Revit and AutoCAD are the best software for architects, engineers, and design professionals in the building industry. People working on such software are fully aware that these programs require advanced systems with high-end specifications so that several different functions can be carried out simultaneously.
I am using Revit LT 2022 on a 16' Macbook Pro using VMWare Fusion. Very Happy with the performance for my small projetcs. In reply to: 1669233. In this video you will see that you can use Revit, Enscape, and Lumion on a MacBook Pro 16in.This video is longer than normal due to wanting to show real tim.
If you’re planning to buy a new laptop for running AutoCAD or Revit, then you must look for one that has enough storage space, powerful processor, and a good memory. After the integration of Revit and Lumion LiveSync, you’ll need even more powerful and advanced laptop to run the software.
In this post, we’ll help you pick the best laptop for AutoCAD and Revit, based on the official system requirements of these programs. With these powerful machines you won’t have to wait for the software to load and it will run smoothly throughout your tasks.
Contents
- Our top picks for the Best Laptops for Autocad and Revit:
Our top picks for the Best Laptops for Autocad and Revit:
There were times when most of the architects used only desktop PCs for their work, but now they are relying on laptops too because of the portability issue. The good thing is that these days laptops are equipped with all the high-end specs that we find in a desktop PC, the only thing is that they are expensive. Since you’re going to make a big investment, you must compare the top models available on the market.
1. Lenovo ThinkPad P53
Best laptop for Autocad and Revit
Specifications:
- Processor: Intel Six Core i7-9750H
- Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro T2000 4GB
- Memory: 16GB DIMM DDR4-2666
- Storage: 512GB PCIe Nvme SSD
- Display: 15.6″ 4K, 3840 x 2160
- Battery Life: Up to 16.5 hours on 90Whr
- Operating system: Windows 10 Pro
The ThinkPad P53 is the latest addition to Lenovo’s P-Series line of mobile workstations. Equipped with a high-end processor and an advanced GPU, P53 offers a desktop-class performance in a “portable” device, making it an ideal choice for designers and developers.
The system takes only 10 to 11 seconds to start up and running programs such as Revit is not a big deal. The laptop works smoothly, and stays cool and quiet even when the load is heavy. In addition, P53 incorporates all the security considerations and configurations that professionals need.
The ports are arranged very wisely; the Ethernet jack and power adapter are present on the rear edge. The USB ports are located on both the sides of the ThinkPad and there are air vents present at the sides, bottom and rear. The backlit feature is available too with two levels of brightness.
2. Acer Predator Helios 300
Best in Mid-Range
Specifications:
- Processor: 2.6 GHz Intel Core i7-9750H
- Graphics: 6GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti
- Memory: 16GB DDR4 SDRAM 2667 MHz
- Storage: 256 GB NVMe PCle SSD
- Display: 15.6 inch, 1920 x 1080 144Hz
- Battery Life: Up to 6 hours
- Operating system: Windows 10 Home (64-bit)
With its powerful 144 Hz display and overclockable graphics, the Acer Predator Helios 300 is an amazing machine for a professional experience. It is equipped with a 9th-generation Intel processor which is perfect for running programs like Revit and AutoCAD.
The lid of the laptop is designed very artistically with the ‘Predator’ logo on it. The chassis is durable and sturdy and the keyboard deck is of amazing quality. The bezels on this laptop are thinner and they give a sleeker look to the machine.
The display features fine colors and sharpness, and overall, the picture quality is amazing. The keyboard and the touchpad are of good quality; the keyboard features good bounce and key travel. The laptop is equipped with Acer’s PredatorSense software suite which features fan control, component-temperature monitoring, and per-game settings profiles.
3. Microsoft Surface Book 2
Portable and Powerful
Specifications:
- Processor: 1.9 GHz Intel Core i7-8650U
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
- Memory: 16GB LPDDR3
- Storage: 512 GB PCle 3.0 SSD
- Display: 15-inch, 3240 x 2160 (260 ppi)
- Battery Life: Up to 17 hours
- Operating System: Windows 10 Pro
The Microsoft Surface Book 2 is one of the best 2-in-1 laptops available on the market. The convertible feature is very handy for Revit users as it allows you to work in tablet mode easily.
The laptop is equipped with an 8th-generation Intel Core i7 processor which is mostly found on top-notch gaming laptops. The RAM can also be customized and upgraded to 16GB which can boost its performance by far. It has a large 15-inch screen and a powerful battery that can last for hours.
The Surface Book 2’s surface is one of the bests in the market; the text looks fine and sharp and so do the photos and videos. You can also attach and detach the screen from the base effortlessly. The keyboard has a satisfying bounce and a punchy feedback and is backlit too.
The Surface Book 2 has a stunning Pixel Sense display that is close to 4K resolution in color accuracy and brightness. Overall, the laptop is immensely powerful but it would be better if Microsoft had utilized the 15-inch form factor more efficiently.
4. Dell XPS 15 7590 Laptop
Best Display for Revit and AutoCAD
Specifications:
- Processor: 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9750H
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB
- Memory: 16GB DDR4-2666MHz
- Storage: 256GB SSD
- Display: 15.6-inch, 4K UHD (3840 x 2160)
- Battery Life: Up to 8 hours on 97Whr
- Operating system: Windows 10 Pro
The Dell XPS 15 is a powerful and gorgeous workhouse featuring 9th-generation Intel CPU, Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU, and 4K OLED InfinityEdge display. The display offers rich and vibrant color and is perfect for running software like Revit and AutoCAD.
Further, the ten-point capacitive touch screen is smooth and quick. The keyboard and touchpad are comfortable to use; the keys are large and have good spacing between them. The ventilation system is decent too, located at the front of the hinge and at the bottom of the laptop.
The runtime is up to 8 hours, and the good thing is that the machine doesn’t heat up in spite of heavy load. In summary, if you’re looking for something with extreme power and a mind-blowing display, the Dell XPS 15 7590 is the way to go!
5. Acer Aspire 5
Best Budget CAD Laptop
Specifications:
- Processor: 10th Gen Intel Core i5-10210U
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce MX250
- Memory: 8GB DDR4
- Storage: 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD
- Display: 15.6 inches FHD (1920 X 1080) LED
- Battery Life: Up to 9 hours
- Operating system: Windows 10 Home
The Aspire A5 is a mid-range budget laptop for those who want to run AutoCAD and Revit. Housing a 10th Gen Intel Core Processor and Nvidia GeForce MX250 graphics, the laptop is capable of running these programs smoothly. Additionally, it supports Wi-Fi 6 and can last many hours on a charge.
The design is not too sleek and stylish as compared to other laptops, but then it isn’t an ugly and gigantic one either. It is a decent looking machine with a plastic-made chassis and a textured surface.
The display is normal-sized and the bezels are thick with the webcam located at the center of the top bezel. It is equipped with two USB ports that give you options for connecting peripherals. The full HD IPS display has good brightness and color, and the matte finish avoids reflections too.
Overall, the Aspire 5 gives an excellent value for the money. It lacks the premium look and feel of a high-end device, but does the job well at a reasonable price.
6. 2020 Apple MacBook Pro
Best MacBook for CAD
Specifications:
- Processor: 10th Gen Intel Core i5
- Graphics: Intel Iris Plus
- Memory: 16GB
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Display: 13.3-inch, 2560 x 1600
- Battery Life: Up to 10 hours
- Operating system: Apple macOS Catalina
The Apple MacBook Pro is a powerful and versatile machine, and is one of the best for running CAD. It features a 10th Gen Intel processor, super-fast 16GB RAM, and ample storage up to 1TB. The biggest upgrade on this laptop is the new Magic Keyboard which ditches the shallow keys in a bid to provide improved keyboard comfort.
The 13-inch MacBook Pro has a beautiful design with a thin glass present along the top of the keyboard. This thin-glass features some display sensitive buttons including a small sensor on the right of the Touch Bar which is used for logging in using fingerprint.
Other key features include a Retina display with True Tone technology, Intel Iris Plus Graphics, four Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, and Force Touch trackpad. The laptop also features Apple’s advanced T2 Security chip that makes sure that the data and information you’ve stored onboard is safe and secure.
7. MSI WS65 9Tk-688
Pro Workstation Laptop
Specifications:
- Processor: 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9750H
- Graphics: Nvidia Quadro RTX 3000
- Memory: 32GB DDR4 SDRAM; Max 64GB
- Storage: 512GB NVMe SSD
- Display: 15.6 inches FHD (1920 X 1080)
- Battery Life: Up to 7 hours
- Operating system: Windows 10 Pro
The WS65 9Tk-688 is one of MSI’s best workstations. It packs a powerful 9th-Gen Core i7 processor and Nvidia Quadro RTX 5000 Max-Q GPU. To top that off, WS65 features a solid battery life along with a gorgeous 4K display. All this packed into a superslim, durable chassis.
The display is vibrant and vivid, and is perfect for running AutoCAD and Revit. The available RAM is also more than the recommended specification to run these software. Moreover, the GPU of this machine is powerful enough to make the experience of 3D modeling a great one.
The MSI WS65 is of premium quality and it can withstand dust, sand, vibrations, extreme temperatures, altitudes, and vibration shocks. There are numerous ports on this laptop which include an Ethernet port, two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, a security lock slot, a headphone jack, and a microphone jack.
Choosing the best laptop for Revit and AutoCAD
Finding a good laptop is a difficult task because there are so many options available. The big companies like Asus, Acer, Dell, and others are manufacturing a huge variety of laptops and this is making the buyers confused. In case you’re thinking about the factors to consider for choosing the best laptop for Revit and AutoCAD, we have done a research and jotted them down. Following are the things to look for:
CPU
The AutoCAD and Revit software require powerful processors to run smoothly. If you can afford, a quad-core processor with the highest clock speeds would be perfect. The higher the clock frequency, the more functions it will be able to perform per minute. The number of cores also affect the performance of the software. The current version of Revit is more dependent on the multi-core CPUs but it is still frequency bound.
A CPU with multiple cores and high clock speeds is an ideal one and is far better than a single core with low clock frequency. However, a single core with high clock frequency is better in performance than multi-cores with low clock frequencies. If you’re a student and want to go with the small models, then Intel core i5 or Core i7 HQ is good. If you’re a pro and want to design complex models, then you must choose Intel Xeon for rendering and Intel Core i7 HK or Core i7 HQ for drafting.
RAM
To run AutoCAD or Revit smoothly, a large RAM is needed. A minimum of 8GB RAM is required if you’re a student and higher if you’re a professional and working on large projects. Autodesk states that Revit central file of 100 MB consumes around 2GB RAM when opened. If you’re opening larger files of 200 MB or more, then a lot of RAM will be required because of the consumption. At least 16GB RAM is perfect for doing your work with peace.
Storage
Revit and AutoCAD need a large amount of storage to perform the functions accurately. An SSD is very much required as it promotes first read and write speeds and access the data very fast too. A laptop having 256GB data or more is recommended with both SSD and HDD. For HDD, there must be at least 7200 RPM.
Graphics Card
Graphics card plays an important role in the performance of software like Revit and AutoCAD. Consumer graphic cards are affordable but if you want to perform professional tasks, you must go for the quadro-cards. The quadro-cards are perfect for running simulations and rendering, but they are expensive too. For students working on small projects, Intel HD, Nvidia GeForce 940M, and MX150 are good. For professionals working on heavy duty tasks, GTX 960M, 1050M, and 1060M are perfect.
Display quality
Since you’re going to work for hours, you must make sure that the display is full HD 1080p resolution and is a matte one. The display screen must be kind to your eyes as you’ll be staring it continuously for many hours.
Bottom Line
If you are on the market to buy a laptop for AutoCAD or Revit, you must first determine your needs first. You can make the right choice only if you know the requirements. Other things to decide along with compatibility are portability, ergonomic design, good capacity, and display size.
Finding a good laptop for running AutoCAD or Revit is a challenging task and that’s why we have reviewed the best 7 products. You must choose one of these advanced and powerful laptops for amazing display and graphics experience.
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Reading Time: 3minutesAs a construction company in today’s world, you need to do more than share blueprints with prospective clients. Whether you are a B2C business or cater to B2B clients, 3D modeling, Building Information Modeling (BIM), and visualization help create a high-quality presentation of your design.
However, these software applications are not always easy to use. Some are quite complex, and a few are outdated. What if you can integrate real-time image synthesis (rendering) and virtual reality directly into the workflow? What if you can use the same software to design a model and visualize it without creating multiple models on different software applications?
Enscape provides a fast, simple, and effective method to include rendering and VR as a part of the workflow.
When to Use Enscape
→ Start using Enscape from the pre-design stage to create a design strategy that provides answers to all the challenges of the project.
→ Move on to create semantic designs and renderings using the countless options available in the software. The more details you include, a cut above your model gets.
→ Share the renderings with stakeholders and get their feedback to make the necessary changes. Enscape allows you to make changes in real-time so that you don’t need to jump between multiple systems.
→ Link Enscape with the documents for BIM. Sync the details to save and effort. There’s no need to search for the relevant file to crosscheck the specification of the building. Find everything in one place.
→ Check how the installations will look even before you start working on them. Connect a VR headset and take a virtual tour of the building.
→ Get the final design of the project and compare it with the actual structure at all times. Make sure that the building is exactly how you want it to be.
Features of Enscape
You’ve understood that Enscape can be used throughout a project,right?
Let’s look at some of the features in brief:-
- The software’s real-time rendering technology allows a fully-rendered 3D walk-through to check every nook and corner of the model building. You can connect Enscape to CAD to sync the changes and updates made to the model. As Enscape plugs directly into the modeling software, all changes and updates made to the model are instantly visible. Enscape is compatible with Revit, SketchUp, Rhino, Archicad, and Vectorworks.
- Make the most of VR headsets by connecting with Enscape to experience a virtual tour of the model. This gives you a wonderful opportunity to understand the feelings invoked by the building.
- Do you work in teams? No problem. Enscape can be used by several team members. Share, collaborate, discuss, give and accept feedback to fine-tune the models.
- Do you want to know how the building appears at different times of the day? Wonder how the structure will look during summers or winters? Choose the atmospheric setting you want, and voila!
- Get orthographic views of the building, because hey, how can a structure be complete without a clear floor plan?
- Customize the assets and add furniture, trees, pools, parks, and much more to the model.What more do we want!
Advantages of Using Enscape
Enscape has some wonderful features, isn’t it? There is so much you can do using this software.
✓ You don’t need to be an expert to use this software. The user interface is friendly and efficient.
✓ Work on a single model from start to finish. Design, document, and visualize in the same workflow.
✓ Quality is respected across the globe. Show that you deliver only the best quality work by developing stunning visuals.
✓ When you can see the model with ease and make immediate changes to it, will it not help to speed up decision-making?
✓ Start with abstract but end with the finest of details. Integrate Enscape into the workflow and design amazing models no one has ever seen before.
Enscape Pricing
Enscape Macbook Pro
The company offers a free 14-day trial along with the following plans-
- Floating License: $67.90/ month (billed annually); this has been created for teams. The full version of the software can be used on numerous devices.
- Fixed-Seat License: $69.90/ month (billed monthly) or $39.90/ month (billed annually); the full version of the software can be used only on one device.
There is also a special license for students and educators .It is free of cost and is valid for 24 months (for students and educators) and 12 months (for classrooms). Students can renew the license as long as they remain a student (and complete the course).
Enscape Macbook Pro 2019
Final Conclusion
When most of the topmost architectural companies from all parts of the world are using Enscape to create breathtaking visuals, why do you want to stay behind? BIM modeling and visualization can now be used together through a single software.
Enscape Macbook Pro 2020
Also, the company regularly updates the software to include the latest features in the market. You can be assured of accessing advanced features as and when they are released. Let virtual reality become the new reality as people marvel at your buildings.