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MacBook or MacBook Pro?

hypergirl

hypergirl

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 18, 2015
6
0
Northern California
Currently I have a 2008 MacBook Pro that I use for work. I have installed on it MSOffice. I work on documents that have photos and maps, and I occasionally update Excel Sheets. Other than that, I am a Google-aholic, and I have a lot of photos. I don't game, and I'm not editing Pixar videos:)

I ordered a MacBook, which is due for delivery in mid-July, however, now I am concerned whether the MacBook has the "muscle" to do what I need, and that maybe I should get a MacBook Pro 13" Retina 256 instead.

What do you all think? Any comments or advice will be appreciated! Sara:)
 
I don't like to edit excel sheets or photos on a tiny 12 inch display. It's more comfortable to work an on a IMAC retina ;-)
 
Are you pleased with the performance of your current laptop? If so, the MacBook will be more than adequate as it will be faster than what you have now, possibly much faster if you do not currently have a SSD. Other than the screen size, I'm doubtful you will feel limited by the MacBook.
 
Yaxchian said:
I don't like to edit excel sheets or photos on a tiny 12 inch display. It's more comfortable to work an on a IMAC retina ;-)
Click to expand...

Good point. Although, I thought the MacBook was retina?

zhenya said:
Are you pleased with the performance of your current laptop? If so, the MacBook will be more than adequate as it will be faster than what you have now, possibly much faster if you do not currently have a SSD. Other than the screen size, I'm doubtful you will feel limited by the MacBook.
Click to expand...

Am I "pleased with the performance" of my current laptop....:rolleyes: Well, funny you ask. I USED to be, but, it has turned into a Pinwheeling Heat Machine BookPro, which is why it is time for a new one:D. It gets so hot, it turns my thighs red. Crazy.

I read in other threads that the MacBook pinwheeled when you asked it to do too much. So I thought, shoot, I want to make sure the MacBook can handle what I need to do. Basically, just opening up large MSword documents and editing them, adding photos and tables. The files are usually large >50MB due to photos.

I WANT the MacBook to be able to handle having MSOffice on it, and my photos, and my iTunes.... I occasionally watch an iTune movie on the machine.
 
I'd say the rMB is totally adequate for what you want. And my experience is that the rMB doesn't get hot like Airs and Pros do... much more comfortable on the legs or lap. Not having hot air pouring out helps.

My rMB has taken over the role of doing the kinds of stuff you're talking about, and it's replacing a 2012 15" rMBP. I don't really notice the power difference (and prefer the new one, because it's so much more portable and easy to pick up and use)
 
No problem the Retina MacBook will handle Office 2011 with no issue, equally it`s not designed for heavy sustained use, so the number of documents you have open at one time may be a consideration. I generate a lot if heavyweight technical documents with table, schematics & pictorial content, so far so good. I would need to look at the exact size equally I would be fairly sure that meet or exceed 50Mb, as ever it`s the imagery which I generally compress.

The new Retina MacBook will be significantly faster than your old 2008 Mac, iTunes is a non issue, I have some Blue-ray images imported to iTunes and they are files of significant size (20Gb) with high bitrates, they all playback seamlessly.

The Retina MacBook will "pin wheel" if you apply too much demand, and this applies to all Mac`s. if your into Google and use Chrome that may be an issue, equally solution is to download and use Chrome Canary, as it far more optimised for Mac`s

Q-6
 
Kiwi 99 said:
I'd say the rMB is totally adequate for what you want. And my experience is that the rMB doesn't get hot like Airs and Pros do... much more comfortable on the legs or lap. Not having hot air pouring out helps.

My rMB has taken over the role of doing the kinds of stuff you're talking about, and it's replacing a 2012 15" rMBP. I don't really notice the power difference (and prefer the new one, because it's so much more portable and easy to pick up and use)
Click to expand...

That is good to hear! Do you run MSWord on there? One thing I really like about the rMB is the keyboard. I really like the shorter, crisper action of the butterfly keys, and the larger key size.

I am excited about the rMB, but started to worry it might be too light-duty .... so, I appreciate reading that I might be okay after all :)
 
It`s all good you can try it up to 14 days and if the MacBook doesn't meet your expectations you can return it or change it for a different model, 13" Retina MacBook Pro will do al you need and far more and you will still retain the much improved Retina display

Q-6
 
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Queen6 said:
It`s all good you can try it up to 14 days and if the MacBook doesn't meet your expectations you can return it or change it for a different model, 13" Retina MacBook Pro will do al you need and far more and you will still retain the much improved Retina display

Q-6
Click to expand...


Oh, that's a great idea. Put it to the test, and if it doesn't work, return it and get the pro. I often will have 3 or 4 MS documents open at a time, then convert them to .pdf's. How does the speed and the heat factor compare on the rMB versus the MBP 13" Retina?
 
hypergirl said:
Do you run MSWord on there?
Click to expand...
Ha ha no I use Windows at work, and that's enough for me! I don't like having Microsoft software on my Macs, and I don't need to, so I don't. But people who do use Office say it's fine.
 
Queen6 said:
It`s all good you can try it up to 14 days and if the MacBook doesn't meet your expectations you can return it or change it for a different model, 13" Retina MacBook Pro will do al you need and far more and you will still retain the much improved Retina display

Q-6
Click to expand...
I personally get quite a bit of lag when scrolling. This happens when scrolling websites but seems especially evident with text documents. MS Word is particularly bad. It's my feeling that this is more to do with the OS X (as it seems to be an issue with 2015 rMBPs as well) than the machine itself. Hopefully this gets remedied with 10.10.4 and El Capitan,
hypergirl said:
That is good to hear! Do you run MSWord on there? One thing I really like about the rMB is the keyboard. I really like the shorter, crisper action of the butterfly keys, and the larger key size.

I am excited about the rMB, but started to worry it might be too light-duty .... so, I appreciate reading that I might be okay after all :)
Click to expand...
I personally get quite a bit of lag when scrolling. This happens when scrolling websites but seems especially evident with text documents. MS Word is particularly bad. It's my feeling that this is more to do with the OS X (as it seems to be an issue with 2015 rMBPs as well) than the machine itself. It doesn't seem to get worse with either larger files or more files open, which again leads me to believe it's the OS. Hopefully this gets remedied with 10.10.4 and El Capitan, but you should know that you might be frustrated with MS Word.
 
hypergirl said:
Oh, that's a great idea. Put it to the test, and if it doesn't work, return it and get the pro. I often will have 3 or 4 MS documents open at a time, then convert them to .pdf's. How does the speed and the heat factor compare on the rMB versus the MBP 13" Retina?
Click to expand...

When I am working I tend to load up the systems to the maximum workable, 20+ Spaces with the 13" Retina, more with the 15" Right now I am gearing up to head towards the arctic circle in few weeks and just putting the MacBook though it`s paces. The 13" Retina will definitely deal with far more sustained workloads, the 12" Retina MacBook can equally hold it`s own, as long as the CPU load is not high & prolonged.

Temperature wise the 12" MacBook runs cooler on average, and if it does get hot you simply need to raise the rear of the Notebook off the desk a little, which helps to reduce the temperature and works for all Apple`s portables. The 13" having a fan in general does not throttle down the CPU, the 12" MacBook being passively cooled will throttle down the CPU one it hits it`s thermal limits.

I would try the one you like the best first, if it meets your needs it`s all good, if not swap it out and see what how the other model performs. If you want a 100% sure bet go with the 13" equally I think the 12" is more than up to what you plan to use it for.

Q-6
 
sasha.danielle said:
I personally get quite a bit of lag when scrolling. This happens when scrolling websites but seems especially evident with text documents. MS Word is particularly bad. It's my feeling that this is more to do with the OS X (as it seems to be an issue with 2015 rMBPs as well) than the machine itself. Hopefully this gets remedied with 10.10.4 and El Capitan,

I personally get quite a bit of lag when scrolling. This happens when scrolling websites but seems especially evident with text documents. MS Word is particularly bad. It's my feeling that this is more to do with the OS X (as it seems to be an issue with 2015 rMBPs as well) than the machine itself. It doesn't seem to get worse with either larger files or more files open, which again leads me to believe it's the OS. Hopefully this gets remedied with 10.10.4 and El Capitan, but you should know that you might be frustrated with MS Word.
Click to expand...

Am on my 1.2 MacBook now, no lag on websites, even the heavy ones. I do see some lag in MS Word, this seems limited to documents that are graphically intensive regular text, tables etc is a none issue. I also see the same chop/lag on the rMBP`s, it`s a little more pronounced on the Macbook, equally difficult to separate them.

Opening 3 graphically intensive technical Word doc`s simultaneously, the rMB pretty much opens Word instantaneously with no Dock icon bounce, if you really count it`s like around 3-4 seconds for all the documents to be open with each being 20 pages plus with a lot of compressed data, nor is it shockingly faster on the MBP`s

Have Mail, Calendar & Safari open same time

Q-6
 
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Queen6 said:
Can you try MS Word with transparent reduced (system prefs), seems better to my eyes, not entirely sure.

Thx

Q-6
Click to expand...

That is also just the nature of office on Mac. I have used it on the macbook and macbook pro and both lag in a similar fashion.

To the OP, I use my macbook in a very similar way as you and it works just fine.
 
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Queen6 said:
When I am working I tend to load up the systems to the maximum workable, 20+ Spaces with the 13" Retina, more with the 15" Right now I am gearing up to head towards the arctic circle in few weeks and just putting the MacBook though it`s paces. The 13" Retina will definitely deal with far more sustained workloads, the 12" Retina MacBook can equally hold it`s own, as long as the CPU load is not high & prolonged.

Temperature wise the 12" MacBook runs cooler on average, and if it does get hot you simply need to raise the rear of the Notebook off the desk a little, which helps to reduce the temperature and works for all Apple`s portables. The 13" having a fan in general does not throttle down the CPU, the 12" MacBook being passively cooled will throttle down the CPU one it hits it`s thermal limits.

I would try the one you like the best first, if it meets your needs it`s all good, if not swap it out and see what how the other model performs. If you want a 100% sure bet go with the 13" equally I think the 12" is more than up to what you plan to use it for.

Q-6
Click to expand...

Arctic Circle, wow, need an archaeological assistant?:cool: Will you be just taking the rMB to the AC?
(Love my acronyms LMA:D).

Queen6 said:
Am on my 1.2 MacBook now, no lag on websites, even the heavy ones. I do see some lag in MS Word, this seems limited to documents that are graphically intensive regular text, tables etc is a none issue. I also see the same chop/lag on the rMBP`s, it`s a little more pronounced on the Macbook, equally difficult to separate them.

Opening 3 graphically intensive technical Word doc`s simultaneously, the rMB pretty much opens Word instantaneously with no Dock icon bounce, if you really count it`s like around 3-4 seconds for all the documents to be open with each being 20 pages plus with a lot of compressed data, nor is it shockingly faster on the MBP`s

Have Mail, Calendar & Safari open same time

Q-6
Click to expand...

Did you mean you are on your 12" MacBook now? 3-4 Seconds is no big deal, however, the documents I am opening are frequently ~150 pages with pix. Do you think I should be okay?

mattopotamus said:
That is also just the nature of office on Mac. I have used it on the macbook and macbook pro and both lag in a similar fashion.

To the OP, I use my macbook in a very similar way as you and it works just fine.
Click to expand...

Excellent:). I'm excited; but as you can tell, I'm also nervous.:eek:
Very happy about the 14 day return. :apple:
 
Hi,

It sounds the the rMB will be more than up to par with what you've stated - just keep in mind that you will need a hub or adapter to use any sort of external device like a flash drive or monitor. The rMB is ideal for those who seldom need such external support, because it is still achievable with adapters, but is not focused on.

If the thickness and weight means anything to you as far as how difficult it will be to commute with (I personally don't think the rMBP is "less portable") - it wouldn't be sensible to get a machine that is more/less overkill in terms of what you need and offers extensions that you won't be using.

1.2 refers to the clock speed of the processor. The Core M in the rMB is available at 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 GHz speeds.

I hope this helps.
 
Dark Void said:
Hi,

It sounds the the rMB will be more than up to par with what you've stated - just keep in mind that you will need a hub or adapter to use any sort of external device like a flash drive or monitor. The rMB is ideal for those who seldom need such external support, because it is still achievable with adapters, but is not focused on.

If the thickness and weight means anything to you as far as how difficult it will be to commute with (I personally don't think the rMBP is "less portable") - it wouldn't be sensible to get a machine that is more/less overkill in terms of what you need and offers extensions that you won't be using.

1.2 refers to the clock speed of the processor. The Core M in the rMB is available at 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 GHz speeds.

I hope this helps.
Click to expand...

Yes, this helps. There are 3 times when I plug-in externals: 1. When I have a project on a flash drive from work; 2. When I sync my iPhone 6; and, 3. When I back up the computer to a time machine thingie.
 
hypergirl said:
Yes, this helps. There are 3 times when I plug-in externals: 1. When I have a project on a flash drive from work; 2. When I sync my iPhone 6; and, 3. When I back up the computer to a time machine thingie.
Click to expand...

Each of those can be accomplished with the standard USB-C to USB adapter which is $20 iirc. That's assuming you have a USB external, which is likely as that is mostly what is offered at this point.
 
hypergirl said:
Arctic Circle, wow, need an archaeological assistant?:cool: Will you be just taking the rMB to the AC?
(Love my acronyms LMA:D).

We Drill, Yes I will take the rMB & the 13" rMBP

Did you mean you are on your 12" MacBook now? 3-4 Seconds is no big deal, however, the documents I am opening are frequently ~150 pages with pix. Do you think I should be okay?

Yes, 150 pages is pretty heavy weight, you will need to see for yourself. Mine are in generally in the range of 20-40, however the format and content is very complex, if I open the saem with Pages it`s a tragedy on anything.

Excellent:). I'm excited; but as you can tell, I'm also nervous.:eek:
Very happy about the 14 day return. :apple:
Click to expand...

This the best way, then if the rMB does not work out you have lost nothing and can look at the 13" rMBP

Q-6
 
Just one point if you go for the 12" Retina MacBook, I would throw as much of your typical workload at it in the 14 day grace period to ensure that it will work for you. Personally I think it will, equally usage, workflow and the associated applications are unique to the individual and you don't want to get stuck worth a computer that does not fully meet your needs.

Q-6
 
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