Computer Purchase Recommendation

Students are not required to have their own computers for video editing, as there is always access to a computer lab with all needed software and programs. However, it is reccomended to purchase a laptop or desktop that has editing capabilities. Please consider the following reccomendations when purchasing a machine.

Laptop
Minimum:
M2 Pro, 32GB RAM ($2200)
Recommended:
M2 Max, 32GB RAM ($3200)
 
Desktop - Strongly Urged, much better than Laptop options
(requires separate purchase of a display, keyboard and mouse)
Minimum:
M2 Pro, 32GB RAM ($1560)
Recommended:
M2 Ultra, 64GB RAM ($3600)
 
There are no iMacs recommended at this time. The entire current line is underpowered and have only 4 ports on them. They would not be able to do even simple video editing without struggling.

Windows is slightly less model specific. This category is more tricky and requires more investment from the buyer to make sure you get something that can work for video editing (as opposed to gaming which isn't always a good machine for video editing).

You need to look for the following as a minimum:

  • 32GB RAM
  • 8GB GPU (either AMD or nVidia graphics is fine)
  • Series 12 intel (i9) or a Ryzen 9 (6900) CPU.
This starts at around $3000 and likely is closer to $4000 - Windows
systems that can do video are slightly more expensive than Macs.