13 inch or 15 inch retina MBP?

[jazzer15]

I am using a late 2009 i7 iMac. I would like to get a laptop so that I can do some photo editing on the go and so that I have something portable if I attend workshops that require you to bring your own computer. I should emphasize, however, that most of the time I don't think I really need a laptop as I have an iPad Air for the more basic things and prefer to work on a larger monitor in any event.

After looking at my options, I think I have decided to get a retina Macbook Pro, but I am uncertain about whether to get the 13 inch or 15. Based on my needs, I think the 13 inch should be fine in terms of power, but I wonder about the screen size for doing some editing -- even though most of the time I would be using a larger screen. My 3 questions are:

(1) Is a 13 inch screen sufficient for some photo editing? Are others using a 13 inch or is the 15 really recommended?

(2) Would the base 13 inch retina Macbook Pro (i5, 8 gig of ram) powerful enough for several years? I use Creative Cloud and plugins (NIK, Perfect effect, etc.), but am not a power user and photography is a hobby; or

(3) Would I be better off just spending the money and going for the 15 inch (which has more memory and the i7 at base level, plus a larger screen) and then using that as a base with a larger monitor rather than buying both a 13 inch and eventually a new iMac to replace my late 2009 i7?

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I am using a late 2009 i7 iMac. I would like to get a laptop so that I can do some photo editing on the go and so that I have something portable if I attend workshops that require you to bring your own computer. I should emphasize, however, that most of the time I don't think I really need a laptop as I have an iPad Air for the more basic things and prefer to work on a larger monitor in any event.

After looking at my options, I think I have decided to get a retina Macbook Pro, but I am uncertain about whether to get the 13 inch or 15. Based on my needs, I think the 13 inch should be fine in terms of power, but I wonder about the screen size for doing some editing -- even though most of the time I would be using a larger screen. My 3 questions are:

(1) Is a 13 inch screen sufficient for some photo editing? Are others using a 13 inch or is the 15 really recommended?

(2) Would the base 13 inch retina Macbook Pro (i5, 8 gig of ram) powerful enough for several years? I use Creative Cloud and plugins (NIK, Perfect effect, etc.), but am not a power user and photography is a hobby; or

(3) Would I be better off just spending the money and going for the 15 inch (which has more memory and the i7 at base level, plus a larger screen) and then using that as a base with a larger monitor rather than buying both a 13 inch and eventually a new iMac to replace my late 2009 i7?

Well I think you can use the 2009 in target display mode so you can use it as a monitor.

The 13 inch will be fine for photo editing not the fastest with a dual core but you can get extra screen real estate by using scaled resolution modes, and thsi is a hobby not a job where every second counts should be a good solid choice.

To be honest though the 15 inch would be better all round for photo editing and will outperform your iMac in every way again use the imac as a screen and you have a computer that will last you five years easy.

You just have to decide less money now and more to spend in the future or more money now and possibly no need to spend for a long period of time.