Is your MacBook Pro your only computer?

[skaertus]

No, it is not.

I have a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar to use while on the go when I need something really portable.

At home, I have a more powerful PC desktop tower with all the bells and whistles, a Core i7 processor and an RTX video card, with two large displays.

I also have a Dell XPS 15, which I think is a great laptop, and powerful for work, although a little on the heavy side.

And my new addition is a Samsung Flash, an inexpensive and underpowered, yet nice and well-built, laptop, to use when I go to places where it is not advisable to take a premium laptop with me.

At my parents home, I keep a small form factor PC from HP, so I do not have to carry my laptop when I visit them.

I have no problems with the workflow, as I use cloud storage on OneDrive (dropped Dropbox since they limited the free subscription to 3 devices only). And, yes, I use a 5-user Microsoft Office subscription just to myself.

I gave away my old 15-inch retina MacBook Pro, Surface 3 (non-Pro), and desktop to family member.

 

[Mac-key]

I primarily use my 2015 15 inch MBP - however, all video and photo editing is done on a 2013 27 inch iMac. I've also got a 2009 13 inch MBP that I use for certain activities, like importing DVCPro tapes (It's got a firewire port) I also burn DVD's on it.

 

[DougFNJ]

My 2019 MacBook Pro fully loaded is the only computer I really need. I considered getting a Mac mini at some point but feel the performance I get out eh this MacBook Pro is all I need. For more portability, I use my 11" iPad Pro with the keyboard cover. That is a great little substitute for when I font need the power and size, but just need to work with a spreadsheet, document, or basic web browsing and email.

 

[nStyle]

Not currently as I still have a gaming PC but my goal all along has been to own a 15" MBP as only computer because:

- I like the idea of having one machine because all of your stuff and work lives on one device
- When you upgrade, you only need to worry about one device - it's mentally easier to pour more money into one thing you use everyday rather than go all out on two machines
- One device that does a few things really well forces you to focus instead of having so many options
- I enjoy gaming sometimes but I always have the nagging feeling that I'm wasting time

That said, It's unlikely I'll ever get rid of it because MBP for laptop and PC for desktop is basically the best of both worlds. Although going with a Razer Blade + external monitor and just ditching everything else is pretty tempting given how good of a value how it is compared to a current MBP.

 

[RobbieTT]

I don’t like to have multiple computers that complicates my workflow.

Adding additional Macs only enhances workflow as you can devote tasks to a machine of your choice. Everything you save on a Mac is available to every other networked Mac and easy screen sharing even to headless devices is simplicity itself.

To me a good workflow is to use the best machine for the job. MBP is great at portable work and putting a rough project together in otherwise dead time. The iMac is great, for example, of pulling multiple video streams together, or CAD etc and a headless Mac mini is great at crunching the final export / render / numbers, leaving your iMac and MBP free for the next task.

There is nothing more satisfying as retiring to bed with a bunch of Macs crunching through the CPU/GPU intensive tasks, making money whilst you sleep. Even a secondhand 2012 Mac mini can still devour an otherwise intensive task and it does not matter if it is slow when compared to modern kit if it has the silent hours to kill.

 

[Expos of 1969]

Yes, my early 2013 retina 13" MBP is my only computer. A wonderful product. When will Apple start producing laptops of similar quality again?

 

[akash.nu]

Adding additional Macs only enhances workflow as you can devote tasks to a machine of your choice. Everything you save on a Mac is available to every other networked Mac and easy screen sharing even to headless devices is simplicity itself.

To me a good workflow is to use the best machine for the job. MBP is great at portable work and putting a rough project together in otherwise dead time. The iMac is great, for example, of pulling multiple video streams together, or CAD etc and a headless Mac mini is great at crunching the final export / render / numbers, leaving your iMac and MBP free for the next task.

There is nothing more satisfying as retiring to bed with a bunch of Macs crunching through the CPU/GPU intensive tasks, making money whilst you sleep. Even a secondhand 2012 Mac mini can still devour an otherwise intensive task and it does not matter if it is slow when compared to modern kit if it has the silent hours to kill.

So I don’t get this logic. Unless you’re running build servers with the Mac mini I feel like all of what you mentioned can be achieved with a good MacBook Pro.

Instead of your iMac, all you need is really just to connect the MacBook Pro with an equivalent monitor and a wireless keyboard and mouse which will stay on your desktop.

Instead of the Mac mini you can just leave the MacBook Pro working while you go to sleep. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I mean whatever works for you but I just see this as redundant.

 

[mmomega]

8 Core MBP is my main use computer outside of the office. (7 days a week after work this is what I'm using)
At the office I have an 18 Core iMac Pro + 32" 4K BenQ Monitor. (6 days a week 8am-7pm this is what I'm on)
In the home office is an 8 Core iMac. (normally only Sunday does this one get used)
At Office #2 I have a 6 Core Mac mini with Water-cooled Vega64 eGPU + 32" 4K BenQ Monitor. (since moving primarily to my new office this gets very little use, it may be getting repurposed somewhere else soon)

 

[Macintoshrumors]

Nope. I have a 2014 Mac mini with a ssd that runs pretty good. Got it off th refub section on apples site. I like looking at big screens while working or goofing off online, I have it hooked up to an ultra wide.


I also had a iPad Pro 10.5 that I’m prob gonna keep untill the next gen pros come out. The only thing that stopped me from upgrading was the lack of splitting up the keyboad. Kinda excited for iOS13 to really make this matcine stand out.

To be honest, I could prob get by with only using my iPad. I don’t do as much video editing as I used to do that requires Final Cut Pro. Some apps for editing are capable on the iPad. My iPad is prob my fav Apple product that I use every day, everywhere.

 

[ApplesandOranges]

Still trying to figure out why this question was asked?

 

[RobbieTT]

Instead of your iMac, all you need is really just to connect the MacBook Pro with an equivalent monitor and a wireless keyboard and mouse which will stay on your desktop.

I mean whatever works for you but I just see this as redundant.

Redundancy is a good thing, exemplified by my iMP going to the Genius Bar this afternoon for a repair. Clearly an unfortunate turn of events.

No MBP can compete with the power of an iMP or even a reasonable spec iMac. No really.

Unless you live and work alone then a docked MBP just becomes a dead screen and mouse when the MBP goes on its travels.

Running a laptop continuously at its thermal limit every night could be seen as a problem waiting to happen. The 3 Mac minis I have no reliability concerns and no internal battery to slowly cook. They also serve other functions. One lives in my network rack running a server, Plex, Unifi controller and network cache. The other 2 also serve as media clients during the day, so nothing is wasted.

You are right that this may just work for me but I offer this model of distributed computers as an option. For those wondering if they should be sinking extra £XXX or even £XXXX into optional upgrades then it is worth thinking if you would be better served by spending that money on additional networked Macs.

You can purchase a heck of a lot of secondhand Mac minis for the price of some of the MBP options and repurposing existing older Macs is close to free. The extra CPU cycles you will get from a CPU bump just cannot compete with dedicated hardware.

 

[nStyle]

Running a laptop continuously at its thermal limit every night could be seen as a problem waiting to happen.

I completely agree on most of your points but I will never understand this one. Why buy a $2,500 laptop and then worry about using it? They're engineered to handle heavy loads a lot better than people think. I personally never think twice before "giving it hell" and have coincidentally also never had a problem. They're tools FFS.

 

[sgtaylor5]

Conceptually, my main computer is my 2013 13" MBP. I use my iPhone 6s tons, and it *is* a tiny computer, but I don't do anything heavy on it. I have a Dell Inspiron 570 with a 128 GB SSD and a quad-core AMD Athlon II that I use for my business when I *have* to have native NTFS support/use Windows 10: to work on hard disks, make Windows media, and the like. But that's all I use it for.

MacOS is a refuge from the weirdness of Windows. iOS is a refuge from the weirdness of Samsung. I am so thankful that Apple exists.

 

[RobbieTT]

I completely agree on most of your points but I will never understand this one. Why buy a $2,500 laptop and then worry about using it? They're engineered to handle heavy loads a lot better than people think. I personally never think twice before "giving it hell" and have coincidentally also never had a problem. They're tools FFS.

They are tools so why buy the wrong one for the job (FFS?).

MBPs are portable machines with compromises in performance to achieve portability with an inbuilt display, keyboard, battery et al. If you have tasks that requires a mains powered machine with no need for a display, keyboard, battery etc then why would you buy an MBP just to 'give it hell'?

I don't spend 2.5k on a laptop either. One of the benefits of running an iMP and Mac minis is that my MBP can be smaller, lighter and cheaper.

 

[jgorman]

I used to run it to the limit too, especially in Boot Camp.

It got so hot that it sometimes shut itself down and the glue holding the rear black plastic feet liquefied.

 

[MrMister111]

This is a question I'm interested in as well. Currently I have a 2012 iMac chugging away ok really, but just thinking could do with an update. Only use for basic tasks really, light photo and iMovie editing, some 4K from iPhone and compact digi-cam. Family don't use it now with their iPads, laptops, PCs etc.

So wondering wether to make use of the uni offer to get a basic pro to replace my iMac, would sell it to fund as well. Would it do? I wouldn't update for years and it would obligation be used at home, could use on my TV for big screen use?

I believe you can use airplay or connect to a TV and then use a external mouse and keyboard? Or even buy a separate monitor eventually if need?

 

[tokenmacdude]

Just curious as to others setups. My 15" is my only computer even though i'm debating on getting an iMac or an Alienware.

I also have an iMac and an Intel NUC running Arch Linux (Gnome DE). I plan on purchasing another notebook, but this time from System76 (either the new Gazelle or the Darter Pro), then running Arch Linux on it as well.

 

[Cosmo M3]

I have a pretty extensive gaming PC (Ryzen 1800X, 1080Ti, Alienware AW34 G-Sync) but most of my everyday stuff is done on my 2019 15” MBP hooked to the same monitor. iPad Pro 11” for mobility.

 

[SteveManila1960]

Just curious as to others setups. My 15" is my only computer even though i'm debating on getting an iMac or an Alienware.

Well that is how I started with a 13inch late 2013 Retina Pro which I still have but now we also have:
3 iPad
2 MacBook Air
3 iPhone
2 Western Digital Thunderbolt RAID units each housing 2x4TB hard drives

All that is in the Philippines with my family. As I am now in the UK for a while I bought a cheap late 2009 MacBook White for some casual computing.

 

[yukari]

It was until last year. I upgraded my 2011 MBP with 2018 MBP and purchased Mac Mini for home office as I was tired of having to pack/unpack my MBP for travel.

 

[lJoSquaredl]

I’ve never been able to have 2 computers, I always tend to neglect one way more than the other. It’s almost a 90/10 split and even the 10 feels forced. I have a MBP so in case I need it for travel it’s available, but I find myself not needing it much for that so kinda want an iMac...but if I ever need to leave with something i’m screwed lol. May try the laptop/monitor setup again, I used to do it but stopped cuz simpler, less wires, and the USB-C dongle setup is more annoying for that imo...but it’s starting to make sense again.

 

[MSastre]

I use a 2013 15" rMPB in the house or on the road, a MP 5,1 out in my workshop, and still use my 2009 17" MBP for some tasks. In addition, my wife has a 2017 MBA.

 

[nStyle]

They are tools so why buy the wrong one for the job (FFS?).

MBPs are portable machines with compromises in performance to achieve portability with an inbuilt display, keyboard, battery et al. If you have tasks that requires a mains powered machine with no need for a display, keyboard, battery etc then why would you buy an MBP just to 'give it hell'?

I don't spend 2.5k on a laptop either. One of the benefits of running an iMP and Mac minis is that my MBP can be smaller, lighter and cheaper.

I was replying to the "thermal concerns" you mentioned. If a MBP doesn't function as your only computer for other reasons then of course that's understandable. I'm just saying there's no way I'd be worried about it malfunctioning from thermal issues, neither theoretically or practically, whether it was my primary machine or not.

 

[myscrnnm]

I've considered getting an iMac in the past, but for now I am using my MacBook Pro as my only computer. I just prefer to have all my documents and settings in one place.

 

[akash.nu]

I used to run it to the limit too, especially in Boot Camp.

It got so hot that it sometimes shut itself down and the glue holding the rear black plastic feet liquefied.

Wow that’s a bit extreme!