What to look for in a laptop for VHS capture/encoding?
 

So I've got my desktop station configured out for VHS capture and encoding workflow, but I find myself having to travel more often going days until I am able to pick up where I left off. I've tried doing some digging around the forum for similar questions, but I'm having trouble finding a straightforward guide to this:

-When going portable, what kinds of specs should one look for in a VHS capture/encoding station?
-Are there particular brands that do better than others?
-Is there any additional hardware or software needed to ensure a laptop can function as close to a desktop as possible?
-I can imagine newer model laptops may be asking for trouble under this but, would downgrading the OS of a Win10 laptop to Win7 or WinXP be sufficient for these needs or should one stick with laptops that are natively built for Win7 or WinXP?
-For those that already have portable stations, how have your experiences been like?

Lordsmurf if I could get your input on this, would be greatly appreciated :worthy:

Thanks everyone!

Win7 is a must.
XP has too many limitations for laptops.
WinVista/8/10 will make your capture life miserable.

There are some very specific needs for laptops that capture.
- IPS matte display -- which already rules out most laptops
- properly working USB3
- dual HDD can be extremely useful, or you must learn to capture less (cannot fill space more than 75% safely, at most)

I hesitate to recommend model/brand, because it's not that easy. There is one excellent model specifically, but there are so many options for it, that I don't want you to pick the wrong ones. And then it needs special calibration, USB3 attention, and potential custom graphics card settings.

The TBC and VCR should also be small for a portable setup.