11 Ideal laptops for Openshot in 2023

Do you need a laptop that can handle editing with Openshot? But you don't know what specs to look out for? I gotchu. I've made this guide to help aspiring editors and videographers like you find the best laptops for Openshot without spending more than you have to.

The main goal of this guide is to identify the essential specs that matter and the ones that you don't need to be concerned about.

So, let's cut to the chase – what kind of specs should you look out for? I'll also provide a few specific laptop recommendations for different price brackets. But first things first: I'll provide you with a requirement breakdown for an optimal Openshot laptop.

Processors Explored

The current laptop processor landscape is dominated by Intel's 12th generation CPUs, Apple's M1 ARM-based SOCs, and AMD's 6th gen Ryzen processors. Intel's and Apple's chips have adopted a hybrid performance/efficiency core design based on big.LITTLE architecture. Ryzen models are best for laptops that need a good battery life.

Since Openshot is a single-threaded application, we can ignore the CPU's core count and focus on its frequency instead. Openshot is not well-optimized for multi-core CPUs, so I'd recommend going for a single-core/thread performance laptop. If you're looking for a MacBook – Apple's processors are known for their excellent single-thread performance, so they're a good option if you're looking for a fast laptop with a long battery life.

I use Cinebench R23 to compare processors because it's one of the best ways to measure single-thread performance; however, it's not the only way – other tests such as PassMark and 3DMark could be used instead. Other considerations include the amount of RAM and storage space – these are essential for any video editor; however, if you're on a budget – don't worry about them too much since they're not as important as the processor and graphics card (if you need one).

To help you decide on the best processor for your needs, here are some recommendations based on the median laptop prices of each tier:

• Minimum: AMD Ryzen 3 3200U
• Recommended: i3-10110U
• High-end: i5-10210U

Graphics Power

The laptop graphics market is dominated by Nvidia, who recently released their RTX 40 series cards, but unfortunately these aren't yet available for laptops. Instead, the latest laptop graphics chips from Nvidia are in the RTX 30 series, such as the RTX 3070 Ti. Desktop GPUs are now a lot more power-hungry, and so the gap between notebook and desktop graphics cards has widened in the past few years. Nvidia has also discontinued the Max-Q label for its RTX graphics cards, so a laptop manufacturer (OEM) now has to decide the exact wattage for each GPU. That can result in a wide variance in graphics performance even for laptops with the same GPU chipset.

For basic video editing, you can get by with an integrated graphics chip, but if you're looking for better performance and effects, then you'll need a dedicated GPU. If you're only using the stock video effects that come with Premiere Pro and/or After Effects then you don't need a dedicated GPU.

To choose between an AMD and Nvidia GPU, it really depends on your budget and what you're planning to use it for. Generally, Nvidia graphics cards are more power-hungry, but they tend to perform better in many applications, especially when paired with an AMD Ryzen CPU (which has been known to perform well with Nvidia GPUs).

To determine how well a certain GPU will perform, we can use benchmark scores like 3DMark, although these scores are not always indicative of real-world performance.

When it comes to OpenShot video editing, it's best to look for a laptop with a dedicated graphics card (not just an "Advanced" or "Professional" version of the integrated chip). For OpenShot, you'll need at least 4GB of VRAM, which is best provided by the Iris Xe Graphics G7. For better performance, you should look at something like the Quadro T500 or the GeForce MX550.

GPU	Recommended Price Range
Iris Xe Graphics G7	Under $1,000
Quadro T500	$1,000 – $2,000
GeForce MX550	Over $2,000

RAM Considerations

Video editing and graphic design are memory intensive tasks that require a lot of RAM to run smoothly. This is especially true when using professional-grade software like Openshot. Unfortunately, not all laptops come with enough RAM to handle demanding tasks. So, when shopping for the right laptop for video editing or graphic design, you need to consider the amount of RAM that it comes with.

Most mid-range laptops come with 16 GB of RAM and high-end – 32 GB or more. If you're looking for an entry-level laptop for your child or a secondary laptop, 16 GB should be sufficient for most tasks. However, if you're looking for a primary laptop that can handle video editing and other demanding tasks, 32 GB would be ideal.

The latest-gen Intel and AMD CPUs support DDR4 and DDR5, though DDR5 is still quite expensive and needs time to mature as a technology. DDR4 is still the most common type of RAM and is widely available at different speeds and capacities. DDR4 also supports ECC (Error-Correcting Code) which helps ensure data integrity, especially when working with high-quality RAW files.

The other factor to consider is the RAM's CL/TIMING CL benchmark which measures how quickly the RAM can access and transfer data. However, these benchmarks can be misleading and don't always reflect the actual performance of the RAM. That's why I don't use them in my laptop reviews.

Here's a handy table of recommended RAM configurations depending on your budget:

Budget	Recommended RAM
Entry-Level	8 GB
Mid-Range	16 GB
High-End	32 GB or more

6 Best Laptops for Openshot

Table of the Best Laptops for Openshot

Laptop	Price (approx)
ASUS ZenBook 13 UX325EA-EH71	$730
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i	$960
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14	$1320
Lenovo Legion 5 Pro	$1510
GIGABYTE AORUS 15 XE4	$1600
Lenovo ThinkPad P15	$6050