Need help with MacBook Pro purchase!

[Cogi]

I wanted to get a fully upgraded iMac but I had a problem and had to spend money on something else. I need something now so I am looking to get a rMBP. I will most likely wait to get an iMac till late 2014/early 2015 if they refresh the line.

What I will be using it for :

Minor Gaming (Small Indie Games)
Video Editing
Photoshop
Basic Stuff (Email, Web, Chat)

I am a YouTube Partner so I will be video editing pretty much everyday with Photoshop everyday most likely as well.

I have about $2350 to work with. I have a few different options picked out but I am open others ideas!



Build One (Apple Store)

15" rMBP
2.0GHz up to 3.2GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
512GB PCIe Flash Storage
Intel Iris Pro Graphics

Price $2300 (Got a discount working at Macy's)



Build Two (Apple Store)

15" rMBP
2.3GHz up to 3.5GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
512GB PCIe-based Flash Storage
Intel Iris Pro Graphics

Price : $2400 (I would have to wait 2 weeks which I really cant do but can try)



Build Three (MacMall)

15" rMBP (Early 2013) ME664LL/A
2.4GHz up to 3.4GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
256GB Flash Storage
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M / Intel HD Graphics 4000 - 1 GB GDDR5 SDRAM

Price : $1900 (Only thing is the 256GB Flash but I have a 1TB External)



So anyone know which one I should get, or do you have another configuration that could work?

Also is the Flash Storage in the Early 2013 MBP from MacMall as fast as the new rMBP?

I will be ordering next week most likely on Thursday/Friday.

Thanks in advance!

 

[OldMacUser]

Minor Gaming (Small Indie Games)
Video Editing
Photoshop
Basic Stuff (Email, Web, Chat)

I am a YouTube Partner so I will be video editing pretty much everyday with Photoshop everyday most likely as well.

Given your use case scenario, and unless portability will be an issue, an iMac would be more suitable.

A 27-in iMac with 16GB memory and 1TB Fusion drive configures to about $2,199 which is below your stated budget (all things being equal without knowing what other factors are limiting your finances). You could potentially save $200 by foregoing the memory upgrade and doing that later.

 

[michaelsviews]

I wanted to get a fully upgraded iMac but I had a problem and had to spend money on something else. I need something now so I am looking to get a rMBP. I will most likely wait to get an iMac till late 2014/early 2015 if they refresh the line.

What I will be using it for :

Minor Gaming (Small Indie Games)
Video Editing
Photoshop
Basic Stuff (Email, Web, Chat)

I am a YouTube Partner so I will be video editing pretty much everyday with Photoshop everyday most likely as well.

I have about $2350 to work with. I have a few different options picked out but I am open others ideas!



Build One (Apple Store)

15" rMBP
2.0GHz up to 3.2GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
512GB PCIe Flash Storage
Intel Iris Pro Graphics

Price $2300 (Got a discount working at Macy's)



Build Two (Apple Store)

15" rMBP
2.3GHz up to 3.5GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
512GB PCIe-based Flash Storage
Intel Iris Pro Graphics

Price : $2400 (I would have to wait 2 weeks which I really cant do but can try)



Build Three (MacMall)

15" rMBP (Early 2013) ME664LL/A
2.4GHz up to 3.4GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
256GB Flash Storage
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M / Intel HD Graphics 4000 - 1 GB GDDR5 SDRAM

Price : $1900 (Only thing is the 256GB Flash but I have a 1TB External)



So anyone know which one I should get, or do you have another configuration that could work?

Also is the Flash Storage in the Early 2013 MBP from MacMall as fast as the new rMBP?

I will be ordering next week most likely on Thursday/Friday.

Thanks in advance!

B & H Photo in NYC has good pricing, the only other thing I'd say is go 16GB of ram with NO matter what you buy, down the road you'll appreciate it more.

 

[yjchua95]

Also is the Flash Storage in the Early 2013 MBP from MacMall as fast as the new rMBP?

The early-2013 rMBP uses a SATA3 based interface, while the late-2013 ones use PCIe. The late-2013 ones are significantly faster than the early-2013 ones.

The early-2013 ones will get you around 510/450 MB/s in read/write and the late-2013 ones will get you about 750/700 MB/s in read/writes (assuming that it's 512GB or larger). 256GB ones will perform at the same speed if it's a Samsung, and about 150MB/s slower in writes if it's a SanDisk. It's basically a lottery on getting a Samsung or SanDisk if you order the 256GB version in the late-2013 ones.

 

[p3ntyne]

I would rule out the third option.

Since you will be doing some photo/video editing, the 2.3 Ghz processor is a good bang-for-buck upgrade for only $100. Also, if you can afford it, 16 Gb's RAM is a good investment especially if you plan on keeping the computer for a few years.