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Mac Pro? or Montevina MBP?

waynesun

waynesun

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 25, 2006
160
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*EDIT - i meant the Penryn MBP, and perhaps the Montevina if the rumors are true

Well, i've been saving up for a while, and the moment of truth has finally come :D. Both prosumer machines are priced neck-neck, each with their own pros and cons. (portability, power, expandability)

I often tread in the graphics design / digital photography area, with video production following a close second. music production and editing are also in the cards, but those aren't as taxing as the first two i have mentioned.

I'm looking for a beast that can chew through rendering with efficiency. The Mac Pro seems like a tempting deal.. but i'm really leaning towards portability with the MBP.

College is coming up very soon for me, so that's also a tidbit to factor in.

Will i see a huge performance difference between these two beasts? Which do you guys recommend?

I can't decide :(.
 
If it is for college, get the laptop. You cannot go wrong. The MBP is a very capable machine as anyone here will tell you. You will need to decide for yourself if 1) it interests you to be on the internet away from your dorm room and 2) if you can accomplish what you need to do with a MBP.
 
I would say the MBP, but I've heard issues with it running Motion on some peoples MBP's which worries me as thats what I was going to upgrade my Macbook too when I went to uni as the MacPro would be staying at my parents. (no chance of getting that beast out of here)

So really, I'm in the same boat as you. I dont really want to borrow my sisters MBP to test my theory. I'm just hoping that incident was a one off!

Otherwise, I'm considering getting a high spec iMac if Apple put in a GFX card in that is designed to do its job, not to be clocked down!
 
Portability Matters

If your going to college, I highly recommend a laptop. I purchased a desktop before I went to school and then regretted it ALL the time. I didn't have any clue how important portability was until I needed it day in and day out.
 
Due to the Fact that you are heading out to college I think a Portable would be best however yes, there really is quite a difference in the power of these machines. The Mac Pro will totally blow the MacBook Pro away when it comes to anything. However it seems portability is quite important and the MacBook Pro is still pretty powerful making it a good choice.
 
Computing wise, the Mac Pro owns. Practicality wise(for College), however, the MBP kicks ass. Without a doubt get the MBP if you are going to college soon. I sold my MP for a MBP a couple months ago and except for storage I don't regret anything. In my MP I had like 2 TB of storage(including external HD's hooked up 24/7). With the laptop I am never at my desk so storage can be an issue. I have a 250GB G-Drive mini which comes with me most places(holds my photo collection which I can't live without). At home I have a couple FW800 HD's, and just added a Buffalo 1TB NAS which will probably have Time Machine duties. Wow, way to go off on a tangent, but get the MBP:apple:
 
There will be a huge performance difference.

But how much do you need portability?


My uni has computer labs with 24/7 access. Not as good as a Mac Pro, but always there.

You need to weigh up the pros and cons for yourself...
 
I'd be tempted to get the MP and a cheapo laptop. Then again, I am getting a little hacked off with my 23" screen taking up half my (College/Uni) desk and sometimes wish I could just chuck it on the floor!
 
The Mac Pro is hands down the winner for speed. The Macbook Pro for portability. You just have to decide which you need more.
 
After using laptops over the past 6 years (I've been a uni student for 8 years :p), I don't think I could ever go back to using a laptop. Once you have portability, you'll want it all the time. I use my laptop outside of home every single day of my university life.

Get the MBP.
 
MBP all the way

Mac book pro for one and only one reason.

Mobility is obviously a + but you want more power hence an MP.

But I mean cmon, the MBP can do every single job you throw at it just as fast because it is just amazing while a MP is beyond legendary. Storage, I mean 300gB is good enough
 
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