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Resolved What computer for Bluestacks/iOS development?

phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
Hello people, just wondering, because:

1- A friend of mine had been invited as venture capitalist in some startup with the main goal of developing software for iOS and Android. Also the people there wants a desktop/laptop to try and work with Bluestacks. So I was asked about a Mac capable as a workhorse for the next 3-5 years.

2- Have to confess, I dont know too much about iOS or Android or Bluestacks. Simply, I dont use or need them. So, I would be grateful of advice from people with knowledge about the matter. Or anybody that wants to weight in, with some informed opinion.

3-My friend dont have budget constraints.Only requirement is no Mac Pro, no peripherals.

So, I hope to hear your suggestions and appreciate any help to the task in hand.:)

:):apple:
 
Last edited:
Tesselator

Tesselator

macrumors 601
Jan 9, 2008
4,601
6
Japan
I don't understand #3.... No macPro? Now peripherals?

Why not? For Android development there are several if not many, very useful "peripherals"! And MacPro is just as good as anything else. Pretty expensive for iOS and Android dev tho - when all ya need is a cheap-o laptop running linux.

And for those wondering:
Wiki said:
Bluestacks is a Silicon Valley-based software company that produces BlueStacks App Player and BlueStacks Cloud Connect. Both products revolve around enabling Android applications to run on Windows PCs, Macintosh computers and Windows tablets. The company was founded in 2009 by Rosen Sharma, former CTO at McAfee and board member of Cloud.com.
Click to expand...
 
phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
About # 3.....

1)- No Mac Pro because the people proposing the venture see and almost swear the Mac Pro is an "aging and obsolete technology":eek: And some gibberish about "not sufficent desk space available, too much power needed". Quotes are not mine, but that sums up the no Mac Pro thinking.

2)-My friend says "peripherals" when referering to externals HDDs, routers and so on. If I get him straight, he wants only to invest in one computer. No computer plus.....another thing.

Thanks for the quick answer Tesselator! :)

:):apple:
 
A

anedwar

Contributor
Feb 10, 2012
33
3
North Carolina
Honestly any Mac can do iOS/Android development. It's just a matter of how comfortable/portable your friend needs to be.

From what you've provided it seems like they'd be looking at an iMac for a desktop solution or a 15-inch MacBook Pro if s/he wants to be portable.

A mini could do the job but depending on if you consider the external monitor,keyboard and mouse as peripherals then it violates that requirement.

As far as 15-inch MBP over the 13-inch MBP or MBA. I find the Xcode UI to be a bit too cramped for my liking on the 13-inch screen and extending coding sessions to be uncomfortable.
 
phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
Well.....

the external monitor, keyboard and mouse not are needed because the people starting the venture have them. Thanks for giving me options in the form of the iMac and MPB 15. No need to be portable and my friend wants to avoid it, because it is an investment. But thinking in iMac, what options: better CPU, Fusion drive, what screen size?

:):apple:
 
A

anedwar

Contributor
Feb 10, 2012
33
3
North Carolina
I would upgrade the CPU to the i7. You get a faster performing cpu and Hyper-Threading. Xcode actually does a good job of using all available cores when compiling so it will help.

I have a 22-inch display attached to my Mac mini and a 27 on my Mac Pro and both work fine. I do prefer the 27-inch because well 1)Mac Pro and 2) I can easily have source and application/reference side by side.

Unfortunately for the iMac choosing screen size also changes what other upgrades you can do.

21-inch: you can no longer upgrade ram. If you find out that 8GB of ram is too little you're screwed. So you may want to go ahead an upgrade to 16GB. This also limits you to either stock 5400rpm drive or the fusion drive. For this machine I would upgrade to Fusion. So basically max out this machine.

27-inch: you can upgrade your ram any time you want and you have more choice when it comes to hard drive. my personal choice would be the 3TB 7200rpm. I personally don't need an SSD or the Fusion drive but they are nice to have and do dramatically speed up boot times and loading Xcode documentation.
 
phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
So.....

settling up, the machine will be:

iMac, 27 inch, core i7 processor, 3TB HD, no Fusion drive; if I am getting it right?

Anyone with more ideas/suggestions?

Thanks anedwar for the input!

:):apple:
 
xShane

xShane

macrumors 6502a
Nov 2, 2012
814
37
United States
phoenixsan said:
settling up, the machine will be:

iMac, 27 inch, core i7 processor, 3TB HD, no Fusion drive; if I am getting it right?

Anyone with more ideas/suggestions?

Thanks anedwar for the input!

:):apple:
Click to expand...

Or a 15" cMBP/rMBP (if portability is a concern).

Other than that, a decked out iMac is a great choice (if you're getting the best, make sure to get one with 2GB VRAM for the GPU).
 
phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
Thanks....

xShane for the input. My friend dont want to invest in portable, tough. But I know, the work can be done with your suggestion. So your advice is going with 2 GB of VRAM? Can you elaborate more, because I want to explain/justify to my friend. Any pointers/tips concerning this can be useful.

:):apple:
 
phoenixsan

phoenixsan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 19, 2012
1,342
2
So....

after a somewhat deep search for options based in opinions and help (I appreciate all the input given here) my friend settles out for a iMac 27 inch, 3.4 GHz Core i7 with one 1 TB HDD, 16 GB of RAM with AppleCare until August 2014. Got it from a local seller needed to deal it to put some money forward to a new rMBP. Total investment? $ 1800 .

If was or not a good deal, that is another thing. Seems to me as good and I adviced my friend to take it ASAP. But that discussion and how well the venture will go with this Mac are for another moment/thread. For the moment being I am labelling this thread as solved....:D

So thanks again for the ideas and pointers.


:):apple:
 
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