Potentially using SolidWorks 2013/2014 and up on Surface Pro 3

[Tae Zar Lwin]

Hello all, this is my first post on this forum so please bear with me if I'm not aware of this forum's etiquettes.

I am a heavy user of SolidWorks for work and sometimes have to travel to various suppliers. I want to know whether I can use the Surface Pro 3 with the i7 + 8GB RAM + 256GB SSD for some light CAD use, during my travels and sometimes at home with access to work VPN. I feel the specifications will be sufficient for viewing and some light modelling on SolidWorks but I would like to know if someone has already tried this.

The upcoming surface pro 3 can be a promising laptop replacement and would like to get one when it is available in Singapore!

Many thanks in advance!

 

[Laura Knotek]

Hi and welcome to WPCentral.

I am not familiar with the software you are using. However, your post is excellent quality and in the proper forum.

Hopefully someone else who is familiar with that software will be able to assist you.

 

[smoheath]

I actually use solidworks on my current i5 4GB ram version pro 2. It works really well for small assemblies. It tends to bog down when you get into really complex stuff. But I bet the i7 8GB version would suit you fairly well.

 

[Tae Zar Lwin]

Thank you Laura for your compliments.

Thank you smoheath! Until last month, I was about to purchase the Surface Pro 2 i5 8GB and I read about this news that Pro 3 is coming out soon. I guess I've made the right choice. Yes, I only intend to use it for small assemblies and for larger ones, I can export into e-drawings format and do the presentations from there. Once again, thanks for the reply.

 

[yaksplat]

I'm looking at the i7 SP3 for using Revit. I'd like to believe that it'll be able to handle decent sized assemblies.

 

[a5cent]

I actually use solidworks on my current i5 4GB ram version pro 2. It works really well for small assemblies. It tends to bog down when you get into really complex stuff. But I bet the i7 8GB version would suit you fairly well.

I've used SW2014 on both CPU's and the performance delta isn't that large. Far more important is RAM capacity and the availability of an SSD. With the 8GB model I think you'll be fine, even with larger assemblies. SolidWorks recommends 8GB for SW2014.

I want to know whether I can use the Surface Pro 3 with the i7 + 8GB RAM + 256GB SSD for some light CAD use

I'd be far more worried about the integrated GPU and OpenGL support. Solidworks doesn't specifically list support for the Intel HD4400, which AFAIK is what the SP3 uses. Particularly for presentations you'll want things to look good, and with poor OpenGL support the viewport can become quite a mess. Particular dimension lines can get completely out of whack.

IMHO you really should contact Solidworks about this. I think this is too critical to rely on just our feedback. It will work, no doubt, but if you are doing presentations you'll also want it to look professional, which often means you'll want a FirePro or Quado GPU in there somewhere.

 

[StephenWagner7]

Hello all, this is my first post on this forum so please bear with me if I'm not aware of this forum's etiquettes.

I am a heavy user of SolidWorks for work and sometimes have to travel to various suppliers. I want to know whether I can use the Surface Pro 3 with the i7 + 8GB RAM + 256GB SSD for some light CAD use, during my travels and sometimes at home with access to work VPN. I feel the specifications will be sufficient for viewing and some light modelling on SolidWorks but I would like to know if someone has already tried this.

The upcoming surface pro 3 can be a promising laptop replacement and would like to get one when it is available in Singapore!

Many thanks in advance!

One of my clients actually run Solidworks on the 1st gen Surface Pro and they actually love it. Can only imagine it runs better on the later gens!