Best Computer for Video Production

A video editor’s secret weapon to a smooth video editing is a robust computer. Without the appropriate computer specs, the editing process might sabotage your productivity. So before you even get started with your video production, you must consider the kind of PC you have. And in this guide, we’ll allow you to decide which your best computer for video production is. While you’re exploring this form of media, check out other courses that you can take online to grow your skills.

The hardware requirements for video production

Since video editing requires powerful features that a regular computer cannot perform, you have to look out for these aspects to match your needs.

• Processing power

The CPU is the most crucial aspect to consider. You may want to stick with the latest generations of CPUs for optimal performance. Your best bets include those with quad-hexa-octa-core CPUs for a smooth run regardless of the load being processed. The better CPU you get, the better performance you’ll get. The CPU impacts playing footage, rendering effects, exporting video, and encoding and transcoding clips.

• RAM

An ample amount of RAM is crucial to help you handle heavy editing tasks. This is one of the instances that quantity should shine over quality since the more RAM you have, the more robust your computer is. As a rule of thumb, look for a computer with at least 8GB, but 16GB and above would be best.

The RAM keeps your computer working. This implies that you should settle for a higher RAM if you want optimal performance. 

To guide you, here’s a quick cheat sheet in finding the right RAM for you:

• • 4GB: No, you’ll need an upgrade.
  • 8GB: Good enough to handle small projects and resolutions of up to 1080p
  • 16GB: This should be the minimum RAM you should consider getting. It will enable you to edit 4k videos.
  • 32GB: If you run other programs like Photoshop and After Effects as you edit 4k videos, 32GB is the ideal RAM.
  • 64GB: The ideal RAM when editing 4k videos.
  • 128GB: If budget is not a restriction, why not go for the most optimal RAM? It allows you to keep multiple tabs open while running your video editing programs.

• Graphics card

Another important aspect to check is the graphics processing unit (GPU) of the computer. Most commonly known as the graphics card or video card, GPU renders images, videos, and animations for display. Some of the dedicated graphics cards you can check out include the series of NVIDIA or AMD. GPU holds more power than your CPU.

A GPU helps in optimal live playback of GPU-accelerate effects and provides faster RAM previews in heavy programs.

In choosing your GPU memory, the ideal would be 4 to 8GB. Go higher if you’ll edit 4k footages.

• Storage

HDD may soon not cut it in video production unless it is on the faster side. SSD is the new norm in computer ROM storage since it is much faster, reliable, and robust for heavy processes. With SSD’s wide availability in the market, you can get one that’s reasonably priced for adequate capacity.

Here’s a quick comparison to the three commonly used storage drives in computers:

• • HDD: HDD comes in up to 15TB of storage. They have relatively slow transfer speeds of 100-200 MB/s.
  • SATA SSD: SATA SSD comes in a smaller size of up to 4TB. However, they have faster transfer speeds of 400-600MB/S as compared to the traditional HDD.
  • NVMe SSD: This is the most expensive storage in the market right now. It has similar storage to SATA SSD of up to 4TB but with a much faster speed.

• Ports

Video production requires the necessary import and export of files to and from external devices. And what will help you speed up the transfers is by having a computer that supports USB 3.0 or higher. USB 2.0 is excruciatingly slow for heavy file transfers, so any higher generation will serve you well. Not to mention, USB 3.1 Gen 2 has a data rate of 10 GB/s.

• Expandability

The technology paves the way for continuous updates, so you need a computer that can keep up with it even after years. Whether for software or hardware, your computer must be compatible with expandability that can further increase your productivity. Some aspects that can render upgrades include more RAM storage, better HDD/SDD, and CPU/GPU. 

Video editing is a quite resource-consuming process. If you are not satisfied with the system, one route is to go for a custom build pc. This not only provides exactly which resource you need but also flexibility to upgrade easily in the future too. If you are stuck between compatibility then you can take help from sites like thepcbuilders. Hope this will solve your issue related to video editing & will make rendering much faster for your new video editing task.