Is this laptop good for Solidworks? (what limitations)

[IVYBetty]

Hey guys, I'm new here so any help would be greatly appreciated.

I'm thinking about buying the laptop below:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Toshiba...lack/9705203.p?id=1218154377801&skuId=9705203

specs:
Intel Core I7 Processor

1.8GHz (with Turbo Boost up to 2.8GHz )

RAM: 4GB

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 310M

Video Mem: 512MB GDDR3 (discrete); up to 1755MB (dynamically allocated shared graphics memory using NVIDIA TurboCache technology); 2267MB total



I was wondering if it would work good with solidworks (i know about the Windows 7 issue) and what the limitations would be?

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

That graphics card is not suitable for SW. None of the GeForce cards are. It may work OK if your needs are very simple, but you will not have RealView and if any problems arise with SW, your VAR will not be able to offer much (if any) support.

 

[IVYBetty]

thanks. What should I look for in a desktop to run solidworks? And what would the price range be?

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Depends on the type of products you will be working with.

Will you be running FEA or creating photo-realistic rendering?
Small or large assys?
Simple prismatic parts or parts with lots of complex 'swoopy' features or patterns?

If you have a limited budget you may have to live with lower performance.

http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html

 

[IVYBetty]

If my budget is 1000$ for a desktop (is this the best route to take?) what would be my limitations?

thanks for all your help by the way. I'm about to graduate in a couple months and want to pursue Mechanical Design as a career and want to make sure I get the right computer.

 

[steinmini]

I recently posted about a PC on a limited budget. Bought a second hand GPU (nVidia Quadro FX3400) and a decent ASUS MB, AMD Athlon II X4 (630) and two GB of DDR3. Had the ViewSonic 24" wide TFT at home and a bunch of hdds. If you don't go for the ultra high end GPU, and have enough skills to build up your PC, you'll be much better off than with that laptop.

Even the lowest range of workstation GPUs will do the job much better than a consumer GPU at the same price. I think nVidia has a shortish video comparing workstation vs consumer GPUs in the US$150 range.

With a consumer GPU, forget Real View Graphics and rendering, most likely animation, etc. The comparison shows increase in time savings and performance between five and twelve times at the same invested amount of money.

The only real disadvantage over a laptop is that's it's quite a problem if you need to take it with you wherever you go...

There is one more thing, though, workstation GPUs like to be fed properly, so a very good PSU is a must. I would also consider replacing the stock cooler on the CPU if you plan to stress and OC the CPU.