Bought an M5 MacBook Pro with 32 GB RAM, but having second thoughts versus an M4 MacBook Air

[intervenient]

Hey everyone.

I’m trying to decide whether or not to keep my M5 MacBook Pro I ordered. Here’s my break down

What I currently have:
M2 MacBook Pro, 8 GB RAM

Primary use cases:

• Professional software engineering consulting - iOS development, and backend software development.
• Game dev - nothing too intensive I’m not a pro. Anything I would make would look like Animal crossing on GameCube, just with bigger maps
• General web surfing - ChatGPT in one tab, maybe a YouTube or a safari. I’m pretty good at not keeping a whole log open

Pain Points:
Ive been expanding out my product and engineering consulting, and development has been getting chuggy. The backend side has been ok with my setup, but iOS development with even just one occasional simulator causes my machine to get hot and slow down quite a bit. I looked into a bit and it seems to be because of the swap, which is around 2.5 GB during iOS development.

What I bought:
M5 MacBook Pro, 512 GB SSD, 32 GB RAM

$1879 + $135 Tax

Concerns:
I just want to make sure I’m not blowing up too much money just for a bit more RAM and better cooling. I have access to buy an M4 MacBook Air, 512 GB SSD, 24 GB RAM for $1400, no tax.

I keep going back and forth. More RAM, slightly better processor, better cooling, better screen all seems nice; but $600 more nice? I’m not sure about that.

 

[johannnn]

• Professional software engineering consulting - iOS development, and backend software development.
• Game dev - nothing too intensive I’m not a pro. Anything I would make would look like Animal crossing on GameCube, just with bigger maps
• General web surfing - ChatGPT in one tab, maybe a YouTube or a safari. I’m pretty good at not keeping a whole log open

You would regret trying to do that with a fan-less laptop. That's my opinion.

My experience is that while the M1 was very cool, the chip has gotten hotter and hotter with each cycle (M2, M3, M4). Therefore, I would never do iOS development or 3D game development with a new MBA.

In contrast, I think you will be extremely satisfied with the MBP. Sure it's $600 in your calculation, but how long time will you use this laptop for? If it's 3 years, then it's just $200 a year for a much better computer

 

[raythompsontn]

• Professional software engineering consulting - iOS development, and backend software development.
• Game dev - nothing too intensive I’m not a pro. Anything I would make would look like Animal crossing on GameCube, just with bigger maps
• General web surfing - ChatGPT in one tab, maybe a YouTube or a safari. I’m pretty good at not keeping a whole log open

None of that is going to stress the CPU at 100% for extended periods of time. Any throttling that occurs because of heat is not going to long lived nor that often.

The only reason to consider the MBP is the increased RAM. That alone would be $200 more at Apple. The price difference becomes even less when that is factored into your costs.

In my opinion, if it were my dollars, I would go with the MBP for the increased memory, new chip, better screen, and more ports.