Photo manipulation with RAW...will the AAO hack it?

Hi there,

I'm in the market for a netbook to take travelling with me. Its principally going to be for photo storage for my new Canon DSLR. I'm new to both the DSLR's and netbooks, so I need to suss out if the AAO is going to be man enough to handle converting RAW files through to jpegs (which I've read in a post it seems able to do) and also what its limitations are for doing a little bit of post production with the RAW files. I'm not talking about lots and not too in depth but it would be handy for me to have the option (to fill up some of the quieter evenings).

I'm looking at the A150 with 512mb and 120gb hard drive running linux to start me off. I can get hold of a refurbed one for £169 and would have a go at upping the RAM to capacity and trying to shift over to xp. IThe only thing thats putting me off buying it now is that I'm not sure if I should maybe stump up the extra money and get one of the slightly more powerfull units with the 6 cell batteries (1000h, new wind, nc-10) as, if I opt for buying a new 6 cell for the AAO I'm only going to be saving myself £50 over, say, the 1000h and I know it's going to be easier to upgrade further down the line (hard drive etc) if I keep it running.

So plus points,

Price, size, low weight, keyboard

Minus,

Lower max RAM, poor battery life, harder for a non-techie like me to upgrade

I'm heading off to India for a while so I need to make a decision sooner rather than later.

 

the glossy screen on the AAO will need calibration for accurate colours (as does any screen really)
What Canon DSLR? What raw software?
it's obviously not very fast in opening the raw files, and doing any heavy filters in PS, or even using any of the imagenomics software filters, is pretty slow.
The other thing to note is that the screen real estate is pretty small for editing files properly. Photoshop wants bigger than 1024x768 so you will need to do virtual scrolling to see all of the menu options in camera raw.

 

Yeah, I'll have to look into calibrating the screen, I'm sure I'll find a "how to" on a forum somewhere. Its a 1000d. As for the software, I'm not sure what I'll be using. Realistically I may only use the netbook to convert from raw to jpeg but I wouldn't mind the chance to try out something that I'd use when I get home. Yeah, I read that photoshop's not great for netbooks.

In your opinion, would an AAO be ok or would you think I'd be better off with something like the eee 1000h or nc-10?

 

I bought mine for temporarily storing and viewing images too. I have PSE7 on mine but I think it would be foolish to try serious post-processing on a 9" screen. I'll be doing only very minimal processing if any and may even take PSE off.

 

expect some slow loading with 10MP raw files.
the adobe camera raw always cries for 1024x768 for every raw file you try to open. For minor edits, Lightroom is ok. You just need to be prepared for the small resolution and having to zoom in to fix if you really need to.
just need patience really.

 

Well I think I can hanlde it being a tad slow, just so long as we're not talking timing it with a sun dial! Having a machine that will be able to run the stuff is my main priority.

 

As I said in an earlier post, I'll be using my AA) for storing and viewing image on extended shoots. Serious editing is out of the question, as least for me it is.
I edit with a 12" touch screen, or a laptop with a graphics tablet connected to two 24" monitors. The AAO just does have enough real estate for real photo editing, especially for detail work. If you value your images and post-processing is important to you then I'd be remiss if I didn't caution you to consider a more robust system for image editing.

 

Yeah its pretty obvious that these little machines arent what you'd be using for serious PP. But I'm only looking to have a bit of a play around with some of the many tools and editing options available, as when I'm home I tend not to have the time to dedicate a great deal to it. I'm not suggesting that I would go and hack up my cherished pics, more fiddling around with copies .

Would there be much of an improvement in general speed and responsiveness using the various editing software when using 2gb of ram over 1.5? This is my main sticking point before selecting an AAO over the more expensive 1000h/nc-10's. If the main limiting factor (apart from screen size/res) is the processor I may as well save the money and get myself one of these bad-boys....

 

i am also interested if the AAO can handle photoshop - i may just need to fix something in a photo when i am away on a trip or retouch an image if need be for a client (connected to an external monitor)

a>> will the recent AAO models run photoshop cs to an external monitor at 1600x1200 max 32bit color ??? (i KNOW this is not a power laptop but i just want to know if it would work incase an issue comes while i am on a trip) - i will only be handling smaller 3mb jpg files

b>> can i do a BASIC screen calibration with the Xrite one eye so the preview images look better on the screen???

c>> will dreamweaver8 run on it incase i have to update a webpage while on the road

i plan to buy one in the next few days

thanx

 

Photoshop will run but I'd recommend PS Elements v5, 6, or 7 as it's just as good for basic editing. It will use all the memory you can throw at it so if you're planning to upgrage to 1.5GB it will run a bit better. I'm also sure you can calibrate the screen with your Xrite. I intend to try it with my Huey just to see the results.

Yes you can run an external monitor. I tested a 24" at 1900 x 1200 and 1900 x 1440.

I have no desire to use Dreamweaver on an AAO. I get enough of it on development systems.

 

Yes to all.
Tough call, the 1000HE is a great looking machine now that it has also gotten an extended battery (8700mah). Again, you only get the bigger screen but not increase in resolution.

 

thank you goofball !

can i assume you have both photoshop cs and dreamweaver8 loaded currently ???

are you a pro shooter as well ???

should i upgrade to 1.5gb ??? will i notice the large difference with this processor as i would in a desktop???

i obviously wont use this as my main computer but sometimes on a trip you get stuck having to retouch something in an emergency

most of the time i will be using it for updating databases and memory card backup before burning the CD/DVD

 

Yes, I have used Photoshop CS3 (CS4 def not recommended) and Dreamweaver CS4 on the AAO as well as the Asus 1000HA.

I'm not a pro shooter. I do use DSLR's (Nikon) however.

Yes, definitely upgrade to 1.5gb. It's hard to really say how much since I upgraded immediately. You should also consider a 7200rpm hard disk as well.

 

There is a ICC profile of the acer one screen here
http://www.focus-numerique.com/test-42/telecharger-un-profil-calibre-pour-son-ecran-acer-64.html
might be a calibration timesaver ?

 

Finally, someone who might be able to help me with a couple of specific questions.....I'm toying between the AAO and 1000h (possibly the samsung nc10 too) and was wondering how well the AAO (copes compared to the 1000h) when running photo editing software? Does the lower RAM slow things down noticably?

If you can help me out you'll be a life saver!

 

Not really much of a difference that I can tell at all. I do keep what I do on the netbooks to very minimal raw editing (mainly just levels/curves/sharpening/nr/cropping). I don't do anything crazy with intensive filters as I do that on a much bigger screen and more powerful computer. I probably don't push PS into the range where the extra 512MB is necessary.

The bigger screen doesn't make any difference to me either since resolution doesn't change.

 

Well thats good to hear. I think I'll go with the AAO as it'll save me a bundle and should be nice and light. I was going to buy a 6 cell battery, but I think I may just buy another cheap used 3 cell on ebay and have it as a spare. That way, when I'm wandering round. if I think I'm gonna be using it a fair bit I'll carry the spare otherwise I'll keep it light and just have the one. I'm not sure of the durations that I'll be using it. So long as I dont tax it too much, sounds like the One should do me proud. Then again, I'm sure which ever netbook I buy, I'll always be thinking of "greener grass"!

 

thanx everyone for your answers

i forgot to ask if the AAO will display 32bit on the external monitor and if not all resolutions... up to what resolution will it display 32 bit color

thanx all

 

I only go up to 1920x1080 (monitor limit, not output resolution limit) but it is 32bit colour

 

yay ! ! !

thanx goofball - i'm off tomorrow to pick one up - thank you very much !