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aslam786

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 24, 2012
9
0
Should one buy
Imac 2.5' 2.7 ghz or

Macbook pro 13' 2.8 ghz or

Macbook air 13' 128 gb

Its a simple question pliz give an simple answer...
 
Mac Pro 12-core with 92 GB RAM will give you a fairly good computer for the next months.

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And you give one to me, and sell the other to the OP, which in turn needs to buy another second MP, which s/he then has to give to you and the cycle continues, until you have enough MPs to outperform the 2012 MBAs.

Nah, I want them both. Which means the OP needs to buy three, give one to you, and two to me: other than that, the plan's solid.
 
Faced with a similar dilemma (iMac? Mini? Air? each has great unique benefits) I'm opting for...

iMac + iPad.

A notebook is an attempt to cram as much desktop capability into a tolerable portable form factor. But is that the solution you want? What particular uses is that portability for? (YMMV...)

For me, portable means anywhere anytime access to email, basic web browsing, some lightweight applications, and a large but far from complete collection of my photos, music & videos. I don't need everything everywhere ... but access thereto is desirable. User interface need not be optimal, but need be everywhere.

Flip side, I need somewhere to stash multiple terabytes of complete collections, a real keyboard for prolonged hardcore text input (code, writings), a kick-butt processor for fast processing of big content, and a screen more like a wall than a window.

A notebook means compromising those, cutting back until it all fits (hence the much-desired Air).

But the iPad gives all the portability, and the iMac all the power (don't need to go into Mac Pro territory). So with iOS 5 & iCloud providing access to bulk content all the time, and with Splashtop or some such remote-desktop app for when access to desktop capabilities is paramount, I get the best of both worlds: all the convenience of a tablet plus all the power & capacity of a desktop.
 
To decide, simply identify all your application "minimum" needs. If an application recommends minimum i3, then buy next model up. For example, machine with i5 processor. If application needs mimum 20 GBs HDD, then use average 40 GB HDD for that specific application. If all your applications and DATA files (movies, pictures, email, etc. etc.) need "combined" is minimum 320 Megs, then buy 500 GB HDD instead. If wondering, I always buy the next size up after raw calculations. Thus, allowing expected future growth in its CPU & HDDs as well.

Do you need portability? Personally, I love "portability" for average home user usage. re: File/Print/Email/video streaming. For average NO Games playing need, the i5 platform does great. More then enough CPU power for the typical home user. And, I put games on a proper gaming machine - like XBox 360 device - connected to my large screen LCD TV.

Do you need portability and large screen, simply buy a MacBook Pro with external 24" high res monitor. Connect via special order DVI cable. And, connect external keyboard, external mouse and external printer to USB powered hub. Simply plug the MacBook Pro laptop into DVI cable and into the USB hub, and "away you go". One has a nice large screen in a fixed postion desktop desk. Yet, still allow one to "uplug" the laptop and go full wireless - in a full "portable" mode. Like using a laptop on one's lap while watching TV commercials. BTW: I'm writting this post from my laptop - while wating for TV commerical to finsih. (giant smile).

MacAir or MacBook Pro ??? Compare each system's specs / features and compare against your application needs as well. MacAir is a very light weight and fast machine (because it uses non-moving storage). But it lacks mass amount of internal storage. MacBook Pro is more CPU power (with its larger i5 / i7 chips) and it has more internal storage. But, its heavier weight. And, likes more battery power - compared to MacAir. Thus, pros / cons with each.

In the end, only you can decide what the best tool is - for your needs / wants. If portable / fast is your thing, then MacAir it. If portable with more power / more storage is your thing, then MacBook Pro it. If fixed postion desktop (with NO portability) is your thing, then iMac it.

Hope this helps...
 
Portable or not?
It is a simple question you could have answered yourself.
Then get the MBP because it is way faster and will last longer and you can put your own SSD in it.
 
Portable or not?
It is a simple question you could have answered yourself.
Then get the MBP because it is way faster and will last longer and you can put your own SSD in it.

iwe just bought a new imac 2011 2.5- 2.7 ghz and i really like it.

but lately i started to google about imac issues, and came over imac who gets heated, and som other issues. and im really scared. maybe i should have bought another pc (windows) or an laptop from apple.
i really dont want something to happen to my imac, cuz i really dont want this all reparing problem, i had it with my iphone last year, 2 brand new iphone back cuz of sound problem, and the 3 one apple gave was fine, but lately iwe noticed som problems with that to. with all due respect apple got an amazing support, but thats not enough! i i dont want to repeat all the reparing process! its a headach! so my question is should i keep the imac or give it back and take the money or by an laptop maybe a macbook pro or air! because i noticed that my imac gets very hot on the back of the screen and og the tp where the facetime camera is! iwe read about smc fan controll and bla bla bla! but im not a computer genious! i also hav this istat wich i see probaly 10 times in a day! and iwe noticed 70-80 degress celcius! after playing the mafia 2 og left 2 dead 2! iwe also noticed when playing game sudently the imac stops or falls out! guys help me iwe paid alooooot for the imac and i really like it! but what should i do? iwe got 15-16 days to give it back and tak cash or another product due to there costumer policy!
 
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The laptops get really hot as well. Upwards of 70-80ºC playing games. Because you are PLAYING GAMES. The GPU's are not ballsy enough for high demand titles at full bore. They get really hot and maxed out. Cool gaming requires a large case still even in PC land.
 
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