Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacBook Pro or MacBook???

G

GregE

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 28, 2007
380
0
Hi all,

I went Mac with a desktop awhile back and love it. We still use a PC at times but are working towards eliminating it.

I'd like to get a laptop for my wife to use. She is a teacher and does her plans on the computer. She will probably want to use Office for Mac since she is familar with Office. She also likes to scrapbook and would like to move to doing it on a computer instead of cutting papers to put behind pictures and sticking them all down on pages. Those who do it probably understand what I am talking about. We would also use it to do some Final Cut Express.

That being said, should I look at the MacBook Pro or the MacBook?

Thanks

Greg
 
K

kornyboy

macrumors 68000
Sep 27, 2004
1,529
0
Knoxville, TN (USA)
Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5G77 Safari/525.20)

I would like to echo what everyone else is saying here by saying that it sounds like a MB will do the job. Just one thing though, if you ever decide to move to final cut pro, the MB won't run it. You will need the MB Pro.
 
nope7308

nope7308

macrumors 65816
Oct 6, 2008
1,040
537
Ontario, Canada
You should also factor in size/weight/portability. Personally, I think the MBP would be overkill for your needs. With respect to final cut, the MB will do just fine if you bump up the memory a little.

Keep in mind that there is no real performance gain between the 2.4Ghz MB and the 2.4Ghz MBP (in fact, some tests show the MB outperforming the MBP). If you want to see performance improvements, you would have to upgrade to the 2.53Ghz MBP and that is substantially more expensive (and not in line with you needs, it seems).

Good luck with the decision!
 
L

liquidh2o

macrumors 6502
Feb 4, 2004
272
4
Alabama
sounds like a MB would fit her needs. She won't be stressing it by using Office or any scrapbooking software. From having done scrapbooking though, I would recommend a second monitor, at least 19", it'll help out a lot.
 
G

GregE

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 28, 2007
380
0
liquidh2o said:
sounds like a MB would fit her needs. She won't be stressing it by using Office or any scrapbooking software. From having done scrapbooking though, I would recommend a second monitor, at least 19", it'll help out a lot.
Click to expand...

What software do you use for your scrapbooking? A friend of my wife's is using Photoshop Elements on her PC but I'd rather go Mac. I know it's available for the Mac but thought I would ask what you use.

I was leaning towards the MBP just because I could get a 15" display (I'd love to get the 17" display but that is way more than I want to spend) on it but maybe the external monitor would make more sense.
 
B

bentmywookie

macrumors regular
Nov 6, 2002
155
0
Palo Alto
I would also consider screen-size. I have the previous generation Macbook and performance-wise it is perfectly fine, but sometimes I do wish I had a larger screen. My sister has a 17" and while it is about 2 lbs. heavier than mine, it just looks beautiful and the screen real-estate is fantastic.

I'm not an expert on graphics cards but it would probably be good to find out if the Macbook's graphics card would hold up reasonably well for Final Cut Pro if you ever decided to move up. I have no issue with my Macbook's integrated graphics but I don't play any games and don't do any video/graphics work (only audio stuff for me).

The Macbooks are very capable, and definitely bump up the RAM on whatever you get. Happy Holidays!
 
acfusion29

acfusion29

macrumors 68040
Nov 8, 2007
3,128
1
Toronto
kornyboy said:
Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5G77 Safari/525.20)

I would like to echo what everyone else is saying here by saying that it sounds like a MB will do the job. Just one thing though, if you ever decide to move to final cut pro, the MB won't run it. You will need the MB Pro.
Click to expand...

You are wrong. My MacBook runs FCP fine.. :confused: 2.0 with 2GB of ram...
 
G

GregE

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 28, 2007
380
0
Thanks for all of the input. I ended up going with the MBP because I could get the 15" display. I would have loved the 17" display but decided to save the money.
 
tcphoto

tcphoto

macrumors 6502a
Feb 23, 2005
758
2
Madison, GA
I saw this morning that macmall has lowered their prices farther. I can't believe that they are selling the new MBP 2.4 for under $1700. It's a great time to buy.
 
N

nicfargo

macrumors member
Dec 23, 2008
50
0
Nebraska
bentmywookie said:
I'm not an expert on graphics cards but it would probably be good to find out if the Macbook's graphics card would hold up reasonably well for Final Cut Pro if you ever decided to move up. I have no issue with my Macbook's integrated graphics but I don't play any games and don't do any video/graphics work (only audio stuff for me).
Click to expand...

Odly enough, FCP doesn't even use the graphics card in the way you are thinking. It's all done on the Processor and RAM. So an increase in RAM would help...also having your scratch disc separate from your application (separate HDD) would help. FW800 or faster is what I'd recommend personally.
 
Scepticalscribe

Scepticalscribe

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Jul 29, 2008
63,992
46,456
In a coffee shop.
GregE said:
Thanks for all of the input. I ended up going with the MBP because I could get the 15" display. I would have loved the 17" display but decided to save the money.
Click to expand...

I think you've made the right decision. I have a MBP and love it, and - power and performance apart, - the real joy of the MBP is the superb screen.

Cheers and good luck
 
linsam

linsam

macrumors 6502
Jul 3, 2007
263
7
Irvine, CA
Good choice! I just bought the new MBP because of screen size. The MB would have been perfect, but the larger screen on the MBP is easier on my tired eyes. ;)
 
N

nippyjun

macrumors 68000
Jul 26, 2007
1,638
323
You may want to see if a local university happens to have the previous generation macbook pro as they can be substantially discounted.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom