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Resolved Another user struggling with config

A

Adazonk

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Hi all,

I currently have a 2016 MacBook which I’m feeling a little cramped on and was contemplating an upgrade to a pro however I’ve been having a little trouble deciding which size and config to go with.

I’m a test analyst for a UK wedbsite
I’m looking to get into development and was looking for a machine to replace my MacBook in everyday use and to to start practising coding (C#) and development mainly and maybe play the off 4X game (CK2, EU4 etc).

Regarding my budget, ideally the cheaper the better but I’m fortunate in that this isn’t a major consideration for me.

My current thinking is;

512GB over 256 as I’ll have a boot camp Partition with Visual Studio installed.

And that’s about it....
Questions that I have are;
Will 8GB be sufficient for the next few years for general use and development or should I look at 16GB. my work machine has 64GB of RAM for working with Visual Studio, admittedly I’m dealing with very large solutions which I won’t be at home but I don’t want to hamper myself a year or so down the line.

15 inch seems better for screen estate but I prefer the form factor of the 13 inch. My concern is this wouldn’t really mitigate my current problem of feeling cramped on a 12 inch. I’d also like to use this machine to remote into work from home.

This leaves me looking at the top spec 15 inch which I know is total overkill for my use case. Could anyone cleverer than I or with similar usage weigh in and help me make a decision?

Thanks
 
Last edited:
maflynn said:
Tbh, the 2016 model that you have is more the powerful to do what you want it for.
Click to expand...
I’m sure I could get by but it took over a minute to load an empty solution and I find the 12 inch screen somewhat cramped. With the new models out I thought now would be the time for an upgrade.

Edit; I should add it’s the M3 model MacBook
 
Adazonk said:
I find the 12 inch screen
Click to expand...
Oh, I misunderstood your post. I thought you had a 2016 MBP.

Well then the current 2018 MBP (particularly the 15") will blow the doors off the 12" MacBook. Sorry for the confusion. Many people call the MBP a MacBook and I thought that's what you did.
 
maflynn said:
Oh, I misunderstood your post. I thought you had a 2016 MBP.

Well then the current 2018 MBP (particularly the 15") will blow the doors off the 12" MacBook. Sorry for the confusion. Many people call the MBP a MacBook and I thought that's what you did.
Click to expand...

Ahh, I did wonder!

Yeah, I’m edging toward the 15” at the moment.
 
Adazonk said:
512GB over 256 as I’ll have a boot camp Partition with Visual Studio installed.

Will 8GB be sufficient for the next few years for general use and development or should I look at 16GB.
Click to expand...

Have you checked your memory usage (ie. Activity Monitor on Mac, Resource Monitor on Windows)? That would give you an idea which way to go re: RAM.

Since RAM is soldered on, personally, I'd go 16GB just to be safe, but might be overkill for your needs.
 
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I would recommend the 15” as well, if you are finding the 12” screen real estate cramped. I appreciate the lure of the smaller form factor, having given a 13” a go myself. But I think in the long run you will find the 15” more a pleasure to work on.

The suggestion of using activity monitor to tack your current use-age and memory pressure should help guide you toward how much you need. That said, with it being soldered on, would probably go with 16. I can’t recall seeing any complaints from folks about having too much RAM, other than the cost of it 🙂
 
SDColorado said:
I would recommend the 15” as well, if you are finding the 12” screen real estate cramped. I appreciate the lure of the smaller form factor, having given a 13” a go myself. But I think in the long run you will find the 15” more a pleasure to work on.

The suggestion of using activity monitor to tack your current use-age and memory pressure should help guide you toward how much you need. That said, with it being soldered on, would probably go with 16. I can’t recall seeing any complaints from folks about having too much RAM, other than the cost of it 🙂
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm coming down on the base model 2.6 15"/16GB/512. Unless anyone has any good reasons to go for the 2.2 and upgrade the SSD? Because at that point it's only ~£150 for the processor and GPU bump
 
Last edited:
Adazonk said:
Yeah, I'm coming down on the base model 2.6 15"/16GB/5216. Unless anyone has any good reasons to go for the 2.2 and upgrade the SSD? Because at that point it's only ~£150 for the processor and GPU bump
Click to expand...

Same model I have and it is awesome. It should more,than handle your needs for years to come.
 
Adazonk said:
Yeah, I'm coming down on the base model 2.6 15"/16GB/5216. Unless anyone has any good reasons to go for the 2.2 and upgrade the SSD? Because at that point it's only ~£150 for the processor and GPU bump
Click to expand...

Assuming that the last 4 digits in the specs is meant to say 512, I believe that’s probably the most common spec and should do well for you.
 
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