Buying advice

[Urrzin]

Hi everyone,

Looking for some buying advice from other's that have been in the same situation.

I currently own a 2019 27 " iMac (i9 / 64 GB ram / 1 TB ssd / 580X 8 GB).
I use this machine for work as a web / SharePoint SPFx developer with very little photo / video editing.

I am now looking for a MacBook pro to use on the occasions that I have to work outside of my home office , or, meet with client's to display / demo software / web / components that I am currently working on.

I am debating on the current 16" MacBook, but I am unsure if I should get a base model, or perhaps buy a "upgraded" version with more ram (32 instead of the base 16).

I know the i7 can handle what I do for a living, but there is always that "what if" for the future..and I would like to be a little future proof for a few years at least..lol

So, basically..

Should I buy a base model and just be happy with that, or, should I buy an upgraded version ( i9 / 32 gb ram / 5500 8GB / 1 TB ssd) to try and stay future proof for a few years?

Or is there something else I should be looking at that would suit my needs just as well (lower specced MacBook)?


Thanks
Urrzin

 

[ThirteenXIII]

same position, although I have a 2017 27-inch iMac 64GB, 2TB, 8GB GPU that is the daily workhorse but am looking for a portable companion.

I was considering a 13-inch if they upgraded the specs and had a dedicated GPU, but the 16-inch looks like it may be the winner. Now that the base models are available as refurbs for close to $2k that's a pretty good bargain. I think 16GB will be enough as the CPU is perfectly capable, I noticed when I get base specs they seem to handle most of the large files with ease while the spec'd out systems tend to use a lot more when its not necessary...not that I've had bad experiences with either.

 

[badsimian]

Bae 16 would be fine. SPFx dev is a fairly lightweight toolchain, I went for 32GB simply because I might occasionally need to dive into a VM for older SP stuff but I could always remote into a VM if necessary.

Don't buy for whatif scenarios, there will be something better next year and the year after anyway. Best bang for buck is the base 16".

However if you really are only doing this occasionally and not even necessarily developing much on it, then a base 13" might well work for you as well (with 16GB if you can find one) as that is *much* cheaper again. If you aren't in a rush then waiting for the upgraded 13/14" that is rumoured to be coming soon would be sensible.