Best Computer For Video Editing
We find the best desktop computers for video editing
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The popularity of video editing is steadily on the rise, which could be down to the rise of content creating in gaming or simply because it’s now a much more affordable hobby than it was previously.
We have carefully gone over what it takes to be the best laptop for video editing, but what about a desktop computer for video editing? Well, we all know you get a lot more performance for your cash when it comes to a desktop computer over a laptop, but how do you ensure you pick the very best for the job at hand?
Don’t worry. Today, we will be taking a look at what we consider to be the best prebuilt desktop computers for video editing and why! Let’s take a look.
Our Top Picks
Things To Consider
There is plenty to consider when on the hunt for a new video editing PC, do you go for a desktop or laptop? What are the best components for the job? Here at WePC, we try our best to help you with your decision, making the chances of you wasting your hard-earned cash less likely. Let’s take a look at a few tips to get your video editing underway.
Desktop Vs. Laptop
Whether you build yourself a desktop or buy a prebuilt one, the outcome is always going to be more beneficial than a laptop for performance. PC cases have more space, allowing for greater airflow, more powerful components, and less chance of throttling.
What’s great about a desktop PC for video editing is that you will be grabbing more power for your money. Furthermore, a computer tower is much easier to upgrade. Sure, a desktop is certainly less portable than a laptop, but assuming this is for your office, there is no reason to consider a laptop.
CPU
The Processor is the video editors’ most important bit of kit, with video work often being highly CPU intensive. It is for that reason we have ensured our recommendations offer solid clock speeds with multi-threading at the core. Some editors can get away with Intel’s latest 9th generation CPUs due to some tasks favoring the high clock speeds, but generally speaking, AMD is the way to go.
GPU
Despite not being the most important part, the graphics card is still an essential feature for the video editor. The GPU is responsible for turning the footage into pixels, and while you could do this with integrated graphics, a dedicated card is the better choice.
RAM
Memory backs up the Processor, bolstering a video editing PC’s performance quite a fair amount. This isn’t just capacity we are talking about, but as a minimum, you should be aiming for 16GB+. Along with having adequate size memory, you will also need some that run at a decent speed, but any RAM 2666MHz and above should be more than enough. The more RAM, the merrier your editing PC will be, so we have included a few options with high amounts.
Storage
Having heaps of storage to store old files is crucial, as is adequate fast storage to take care of those daily tasks. Depending on the size capacity of what storage you get, and the type, there is going to be a trade-off in price, with faster and larger devices costing much more.
You may already own several HDDs, a NAS device, or a few external drives, but we have still made sure to recommend a high amount of storage with each of these video editing PC picks. Aside from capacity, speed is highly important for accessing files, your operating system, and loading applications quickly. Every recommendation on this round-up features a fast-acting SSD at its core, with HDDs backing them up. The storage in these systems is more than enough to get you started, but you can always expand on this if you need to.
Extras
Connectivity and a handy amount of modern ports on a desktop are key for the video editing professional. Along with powerful components, high capacity RAM, and storage, you can expect Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, and Thunderbolt in some of these editing PCs for speedy data transfer.
The Our 5 Best Computers For Video Editing
In-depth Review
- Powerful workstation
- Retina 5K display
- Solid graphics performance
- Four Thunderbolt 3 ports
- Magic peripherals
- Expensive
- No height adjustment
- No access to RAM, without voiding warranty
The supercharged Apple iMac Pro is a workstation-grade all-in-one desktop computer. This is perfect for video editing thanks to a combination of highly powerful components and the 5K retina display.
The design is amazing, with all of this power neatly tucked into an incredibly thin chassis. The iMac Pro isn’t just thin, it’s stylish, and would look beautiful anywhere. This computer is just 5mm thick at the edge, meaning this 27-inch PC won’t actually take up that much space on your desk.
This iMac Pro is a costly machine, though, and that is largely down to the specifications. At the heart of this desktop, we see the multithreaded Intel Xeon W, which is a HEDT processor capable of smashing through heavy-duty tasks. The processor’s 8-cores run at 3.2 GHz and can be boosted up to 4.5GHz. You can buy models of this with up to 18-core processors, which will triple the costs overall. For graphics, we see the Radeon Pro Vega 56, which more than enough for video editing and has some gaming potential, too, if you are one to partake. This desktop features a minimum of 32GB RAM, which again can be upgraded, but this is certainly enough to get started for a lot of video editors out there. Finally, the storage in this isn’t the greatest considering the price, but a 1TB SSD isn’t the worst either.
Despite being an all-in-one with limited space to work with, Apple has masterfully managed to get an amazing 5K retina display in this, too, with support for one billion colors. The clarity of this display is unrivaled, and with 500 nits of brightness across 14.7 million pixels, it’s the sleekest machine for video editing on the list.
- Powerful CPU
- Graphics card made for video editing
- High capacity RAM
- Excellent storage
- Great value
- Would prefer a slightly bigger SSD
CPU solutions have a very powerful prebuilt designed to take care of all your video editing needs. This features components geared towards high workloads, with a high amount of cores and threads at its disposal.
The build comes in Fractal Designs Focus-G case, which is a budget chassis but comes with pre-installed fans for improved airflow and a side window to peer in at your components.
This is a well-priced video editing PC, and with an AMD Ryzen 9 3900X at its core, you are sure to have a flawless experience. The 3900X processor is one of the best on the market, and with 12 cores and 24 threads, there is little it is unable to do. The high amount of cores run at 3.8GHz, which can be boosted to 4.g GHz for a greater amount of performance. Alongside the processor, CPU solutions have included an Nvidia Quadro P2000 with 5GB of memory. This graphics card is balanced excellently, with incredible productivity across a variety of professional applications, and it has the power to drive up to four 5k displays. This prebuilt computer comes with a staggering 64GB of memory running at 3200Mhz and a dual-storage solution of a 512GB SSD with a 2TB HDD.
Other features like a 24X DVD-RW Optical Drive, Wireless AC 600MBPS, and plenty of USB ports make this an excellent choice for the video editing professional.
- Highest quality CPU & GPU
- 128GB of RAM
- Excellent storage
- Easy to upgrade
- Perfect for professional content creators
- Pricey
The Mantis gaming PC from CUK is an absolute beast and one of their most powerful gaming systems. This may be overkill for some video editing professionals, but for the ones out there who are gaming enthusiasts, this could be the build for you.
This prebuilt PC comes wrapped in a custom made CUK case that features attractive stick out panels and RGB lighting. The case also comes with a tempered glass side panel, giving the overall build excellent aesthetics.
On the surface, this may seem like a rather steep investment, but the components in this are of the highest quality and will serve you well for a very long time compared to a laptop or Apple Mac. The processer in this build is the newly-released Ryzen 9 3950X, which boasts 16 cores and 32 threads running at a speed of 3.5GHz. The max boost clock on this CPU is up to 4.7 GHz, and backing it up in the RAM department is a hefty 128GB of 3200MHz memory. For graphics, this features the highly regarded RTX 2080 TI, the most powerful gaming card on the market currently with 11GB of memory onboard. This wouldn’t be a monster build without adequate amounts of storage to play with, and this has it in abundance. Finally, we see an impressive amount of storage in this machine, with a 1TB SSD and 2TBs of HDD space.
This gaming rig also comes with a Wi-Fi adapter and a free keyboard and mouse, making it a great overall PC for video editing.
- Powerful CPU/ GPU combination
- Good value
- Easy to upgrade
- Great for professional content creators
The Micro gaming computer is labeled as the perfect machine for the video editing gamer. While it is not as powerful as the CUK mantis, the CUK Micro still features powerful components that are highly capable of heavy-duty tasks.
This video editing machine comes with a case that features two tempered glass panels and a load of RGB fans pre-installed. Of course, if you aren’t a fan of RGB lighting, you can always turn it off, but this comes looking stylish right out the box.
This is significantly cheaper than the Mantis desktop as it features less powerful components overall. That being said, this is made with content creation in mind and features strong components. Taking care of the processing, the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X is at the helm, offering eight cores running at 3.6Ghz with 16 threads and a max boost speed of 4.4GHz. The CPU is backed up with 32GB of RAM and an RTX 2070 GPU bringing incredible detail and gaming performance into the mix. Supplementing this powerful PC is a handy 1TB NVMe SSD.
Aside from being highly powerful, this video editing gaming rig also features Wi-Fi and a 3-year warranty.
- All-in-one system for video editing
- IPS display
- Anti-glare touch screen
- USB Type-C
- Included mouse, keyboard and speaker
- Lowest spec on the list
- No height adjustment
The Dell Inspiron 27 inch 7790 Touch is the second all-in-one PC to make it on to this list, providing some with an alternative to the iMac Pro. This all in one desktop has the components to take care of video editing related work and a few extra features making it a decent all-round PC.
overall, the design on the Inspiron is very sleek and generally aesthetically pleasing to the eye. This is a great space-saving desktop and features really thin bezels, again adding style.
As mentioned, this PC features the least powerful components on the list but that doesn’t mean it is not up for the task. For processing power, we see a 10th generation i7 that can be boosted to run at 4.9GHz. To bring the most performance out of the CPU we see 32GB of RAM included, which is a great amount for most video editing professionals. In the graphics department, there is a 6GB MX110 GPU and lastly, a 1TB SSD.
The display is a 27-inch thin-bezel one, that really looks the part on any desk. The panel is IPS and full HD while also being a touch screen!
This may not offer the most performance on the list, however, the features packed into this deal are quite tempting as it offers an all-round package
Final Word
You see, finding the best computer for video editing doesn’t have to be hard. If you follow our things to consider, you can easily find yourself a great deal. You can take this one step further and begin to save money if you were to build one of these systems yourself but remember prebuilt manufacturers will come with some form of warranty, they will take care of the building and testing, and you can just send it back if it doesn’t work. What setup do you currently use for your content creation? Let us know down in the comments or over at the WePC community.
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