The issue with laptops
Thermals. You can cram the most powerful graphics card and a next-generation CPU into any chassis but with that power comes heat… and a lot of it. What happens when things start to heat up? They slow down. This is due to a hardware fail-safe called “throttling.” Throttling slows down the CPU and/or GPU to prevent circuits from bursting into flames. When Apple first released the MacBook we know today, the top-specked model had severe thermal throttling issues. Even under small loads, the CPU would underclock itself to excruciatingly low speeds. This resulted in system instability and terribly slow renders. Luckily with the new 16-inch MacBook Pros, they no longer have this issue so long as the surface the laptop is on doesn’t block the air vents on the underside (so… definitely not a pillow or lap). Apple accomplished this by slightly redesigning the heat pipes in the laptop but by also using the newer CPUs by Intel that have been redesigned to improve thermal efficiency.
With the advancements in mobile technology, we are now able to cram processing power we could only dream about a couple of years ago into a computer that fits in your backpack. However, as much as I love my MacBook… PC laptops are the king for mobile VFX.
PC vs MAC
One word, “CUDA.” CUDA is the framework that almost all VFX programs are built on and is Nvidia exclusive. The executives at Apple have had a personal beef with the executives at Nvidia since Steve Jobs left Apple a decade ago. Even though Nvidia makes far superior cards than AMD; and ignoring the fact that almost all VFX programs require Nvidia cards for their software to work… Apple still won’t budge and put what professionals want in their machines. So if you are wanting to use the immensely popular V-Ray renderer, or use Maya’s built-in Arnold renderer with a Mac… you are straight out of luck. And with the complexity of today’s VFX compositions, rendering using software/CPU only would turn your render from 24hrs to weeks. And in the case of Maya, the software won’t even let you use the latest version of Arnold, you have to default to the legacy renderer. What about Octane? Same issue. In fact, with the latest version of Octane, you can get an almost 5X speed improvement using Nvidia’s latest RTX cards vs Nvidia’s older GTX cards. AMD cards are not supported.
Oh but what about Cinema 4D’s renderer, Redshift? Nope. Redshift requires an Nvidia GPU. AMD is not allowed. So yeah… unless you are doing basic motion graphics in Adobe After Effects there is no other option than to buy a PC with an Nvidia card… and preferably an RTX card.
Why you would want a MacBook
Yes, I did just finish ranting about why you can’t do VFX on a mac but… there are reasons you still might want one.
First, MacBooks have Apple Motion so if you are an Apple Motion artist then a MacBook is your only choice. MacBooks also have a nice touchpad (which I LOVE), an excellent display, and are ascetically pleasing. There are other reasons you might want a MacBook but since this is an article about VFX, I am going to save that for another day as there are literally zero reasons to even consider a Mac for VFX work (unless of course, you are a rare Apple Motion artist).
Okay moving on, let’s find a Windows laptop.
Razer Blade 16
Since we were talking about MacBooks, I feel it is best to start with the MacBook of PC laptops, the Razer Blade 16. You might have heard or seen Razer in the gaming space where they are quite popular, but with the ever-increasing demand of powerful mobile workstations, Razer builds this one with content creation squarely in mind. The same CNC aluminum chassis that competes with the aesthetics of a MacBook Pro, now delivering the ridiculous power of the RTX 5080. That card carries 16GB of VRAM and enough CUDA and Ray Tracing cores to handle anything RedShift might throw your way.
The Core Ultra 9 386H is an efficiency-focused chip, so CPU-bound renders will trail the chunkier HX-class machines, but we are using this for VFX… Graphics cards are much more important and the RTX 5080 makes sure that is a non-issue.
Additionally, viewing 3D renders on a bad screen is unacceptable, that’s why this laptop contains a calibrated 100% DCI-P3 OLED display to ensure that your image is viewed in the best way possible. It is QHD+ (2560×1600) at 240Hz rather than the 4K touch panel of the older Blades, so you lose some resolution for pixel-peeping, but the color is what your comps actually need.
The only thing I wish this laptop had is 64GB of ram. And unlike the older Blades, the RAM is soldered now, so what you buy is what you keep. If you juggle heavy comps or Houdini sims, spring for the 64GB model ($4,699.99) up front. However, 32GB is still plenty for all but the most intensive compositions.
Overall, if you want the aesthetics of a Mac but the power of a PC, the Razer Blade 16 takes the cake. Just know you are paying the usual Razer thin-chassis premium: a thicker, louder gamer laptop with the same RTX 5080 can be had for meaningfully less.
MSI Creator 15 A11UE-491
A stalwart PC component and systems manufacturer since before I can remember, MSI is a brand I have trusted and recommended to my industry colleagues for ages. At a low price of $1,849, this MSI Creator 15 is still a powerful machine. In fact, it fills the same role as our Razer Blade 16 except for a few key differences. First, instead of the RTX 5080, we have an RTX 3060. Still a workable card but it is several generations behind the Razer’s RTX 5080, with a fraction of its 16GB of VRAM and far fewer CUDA cores (the part that is responsible for rendering). However, if you don’t plan to heavily rely on the aforementioned GPU engines (Redshift, Vray-RT, Octane) this less powerful card will be totally fine for your workflow.
GIGABYTE AERO X16
Under $2000? You got it. Just like MSI, Gigabyte has been a leader in the PC components world for decades. At around $1,699 on the street, the GIGABYTE AERO X16 gets your feet wet in the world of VFX with a 12-core Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, an RTX 5070, 32GB of DDR5, and a 1TB SSD in a slim 16.75mm chassis. As this is less than half the price of the Razer, there are some compromises to be had.
First, the screen. The 16-inch 2560×1600 panel is Pantone-validated with full sRGB coverage, and its 165hz refresh rate makes for a wonderful user experience due to the almost zero motion blur when objects move across the screen. The catch: it only covers around three-quarters of DCI-P3, so any wide-gamut or HDR grading needs an external reference monitor.
Second, the RTX 5070 carries only 8GB of VRAM, which gets tight in heavy 3D scenes and 6K+ Resolve timelines. Nothing crippling for someone learning the ropes, and you still get full CUDA and OptiX acceleration, which is the whole reason we’re not buying a Mac.
Third, there is no SD card reader… on a laptop aimed at creators. So budget for a dongle if you’re pulling camera cards on the road.
Lastly, battery life. Real-world numbers fall well short of Gigabyte’s advertised figures, so keep the charger in your bag for render sessions.
Overall though, at around $1,699 this laptop is an absolute steal, and would 100% recommend it to anyone with a small budget looking to get started in the world of VFX.
In Conclusion
Finding a mobile workstation for VFX is no easy task. Thankfully, PC manufacturers have expanded their product lines to cater directly to creative pros just like Apple did with the MacBook Pro. Finally, PC users can buy an aesthetically nice, high-performance PC with content creation-specific features without having to succumb to an ugly/bulky/alien-mothership looking gamer laptop that weighs 15lbs and has the battery life of Juul. Whatever your budget, I am confident that one of these laptops will fit your needs. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!
