New MBP or iPad and iPhone

[mvalia]

I currently have an early 2008 MBP that I use for video production and a Dell Mini 9 hackintosh for general surfing and email. I am waiting for a the MBP updates and I have the gift cards and money saved up for the purchase.

Would this money be better spent on a new iPhone when its released and an iPad? I could get by with the MBP I have and there are a lot of books I want to read and could wait for the iPad. The hackintosh is kind of a crossover for me that serves the purpose that the iPad would have - especially if Amazon releases the Kindle software for the Mac.

But it would be nice to cut the render and exporting times down on the MBP.

What would you do?

 

[chipandtoast]

I currently have an early 2008 MBP that I use for video production and a Dell Mini 9 hackintosh for general surfing and email. I am waiting for a the MBP updates and I have the gift cards and money saved up for the purchase.

Would this money be better spent on a new iPhone when its released and an iPad? I could get by with the MBP I have and there are a lot of books I want to read and could wait for the iPad. The hackintosh is kind of a crossover for me that serves the purpose that the iPad would have - especially if Amazon releases the Kindle software for the Mac.

But it would be nice to cut the render and exporting times down on the MBP.

What would you do?

I think you should buy a MBP and sell your old one. If you have extra money after that I would buy an iPad instead of the iPhone's and it's monthly costs.

 

[TRAG]

I think you should buy a MBP and sell your old one. If you have extra money after that I would buy an iPad instead of the iPhone's and it's monthly costs.

I would go for the MBP also. Even though you have one already, there is nothing wrong with going for the upgrade. Heck, I might sell mine and upgrade when the time comes as well if the update is worth it. If you don't have an iPhone already, I would use the left over money to get an iPhone. If you already own an iPhone go for the iPad. Either way, I think I'd be more inclined to getting a newer MBP IF IT'S WORTH IT. If not, I would most definately go for the iPad and iPhone and just add more RAM to your MBP (which is what I'll most likely do).

 

[iMacThere4Iam]

I'd go for the new MBP and sell the old one. You'd have a new laptop and depending on how much you get for the old one, make your decision on the iPhone or iPad then. There may yet be some different features on the iPad when it's released.

 

[mvalia]

Thanks for your advice. I am definitely leaning towards the new 15"MBP. My early 2008 is issued by my employer, so it would be nice to have one I can have as my own.

Do most people go for the base model 15" or the $2,300 version? Is the processor bump worth it - especially if the i7 is only offered in the most expensive iteration?

 

[HBOC]

I bought the mid range 15" MBP. I think the fastest 15" they had (early 08') was a 2.6GHZ. Mine is a 2.5GHZ. Get the best you can afford. I wait until they are clearanced, but since you want the new one, that doesn't apply to you. I will probably buy the new ones in a year or two..

I am going to buy the iPad. I sold my iPhone (was tired of paying for the data plan) and bought a Sony Ericsson. The Wifi version will be perfect, as i will get the Comcast mobile internet bundled for less than AT&T plan...

 

[Habitus]

I currently have an early 2008 MBP that I use for video production and a Dell Mini 9 hackintosh for general surfing and email. I am waiting for a the MBP updates and I have the gift cards and money saved up for the purchase.

Would this money be better spent on a new iPhone when its released and an iPad? I could get by with the MBP I have and there are a lot of books I want to read and could wait for the iPad. The hackintosh is kind of a crossover for me that serves the purpose that the iPad would have - especially if Amazon releases the Kindle software for the Mac.

But it would be nice to cut the render and exporting times down on the MBP.

What would you do?

What about the iPad warrants the purchase? Sounds like a new MBP suits your needs, better.

Habitus

 

[HBOC]

^
I think he is saying keep his original machine and get an iPad, or replace the old MBP with a new one..? Obviously you can't replace a MBP with an iPad, but maybe he wants both. Can't blame him. I don't NEED an iPad, per se, but i will buy one.

 

[Habitus]

^
I think he is saying keep his original machine and get an iPad, or replace the old MBP with a new one..? Obviously you can't replace a MBP with an iPad, but maybe he wants both. Can't blame him. I don't NEED an iPad, per se, but i will buy one.

I agree, however, I want to know what about the iPad warrants its purchase given that the alternative is a new MBP?

Habitus

 

[mvalia]

I was debating whether to take the money saved up for a new MBP, stay content with my early 2008 model, and pick up a new iPhone and iPad instead.

I know it all comes down to need. Its kind of a pain when I create a screencast tutorial for my students and my MBP takes three hours to export the edited version. But I am also interested in an eReader. The mac version of the Kindle should be released soon.

 

[jclardy]

Well I wouldn't make the decision right now, as Apple hasn't announced any new MBP's yet and they are very likely to be upgraded soon. I don't know the specs on your machine but the speed upgrade won't be huge at the moment because you will only get a bump in processor speed. Increased RAM would probably help and I am not sure what video card you have now either...

Do you already have an iPhone or another phone with a data plan?

 

[dacreativeguy]

My early 2008 is issued by my employer, so it would be nice to have one I can have as my own.

Never a good idea to mix business equipment with personal use. Do your work on your work machine and buy your own for personal use.

 

[kyzen]

Never a good idea to mix business equipment with personal use. Do your work on your work machine and buy your own for personal use.

Good advice right there. I've seen a few friends and coworkers get fired or even sued for doing their own projects off their company issued hardware.

I know one guy who was given an older server we no longer had rack space for to use at home for a dev environment. He ended up using it to run his own businesses website off it (using company hardware, and MSDN software licenses). When the company asked for the server back a year later as part of a hardware consolidation/virtualization project, he said he'd need a couple of weeks to migrate his website to a new server. I thought the director's head was going to explode when he found out. The guy was fired almost immediately, and given 24 hours to return his equipment before the cops would be called.

I'm no lawyer, but from what I understand, in most states, anything you create using company equipment belongs to the company.

 

[mvalia]

I hear you about the work laptop. I do like having everything on one machine though. I should just migrate both work and personal projects to a personal laptop.

 

[HBOC]

why not get the current unibody at a clearance price when the new i-cores are announced next month? I mean you have been doing fine with the trusty early 08'! And also get an iPad. I just want one. I don't need one, lol. I was going to shell out $500 for a new iPhone this year, but i'd rather have the 'Pad.

 

[mvalia]

I am going to wait for the i5/7 MBPs. If they are not released Tuesday, I suspect they are having supply chain and/or cooling issues.

I don't need an iPad, but I think in 1-2 years, it could be a nice client device running full OSX via the cloud from Apple's NC facility. That would be interesting.

I am excited about a new iPhone as well. My wife and I are both eligible for iPhone upgrades in June - perfect timing.

Thanks for the conversation.

 

[macgrl]

Get the MBP