablet PC. It detaches to become a tablet if you want and sets up as a laptop when you need it to. You have a wide range of use cases that make it convenient for designing and animating with the Surface Book 2. It also fits in with Tips on buying a laptop for school.

As far as specifications go, The Surface Book 2 throws decent punches. It’s got 16GB of RAM and half a terabyte of SSD storage. It also has an Intel Core i7 processor which drives around tasks fast. The OS works well too, Windows gives you the productivity feel you might appreciate for your design activities.

The chassis is as chic as they come as well. It has the same style as Apple MacBooks, without the Apple logo. Its edges and bezels are pronounced, giving it a utilitarian yet posh aesthetic.

Acer Predator Helios 300

This is one laptop that threw looks out the window. Don’t let that fool you though, the Predator Helios 300 is a powerful beast, and not afraid to show you.

The Core i7 processor grunts hungrily at any graphic task you throw at it, and you definitely won’t be wearing it out anytime soon. The processor is paired with 16GB RAM and 256GB SSD storage.

The highlight of the Acer Predator Helios 300 is its screen. It is full HD and has a refresh rate of 144Hz. Everything displayed on the screen is as smooth as it can possibly be to the human eye, which is a great advantage for animations and graphics.

Lenovo Yoga 730

If you want modest power for not very much graphic design and animation, the Lenovo Yoga 730 fits the budget nicely.

The processor is an Intel Core i5, which is not the most powerful one in the world. The RAM count is 8GB (which is half of what you’ll get elsewhere) and 256GB SSD storage.

It compensates for the lower spec, with the fact that you can use it as a 2-in-1 laptop (essentially a tablet-PC) and can buy it for much less than other laptops on this list.

Dell XPS

Dell XPS gets the best value laptop almost every year. The reason is that it is the go-to option if you really don’t like the duopoly between Apple and Microsoft. Think of Dell XPS as the watershed between MacBooks and Surfaces.

It has a big enough 15.6 inches of screen, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of SSD storage. You can rest assured it can handle Adobe Photoshop, and so on. The body of the laptop is sleek as well, the screen stretches all the way to the sides, with very few bezels around (if you don’t count the monstrous bezel at the bottom of course)

Conclusion on Best Laptops for graphic design

Graphic Designers and animation creators do need raw power from a laptop. However, the most powerful laptops can be really expensive, so it is more cost-effective to buy a laptop that has a decent amount of power.

Most of the laptops have 16GB of RAM which handles most graphic tasks. The applications that you might be using (macOS and Windows alike) are better optimized for 16GB RAM and upwards. The above laptops are some of the best laptops for Graphic Design and Animation in 2021.