Help me spec my 15" rMBP

[OSXphoto]

I did most of my homework. My minimum specs are
- 15" rMBP 2.3GHz
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD
This means the nVidia Geforce 750M dGPU is a freebie.

Q1: 2 options left to decide upon:
- nVidia Geforce 750M yes or no (+0,00)
- step up to 2.6GHz processor yes or no (+200,00)

My apps:
Photoshop Lightroom 5, Photoshop CS6, just a little video editing in iMovie, Rapid weaver, FTP, Mail, Office

Battery life is very important to me. The +200 for the 2.6 GHz is no issue money wise, but how will it affect battery life?

Q2: if I get the model with the 750M, can I use gfxcardstatus tool to control the dGPU? Can I completely turn it off if I need to? Because in tha case there would be no penalty in getting the 750M.

Thanks!

 

[raptor402]

I did most of my homework. My minimum specs are
- 15" rMBP 2.3GHz
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD
This means the nVidia Geforce 750M dGPU is a freebie.

Q1: 2 options left to decide upon:
- nVidia Geforce 750M yes or no (+0,00)
- step up to 2.6GHz processor yes or no (+200,00)

My apps:
Photoshop Lightroom 5, Photoshop CS6, just a little video editing in iMovie, Rapid weaver, FTP, Mail, Office

Battery life is very important to me. The +200 for the 2.6 GHz is no issue money wise, but how will it affect battery life?

Q2: if I get the model with the 750M, can I use gfxcardstatus tool to control the dGPU? Can I completely turn it off if I need to? Because in tha case there would be no penalty in getting the 750M.

Thanks!

Hi!

Definitely get the 750M. You can use gfxCardStatus without any issues.

As for the 2.6GHz processor, it's an open call. I don't think that it's worth it. It will have a slight effect on your battery life. However, if you feel that you'll be using a lot of single-threaded applications, it might be worth it.

Best of luck.

Raptor

 

[OSXphoto]

Hi!
Definitely get the 750M. You can use gfxCardStatus without any issues

OK good to know, thank you. So if I get this straight, disabling the 750M using gfxCardStatus is equivalent with a 750M-less basic configuration?

As for the 2.6GHz processor, it's an open call. I don't think that it's worth it. It will have a slight effect on your battery life. However, if you feel that you'll be using a lot of single-threaded applications, it might be worth it.

Considerations:
#1
Well Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and Photoshop CS6 are my most demanding apps. They will make use of multithreading, they'll use all 4 cores for the most CPU intensive tasks.

#2
Lightroom previews creation is by far the task that takes a very long time. On my 2010 Mac Pro (5,1) Quad Core, all 4 cores are used for that task. But a 2.6 should do it faster.

#3
I checked http://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks, 64bit multicore:
- rMBP 15" (Late 2013) 2.6 GHz i7-4960HQ: 14441 (+7,5%)
- rMBP 15" (Late 2013) 2.3 GHz i7-4850HQ: 13433 (reference)
- My Mac Pro (Mid 2010) 2.8GHz Quad Core: 8413 (-38%, ouch!)
7.5% is not much of a benefit I would say.

#4
Well maybe Handbrake should be added to the list, I use that sometimes. It uses all cores too.

 

[OSXphoto]

2.3GHz version ordered

So I decided on the following configuration:
- 15" rMBP 2.3GHz
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD
- With nVidia Geforce 750M dGPU

Couldn't think of any reason to pay the premium for the 2.6GHz.

Ordered it 5 mins ago, will be delivered tomorrow if all goes as expected.

 

[ARK]

Im in a similar boat but considering whether to get the 1TB vs 512GB flash drive.

 

[yjchua95]

Im in a similar boat but considering whether to get the 1TB vs 512GB flash drive.

The 1TB SSD is way faster than the 512GB variant, because it uses a 4-lane PCIe channel (512GB uses 2-lane PCIe).

The 1TB SSD can hit around 900MB/s to 1.2GB/s in reads/writes, The 512GB variant hits around 750MB/s in reads/writes.

 

[OSXphoto]

Im in a similar boat but considering whether to get the 1TB vs 512GB flash drive.

Well I thought the premium of 500 Euros was not worth it for me. I think you'll need to ask yourself how much you will be using.

Here is my usage estimate:
80GB - OSX
50GB - Data
100GB - Lightroom Catalog + Previews
100GB - RAW files
100GB - iTunes library
------- +
430GB

There will be some room for movies-on-the-go. If I really get into trouble my iTunes library will have to move to my other Macbook. I'll always have my iPod 120GB to travel with.

I know I will be pushing the 512GB limits some day but for the next 3 years I'll get by with 512GB. After that, there will be SSD upgrades for a better price.

Good luck!

----------

The 1TB SSD is way faster than the 512GB variant, because it uses a 4-lane PCIe channel (512GB uses 2-lane PCIe).

The 1TB SSD can hit around 900MB/s to 1.2GB/s in reads/writes, The 512GB variant hits around 750MB/s in reads/writes.

That may be true, but hard to notice in real world use. They're both a lot faster than the SSD in my Macbook 2008 (Samsung 830 128GB).

 

[alphaod]

The 2.6GHz processor for the most part isn't really that much faster, but for me it shaves a few minutes off here and there.

For the 750M, I don't think I need it for anything. Yes I can gfxCardStatus to force my computer to use Iris Pro, but I can't if I have an external monitor connector or I'm using Windows.

Honestly I'd have bought gotten this computer without it if I was given the choice. I much prefer the added battery life over a GPU that I won't ever use (I have a gaming laptop for gaming).


Just food for thought, but the 1TB gives you plenty of space to store all your files locally. I got mine for portability, so why haul external hard drive around? Also it is faster than the 512GB drive, even when my drive is fully encrypted with FileVault 2.

The 512GB isn't a slouch either [when encrypted—my MacBook Air is still very fast].


For your Mac Pro, maybe upgrade it to a 6-core processor?

My 2009 Mac Pro (8-core) is still faster than my rMBP in a number of multi-threaded tasks.

 

[OSXphoto]

Just food for thought, but the 1TB gives you plenty of space to store all your files locally.

Yes, undoubtedly. If I'd have plenty of money I would have ordered the 1TB and 2.6GHz, but the spending has to stop at some point. I believe that for my uses, this is the perfect trade-off.

For your Mac Pro, maybe upgrade it to a 6-core processor?

You mean at OWC? Seems a little expensive compared to the gains. But I'll consider it. You know I've always been very happy with my Mac Pro. Wishing for more always comes when there's something better around

 

[MCAsan]

When we order our next RMBPs we will get the largest SSD available. That is because we head off on multiple week photo trips and need all the storage we can get for raw files. When we get home the files will be sorted, edited, and moved to libraries on external drives.

If we did not have that special storage need, I also would just do a 500GB SSD. That is a gracious plenty for boot, OS, apps, email, and libraries of music, movies, and photos you need to carry with you.

 

[alphaod]

You mean at OWC? Seems a little expensive compared to the gains. But I'll consider it. You know I've always been very happy with my Mac Pro. Wishing for more always comes when there's something better around

No, you can do it yourself.

You just need the right tools. Anandtech has an article on this.

 

[OSXphoto]

No, you can do it yourself.

You just need the right tools. Anandtech has an article on this.

Thanks for that info. I'll consider it at some point, but for now the current CPU is still OK.