Best Computer for Adobe Illustrator - Top 5 Reviews, Buyers' Guide, FAQs & More - The Digital Side Hustle (2024)

As an online course creator, it is important to come up with a course that is easy to understand for your students.

One of the best ways to do that is by adding images and diagrams to your lectures through Adobe Illustrator.

However, it is also important to have a computer that can accommodate Adobe Illustrator so your program can run smoothly.

In this post, we will round up some of the best laptops for Adobe Illustrator, talk about their pros, cons and answer some commonly asked questions.

Now that you know about our top three picks, let’s take a closer look at their features as well as analyze some other laptops to determine the best one for you.

Best Computer for Adobe Illustrator – Top 5 Reviews

#1: Top Rated Laptop for Adobe Illustrator – Microsoft Surface Book 2 Review

You’ll be surprised when we tell you, Microsoft Surface Book 2 isn’t just one device, but two devices.

It comes with a detachable touchscreen so you have the option of converting it into a tablet. Furthermore, the 15-inch screen makes it extremely easy to create any graphic design using Microsoft surface pen platinum.

The screen resolution doesn’t disappoint either. It comes with a 3240 x 2160 which is what every professional graphic designer looks for in a computer.

Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Microsoft Surface Book 2

RAM

Adobe Illustrator needs a laptop with good RAM to work efficiently.

Surface Book 2 has 16GB RAM which is ideal for using CAD software including Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.

Processor

Microsoft Surface Book 2 claims to be one of the fastest laptops.

The built-in processor is an 8th generation Quad-core processor. This has the capacity to work up to 4.2GHz.

We experienced no lag when testing Surface Book 2 which was a huge plus for us.

Design

As mentioned before, Microsoft Surface Book 2 is equipped with a 15-inch screen. This is a perfect canvas size to work on Illustrator.

It is also extremely light and thin so you can easily take it with you and work on the go.

Battery life

We were pleasantly surprised by its amazing battery life.

It has a 17-hour battery life. But since Adobe Illustrator is a heavy program to run, we were able to use it for 5 hours which was still pretty good.

Top Rated Laptop for Adobe Illustrator

The top-rated laptop for Adobe Illustrator is Microsoft Surface Book 2 because of its 8th Generation intel Quad i7 processor which makes the laptop super fast. It has 16GB RAM and a 17-hour long playback time.

#2: Best Graphic Design Laptop – Apple MacBook Pro

If you are looking for a high-end laptop, MacBook Pro might just be the best option for you.

It comes with an Apple M1 chip which makes it ideal for not only Adobe Illustrator but also photo and video editing, networking, or any other task you would need a laptop for.

However, it is important to note that it is one of the more pricer options out there. You’ll have to pay at least $2000 more for the exceptional design and features of this laptop.

Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy MacBook Pro

RAM

The RAM for MacBook Pro is 16GB with DDR4 memory.

It supports the speed of the process. This gives you a quicker response to functions and less time to load heavy files.

It is also more than enough space to save high-quality vectors from Illustrator.

Processor

Apple combined a quad-core 8th generation intel chip into this laptop.

This means its intel core i5 processor along with a 1.4GHz processor increases its capacity to run vector graphics.

You can easily create a high-definition art piece with multiple layers on Macbook Pro.

Design

MacBook Pro has a slim and compact design. It weighs 3.1lbs which is heavier than Microsoft Surface Book but still light enough that it can be carried around.

It is equipped with a 13-inch Retina Display making the display extremely bright and high-resolution.

Moreover, the two-tone technology supports millions of colors so your graphic art came out perfect in the end.

However, unlike the Surface Book, it does not support a touchscreen display or a stylus.

Battery life

According to Apple, its battery life can go up to 10 hours.

To test this out, we used Illustrator with multiple other tabs opened.

The battery only lasted 5 hours at full brightness, which is still good in our opinion. You can use it for more hours by dimming the screen and reducing the workload.

Other

MacBook Pro also has an integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645. This chip makes it great for Adobe Illustration because you can use it to multitask without the program lagging or crashing.

Since the operating system is Mac the processing is extremely fast. It also comes with a built-in antivirus so you don’t have to worry about keeping your laptop secure.

Best Graphic Design Laptop

The best graphic design laptop is Apple MacBook Pro because of its great features, 13. inch display and intel core i5 processor. It is versatile and powerful so you can use it for anything including photo editing.

#3: Best Portable laptop – Acer Aspire 5 Review

If you are someone who likes to work on the go, Acer Aspire is the best portable option for you.

It is an extremely slim laptop that weighs only 3.97 pounds so you can carry it anywhere.

Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Acer Aspire 5

RAM

It uses the new RAM technology. It comes with a 4GB RAM DDR4 drive.

The internal memory of Acer Aspire 5 is 128 GB. This might not be enough to run, load, and operate Adobe Illustrator or any other design-related program.

Processor

Acer Aspire 5 has a quad-core Intel Core i5 8265U processor.

We used Adobe Illustrator with multiple tabs open and were pleasantly surprised by its fast multitasking capabilities.

We prefer this laptop as one of our top choices for Adobe Illustrator because of how smooth the solid-state drive (SSD) run is.

Design

Acer Aspire is great for drawing, coloring, illustrating, and editing videos due to its 1920 x 1080 HD screen size.

The keyboard is fully backlit so you can easily navigate it in the dark.

If you are still not satisfied you can also enable a graphics card called the intel HD Graphics 620 to improve its interface.

The machine itself is not too heavy because it is made up of a plastic lid with a shiny Acer Logo. It is also designed with an SD memory sloth, USB 2.0, and USB 3.0.

Battery Life

We found its battery performance to be incredibly impressive.

We were able to use Acer for 6 hours and 8 minutes. You can use it for more if you enable the battery saver mode or use it with medium/low brightness.

Best Portable Laptop

The best portable laptop is Acer Aspire because of its slim and sleek design. Its high-resolution display and fast 8th generation processor make it ideal for running Adobe Illustrator.

#4: Best Screen Display for Adobe Illustrator- Apple MacBook Air Review

If you are familiar with Apple’s laptops then MacBook Air needs no introduction.

It comes with some amazing features including Intel UHD graphics. It is capable of running all design software including Adobe Illustrator.

However, it is not the cheapest option out there but also doesn’t fall in the category of high-end laptops. Therefore, we would suggest it to anyone looking for a good mid-range option.

Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Apple MacBook Air

RAM

MacBook Pro has 8GB RAM.

This might be inadequate for some graphic designers however, we found it fast enough for most uses on Illustrator.

On the downside, MacBook Air may overheat while running intensive programs. But you can cut down on using some apps at the same time to reduce overheating and lags.

Processor

MacBook Air has an Intel Core i5 dual-core processor.

It is more than enough to run Illustrator. We were easily able to create high-resolution drawings with multiple layers.

Design

You can get MacBook Air in three colors:

• Silver
• Space Grey
• Gold

It comes with a 13-inch Retina Display with True Tone technology.

The great thing about this laptop is that Apple has increased its pixels to 326 pixels per inch. Due to this, the images are extremely high quality and smooth, perfect for creating highly detailed illustrations.

Battery Life

Apple claims it to have a battery life of 12 hours.

However, we were only able to use Adobe Illustrations for 4 hours at full brightness.

Best Screen Display for Adobe Illustrator

The best screen display for Adobe Illustrator is the Apple MacBook Air because of its 13-inch screen size with Retina Technology. The vibrant display and 1440 x 900 screen resolution make it a great laptop for graphic designers.

#5: Best Touchscreen Laptop for Adobe Illustrator – Dell XPS 13 Review

Dell XPS 13 is famous for its touch screen display and battery timing.

It’s an extremely powerful laptop so we would recommend it if your work requires highly precise drawings.

It is also a more affordable alternative to MacBook Air.

Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Dell XPS 13

RAM

As discussed before, Adobe Illustrator needs good RAM to work efficiently.

Dell XPS comes with 8GB RAM and 256GB ROM. You can easily run multiple design programs at the same time using this.

Processor

The processor is Intel Core i7 which works at 4.0GHz.

It is strong enough to support Illustrators brushes, color palettes, and multiple layers for your vector graphics.

Design

Since this laptop computer competes with MacBook Air, it has many similar features.

It comes with 13.3-inch screen size. The infinity-edge touch display makes it the best laptop for creating detailed illustrations and drawings.

It also comes with a 2.25mm webcam beautifully designed at the top of the laptop. The webcam is HD with 720p resolution so you can also use it to film your online course.

Battery Life

The most impressive feature of the Dell XPS 13 is the Lithium-ion battery. It contains 52WHr battery life.

We were able to use it for 7 hours straight without charging it once.

Best Touchscreen Laptop for Adobe Illustrator

The best touchscreen laptop for Adobe Illustrator is Dell XPS 13 thanks to its impressive 4K touchscreen display for creating precise and detailed drawings using Adobe Illustrator.

Best Computer for Adobe Illustrator – Buyers’ Guide

It can be confusing to choose the right laptop due to its similar features and qualities.

Our team has compiled some factors to look out for as an online course creator to aid you with this process.

These factors are:

RAM

RAM is one of the most important factors you need to consider before purchasing a laptop for Adobe Illustrator.

The more the RAM, the quicker it is for your laptop to access short-term data.

However, if there isn’t enough RAM the laptop will hang and you won’t be able to work multiple apps at the same time.

Processor

Adobe Illustrator needs a robust processor since it is quite a demanding and intensive program.

Go for a heavy-duty processor so you don’t have to deal with lags, crashes, and loss of important files.

Design

The design of your laptop has a big impact on your work.

Choose a laptop that is sleek and attractive. If portability is a concern, go for a laptop that is small and lightweight so you can easily slip it into your bag and take it with you.

Battery life

If your laptop doesn’t have a good battery life, all the other features will also fail to come to life.

You need a minimum of 8 hours of battery life. Also, make sure to get a laptop without a swappable battery.

Budget

If you are not an established online course creator, we imagine you won’t have a big enough budget to splurge on a premium laptop.

There are many budget laptops on the market that you can purchase.

Stylus

Using Adobe Illustrator without the stylus can be tricky.

To get the best results, we would recommend making sure your laptop comes with a stylus.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the best laptop for Adobe Illustrator?

The best laptops for Adobe Illustrator include:

• Microsoft Surface Book as an all-rounder laptop
• Dell precision as a great mobile workstation
• MacBook Pro is the best lightweight laptop
• Huawei MateBook as the video editing laptop
• Dell XPS 13 as the best Dell laptop

What are the minimum requirements to use Adobe Illustrator?

The minimum requirements to run Adobe Illustrator are:

• RAM – minimum 8 GB required
• Processor – multi intel processor works best
• Operating System – Windows 7 to Windows 10 for the best performance
• Hard disk – at least 2GB hard disk space to install Adobe Illustrator
• Display resolution – 1024 x 768 display. But, we would recommend 1920 x 1080

What laptop do graphic designers prefer the most?

• Microsoft Surface Book 2
• Microsoft Surface Pro
• Apple MacBook Pro

Is Cuda Core better or OpenGL?

We prefer Cuda Core over OpenGL. It is mostly designed for editing and rendering purposes.

Therefore, go for a laptop that is equipped with NVIDIA GeForce since it supports Cuda Core to give you the most phenomenal graphics.

Final Verdict

Choosing the best laptop for Adobe Illustrator is not easy. But we hope our guide has helped you get a better understanding of what you need.

After using these laptops for months, Apple MacBook Pro is a clear winner for us.

However, if you are looking for a more powerful processor Dell XPS 13 will work the best for you.

Which laptop do you use? Let us know in the comments below.

If you are new to online course creation, you should look at our guide on all tips, tricks, and FAQs which will help make your creation process easier.