[The1]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

Better, yes, reliable, YMMV. I've had Macs since 1990 and have had literally only 1 issue with the 4 I've owned over those years.

I need something that I can take to work with me every day. A PC or iMac won't cut it. A windows/linux laptop won't do either (I hate windows, and many of the apps I use aren't in linux, and no I'm not going to run a virtual machine). Netbooks are too small and not powerful enough for a daily workhorse computer.

I think you are right with your last post though. Might as well get a computer I can upgrade later (i.e. buy more RAM, buy a bigger SSD).

The reason I'm thinking about a 13" instead of a 15" is to save money since I have external monitors at home and at work, and also to save on weight/size since I have to haul it everyday.

thats how i sort of treat my laptops. I get one that either has bluetooth or pick up a bluetooth chip so i can use a keyboard externally. hook it up to a monitor, then never actually touch the laptop until i go somewhere and need to take it with me.

this way i can leave it sitting on the other side of the room and still control it.

sort of what i do with my PC too.

my laptop is pretty much for when i travel, or visit family. Or go to my boat and it's raining, as well as back up my photos while i'm away. other then that it really has no use for me.

my 3 year old pc still runs circles around my brand new quad-core 8 gigs of ram laptop with stand alone video and audio cards. Kind of sad. This is why i detest laptops, there's just so much crap running them that they can't actually run themselves to their fullest extent.


i'll still always own one though....

[M_Six]

The 13" MBPs have very impressive graphics. We've bought a few for some of our faculty and they all rave about the screens. You can really load one up with RAM, too. Although these days 8GB is almost basic. If you're going to use this as a card dump for photography, you may want to skip the SSD drive and get a normal drive in the 500GB - 1TB range. It's not that much added weight and it will probably reduce the cost of the laptop by a bit.

Skip the MB Air. Those are for web surfing and email.

My 16" Latitude Z (which I'm using right now) is getting old. The fan has started making lots of noise and the hard drive is a paltry 128GB. The touchpad has sucked from Day One and the keyboard is beginning to act funky. I think it's getting time to upgrade. I may go Mac as well. Just tough to choose between a 13" MBP and a 15" MBP. I don't haul mine around much, so the extra screen real estate may be worth the added weight.

[M_Six]

I should add that CS6 is due out soon. That new focus correction algorithm looks awesome, but I bet it's a huge RAM/processor hog. Keep that in mind when spec'ing out a laptop.

[The1]

a big consideration for you mark, might be if the 15" has better resolution then the 13. that is if you don't attach your computers to external screens/televisions.

[Chewy734]

Mark,

My gf has the 13" and it beats the crap out of my old 15" one, in terms of graphics, CPU, etc. It's a night and day difference. That being said, it's not really all that surprising, since technology advances every few months. There is a night and day difference between SSD and a 5400/7200 rpm HD. Even if it has less space, I feel like I'll get much more performance with an SSD. My LR3 library is actually on my NAS, so when I edit photos I connect via gigabit ethernet. Space is mostly an issue for me when it comes to work-related stuff, sadly. I'm leaning towards a 13" MacBook Pro with 8gb RAM and a 256gb SSD.

The more I think about it, the less the Air appeals to me, mainly because I have an iPad 2 as well and I can use that for surfing, email, etc.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by The1

a big consideration for you mark, might be if the 15" has better resolution then the 13. that is if you don't attach your computers to external screens/televisions.

No, I usually don't unless I'm visiting someone and want to bore them with some of my pictures. It's nice to have the HDMI connections then. Apple sells the HDMI dongle for relatively short money.

Originally Posted by Chewy734

Mark,

My gf has the 13" and it beats the crap out of my old 15" one, in terms of graphics, CPU, etc. It's a night and day difference. That being said, it's not really all that surprising, since technology advances every few months. There is a night and day difference between SSD and a 5400/7200 rpm HD. Even if it has less space, I feel like I'll get much more performance with an SSD. My LR3 library is actually on my NAS, so when I edit photos I connect via gigabit ethernet. Space is mostly an issue for me when it comes to work-related stuff, sadly. I'm leaning towards a 13" MacBook Pro with 8gb RAM and a 256gb SSD.

The more I think about it, the less the Air appeals to me, mainly because I have an iPad 2 as well and I can use that for surfing, email, etc.

Yeah, SSDs are great for performance and less heat and noise. I just wish they'd come up with larger capacity drives that don't require a mortgage.

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by M_Six

Yeah, SSDs are great for performance and less heat and noise. I just wish they'd come up with larger capacity drives that don't require a mortgage.

The Crucial M4s are on sale on amazon and newegg right now.

[The1]

Originally Posted by M_Six

No, I usually don't unless I'm visiting someone and want to bore them with some of my pictures. It's nice to have the HDMI connections then. Apple sells the HDMI dongle for relatively short money.




Yeah, SSDs are great for performance and less heat and noise. I just wish they'd come up with larger capacity drives that don't require a mortgage.

i'm guessing the SSD drives have been proving stupidly reliable as there's no moving parts eh?

[Chewy734]

I wouldn't say stupidly reliable... but yes, they have a relatively small DOA rate.

[The1]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

I wouldn't say stupidly reliable... but yes, they have a relatively small DOA rate.

give them 3 years and well be buying a 1tb for 75$

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

The Crucial M4s are on sale on amazon and newegg right now.

Yeah, $680 for 512GB. Just what I was saying. The same 7200 RPM drive would be about $80.

[The1]

how much faster is a solid then a 7200?

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by The1

give them 3 years and well be buying a 1tb for 75$

Maybe. But, I'd give it at least 5 years. Remember, the 15k rpm Cheetah drives are nearly the same price as comparable storage in SSD.

Originally Posted by M_Six

Yeah, $680 for 512GB. Just what I was saying. The same 7200 RPM drive would be about $80.

True. But, it's like comparing a sports car with a bicycle.

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by The1

how much faster is a solid then a 7200?

It depends on the file sizes, number of files, etc. Are you reading or writing? Multiple tasks at the same time?

Based on personal experience, it's 2-3 times faster in reads compared to a 15k Cheetah drive, faster than that when writing. If you are reading and writing at multiple locations, you are looking at least 5-10x faster.

[The1]

interesting, i'm a bit behind when it comes to computers, i only get updated when i'm in need of one. (which when it comes to laptops isn't too far between )

[TL]

13" macbook pro all the way, it's not even that heavy compared to other laptops in it's class

[Chewy734]

thanks Tim.

[TL]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

thanks Tim.

no prob homie

[Chewy734]

I just brought home a new 13" MacBook Pro. I also ordered 16gb of RAM, and I'll prolly wait on the SSD to see how fast it is as-is.

[The1]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

I just brought home a new 13" MacBook Pro. I also ordered 16gb of RAM, and I'll prolly wait on the SSD to see how fast it is as-is.

looking forward to updates

I'm slowly becoming more curious in regards to these macbooks.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

I just brought home a new 13" MacBook Pro. I also ordered 16gb of RAM, and I'll prolly wait on the SSD to see how fast it is as-is.

Schweeeeet. That should be a screamer.

[Chewy734]

Lion is... interesting. It will take a little getting used to.