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MBP vs iMac setup

R

rossy100

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 23, 2011
440
195
Hi

Am due an upgrade on my iMac (27 inch) which is used for home and business purposes.

Was originally just going to update to the latest 27 inch retina, but am now thinking whether I'd be better off going for an MBP (probably waiting for updated model to be released) and then adding an external monitor, thunderbolt drive, dock etc. This way I'd gain the flexibility of the laptop as well.

Is this a good plan - or am I better off sticking to iMac?

If is a good idea, what peripherals would people recommend (monitor, dock, drive etc.)?

Thanks!!
 
Would be impossible for anyone to advice unless you tell us what you are going to use it for?
 
General home + office use. The odd bit of photo/video editing etc. Want a display that is as good as the retina imac display, and a dock so makes it easy to connect the laptop without having to fiddle with all the cables.
 
If you need portability and don't need the desktop performance why not.

There are a myriad of docks out there henge docks tend to just keep the cables in place thunderbolt docks will do it all over one thunderbolt cable, but if you are waiting for the new MBP then you'll be looking towards thunderbolt 3 for that 40gb/s bandwidth.

There are now a multitude of 4K monitors available at decent prices and the next MBP may well run a 5 k well but they are still prohibitively expensive.
 
Thanks. Is there really a big difference between MBP performance and iMac? Id always just thought that the iMac was basically laptop tech inside a massive screen!
 
rossy100 said:
General home + office use. The odd bit of photo/video editing etc. Want a display that is as good as the retina imac display, and a dock so makes it easy to connect the laptop without having to fiddle with all the cables.
Click to expand...

If you want to run a 5k screen you will almost certainly need the top end rMBP when it comes out as it takes a lot of GPU power. What you want is really not currently available it takes 2 DP 1.2 cables to run a 5k screen and the performance won't be great.

You'll have to wait for the new pro and take a look at the new peripherals when they come out. This may well be a few months long project to get what you need. Or you could just get the 5k iMac as you mention.
 
Or I could just go for a 4k screen like the Dell 2715Q. I'm guessing a wouldn't notice a huge difference vs 5k, especially as upgrading from a non-retina iMac (so always going to be an improvement!)
 
id stick to the imac and if you need portibility later on get a macbook air or somthing. theres somthing about having a ful desktop ready to go whenyou get to it and not having to fiddle with cables and such.
 
The iMac has more ports, a larger screen, more expansive storage. Overall, I 'd say you get more computer for the iMac then the MBP. With that said, the iMac is not portable, and if that's a need then the MBP is a better option
 
I've always wanted an iMac, but have never owned a desktop. I just like the ability to pick up my entire computer and take with me in case of an emergency or the need to work away from home.

Unless you really need the raw power of the iMac, a 15" macbook pro is very good desktop replacement especially once they update the CPU and GPU.
 
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