advice on mpb specs..

[AJ.G]

im not too sure about all this i3,i5, and i7 stuff..
ive been wanting to get a mac for a while,
and when mom said i can have a mbp, i said sure..
but i dont know which one to get,
i want a 13 or 15 inch,
but what i need help with is which i shud get:
13,15,17, and how much ram.
ill have multiple word documents open and will be editing each one,
as well as have msn open, on top of itunes playing music.
also the occasional photoshop and imovie, but nothing to intensive.
which should i get?
any help will be appreciated..
thanks.

AJ--

 

[ZenErik]

The only current option with the 13" is a Core 2 Duo. And the base model would be fine for your needs. It would be nice if the 13" had an i5, but the C2D does just fine with intensive tasks like sound recording and playing BD rips on my TV. I imagine it would handle Photoshop just as well. The default 4 GB of RAM is recommended.

Same applies for the 15". You just get a nicer i5 processor.

If you feel that you don't have enough RAM or your HDD is too slow, consider upgrading later. You can easily do it yourself for much less than Apple would charge you. A SSD will give you a great speed bump but at the cost of storage space. A good 60 GB SSD with a SF-1222 controller is about $100.

 

[Hellhammer]

If your mum is paying and she didn't give any specific budget, then I would go for 15" with 2.4GHz i5 and hi res screen (matte if you want). 4GB of RAM will be sufficient but 8GB is like 120$ from aftermarket so again, if your mum is paying I would get it as well. I'm assuming your family doesn't have financial problems and that's why I'm recommending a bit more expensive setup.

If you know your family isn't too rich, then just go for the 13" MBP as it's sufficient for you. No reason to make your parents work their asses off so you can get a MacBook Pro.

 

[cambookpro]

Core 2 Duo will be fine for you. Probably you could even get away with a Core Duo but they aren't the current model.
I recommend a 13" MBP with 4GBs RAM.

 

[tblrsa]

The 13" base model MBP will be fine for your tasks. I just got mine, it´s my first Mac, and despite it´s size it´s a very powerful machine.

 

[Kyffin]

The 13" base model MBP will be fine for your tasks. I just got mine, it´s my first Mac, and despite it´s size it´s a very powerful machine.

+1 on this, I'm hugely impressed by the base model and how much it can do (for what you described I can say that the other day I was working on 5+ nisus pro documents, had iphoto going, itunes, safari and ripping a dvd all at the same time and it didn't skip a beat), as well as being the best value you could always do some upgrading later if you needed some more capacity.

Seriously, its amazing and for your first mac you wouldn't be missing out or getting a diluted experience- it really is a fantastic machine full stop. Hey good luck and hope you love your new mac!

 

[09283678]

Yeah if your parents don't mind the cost, go for a 15" intel core i5 with the upgraded RAM. The 13" is more than enough, but if you can get the extra speed and storage, you'll be set for a number of years with a battery replacement here or there.

But like everyone else said - the 13" is more than enough.

 

[aimbdd]

Capitalization

Minor Problems:
Corrections. There is no need to point out another poster's spelling or grammatical errors unless you think it is causing confusion. Remember that not all members are native English speakers. Communication, not correctness, is our goal. Examples: Don't correct members who spell Mac in all caps or who call the iPod touch an iTouch. When other people (especially new members) fail to search and start new threads on old topics, don't scold them or make them feel unwelcome. The best way to be helpful is by posting a link to a relevant thread or specific instructions for problem solving. Set a good example yourself by searching first before starting a thread if you have a question that may already have been answered in the forums or you want to discuss a topic that may already have been discussed.

read the forum rules?

13" will be fine unless you want the extra screen space.

 

[MikeinJapan]

the base 13" will be fine for you. I think 4GB will be fine too.

I open massive documents (well over 4GB) and the 13" MBP does it well. I upgraded to 8GB simply to save time as I am freelance and translating time is important to me.

 

[rtrt]

Minor Problems:
Corrections. There is no need to point out another poster's spelling or grammatical errors unless you think it is causing confusion. Remember that not all members are native English speakers. Communication, not correctness, is our goal. Examples: Don't correct members who spell Mac in all caps or who call the iPod touch an iTouch. When other people (especially new members) fail to search and start new threads on old topics, don't scold them or make them feel unwelcome. The best way to be helpful is by posting a link to a relevant thread or specific instructions for problem solving. Set a good example yourself by searching first before starting a thread if you have a question that may already have been answered in the forums or you want to discuss a topic that may already have been discussed.

read the forum rules?

13" will be fine unless you want the extra screen space.

hmm i cant see that post now. can you delete your own post?

 

[aimbdd]

Ahaha. His post was deleted by a mod.

 

[rtrt]

entirely appropriately - i'd say