Best Laptops for Digital Art 2024: Find the Best Laptop for Artists
Giving reality to your imaginations and creative ideas demands days of graphics designing, that’s why artists should have the best laptop for digital art as it makes task completion easier than an unresponsive and lagging computer.
A speedy and performance-oriented drawing laptop draws exactly as you desired and responds in real-time instead of a second or two delay. That’s what every designer prefers to have under his/her arsenal of digital tools.
Digital graphics designing not solely depends on the quality of the notebook, in fact, there are many helpful tools available in the market that make your life easier and comfortable. We will share some of the must-have drawing tools for digital artists and designers at the bottom of this article.
If you’re going to buy your first notebook for arts then read this guide thoroughly, however, experienced users also go through the entire article to discover the most suitable and perfect laptop for their needs.
Best Laptops for Digital Art in 2024: Find the Best Laptop for Artists
Dell XP 15
Dell XPS is a stunning laptop for artists built with the premium class material and killer aesthetics. It has a very thin bezel on three sides of the screen which provides more working space and bigger canvas for designing. Coming with infinity edge display panel having 400-nits, full HD 1920×1080 resolution, RGB Adobe colors, and vast color gamut. The anti-glare display designed with IPS technology which outputs superior quality even in daylights or brightly lit room. It doesn’t have touch capabilities, however, that should not be an issue for users who prefer to use the mouse for digital arts.
The laptop packs an Intel Core i7 8th generation 8750H processor with 8MB cache and clock speed of up to 4.1 GHz. It includes 8GB DDR4 RAM 2666MHz and super fast 256GB M.2 solid state drive with Windows 10 pre-installed. As it has the slimmest body profile, so you’ll have to compromise on the optical device but buying an external DVD room would fix this issue. In our experience, optical drives are not as common as these were in the past because you can use a flash USB or download anything directly from the Internet.
Besides that, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050Ti is a powerhouse for graphics designing as well as hardcore gaming. The GPU holds 4GB memory which is quite enough to handle all of your visual software and multitasking. At just 4 lbs weight, one can easily carry anywhere comfortably. There is much more to know, so click below button and discover more. With Waves MaxxAudio speakers, it boosts immersive sound and clear voice quality.
HP Pavilion 15
HP is a well know brand producing computer components and devices for all range of users including individual users to enterprises and businesses since 1939 around 79 years ago. Hewlett Packard (HP) is growing rapidly especially in desktop PCs, and they doubled their sales value in the last six straight quarters as of Aug 2018. So, there is something unique and magical which makes HP laptops to compete with its competitors. HP Pavilion is a potent machine empowered by 8th generation Intel Core i7-8550U CPU with clock speed of 1.8GHz and can be reached to 4.0GHz when turbo boost enabled.
It has a quad-core processor which holds 8MB cache and results in faster data rendering hence ultimate performance no matter how many tasks are in operation. Graphical softwares consume substantial system resources that’s why you must have massive RAM, luckily, Pavilion shipped with a massive 16GB RAM. Furthermore, 512GB SSD takes the overall speed to the next level thus no lags at all. Regarding the keyboard, it has a full size keyboard with numeric pad and backlit to stay productive in dim lights too. There are many external ports and default Windows 10 Home operating system as well as HD webcam.
Microsoft Surface Pro
Microsoft Surface is primarily designed for high productivity and users who love to have ultimate portability alongside all the bells and whistles to get the job done efficiently. You might know that Surface computers by Microsoft bring advanced functionalities like touch pen, Surface dial, and graphical devices compatibility by the company. Just look at Surface Studio here, it’s an all-in-one computer exclusively manufactured for professional designers and creative users. It also supports many features such as touch capabilities, Microsoft pen and Surface dial for ultimate usability.
No doubt, digital artists and designers inevitably find it the best laptop for digital art even though devices under this category usually costs more money. But, when it comes to professional projects, time is the real money and no one want to invest it on useless tasks. Computers under Surface series is the perfect choice to get maximum benefits out of your device.
All of this is achieved by an Intel Core i5 processor from 7th generation having 3.5GHz speed, 8GB LPDDR3 RAM, 128GB flash storage and integrated Intel HD 620 GPU. Though it has a small display panel of 12.3 inches, it also means ultimate portability. Another most impressive thing is its unbelievable battery timing of up to 13.5 hours for video playback. There are various models available to choose from come with different accessories and internal specifications.
Razor Blade 14
Razer solely manufactures high-end gaming machines and gaming accessories like mouse and keyboard with RGB lights to enjoy the satisfying gaming experience. Besides that, this best laptop for artists is also suitable for designing, Illustration, Photoshop, and visualization, thanks to QHD display with touch feature. Its immersive display panel paired with Intel UHD 620 graphics chipset which renders an incredible 3200×1800 pixels resolution. Moreover, the panel supports up to 178 degrees viewing angle which provides brighter as well as clear visuals.
For extreme performance, it shipped with Intel Core i7 8th generation processor that clocks at 1.8GHz to 4.0GHz with turbo boost. Razer Blade Stealth has a sturdy chassis made of a single block of gunmetal having aircraft grade durability which results in ultra reliability. Its speed further enhanced with 256GB SSD and 16GB of RAM, this combination alone will render all of your files and media content like a charm.
Talking about the keyboard, the amazing thing is you can personalize the backlit color from up to 16.8 million color choices. Isn’t it something unique? The company has optimized this digital art laptop for optimal speed where you won’t need to install anything on your own, it works out of the box and delivers beyond the expectation. With default Windows 10, you can start working right after the delivery or purchase instead of installing the OS.
Dell Inspiron 17
The above mentioned Dell XPS is an expensive category, however, Inspiron laptops from the company cost less money and quite affordable to some extent. Inspiron 17 packs an Intel Core i7 processor with a maximum of 4.0GHz processing speed when turbo boost enabled. It carries 8MB cache and energy efficient CPU that consumes less power and deliver considerably good battery life. With preinstalled Windows 10 edition, you get 8GB DDR4 RAM with 2400MHz frequency, 1TB hard disk drive, 128GB M.2 SSD, and AMD Radeon 530 graphics chipset holds 4GB GDDR5 memory.
Designers and drawing artists craft a lot of RAW files, so its 1TB mechanical disk drive is good enough to store all data. However, solid state drive works just fine to boot your laptop fastly. Here keep in mind, the 17.3″ panel outputs FHD (1920×1080) resolution, has an anti-glare LED-backlit screen, so you don’t suffer in lid room or daylight. Dell Inspiron brings full size keyboard with number pad where each key has the perfect distance. It’s the most ergonomics and writers friendly keyboard comes with backlit as well.
Last but not least, you also get an optical drive. USB ports, card reader slot, HDMI port, Combo audio jack, RJ-45, and security cable slot also in place. It weights a bit heavier at 6.15 lbs / 2.79 kg which might be a major concern for many customers.
HP Envy X2
HP Envy X2 is a versatile type of laptop that is likely to be favored by the artists. It offers 12-inch IPS display with a detachable capability that means the display panel is not fixed with the chassis and so you can turn it into a tablet. This characteristic makes it one of the best laptop for digital art as you can turn it into your comfortable position. The inclusion of a stylus is a great addition that assists in digital drawing and provides the taste of traditional drawing up to some extent. The laptop equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 (2.2GHz) Processor which not only faster but energy efficient and renders around 19-hour battery life even on Wi-Fi streaming which is a great duration for artists.
With a 4GB RAM and 128 GB flash storage you work on your drawings with no worry. It comprised a number of slots such as SIM, USB Type-C, and media reader. You can turn USB Type-C to A with the included dongle. It supports both Wi-Fi and faster 4G LTE. You can make use of integrated BlueTooth for wireless mice and keyboard, etc. Digital artists most likely interests in a laptop that offer high portability. HP Envy X2 weight around 1 lbs. / 453 g and just 0.3” thick so provides extreme portability.
MSI GL62M
MSI GL62M is a powerful machine that offers all the power required for seamless digital drawing. The 15.6” full HD (1920 x 1080) screen offers a spacious place to draw which is great for artists. The display panel delivers high color rang with 94% NTSC for realism. In addition, 7th generation 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-7700HQ processor and 8GB of RAM are the things that make it one of the top digital art laptops for drawing. The combination of such a robust processor, plentiful RAM and dedicated NVIDIA GTX 1050Ti allow you to run resource hungry softwares like Maya, Illustrator, Photoshop, and AutoCAD, etc. without any lags.
MSI GL62M encompasses both SSD and HDD storage. You can use 128GB SSD for the operating system to enhance boot speed and higher I/O. For artists, they are more likely to transfer bigger and complex files so SSD plays a significant role in this regard. The notebook has 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 ports which assist in fast data transferring. Through HDMI you can presents the display on the larger screen to your clients. Moreover, you will get the latest Windows 10 operating system. The weight of this laptop is 5.29 lbs / 2.39 kg which is a little bit heavy but still offer greater portability.
ASUS ZenBook
ASUS ZenBook owns several qualities that make it an ideal laptop for digital art. It is quite slim 0.8” and lightweight at 3.2 lbs / 1.45 kg, so you easily carry to the location where you feel more relaxed. ASUS ZenBook built with 6th generation Intel Core i7-6500U with base speed 2.5GHz. For more power, the processor has the ability to turbo up to 3.1GHz. Apart from the processor, the component that makes it a perfect choice for artists is the 13.3” IPS touchscreen with Quad HD resolution (3200 x 1800). Furthermore, the 12GB of RAM is more than enough to carry out resource intensive tasks.
A laptop for designers should have a discrete graphics unit because for a larger number of layers or filters the software requires intensive resources even if you are working in 2D. ASUS Zenbook comes with a dedicated 2GB NVIDIA GeForce 940M which is sufficient for digital art softwares. Moreover because of the 512 GB SSD integration the laptop boot up and launches applications blazingly fast.
ASUS ZenBook featured with 3 USB 3.0, HDMI, mini DisplayPort, WiFi, and Bluetooth. With the use of energy efficient hardware like SSD and processor, it can provide you with impressive up to 7 hrs battery life.
Apple MacBook Pro
This Apple MacBook Pro is a striking laptop for artists that presents true colors through retina display. It offers one of the world highest resolution (2880 x 1800) 15-inches screen that is really marvelous for graphics designing work and gets you a crystal clear display. As with Apple, you may be aware that you cannot expand the specs like storage, etc. because these are soldered. So you should buy an Apple laptop with higher specs to make use of it for longer terms. This Apple MacBook Pro has spacious 2TB SSD storage, powerful 2.97GHz Intel Quad core processor and 16GB RAM to run any light to heavy designing applications with numerous layers without any performance issue.
The most distinctive part of Apple MacBook Pro is its touch bar. The futuristic touch bar appears in place of the function keys and assists you in designing by providing quick access to the software features like brush size, saturation, and others. It includes 4 Thunderbolts 3 ports which are two times faster than 3.1 port. Apple Mac Book Pro comes with Mac OS X Sierra. Artists also prefer the laptop capable of delivering long-lasting battery. So MacBook Pro is the best laptop for digital art if you don’t mind the price.
ASUS VivoBook Pro
The first noticeable thing about this notebook is a slim and sleek design that combines with several latest technologies to make it a faster and excellent notebook for artists. Artists who mainly concern about work on Photoshop and photo editing will love its UHD 4k display. The 15 inches high-resolution (3840 x 2160) touchscreen provides an impressive detailed display and offers great control while drawing in your favorite software. Asus offers this laptop in a variety of specs with respect to the display, RAM, and storage.
Asus VivoBook comes with a 7th gen. high performance Intel Core i7-7700H processor. Apart from the processor the laptop compiles with 256 GB SSD, 16GB RAM, dedicated NVidia GTX 1050 4GB that makes it a powerful machine to handle any designing and drawing software. Moreover, it also included with 1TB HDD, so there is lots of storage available. ASUS VivoBook features backlit keyboard with numeric pad and a fingerprint sensor for quick login. It has 1 USB 3.1, USB 3.1 Type-C, USB 2.0, HDMI and combo jack. As the battery is one of the main concerns when buying a laptop for digital art, ASUS VivoBook offers reasonable battery life (up to 5hr) as well incorporated with fast charging that charges it up to 60% within just 49 minutes.
Best Must Have Tools for Artists
Surface Pen by Microsoft
The perfect stylus featured with greater precision to help you draw and design with more accuracy. If you are a fan of hybrid laptops then using a stylus will significantly assist you in drawing and precision based tasks. Microsoft Surface Pen is an astonishing tool for drawing whether taking notes or sketching 3D arts. It can be connected through Bluetooth. Stylus support 4096 pressure points that intelligently understand the difference between thick and thinner lines.
The Surface Pen draws things in real time, so you feel like using a traditional brush. It is compatible with numerous drawing apps such as Corel Draw, Draw board, and Bluebeam, etc. The higher accuracy, no lag, and ability to work with almost every art application makes it a must-have tool for artists.
Stylus Pen with 1024 Pressure Levels
Yet another stylus for Microsoft Surface Pro that comprised of a nib which supports 1024 pressure levels. It is compatible with all of the Microsoft surface products except the Surface Pro 1 and 2. The stylus also works great with the other company’s laptops like HP Specter X360 (2017), Sony VAIO, and some ASUS models. Because of its ergonomic design, you can sketch and make notes precisely and comfortably.
The stylus does not feature an eraser on its back like other, but by the press of a button, close to the nib, its nib turns into an eraser. The pen comes with an additional nib in case if the first one gets damaged so won’t need to buy a new one. It requires no Bluetooth connection and powered by 1 AAAA battery. It is available in Charcoal and Metal Grey color.
Microsoft Surface Mouse
An excellent ergonomic mouse help in quick designing and drawing. The Microsoft surface mouse (WS3-00001) is compatible with Windows as well as Mac operating system. Its simple and sleek design gives you more hands-on control. A wired mouse may cause some disturbance while moving it around. It can be connected through wireless connection resulting in greater usability and keep your table clean.
It just weighs around 90g / 0.2lbs and powered by 2 AAA batteries which come along the box. Along with the best laptop for digital art, we recommend you should buy such kind of mice to enhance your productivity and creativity.
Goldtouch Vertical Mouse
Perhaps the design of this mouse look strange to you but this exclusively designed mouse is considered a nice add-on for artists. The company made this mouse by keeping in view the ideal hand position (66 degrees). It comes with a detachable ergo-grip where your wrist will rest. So instead of moving the wrist, your arm will move along the mice and provides greater comfort and accuracy.
Goldtouch vertical is a wireless mouse that uses 2 AAA batteries as a power source. The mouse featured with two additional forward and backward buttons and programmable dpi levels – (800, 1200, and 1600). These ranges provide you enhanced tracking on a variety of surfaces. So that means you can quickly shift between low to high sensitivity according to the situation
Anker Vertical Mouse
If you are experiencing pain due to the use of horizontal (standard) mouse over an extended period, then it may be the time you should think about an ergonomic mouse. Anker vertical wireless mouse offers you a firm grip over the mice and better comfort which is essential for artists. The mouse combined with optical tracking that provides more accuracy and makes it smoother. This mouse holds three level of sensitivity (800, 1200, 1600) and you can easily switch between them using a button.
Besides the scrolling wheel, left and right button, Anker also has forward and backward buttons located at the side and you can make use of them conveniently while browsing. It also has a power saving feature – it will automatically turn off after 8 min of the idle state. To turn it on, just press left or right button.
Wireless Pen Mouse Lychee
As the name of the mouse signifies, this pen shape mouse offers excellent portability, and you can even carry it around in your pocket. This ultra-portable pocket mouse contains essential buttons similar to a standard mouse having right & left buttons and a scrolling wheel. The buttons are placed ergonomically for easy clicks. Its design makes it an excellent mouse for drawing and feel enormously comfortable in hand. Moreover, its minimalist shape allows you to use it in a conserve place.
This pocket mouse has two adjustable dpi levels (500/1000), and you can switch between them quickly by a button given above the wheel. If your laptop does not have integrated Bluetooth chip don’t worry, it comes with a receiver (2.4GHz). It is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Android OS and has a power saving feature too. Just remember to order 1 AAA battery with the mouse because the company does not include the battery.
Easyacc USB-C to HDMI Cable
The computer market increasingly shifts toward slimmer and sleek designed computers especially notebooks. The companies achieved it by replacing the ports with new types like USB C type. This USB-C to HDMI cable allows you to connect the notebook or even the smartphone with Type-C to monitor with HDMI port for bigger display. Just carry this 6ft cable and present your project on a bigger screen via connecting it with a smartphone or laptop. It supports up to 4k (60Hz) transmission.
INNOMAX 7-N-1 Adapter
The IMMOMAX 7 in 1 adapter is an amazing computer add-on for designers. If you are experiencing ports shortage, then you can put this device to greater use. It allows you to connect 3 USB 3.0, 2 SD & micro SD card slots, Type-C, and HDMI. You can extend your screen by connecting it with HDTV or projector via HDMI. The HDMI can transmit up to 4k@30Hz display. It’s a perfect solution for Apple MacBook Pro that only comprised USB Type-C ports. Through this, you can connect USB Type-A with MacBook Pro. INNOMAX offer various versions of this device where one supports up to 10 functions.
Final Words
So there are some of the best laptops for digital art and graphics designers to flawless as well as smooth experience. All you have to do is compare your budget and required computing power, and figure out which of the above mentioned laptops for artists has enough internal hardwares to fulfill your needs or feel free to ask below.