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Input Needed: 2012 cMBP or rMBP : Specs inside!

M5RahuL

M5RahuL

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Aug 1, 2009
3,512
2,233
TeXaS
I'm really confused which one to get!

My uses: Music ; Browsing with FF or Chrome with about 10-15 tabs open at anytime ; Video encoding ; VMs ; Very light gaming and alike.. Nothing heavy duty!

My options:

1) 2012 cMBP Ultimate with the following specs:

2.7 i7
750 7200 HDD
8 GB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce 650m with 1GB

+ $100 Student GC


2) 2012 rMBP and Specs:

2.3 i7
256 SSD
16GB RAM
650m NVIDIA

+ Apple Care
+ $100 Student GC
+ Thule Crossover BagPack
+ Extra Magsafe 2 Charger


3) 2012 rMBP - Specs:

2.6 i7
512 SSD
8GB RAM
650m NVIDIA

+ $100 Student GC


They are all the same price [ including tax ] for me via Apple Customer Relations. I'm really pulling my hair deciding on which one to get!! :confused:

Please advise... :)
 
I'd go No. 2 pal... I've got the same machine and couldn't be happier.

Plus you're getting apple care in there too. Good piece of mind. Just my opinion mind! I guess it really depends on what you're looking for!

(although, it depends on 'music' I guess. My usage is pretty much spotify - if you're planning to run a large iTunes library, maybe no. 2 isn't the way to go)
 
One forget ultimate, your a student not a PHD go with base or high tier (if you want to play games) standard MBP. From your described use the 15" base standard MBP will be more than enough by a long chalk...

Even the base standard MacBook Pro is an extremely powerful computer, far exceeding most education requirements, let alone the higher end options. The Retina at present may be problematic, it`s simply too new for your needs, 6-12 months will be a very different story.....
 
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I got the base model rMBP with 16gb ram and i love it! :)

But my Final Cut Pro don't run as good.. Because the "example" window lags when there are many things happening.. Don't know if its because my Mac can't handle it or if its because i use a copy i got from a friend, hope its the last..

Mine works good and around 10 secs to you are at the login screen, and then its nearly instant to desktop :)
 
OP: What means music? Making music or listening music? :eek:

I got option #2 and sono molto contento. Best computer of all time, nothing more and nothing less. The retina display is a new technical standard. The notebook is extremely fast, stylish and brilliant in all aspects (I am a tiny bit missing the audio in).

When you are editing music, photos or videos you can make very well use of the 16 GB RAM.

Two disadvantages: You can’t stop working/consuming with your rMBP. (I have it now for two weeks and I am glad that I didn’t leave for holidays. It’s something like a second home.) When you got used to the retina resolution and then (after some hours) you look again at the screen of another computer (except iPhone/iPad/iPod touch) you feel like being in a technical museum.
 
AndersBrohus said:
I got the base model rMBP with 16gb ram and i love it! :)

But my Final Cut Pro don't run as good.. Because the "example" window lags when there are many things happening.. Don't know if its because my Mac can't handle it or if its because i use a copy i got from a friend, hope its the last..

Mine works good and around 10 secs to you are at the login screen, and then its nearly instant to desktop :)
Click to expand...

2K+ Mac and your using pirate software, you deserve all you get :rolleyes: stop wasting bandwidth and cry else where........
 
I should've posted some more info..spoonerism gets me everytime :eek:

1) The cMBP [ option 1 ] also comes with HR + AG

2) I'm going for a Masters in AI [ cybernetics ; robotics etc ] so I assume I'm going to be using some extensive software for 3D modeling. I start in Fall.

3) As for music, it's mostly my collection ~ 10 GB and I've started listening to Spotify a lot lately.

4) I use Excel [ large spread sheets ] extensively.

5) I'm going to need to run Windows in Parallels w/ Boot Camp for certain tasks.

From what the general consensus seems here, I should ditch the Retina and stick with the Classic, correct ? And, get the base 2.3/4/500 model and up the RAM to 8 or 16 myself.

Just to clarify, the $$ difference between the base cMBP Vs the Ultimate is $250 including tax for me. I can get any of the options listed in my OP for just shy of $2K w/tax included.
 
Option 2 looks like the best to me (probably cause I ordered the identical thing on 7/6). Why do you need another MagSafe though? I'd take that off the shopping list and add a portable USB 3.0 drive instead.
 
For excel that 1920x1200 resolution mode is total boss. I don't excel a lot because I hate it with a passion. However, having the extra few hundred pixels really helps aliviate the pain to some extent.

From your options base rMBP+AppleCare sounds the best.
 
AndersBrohus said:
I think it's pirate software too…
But will it work better with retail from AppStore ? Right now i have 10.0.5..
Click to expand...
It's fine -sorta- if its for personal non-commercial use.

If you're using that pirated copy to make money with your work, you will have hell to pay as soon as someone catches you red-handed.
 
2.7 sounds overkill - unless you are really looking to do some serious processor hungry tasks. I'd recommend leaning towards #2 (or #1).
 
I really like the normal 1440x900 display on the MacBooks. Of course, I've not yet seen a Retina model for myself, but by all accounts they are magnificent. I would rather go for the 1440x900 model, as I use a lot of HDD space and also prefer a more substantial form factor.
 
option 1 minus the 2.7. Only reason I say is because of the AG screen, which I've been a huge fan of ever since they put up that option
 
espiritujo said:
option 1 minus the 2.7. Only reason I say is because of the AG screen, which I've been a huge fan of ever since they put up that option
Click to expand...

I agree. I got 2.6 with AG screen, 1TB HDD, with plans to put in 16gb and a 512 Samsung 830 SSD in the future. With student discount I was under $2500 including Applecare.
 
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