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Laptop specs for tri purposes

Kerrie FreebornKerrie Freeborn
in General Training Discussions

Odd to put my laptop question here, but my questions are all due my triathlon-related requirements and this team is brilliant.  I sacrificed my laptop in a family crisis, so now I need a new one.  My prior laptop had specs that were fine for my non-triathlon requirements, but it didn't seem to cut it for tri purposes.   I have a separate work laptop, so no overlap there.  Other than tri stuff - I have iTunes + minor browsing + minimal personal letters.  Not a gamer.  

For the new computer, the PC specs need to accommodate at least this: EN, trainer road + sufferfest, power meter, garmin, training peaks, etc.   Plus all the stuff I really should start doing for accountability this outseason.  + iTunes and photos + the minor Office stuff.  But, I also don't want to have to replace the computer in a year, so trying to make sure I have enough for at least, I don't know - 3 years? 

Thoughts on 8 gigs of RAM + and i5 processor + 256 gig hard drive?  Thanks. 

Comments

  • [Deleted User][Deleted User]
    I'm not a gamer either, so I never really cared that much about video cards and such. But now I've been experimenting with Zwift (pretty cool by the way - would be fun to do some group EN rides!). Anyway, my laptop is just good enough for that, which is essentially gaming. So if you think that is something you may want to do at some point (and there are other ride simulation sites out there and probably many more to come), you might want to check with the Zwift site for minimum hardware requirements.
  • novaavantnovaavant
    Just make sure it's 64-bit OS and not 32-bit. A lot of modern software needs 64-bit as an example Zwift is 64-bit only.
  • John StarkJohn Stark

    Not sure why any of those software programs (except iTunes which is a steaming pile of bloated crap) would be hard on any PC unless it is low-end or several years old?  Any new Windows-based PC in the $500 + range should be more than adequate for a few years.

    As a geek going back to 1992, the #1 thing to consider these days is the HD.  I suggest a SSD (solid state drive) on any machine.  Makes more of a difference in how the machine runs than RAM.  Even if you purchased a machine with a standard 7200 RPM drive you can swap it out with a 240-250GB for ~$100 and prices are dropping every week.

     i5, 8GB RAM and an SSD drive would be more than fine.

    ~ Stark

  • Kerrie FreebornKerrie Freeborn

    Thank you all for the advice.  Very helpful and things that I would not have thought of myself.  Much appreciated! 

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