Anybody using a MacBook Air for editing 4k?

[Phantom NSX]

My current laptop isn't up to date with trying to run 4k video edits so I was going to get a MacBook Air to help out with that issue...anybody using one and are they good for editing 4k video??

If so what one do you have?

Thanks!

 

[bbfpv]

I don't but I'd imagine the screen size alone would be reason enough to not try it... unless of course you'll be using an external monitor, at which point you'd be better off spending your money on something that's not a laptop.

 

[thefrisbee995]

I use the high end 2015 MacBook Pro 15" and that will edit 4K just fine. You don't need a 4K screen to edit and render a video in 4K using a tool such as final cut x. Any MacBook Air will probably struggle though. You're processor will be kind of weak for editing in 4K, not as much ram and the lack of graphics will hold it back too.

Having said all of that, it will be possible to make videos in 4K but you'll need patience. Rendering will be slow and you'll want to invest in a faster mac if you'll be editing regularly.

 

[Phantom NSX]

I use the high end 2015 MacBook Pro 15" and that will edit 4K just fine. You don't need a 4K screen to edit and render a video in 4K using a tool such as final cut x. Any MacBook Air will probably struggle though. You're processor will be kind of weak for editing in 4K, not as much ram and the lack of graphics will hold it back too.

Having said all of that, it will be possible to make videos in 4K but you'll need patience. Rendering will be slow and you'll want to invest in a faster mac if you'll be editing regularly.

Thanks for the replies...

The one I was looking at has these specs....

• Processor: 1.3GHz Intel Core i5 Dual-Core
• Operating System: Mac OS 10.11 El Capitan
• Storage: 128GB SSD
• Memory: 4GB DDR3 RAM
• 11.6" LED-Backlit Glossy Display
• Display: 1366 × 768 Native Resolution
• Integrated Intel HD Graphics 5000
• iLife, a complete suite of digital creativity applications, is installed on the system. Easy enough for anyone to use, iLife will help you edit your home movies, organize digital photos, and compose original music.

I've heard good things about these...just wondering if anybody on here has one and what their experience is with them.
I don't think the screen size or processor will be the issue, I'm more worried about the low RAM.

 

[tonicinside]

I'm using, Mac Air 2012. Final cut and Adobe Premiere works fine if convert 4k video to 1080p. [emoji846]


Sent from my iPhone

 

[With The Birds]

The air's are great machines for portability, battery life and performance with general productivity use- this is a bad choice for video editing. Look for at least 16gig ram, i7 processor and dedicated graphics. I tried to edit video while on holidays using my daughters Air and it was a very frustrating experience.

 

[Phantom NSX]

The air's are great machines for portability, battery life and performance with general productivity use- this is a bad choice for video editing. Look for at least 16gig ram, i7 processor and dedicated graphics. I tried to edit video while on holidays using my daughters Air and it was a very frustrating experience.

Ok thanks...I really needed something portable for my trips to Hawaii....was hoping an i5 or i7 Air would be enough.

 

[Phantom NSX]

I'm using, Mac Air 2012. Final cut and Adobe Premiere works fine if convert 4k video to 1080p. [emoji846]


Sent from my iPhone

Any samples?

 

[thefrisbee995]

I'm using, Mac Air 2012. Final cut and Adobe Premiere works fine if convert 4k video to 1080p. [emoji846]


Sent from my iPhone

I can't get my head around stripping the quality down. Literally would have got a P3S or P3A and not my P4P if I was going to out the quality down. It should still work with your Air just with rendering speeds down really low if you keep it in 4K

 

[Dan cutter]

My current laptop isn't up to date with trying to run 4k video edits so I was going to get a MacBook Air to help out with that issue...anybody using one and are they good for editing 4k video??

If so what one do you have?

Thanks!

Get the pro! So much better, faster, bigger, brighter. I fly the drone with one too. I use an air too--but not 4K.

 

[With The Birds]

Get the pro! So much better, faster, bigger, brighter. I fly the drone with one too. I use an air too--but not 4K.

IPad Pro? Ok for basic edits but the Air will be better overall.

 

[tonicinside]

Any samples?

First fly and post production:

Sent from my iPhone

 

[Mac Drone]

Hey guys...I'm thinking of buying a dell ultrabook laptop with 1920*1080 HD LCD display intel core i7 8 GB RAM and 256 GB Samsung ssd running Windows10. Think I'll be ok editing 4k? Please let me kno thinking of getting it today. Thanks

 

[thefrisbee995]

Hey guys...I'm thinking of buying a dell ultrabook laptop with 1920*1080 HD LCD display intel core i7 8 GB RAM and 256 GB Samsung ssd running Windows10. Think I'll be ok editing 4k? Please let me kno thinking of getting it today. Thanks

What i7 is it? Don't forget that i7 simply means its one of their high end intel CPUs. You ideally want one with 4 cores. Also if you are working with 4K video, you really want dedicated graphics, not intergrated graphics.

 

[Mac Drone]

Checking on that right now....and are you talking about the graphics card?

 

[thefrisbee995]

Checking on that right now....and are you talking about the graphics card?

Yes, pretty much having any sort of "modern" graphics card and not using the graphics built into the CPU will make all the difference in the world

 

[Mac Drone]

Yes, pretty much having any sort of "modern" graphics card and not using the graphics built into the CPU will make all the difference in the world

Looking at the specs it says Intel(r) core(tm) [email protected] 2.50ghz
System type- 64bit operating system x64based processor. Thanks again for you help

 

[thefrisbee995]

That's a 3rd gen i7. It came out 4 years ago in 2013. I believe gen 8 comes out later this year. It's also dual core. You'll usually find that the smaller laptops are dual core. ignore the 64-bit. If a cpu can take 64-bit operating systems, it'll most likely come pre-installed.

 

[Phantom NSX]

Ok, so I'm now looking into the MacBook Pro 15 after some helpful tips from this thread and talking to the Apple Store.

Looking at this one...can get a nice MacBook Pro (2013)refurb for around $1000

• 15.4-inch LED-backlit Retina display with IPS technology; 2880x1800 resolution
• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
• PC3-12800 (1600MHz) DDR3L on-board memory
• 8.0 GB RAM /240G Built-in flash storage
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M graphics with 1.0GB GDDR5 memory and HD Graphics 4000 with 384MB DDR3 shared memory
• AirPort Extreme wireless card (802.11n)
• Bluetooth 4.0
• Built-in FaceTime HD camera
• 2- Thunderbolt ports
• 1- HDMI port
• 2- USB 3.0 ports
• 1- Secure Digital (SDXC) slot

Hoping this should work.

 

[thefrisbee995]

Ok, so I'm now looking into the MacBook Pro 15 after some helpful tips from this thread and talking to the Apple Store.

Looking at this one...can get a nice MacBook Pro (2013)refurb for around $1000

• 15.4-inch LED-backlit Retina display with IPS technology; 2880x1800 resolution
• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
• PC3-12800 (1600MHz) DDR3L on-board memory
• 8.0 GB RAM /240G Built-in flash storage
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M graphics with 1.0GB GDDR5 memory and HD Graphics 4000 with 384MB DDR3 shared memory
• AirPort Extreme wireless card (802.11n)
• Bluetooth 4.0
• Built-in FaceTime HD camera
• 2- Thunderbolt ports
• 1- HDMI port
• 2- USB 3.0 ports
• 1- Secure Digital (SDXC) slot

Hoping this should work.

I'd get that. Shop around eBay and amazon for a better price though. Compared to the dell you said about this one would be waaaay better. Mac is my preference and that machine would last you a good few years.