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The Best Laptops For 3D Animation in 2022

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The Best Laptops For 3D Animation in 2022

Modern laptops are quite the marvel. They’re capable of a lot of things. Aside from AAA gaming, they can also do complex tasks such as 3D animation. If you’re an animator, it’s always good to know that you can bring your work wherever you go so long as you have the right laptop. A laptop for 3D animation should have good RAM and a strong GPU and CPU.

Of course, there are many laptops out there, but not all have the specs and build to run 3D animation software. Moreover, there are laptops that can do the job, just as well as any PC. If you’re looking for a laptop that will perfectly fit your needs as an animator, then here are the best laptops for 3D animation that you should consider getting.

01 MacBook Pro

When it comes to stylish and powerful laptops, one name that you can always trust is Apple. The MacBook Pro delivers a performance that’s fit for casual users and professionals alike. If you want to render animations, consider getting the 2021 Apple MacBook Pro. 

There’s not a lot of bad that can be said about the Apple MacBook Pro. In hindsight, the only real downside is that its price is very steep. However, if you’re looking for one of the best investments you can make for your animation career, it’s safe to say that the price of the 2021 MacBook Pro is more than worth it. Consider it a long-term investment instead of an expense, and you’ll be surprised at how well it pays off.
 
One of the best things about the Apple MacBook Pro is the fact that it has the best screens you’ll find on a laptop. The laptop’s mini-LED technology and Apple’s trademark retina display. The 16-inch display is undoubtedly large enough for animation purposes, and with Apple’s visual quality on display, it’s safe to say that you’re getting the most out of your money with the Apple MacBook Pro 2021.
 
While relatively large, you don’t have to worry about portability. The laptop is designed to be slim and light, so it’s easy to carry around. Performance-wise, the Apple MacBook Pro has Apple’s latest computer chip installed, so you’re getting performance that’s both reliable and tough to beat. It makes the laptop even more capable of even the most taxing animation jobs. It’s a perfect laptop for both casual use and for professional use as well.
 
The Apple MacBook Pro is the best laptop for animation right now. The only real downside is that it’s rather pricey, but even then, you should only think that this is a great investment for your career.

Pros

  • Fast and reliable CPU
  • Great port selection
  • Good battery life

Cons

  • Pricey

Specification

  • Price $2,099.00
  • CPU Apple M1 Pro 10-core/M1 Max 10-core
  • GPU Integrated 16-core/32-core GPU
  • RAM Up to 64 GB
  • Screen 16.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display
MacBook Pro

02 Razer Blade 17 (2022)

If you’re looking for a laptop that’s built for animation, you need to consider its performance and how well it handles graphics. Gaming laptops are often great choices for this task. With that, we’d like to introduce the Razer Blade 17.

The Razer Blade 17 is Razer’s best gaming laptop at the moment, which should explain its price. While expensive, you’ll definitely get what you pay for with this laptop. In terms of performance, the Razer Blade 17 is easily one of the best out there. That shouldn’t be surprising, though, as it has the cutting-edge Intel 12th generation of processors. As for its GPU, the laptop carries the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti.

The RTX 3080 is the most prized GPU out there right now. It’s capable of AAA-gaming at the very best settings, so it can definitely handle some heavy animation. Aside from animation, the RTX 3080 is going to make your laptop capable of rendering 3D animations instead. To put it simply, the RTX 3080 boasts the best performance possible, which makes it a perfect addition to the Razer Blade 17.

Thanks to its amazing specs, the RTX 3080 also makes your laptop capable of adding realistic lighting effects, like ray tracing. The laptop pushes the boundaries of what you can do for work. The keyboard, mousepad, and display of the Razer Blade 17 are amazing too. The only downside is that it can get hot and noisy when you do heavy work with it. Still, that’s a small compromise for the power it offers for your animating needs.

The Razer Blade 17 is a blessing to gamers and animators alike. It’s very tough to find another laptop as good as this, and it’s worth getting if you have the budget.

Pros

  • Incredibly powerful
  • Great battery life
  • Modern design

Cons

  • Short battery life

Specification

  • Price $2,799.00
  • CPU 12th-generation Intel Core i7
  • GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
  • RAM 32 GB DDR5
  • Screen 17.3-inch QHD
Razer Blade 17 (2022)

03 Microsoft Surface Laptop 4

Another name you can really trust in computers is Microsoft. They create some truly amazing laptops for various occupations, and when it comes to animation, the best they have to offer is the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4.

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 is the best option you can buy if you’re on a budget. Despite being less than a thousand dollars, the laptop is a great performer for your professional animation needs. Another reason why it’s so popular is that many users say that it’s the best alternative to a MacBook if you don’t want to use macOS. That’s saying a lot for a laptop this affordable, so it’s definitely worth your consideration.

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 features a slim and stylish build quality. It’s thin, light, and very portable, which allows you to work comfortably wherever you may be. However, the small frame of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 packs a mean punch, and it’s capable of doing even some heavy-duty work as well. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 is best for students actually.

Due to its amazing price and compact packaging, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 can be brought just about anywhere. It’s tough finding a laptop that’s as affordable and as reliable as the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4. Of course, the specs of this laptop aren’t up to par with that of a MacBook Pro or of the Razer Blade 17. Still, if you’re not going to do 3D rendering or other complex tasks, it’s more than enough.

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 is perfect for those that don’t have a high budget for an animation laptop right now. Its performance isn’t up there, but it’s still a reliable laptop at the end of the day.

Pros

  • Comfortable feel
  • Light and sleek

Cons

  • Not enough ports

Specification

  • Price $726.00
  • CPU AMD Ryzen 5
  • GPU AMD Radeon
  • RAM 8 GB – 16 GB
  • Screen 13.5-inch PixelSense (2,256 x 1,504) touch
Microsoft Surface Laptop 4

04 Acer Spin 5

Acer is one of the trusted names when it comes to amazing laptops. They have a good selection of laptops for gaming, as well as for general use. If it’s an animation laptop you are looking for, you should consider getting the Acer Spin 5.

Like the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4, the Acer Spin 5’s main attraction is that it’s more affordable as compared to other laptops on this list. Its affordability isn’t something to worry about, though, as the laptop is still an excellent performer. As expected, it will struggle with 3D animation because it doesn’t have a dedicated graphics card. Other than that, the laptop is perfect for your basic animation needs.

Another reason to get the Acer Spin 5 is that it’s a 2-in-1 laptop. This means that aside from functioning as a traditional laptop, you can also flip the screen back and turn it into a tablet-like device too. For some people, this makes animating easier as you can use the tablet version to easily control the software that you are using. The Acer Spin 5 is regarded as one of the best 2-in-1 laptops out there as well.

If you get this laptop and then invest in a good stylus, you can increase your productivity by a huge margin. In truth, you don’t need to buy a stylus anymore as the laptop already comes with its own fully-featured stylus already. Partnered with its good performance and the laptop’s 12-hour battery life, you have a laptop that will get you through the day. Despite its price, the Acer Spin 5 is a surprisingly great find for your animation needs.

Acer proves with the Acer Spin 5 that they are an excellent laptop manufacturer. It’s thanks to this laptop that you can buy a good laptop for animation even if you’re on a budget.

Pros

  • Fantastic battery life
  • Comes with stylus

Cons

  • Display is not ideal for 16:9 video

Specification

  • Price $917.49
  • CPU 10th-generation Intel Core i5 – i7
  • GPU Intel Iris Plus Graphics
  • RAM 8GB – 16GB
  • Screen 13.5" (2256 x 1504) 3:2 touchscreen display
Acer Spin 5

05 Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro

The Acer Spin 5 is a great budget option from Acer. However, if you’re still looking for something that’s a bit high-end from the brand, then you should get the Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro. Pricey as it may be, it’s still an amazing laptop that you can use for animation.

The price of the Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro may not be as easy to get as the Acer Spin 5, but that says a lot about its performance. The Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro features a high-end Nvidia RTX GPU, which makes the laptop more than capable of rendering complex 3d scenes as well. If it can do amazing 3D scenes, then you can bet that the laptop won’t have any issues when it comes to even the most complex animation tasks that you have on your hand. 

Beyond that, just know that you’re getting the most out of the GPU thanks to the brilliant display of the Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro. It has a Pantone-validated 4K IPS screen that’s easily one of the best you can find in a laptop right now. With a display as good as this, you can guarantee that you are viewing your animation in their most accurate colors and their best quality yet, so your work is always optimized.

Thanks to its amazing CPU, the laptop also ensures smooth rendering for your videos. The only problem that we have with the Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro is that it’s a bit bulkier compared to others on this list. That’s saying a lot considering that it’s larger than the Razer Blade 17. Still, this small compromise isn’t that big of a deal. As long as you have a good laptop case with you, you can easily carry this laptop around without any problems.

The Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro is a stylish laptop that is expensive but is also very worth it. If it’s your animation career we are talking about, the price is definitely worth mulling over.

Pros

  • Fantastic 4K screen
  • Good port selection

Cons

  • Quite bulky

Specification

  • Price $3,999.99
  • CPU 9th-generation Intel Core i7
  • GPU NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080
  • RAM 32 GB
  • Screen 16 Inches
Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro

06 Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga

Last but not the least, we have an amazing laptop from Lenovo. The Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga is arguably one of the best laptops out there for professional use. So, how does it fare for animation purposes?

The Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga features amazing specs from within. One of which is a powerful 11th-gen Intel Core processor that allows you to run animation apps without any lag or delay. As for the performance of the laptop itself, it’s supported by an Intel Xe graphics card which will handle most of your animation apps with ease. When it comes to 3D animation, however, it’s not going to be that reliable, unsurprising given its extremely low price.

The Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga is also a 2-in-1 laptop, so it can turn into a tablet as well. Again, this is a good feature to look for in a laptop for animation because it makes the job easier. What makes working in tablet mode even more comfortable is the fact that the Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga comes with its own garaged stylus so that you can work with ease. The stylus itself is pretty amazing and comfortable to use.

Our main issue with the Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga is that it doesn’t have great battery life. It’s nice and affordable, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any compromises for price. It has a 9-hour battery life, but that’s good enough for most people. Just make sure that you keep your charger nearby, and this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

Pros

  • Comes with amazing stylus
  • Excellent performance

Cons

  • Battery life isn't impressive

Specification

  • Price $917.10
  • CPU 11th Gen Intel Core i5
  • GPU Intel Iris Xe Graphics
  • RAM 24 GB
  • Screen 14.0” FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS touchscreen
Lenovo ThinkBook 14S Yoga

Jonas Sunico

Oct 4, 2022

Jonas is a writer with over 6 years of experience in the tech and gaming industry. He holds a bachelor's degree in Journalism from University of the East Philippines and is one of the proud leaders of the academe's Journalism Society. At heart, he's a hardcore tech junkie that loves video games, the latest gadgets, and the wonderful science behind social media and AI.

314 Articles Published

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