Video RAM for Photo/Video Editing?

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Pete-st

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Sep 20, 2014
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Hi! I'm looking to buy a new laptop, and I've narrowed down nearly all my choices. Currently, I'm on an MSI GE70 ( http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?id=363 ), and while it's served me well for over two years, it's starting to get on the fritz. I need a laptop for everyday/academic use as well as for photo and video editing, and for writing/coding. My top choice at the moment is the new MSI Ghost Pro 3K laptop ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152593 ).

At this point, my only reservation is the video card. Comparable options I looked at had the 870M with 6GB of vRAM instead of 3GB, and I'm wondering how much of an impact that will actually make, especially considering that I'll be performing all (most?) of my intensive tasks at 3K. Everywhere I've read talks about "gaming" performance of the MSI machines since that's what they're built for, and while it's close video editing isn't directly analogous. I've been hard-pressed to find out whether the difference in vRAM from 3GB to 6GB will be useful for my case, so any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks!

EDIT: Everything else I like about this laptop, so I'm not necessarily looking for opinions on whether 3K is "practical" or whatnot. I'd really just like to know whether I'll be okay with the 3GB version of the 870M, or if I should look into other options for upgrading it. Thanks again in advance.
 
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It is hard to say, but I think that you will only get a slight increase in render speed and possibly the ability to edit in slightly higher preview screen (like 1/2 vs 1/3 resolution). The extra RAM will help with coding.

The monitor on the new laptop is 3k, but that should not stress the GPU much. vRAM comes into effect more when you edit higher resolution footage (4k vs 2k) (or play games in high resolution/multiple monitor situations). In that case, more vRAM the better.

The laptop you are looking at is very good, however it is only a slight bump above the one you are using. If you upgrade your current Laptop to 16GB of RAM, that would help a lot as well as making sure it is clean (no dust inside) and that it is not...
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Pete-st

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Sep 20, 2014
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I figured that it would help when loading things into memory for rendering. In other forum posts inquiring about video RAM it was mentioned that it would be useful when running multiple displays, though, which is really where my concern is stemming from. Since the 3K monitor on this MSI has exactly 2.25 times as many pixels as a 1080p screen, would I be running into the same limitation? Or am I just building up a non-issue in my head?
 
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Heinrich17

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Jan 16, 2014
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It is hard to say, but I think that you will only get a slight increase in render speed and possibly the ability to edit in slightly higher preview screen (like 1/2 vs 1/3 resolution). The extra RAM will help with coding.

The monitor on the new laptop is 3k, but that should not stress the GPU much. vRAM comes into effect more when you edit higher resolution footage (4k vs 2k) (or play games in high resolution/multiple monitor situations). In that case, more vRAM the better.

The laptop you are looking at is very good, however it is only a slight bump above the one you are using. If you upgrade your current Laptop to 16GB of RAM, that would help a lot as well as making sure it is clean (no dust inside) and that it is not overheating.

The actual editing of content is not resource intensive. The GPU will offload a bit from the CPU, but your CPU should not be going over 50% unless you are editing high res footage or adding a lot of effects. Make sure your laptop is balanced! Consider the following:

-Add an mSATA SSD if possible
-Replace HDD with SSD if above is not possible
-Replace RAM to 2x8GB

I mention this because 3610qm is about the same (maybe 15% weaker) as a 4710HQ. Make the above changes and your Laptop will be almost equal to the one you are considering purchasing (it will save you about $1300 as well).

Also something to keep in mind, do not do everything on one drive when video editing. That will make your HDD run slow and will cripple your system. Buy a couple of Western Digital myPassport drives regardless of whether you buy a new laptop or keep the old one.

Another thing is, computers tend to slow down with age, but not because they are getting old. It is because there is a lot of junk that accumulates throughout your normal use. Either clean your laptop or use your recovery disks to start fresh.
 
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