Touch screen laptop for 3D

JordanLeigh

Hey I know there's been a few threads here about this and mainly the surface pro. I was wondering what peoples opinions and recommendations were for touch screen laptops for work mainly in zbrush/photoshop and 3ds max. I know some can't be used with a stylus so what are peoples thoughts? I'm really looking to get one for work on the move

Count Vertsalot

I've tried nearly all of them out there. The Cintiq Companion is the only one that is fully functional. You're constantly looking for workarounds and fixes for anything else.

Brian "Panda" Choi

Intel let USC borrow Ultrabooks for a time. They were touchscreen, but no styluses.

It was cool. I just found myself carry and interact with the laptop differently, using it more like a tablet. Swipe here, pinch there. Great for image presentations on the fly.

That's all I saw that changed. Would I buy it just because of that? Naw.

JordanLeigh

I was looking for an alternative to the surface pro 3. As it seems ideal, just wondering if there's anything similar if not better. Definitely need it to be compatible with a stylus as well

iadagraca

i'd check out http://surfaceproartist.com/ he does a lot of reviews for recent devices.

Tests them out with a range of software too!

I think he gave high marks to a recent HP pen tablet as well as a new toshiba (though that one is low end).

He's also really easy to get in contact with on twitter.

JordanLeigh

That's a great site thanks. I don't think anything will top the surface pro 3 at the moment. Any idea how the 4gb I5 version would do for zbrush, and Photoshop work. Maybe some light 3ds max work? The 8gb is quite a jump in price from what I've seen

Neox

max will be too slow on any plattform for serious work, but zbrush and photoshop worknflawlessly on the samsung slate, obviously not for super big (ps) or detailled (zbrush) files, but still.

JordanLeigh

Keep getting drawn back to the surface pro tbh. How would the I5 4gb handle zbrush?

Torch

Pretty well I reckon. Again, I wouldn't expect to get upto crazy levels of detail, but that spec should be able to run it nicely.

JordanLeigh

Any idea on how it would cope with marmoset?

Neox

don't expect fast realtime 3d, but zbrush isn't 3d and will run well. i wouldn't even try marmoset on my surface pro 3 ^^

its only an intel graphics chip

JordanLeigh

Yeah I thought it probably wouldn't. Ever tried ddo?

Neox

no, but anyways don't expect a working machine, for the price you can get a decent working machine. the surface pro3 is definitely more of a hobby device when it comes to 3d.

I have no other machine anymore besides one laptop i only use when not working at the office, and my office machine. the surface i use for doodling mostly

Count Vertsalot

I'd be wary about getting a Surface Pro 3. I've owned one twice, got rid of it twice. It's a fine piece of hardware, but it's not really suited for artistic software outside of just sketching. It all boils down to not having any hotkeys to do anything. This is why I recommended the Cintiq Companion. It's true you can get a type cover for the SP3, but it just gets in the way if you try to use the stylus and the type cover at the same time.

I got the SP3 for the second time after there was some development from people trying to get touchscreen hotkeys to work. Turns out it'll never be a decent experience because of the ntrig tech the SP3 uses. There's a reason that surfaceproartist guy settled on a Cintiq Companion recently.

That being said, I just gave up and got a Cintiq 27QHD instead. The Companion is nice, but it's large and clunky to carry around. The SP3 is nice for sketching, but you can get a much cheaper mobile tablet to just sketch on instead.

Neox

there are working touch keys with pen support now, radial menu works great and lets you rebind the pen buttons

Count Vertsalot

That's cool that he got it working. My whole thing was what happens if that guy gets bored and stops developing/supporting it? That's why I recommended Wacom stuff, at least if something is broken you have someone that will fix it if enough people complain.

JordanLeigh

Yeah I was also looking at the companion. I thought it was a graphics tablet that connected to your pc but is it a stand alone machine? There's no shops that stock those around here so I can't exactly go take a look either to see what they're like. I just wanted something portable that would handle zbrush quite well to start characters and then I could do that major stuff on my desktop

iadagraca

JordanLeigh wrote: »

Yeah I was also looking at the companion. I thought it was a graphics tablet that connected to your pc but is it a stand alone machine? There's no shops that stock those around here so I can't exactly go take a look either to see what they're like. I just wanted something portable that would handle zbrush quite well to start characters and then I could do that major stuff on my desktop

I'm personally set on the companion because it does both.

I expect any tablet I get to be outdated soon enough, but my desktop will always be good. I'll only use it on the go for sketching anyway.

Neox

you have the android companion i guess?

i hope their next windows version will be able to be plugged on a desktop as well

Meloncov

Neox wrote: »

i hope their next windows version will be able to be plugged on a desktop as well

The current version (Companion 2) can be. It was only the first generation that couldn't.

Neox

Meloncov wrote: »

The current version (Companion 2) can be. It was only the first generation that couldn't.

ha i didn't even realize there is a new one out, awesome. thats a real system seller functionality. Well i have my surface and now with radial menu and my other customizations i am happy. The Companion 1 felt too big and clunky, didn't really like it, did they work on this as well?

Also how does the pen behave close to the frame? usually wacom devices can get jittery, my samsung slate was a bit jittery on the borders and the surface pro 2 as well.

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JordanLeigh

Is the wacom companion quite bulky? I really like the portability of the sp3, and if it handles zbrush pretty well then that's good.

Neox

as said before, i can only say about the cintiq companion 1

but to me it felt too clunky, the bigger screensize with the extra frame for the buttons and to lower the jittery effect make the thing too huge for me to hold comfortably in one hand while i sculpt with the other.
Also it is double the weight, so thats a big one for mobility for me.

On the pro side, it has a non glossy screen, obviously wacom tech with 4times more pressure levels (which i don't feel honestly) and the hardware buttons are definitely cool as they can free up your screenspace. The pen on the Cintiq feels better, the pressure point on the surface pro 3 are not that cool. and on the surface pro 3 the pen (despite being wacom) has a horribly cheap feel to it.

checked for the new cintiq companion yeah it still weights double, and is a lot bigger. Which might be great for a lot of people but to me the surface pro 3 pretty much hit the sweet spot. The 2 was too small for my taste.

Count Vertsalot

The Companion is rather clunky to carry around. It's definitely portable, but you're going to know you're carrying it with you all the time. The SP3 is light enough not to notice if you're carrying it in a bag or whatnot.

If you're interested in the SP3 I'd wait a few months. The new one should be announced soon.

JordanLeigh

The new one should be announced? I thought this was new? Any ideas when they may be announcing it?

Neox

JordanLeigh wrote: »

The new one should be announced? I thought this was new? Any ideas when they may be announcing it?

new is relative :P

Aabel

Surface pro 3 was announced in May of last year. I'd expect an announcement for a Surface Pro 4 around the same time this year.

I've been looking for a good portable art device and the 512gb Cinitiq 2 looks perfect, the fact that it can double as a cintiq when plugged into a desktop extends the utility and lifespan of the device imo.

Count Vertsalot

It's tricky to nail down when the Surface Pro 4 will be available since all rumors point to it shipping with Windows 10 as its OS. It's probably going to all boil down to when that OS is commercially available.