Is space storage on a computer really necessary anymore ?

[Woody!Pix]

Hello there,

I've been looking around the web since 1 week to replace my 5y old laptop and decided the Surface pro 3 will best suit my needs. However, I still have some questions to answer before making my decision.

First the i3 proc. I can't figure out if an i3 is enough and 4gb memory. I don't play video games, I mainly do Word, Powerpoint and Excel (sometimes with big sheets for financial analysis). I often watch 1080p (or more) movies.
Sometimes, as a photograph amateur, I post-process my RAW photos (but not heavy ones, 20,2MP from the Sony RX100). I use Lightroom and I wish I could have the job done smoothly but I am ready for some compromises. After many researches, it seems that the i3 is okay for that usage but I wish someone could confirm that.

My main concern is the storage. Nowadays, I do not feel like having a lot of storage is necessary on a computer. With the improvement of Cloud storage, External HDD up to 2to and so on, I think the computer should only welcome some basics programs and the rest should be stored away.
Once Windows 8.1 is installed, only 36gb are remaining. Then, If you install some programs (Lightroom, Antivirus, Office suite, iTunes, Chrome, etc.) and Apps (Facebook, TED talks, Mint, etc.) you might have something like 20gb left. In the end, it doesn't make much and I am scared that future Windows 10 or Windows 8.1 updates will complete the remaining storage quite fast.

Does anyone have some feedback on the i3 storage capacity and usage to provide to complete my decision ? My student status has been accepted by Microsoft so I am only 1 click away from getting it !

I am really thankful for your feedback and hope this post will help others to make their choice.

 

[GreyFox7]

The i5 4gb 128gb is the best value SP3 and it addresses your two main concerns, Storage and CPU. That's it in a nutshell.

 

[ptrkhh]

Correct me if Im wrong, Lightroom benefits from burst frequency that Turbo Boost of the i5 offers. Hence, I would recommend the i5 model.

Take note though, in sustained load scenario, the i5 doesn't perform any better than the i3 due to throttling, but I don't think Lightroom would load the CPU long enough to trigger the throttling.

Don't worry about the storage, Windows 10 is going to be available on 8GB Lumia phones and 16 GB $150 tablets, so its not going to get ridiculously large, trust me. In fact, Windows installation footprint has been decreasing since the Vista flip flop. Take note that the write I/O speed of the i5 is almost twice as fast as the i3 due to different SSD hardware.

 

[ctitanic]

Keep in mind that you can add another minimum 64 Gb in a microSD.

 

[Woody!Pix]

@GreyFox7 : I know that i5 is currently the best value but it comes with a €180 difference (with student discount). One may argue that if I can put €720 then I can put 900€ too but well... still, €180 is a lot for me at that point and if I can do the same thing for €180 less and buy small presents for my relatives for Christmas, it is a better deal to me.

@ptrkhh : Didn't hear anything about the burst frequency and Lightroom but making my research. Yeah, I thought so... the overheating problem should not concern. When people are talking about intensive usage they seem to refer to +400 layers photoshop files or 3D rendering. Yet I can go for the i5 without fear of low performance for the price. Thanks for the feedback concerning the storage, it reassure me a little.

@ctitanic : I had that in mind but it never replaces an integrated SSD and I was afraid concerning future updates, temporary files, etc. Wish I could be sure to have 10% of available space even in 3 years. Every personnal files I have are stocked on external devices or cloud anyway.

 

[RémiM]

And if you have an Office 365 subscription, then you have an unlimited OneDrive storage space (currently at 10 TB).

 

[Liam2349]

Feel free to use the unlimited Office 365 storage, however for me personally, I like to have all my documents stored locally as well as online. I have plenty of stuff in OneDrive that is not stored locally, but that's mainly software.

The i3 will do Lightroom, but if you had one of the i5s you could do it better, and better with an i7, and better with a Dell XPS. If you're ready for compromises then go with the i3 model - so long as the storage is enough for you.

 

[Nuspieds]

My main concern is the storage. Nowadays, I do not feel like having a lot of storage is necessary on a computer. With the improvement of Cloud storage, External HDD up to 2to and so on, I think the computer should only welcome some basics programs and the rest should be stored away.

Once you settle on a storage strategy that works for you, then it'll be easier for you to choose the right model with the right local capacity. First and foremost, though, know your storage strategy.

 

[kwright]

On board storage is the last specification that I consider. The only thing I use it for is storage of short videos when I make presentations and the WiFi is an unknown.

One Drive and it's ease of use, reliability has been a giant benefit of the Windows 8 operating system.

 

[InspectHerGadget]

It is all about money. More storage is always good to have.

I do use OneDrive quite a bit though for storage mainly as backup but also for sharing files.

 

[GreyFox7]

On board storage is the last specification that I consider. The only thing I use it for is storage of short videos when I make presentations and the WiFi is an unknown.

One Drive and it's ease of use, reliability has been a giant benefit of the Windows 8 operating system.

Tongue firmly planted in cheek: the NSA thanks you and would like to express their eternal gratitude
But seriously, that's not nearly as bad as Google rifling through you stuff and selling it.

 

[hughlle]

Don't presume that your requirements re universal.

If not for onboard storage, i'd be royally stuffed. I don't have any ability to use cloud services (and even when i have broadband, upload speeds in the UK are so abysmal for the vast majority that we still don't bother with cloud storage) and this is a mobile device. where is the sense in me spending money on something mobile if i have to cart around a bag of external harddrives in order to use it as i wish?