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Best MacBook for running Adobe CS4 Design Premium

R

rdstoll

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 15, 2008
273
2
I am going to be purchasing Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium (Photoshop, Acrobat, Flash, Dreamweaver, etc) shortly but want to make sure I have enough horsepower to be able to run it. Ideally, I'd like to have this on my laptop so the program can be portable, but at the same time I don't want to be hauling around 10 pounds of equipment with me.

So I'm looking at the MacBook pro 13" and am wondering if the 2.53 GHz, 4 GB of memory, and the 250 GB drive is enough power to be able to run CS4. I like the idea of a 13" as it's lighter to carry around, but when I look at the 15" version it looks like I can get a bit more processor and drive space, but more importantly it looks like the graphics are a bit better as well. I'm just trying to ascertain whether the graphics card on the 13" version will be an inhibiting factor to using CS4 Design Premium.

Any thoughts are appreciated.
 
I thought I would chime in on this one. I am able to run CS4 on my Macbook Air, it is a little slow but then I shouldn't expect anything more as its not a pro machine per se. So you will be more than fine on said machine.

Yet, I do have an issue with screen size, I find that the 13" is just too small for any real work to be done. You might find yourself persistently pulling yourself around the screen or having to zoom in and out and for me this is amazingly annoying.

Although there is the opportunity to link up an external monitor if it's available and if not the weight difference between the 13" and 15" is nominal.

I hope this helps.
 
When Apple first came out with the 13" MacBook, I bought one to replace my 17" PowerBook and used it for almost a year. But in the end I got fed up of having to continuously setup external displays when moving between home and office. So in the end I went back to the 17" format.

The 13" is definitely nicer to carry. I used to commute by plane and the 17" was always a little too big (especially if they guy in front decided to recline :mad:).

So I've been considering trying out a 15" next time around, which might be a good compromise. Just waiting to see if Apple will release a higher DPI for the next generation 15" MBP (I'm in the "waiting for Arrandale" camp).
 
For what it's worth, I also replaced my older 17" with a 13" and have been using it for almost a year. Although I hook it up to a 30" display at home, I found 13" to be too constraining when doing work in Photoshop or, for that matter, most other work I do. I'm also in the waiting for Arrandale camp, and when June hits, I'll either buy another 17 or, at the very least, a 15.

If somebody doesn't have an external monitor, I wouldn't recommend a 13 inch machine as the primary work machine. And of course, the 13 also doesn't have as powerful a GPU as the 15 or 17 inch machines (even those aren't the best, but that's another topic). That can affect things too.
 
I use CS4 daily on my MB with the following specs:

2.4Ghz
4GB RAM
500GB HDD
9400m graphics


It's perfectly fine and I don't notice any lag or issues.

However, that being said, if I were you I would either get the 15" or wait for the newer generation. My reasoning is that the 13" screen is just too small. The resolution is very limiting and you'll find yourself constantly switching back and forth between windows and zooming in and out. It's a major annoyance.

In addition, the glossy screen can be hard on the eyes over time. With the 15" you can get a matte screen option which is much better for graphics work IMO.
 
tmash said:
I use CS4 daily on my MB with the following specs:

2.4Ghz
4GB RAM
500GB HDD
9400m graphics


It's perfectly fine and I don't notice any lag or issues.

However, that being said, if I were you I would either get the 15" or wait for the newer generation. My reasoning is that the 13" screen is just too small. The resolution is very limiting and you'll find yourself constantly switching back and forth between windows and zooming in and out. It's a major annoyance.

In addition, the glossy screen can be hard on the eyes over time. With the 15" you can get a matte screen option which is much better for graphics work IMO.
Click to expand...

Good point about the glossy screen. I know some people like it, and that's fine, but having the option for the matte screen is huge. I know I'll buy a matte screen on my next computer. There are times when I have to work in a place where the glare is a real problem.
 
The one think that I found with glossy screens is that they are more readable at lower brightness levels, and therefore, can provide better battery life when away from power.
 
I use Adobe CS4 Extended on my 13inch MBP and it works fine. I've never had a problem so far. As far as the display goes, I use the Apple 24inch Cinema Display which I love. Some people don't like the glossy screen but I'm ok with it.

If you have the option to use an external display, I would say get the 13inch. If you don't, then I would say get the 15 or 17inch. The 13inch is ok for doing simple quick things in photoshop but for extended periods and for more advanced work, I wouldn't reccomend it because of the size of the screen.
 
I have design premium installed on my uMBP 13", I need it for my web design classes, and i can tell you it runs great. I mostly use photoshop and dreamweaver right now and no lag or issues on any of them.
 
witness said:
Just waiting to see if Apple will release a higher DPI for the next generation 15" MBP (I'm in the "waiting for Arrandale" camp).
Click to expand...

Loads of people keep saying that the MBP screens aren't great. Could you PLEASE shed some light on this as i'm a little confused - do ALL the MBP's have mediocre screens? [13, 15 and 17"] Or is it just the 15" that has a poor resolution? Thanks.
 
Thanks for the replies. Looks like I can go with a 13" MBP and be fine. I have external monitors to help me for when I'm actively using CS4 so I'm not too worried about the screen size.
 
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