Need help choosing a computer for school!

[tony2177]

In a bit of a dilemma. I currently own a six year old MacBook which is running great, but since returning to school, I need to (rather soon) install Siemens NX. This is a program for 3D modeling and the like. Apparently my school doesn't have Mac licensing so I can't use it.

As a result, I'm looking at getting a cheap, reliable laptop that will essentially run NX. That's it. I couldn't find the file size for NX, but the instructions from my school say "Download the four (4) media files to a temporary location. WARNING: These are all VERY large: 1.5GB - 3.5GB each."

Two questions for everyone:

1) Would a computer like this work for running NX smoothly?


Lenovo Thinkpad X140e 20BL000BUS 11.6" AMD A4-5000 Quad Core 4GB 500GB Win7 Pro Best Student & Business Ultrabook Laptop


Summary
Screen Size 11.60 inches Processor 1.50 GHz AMD A Series RAM 4 GB Hard Drive 500 GB Graphics Coprocessor AMD Radeon HD 8330 Chipset Brand AMD Wireless Type 802.11bgn Number of USB 2.0 Ports 1 Number of USB 3.0 Ports 2


Other Technical Details
Brand Name Lenovo Series X140e Item model number 20BL000BUS Hardware Platform PC Operating System Windows 7 Professional Item Weight 3.9 pounds Processor Brand AMD Processor Count 4 Computer Memory Type DDR3 SDRAM Hard Drive Rotational Speed 7200.00 Optical Drive Type None Audio-out Ports (#) 1


http://www.amazon.co...21369027&sr=1-1


2) If not, do you have any suggestions as to what I should get that's under $300-400?

Thank you!

 

[Oddba11]

Recommended requirements vary based on the software version (ie: NX 8, NX 9, etc.).

Basic recommendations are Win7 Pro, 8GB + RAM

As with any modeling or editing software:

Fastest multiple core cpu that fits your budget
64bit OS to support over 4GB of RAM
8GB+ RAM (as your budget allows)
HDD with enough free space to store all of your work (as you noted above, the 4 files you are starting with are quite large. so anticipate how many files you may have at the end of the year and plan accordingly)

 

[etaf]

what machines are currently been used - or what machines have the students used last year
see what specs they have also how they perform
some people may tell you a CPU XX and 4GB ram works - but it takes 40mins to render or 2 hours to render
others may say a CPU XX with 8GB ram takes 2 mins to render or may take 30mins
there must be some advice from the school - as they are teaching the subject and have students with PCs that use it !!!!! surely

What are the specs of your macbook - if very high , maybe look into bootcamp/parrallels and running windows 7 -
whats the Mac CPU and RAM ?