rMBP vs iMac 27" 2012

I have the 13" rMBP so I can't answer all your questions, but yes, Windows 7 will run a lot faster on a true SSD than it does on the HDD portion of the Fusion drive. Windows 7 is optimized to take advantage of SSDs.

Which 27" iMac? i5 w/ 680MX or i7 w/ 680MX?

I would swap the 27inch imac for the 15inch macbook. What can you do on the iMac that you can't do on the macbook?
The true ssd is also better and you have the advantage of being able to move it around

really comes down to,

do you want the 27" gorgeous screen or a 15" gorgeous screen?
do you want to be static or mobile?

The fans on my 13" rMBP are remarkably quiet (noticeably quieter than on my MacBook Air). I hardly ever hear them. They have done a good job with the thermal management and the asymmetric blades.

beerglass007 said:

Now I have the 27" it feels quite large and in my face/eyes.

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This is going to be a silly question, but have you tried moving it farther back? A 27" display is designed to be further from your face than a 21" display. Just as a 42" TV is meant to be even farther back.

beerglass007 said:

Hi all

I've done the MBP stuff and moved onto iMacs as the Ipad filled the gap for mobile browsing and light gaming for me.

I then purchased a new 27" iMac because of the 680MX video card and fusion drive ( like SSD performance )

Anyway I think the screen is too big and causing eye strain, so it might be going back. I'm looking at the rMBP now, with 512 SSD and 16GB ram

As anyone compared the difference in performance between the iMac i5 3.2 and the rMBP i7 ? Also how much better/quicker is the real SSD on the rMBP.

I've noticed using bootcamp on the fusion drive its doesn't use SSD so its slower than OSX. I take it that windows 7 uses SSD and would be much quicker on the rMBP

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I am in the exact same position as you. I couldn't decide between the two. I needed to upgrade my 2007 MBP and like you was enticed by the graphics card and speedier processor on the iMac. I have a big space and desk for my mac, yet I couldn't get past the fact the 27" imac is just way too big for me. Unnecessarily big imo.

I had the eye strain as well. You would think with the bigger screen that wouldn't be the case but certain fonts were way too small for me, for instance the top menu bar in osx. And my eyesight is fairly good. So I returned it for the MBP retina. It should be here next week and I can't wait.

Depending on how you intend to use the machine maybe that graphics card is important to you IDK. But the one in the MBP is no slouch and should be more than sufficient for most tasks. As a benefit you get the retina display, and pure SSD. I'm not keen on the fusion drive compared to all SSD. It's better than a standard HDD no doubt, but that was also one of my gripes with the new iMac. To get all flash, you had to pay an arm and a leg.

In the end it was a Really fast, great performing machine, but I just felt like that screen was gonna swallow me! I'd rather have the flexibility that the retina MBP provides and add a smaller external display if needed.