Need Advice Selecting a right Config 15" rMBP ?

[augustya]

Hi Guys.

Need some advise on selecting the right 15" rMBP for my requirements on what
Configuration model should I get ? So IIam gonna be using the 15" rMBP for my Personal Use, so not for any Video Editing or Working on any Raw files or anything or 4K rendering ? But having said that I want my Mac to be capable of whatever occasionally I throw at it. So occasionally I might just upload Photos from my camera and try to Photoshop it or enhance is using different APPS or Software. Other than that it is gonna be mostly for Consumption. I want it to be buttery smooth. So lets say If I do multi-tasking or switch between APPS like one window to another the Machine should do the switching and transition fast. It should not get hanged as windows machine does ? So how much RAM should I get people ? Do you guys think 16 GB RAM which comes as a onboard RAM is good enough for my kind of requirement ? Or should I get 32 GB RAM ? Do you guys think it will make any huge difference? Do I really need that much RAM ? I mean I am open to it but just wanna be spending on stuff which I really require, and not spend on something which may not be used so… And other important question is how much Ghz machine should I get ? There is this 2.2GHz, 2.6GHz and 2.9 GHz so which one should I get ? Does it make any difference with that ? And which is the Graphics card I should get the 555X or the 560X ? Like I said I want it to be very smooth in switching APPS and windows and running other Softwares and also I will do extensive Youtube watching and stuff. I might occasionally play game also on that but that would not be too often ? So guys any suggestion on what configuration should I get the MAC in terms of RAM, GHz, Graphics Card etc ?

 

[leman]

Get a MacBook Air or a 13" TouchBar MacBook Pro... 8GB is enough for you. If you want a 15", get whatever, it doesn't matter. Base model will be more then fine.

Whether it will be "very smooth" or not depends on what software you use and also on what you expect. There is no difference between animation speed etc. across all these machines. Some people claim that they can see stuttering in animations, others can't see them.

 

[augustya]

Get a MacBook Air or a 13" TouchBar MacBook Pro..

I am hellbent on buying the 15" rMBP only !! 13" doesn't cut it for me !!

Whether it will be "very smooth" or not depends on what software you use and also on what you expect. There is no difference between animation speed etc. across all these machines. Some people claim that they can see stuttering in animations, others can't see them.

What kind of an answer is this ? Not helpful at all !!

 

[leman]

What kind of an answer is this ? Not helpful at all !!

I am sorry that don't find it helpful. Sometimes reality is not what we want it to be.

 

[Sterkenburg]

Based on your described usage, you need no hardware upgrade. The base model 15" will be much more than enough for all your necessities. In fact, any modern Mac laptop would be enough.

From how you phrased the question, the impression is that what you want is an excuse to buy a high-end config... but the rational answer is that you don't need it.

 

[augustya]

Based on your described usage, you need no hardware upgrade. The base model 15" will be much more than enough for all your necessities. In fact, any modern Mac laptop would be enough.

From how you phrased the question, the impression is that what you want is an excuse to buy a high-end config... but the rational answer is that you don't need it.

So even a 2.2 GHz or a 2.6 GHz model is fine for my kind of needs is it ? Should I be taking the 555X graphic card or the 560X graphic card ?

 

[Sterkenburg]

So even a 2.2 GHz or a 2.6 GHz model is fine for my kind of needs is it ? Should I be taking the 555X graphic card or the 560X graphic card ?

Nothing in your described usage would put any strain on the dGPU. So no reason to spend money on upgrades.

Just get the base model and equip it with the amount of storage you need (256GB can be a bit tight these days, but will be fine if you don’t store photos or videos... only you can judge that).

 

[mcpix]

As others have said you should be fine with 16GB of RAM. You may also be fine with the 256GB SSD, but I went with that on my 13" MBP (similar usage as you) and I've always wished I had more. So the question then becomes if you upgrade the HD to 512GB on the 2.2GHZ model, you're less than $200 from the 2.6 GHZ machine with the better video card. I think I'd get the base 2.6GHZ machine that comes with 16GB RAM, a 512GB SSD and the Radeon Pro 560.