15 or 27? Advice, please.

[Onewa80]

Alright. So I finally have enough for a Macbook I have really been saving up for(A refurb 15in, entry model) but after talking to some friends, they all said that I should go for the entry model of the 27in iMac(Refurb also). I have enough for both, and the big screen is really nice, but I've always wanted the macbook. Which should I go for? I really want to get the most my money can get.

I'll be using some more intensive programs like CS5 and final cut, also playing some games, like Minecraft and Portal 2(Always wanted to play that ) and some stuff from the app store, plus also just be using the computer for personal use, like the facebook, youtube, etc.

Love some advice, thanks.

 

[Senex]

Alright. So I finally have enough for a Macbook I have really been saving up for(A refurb 15in, entry model) but after talking to some friends, they all said that I should go for the entry model of the 27in iMac(Refurb also). I have enough for both, and the big screen is really nice, but I've always wanted the macbook. Which should I go for? I really want to get the most my money can get.

I'll be using some more intensive programs like CS5 and final cut, also playing some games, like Minecraft and Portal 2(Always wanted to play that ) and some stuff from the app store, plus also just be using the computer for personal use, like the facebook, youtube, etc.

Love some advice, thanks.

The MBP will definitely handle CS5, although I can't speak for Final Cut. I run Photoshop CS5 as well as Flash CS5 regularly on my MBP (8gb of memory) ...the screen size of the iMac is spectacular, but I'm not sure I'd want to give up the portability at this point.

 

[mobilehaathi]

You could get the MBP and a large external monitor.

 

[Onewa80]

You could get the MBP and a large external monitor.

Is there one that won't cost much money that has the same resolution as the iMac's screen?

 

[mobilehaathi]

Is there one that won't cost much money that has the same resolution as the iMac's screen?

Not sure off the top of my head...Dell has a nice 27" at the same resolution but it is $999.

For some reason I inferred from your post that you might be willing/able to buy both a MBP and iMac, so that seemed like a decent trade off. If you wanted to step down resolution slightly, you could get a nice 24" Dell for $300-$400.

Since you're using CS5, perhaps the iMac screen isn't what you want anyway...

 

[r0k]

Is there one that won't cost much money that has the same resolution as the iMac's screen?

It's not difficult to get a high resolution monitor for little money these days... if you're willing to settle for 1920x1080. So many monitors support 1080p that you can likely find one for under $150. Of course 1080 is the resolution of the entry level 21.5 in iMac but you could have almost the "best of both worlds" by picking up a 15 in MBP and a 24ish in monitor that does 1920x1280. You will also need a thunderbolt/displayport to hdmi cable if the monitor supports hdmi or a dvi or vga cable if the monitor supports dvi or vga.

 

[KylePowers]

Simple solution:

If you need to move it frequently, get the MacBook. If you don't need to move it at all, get the iMac

The two machines are fairly similar in terms of performance, so really it's a matter of portability.

 

[Vantage Point]

Simple solution:

If you need to move it frequently, get the MacBook. If you don't need to move it at all, get the iMac

The two machines are fairly similar in terms of performance, so really it's a matter of portability.

Exactly!!! I prefer my 15" MBP and use my external as needed - mostly for serious photography work with CS5.