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Need advice from MBP users - swap iMac for MBP?


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Need advice from MBP users - swap iMac for MBP?
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steve77uk
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Derbyshire, England
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2007-10-28, 02:24

Hello, apologies in advance for the long post...

The situation is this...

I currently have a 24" iMac White which was BTO 2.33, 2GB 250GB HD.. Love it.. however I am wondering if I am not getting the best out of it. I did pay a lot of money for it and it is only a year old...

I have recently become a proud dad and the spare 'computer room' is shortly going to be a nursery. So I need to clean out a lot of computer bits and bobs (do I really need all these bits.. really need?). One side of the room has my iMac on a desk with printers etc, HDD's rats nest of cables - the baby will be moving into that room soon - goes to sleep at 7pm, as I get in at 6pm from work I use to go straight up stairs after tea and go on the iMac while the wife uses the MB.

I am learning FCP, I am trying to get into Photoshop, but mainly love photography and movie making - I go out to visit family a lot, take GB's of photos 2GB each time, edit them on my MB to refresh the SD card but find it a pain in the bum, after editing to transfer them to my iMac which is where they are all stored in iPhoto. i also have all my music on my iMac too. It is a nightmare keeping it in sync having some photos on one, songs all over the place as I buy music when I am at work on my MB - making my file system a right mess...

I have got an AppleTV downstairs which streams from my iMac which is always on upstairs. (Not sure if it needs to be on to use Apple TV all the time?)

Anyway, the reason I didn't use my MB much is because of syncing and the small HDD 120GB wasn't big enough for ALL of my iPhoto library 50GB, iTunes 40GB and all my documents, movies and Virtual PC's. I naturally presumed it would be better to edit the photos on the iMac because of the 24" screen. However I bought a 250GB HDD recently and everything fits on it - wow this is so much easier having ALL my photos in one place, all my music, connect to TV at the relatives house etc... I could use this a lot more my MB now everything is on there... However using Photoshop on the MB 13" display is a bit of a bind...

I initially bought the MB for my wife and she loves it, at the moment she has docs on the MB and also the iMac but she doesn't use the iMac as much, just for browsing.

(Sorry for going on but this is what I am thinking so thought I would give you as much info re my situation as possible!)

Now then, I am giving serious consideration to selling my iMac and finally getting a MBP.

So I want to make movies, use photoshop, take it to work, basically do everything on it but games, use VMWare, FCP, iMovie, iPhoto, looking at either Aperture or Lightroom and general use. I wondered about going the full hog and getting a 17" rather than a 15" but are they too big size wise?? Are they cumbersome as they intended to be used on a desk? Too big for sitting on the sofa at night browsing? They look big in Apple Store, but I use to have a Dell 17" and got on ok with that but it was quite cumbersome at times - but am I thinking that because I love the handy size of the MB? I see my MB as an extra - an in-between computer - The problem with the MB is I would like more screen as 800 deep is a bit annoying.

So...

1. Apple TV - anyone else out there with MBP that has all their media on there have any issues with an AppleTV? - would there be any problems? What would it run off? I know the music is copied to the AppleTV, do the photos? what is streamed? Is it a case of when iTunes is opened it just syncs like an iPod and job done?

2. How would I get on not having an External HDD plugged in all the time? I have a lot of images and storage - I do have airport extreme, I could use AirDisk but wouldn't that be slow as it is USB2 connection slowed down even further by wireless? I have got a large FW800 drive which I love as it is fast and file transfers are sweet! (I know MBP has got FW 800 which is one of the reasons I want one)

3. Time Machine, I understand that I could just plug in the Time Machine HDD and it would back up. So I could come home from work, connect HDD and TM will back it up, but when I am out and about, TM would be pretty useless as I could not restore could I...? Would that pee me off? Does it anyone else who has used it found that? I am annoyed TM won't back up to air disk now as my TM drive is USB and would be fab at backing up - as soon as I saw the demo on Apple.com over Airport I thought that would solve all my problems! Now it is gone Grrrr...

4. Anyone out there gone for a 17" over a 15"? What made you go for the bigger? Do you take it out and about a lot? Do you wish you went for the 15"?

5. What made you go for a MBP in the first place? Are they really that good? The MB runs hot even when I am in bed with it on my lap (duvet in between) my legs get so hot it is uncomfortable - is this the same with the MBP?

6. I LOVE the keyboard on the MB, the MBP is different - what do you think?

Thanks in advance - it is appreciated as I am currently confused.com, it will be a lot of money, but now is the time as won't be able to spend this much on a computer ever again due to baby etc so want to make the right choice! I think I have convinced myself enough to have a laptop as my main computer but MB isn't up to it for me for what I want to do...
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Dave
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Join Date: May 2004
Location: Bay Area, CA
 
2007-10-28, 06:33

I'm not trying to tell you not to get the MBP, but why can't you just move the computer desk?

FWIW, my dad has one of the MBP 17"s and he loves it.
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steve77uk
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Derbyshire, England
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2007-10-28, 06:37

I would love to but our house is only a 2 bed semi, one is ours, the other is going to be the nursery.. in the UK, 2 beds are very small generally...

I am leaning towards the 17" though... I think I want more portability and have all of my data on one machine..
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steve77uk
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Derbyshire, England
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2007-10-29, 12:04

Crikey - are there really no other MBP users out there?

Does anyone have an educated guesstimate when they think the 17" will have LED display?

Is there anyone out there that hmm'd and ahhh'd between the 15 and 17"??

I could really do with your advice - this is going to replace my 24" iMac...
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torifile
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Join Date: May 2004
Location: Durham, NC
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2007-10-29, 12:10

Get the 15" and an external LCD for times you want a larger screen. IMHO, the 15" is the best balance between portability and power in Apple's lineup.
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RowdyScot
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Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Great Bay Temple
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2007-10-29, 13:54

I'm on the 17" with high-res display. I love this machine to death. Best purchase I've ever made.
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Taskiss
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: St. Louis, MO
 
2007-10-29, 14:21

Quote:
Originally Posted by RowdyScot View Post
I'm on the 17" with high-res display. I love this machine to death. Best purchase I've ever made.
Same here, same amount of love, too - but I have no iMac experience to compare the two. I DID own the original bondi-blue iMac, but that hardly compares.
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Wyatt
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Near Indianapolis
 
2007-10-29, 14:27

As far as the keyboard goes, I've had two MBPs and one MacBook (in between the other two), and the MBP is by far my favorite keyboard ever. I like the MB keyboard well enough, but the MBP just feels better, especially when typing for a long period of time.

If you're going to buy the 17", make sure you spring for the higher-res screen. It will be absolutely great for photo work, IMO, and even better for video. It's not that much more than the stock 17", and I think it makes the machine more useful for you.

Personally, I have the 15", and I love it. I would love that extra screen space even more, though, I think. Then again, the LED backlight on the 15" is wonderful, too.

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dmegatool
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: At home
 
2007-10-29, 15:42

Quote:
Originally Posted by steve77uk View Post
I am leaning towards the 17" though... I think I want more portability and have all of my data on one machine..
If you really want all your data on your MBP, take a look at theses http://www.mcetech.com/optibay/.
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steve77uk
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Derbyshire, England
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2007-10-29, 16:32

What do 17" users think about the size of the laptop? With regards to the high res version, do you find the screen resolution too high for viewing on a 17"?

I think the best thing to do is get myself down to an Apple Store and have a good nosey and see them in place...

I am getting help financing this thing - my mother is going to give me some money towards it (basically going to buy my iMac off me rather than giving me a hand out etc - it also updates her from an iMac G5 etc)...

With this bit of help, I thought I might as well go the hole hog and get the high-res 17"... just wondered if it is was not as portable (I know laptops are, but carrying it around every where etc if that makes sense as I bike it to work and will need to put it in my rucksack)...

Thanks for the help - it is good to hear other people's opinions - the iMac 24" is a fab bit of kit - All in One, clean etc... it is only because of sync issues and also need the space to make room for baby etc...
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RowdyScot
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Join Date: Apr 2005
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2007-10-29, 21:24

Seeing them in person is the best option, but I think the screen size is wonderful. Perfect for photo/video/audio work. I have no problems with the resolution. Everything looks sharp and crisp, and nothing is too small. The physical laptop size is big, but it fits comfortably on my lap. The laptop is NOT what I notice in my backpack going to class. That'd be the Organic Chemistry books and Materials Science book weighing me down. Others may disagree with that, however. Best thing you can do is lift it yourself and judge. Just remember that as heavy as it might seem to pick it up, it won't feel that heavy on your back.

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