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Radeon 450, 455 or 460?

C

Chparigi

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 25, 2013
106
12
Switzerland, Europe
So, I'm really confused about what graphics card to choose for my new Macbook. I ordered a 15" base model the evening it was announced, but I'm having second thoughts

I used to own a 13" Macbook Pro Late 2013, untill a month ago. I used it for photo editing (mainly from my D810 - 36 Mpix) and a bit for video editing (only 1080p, but i'm moving to 4k).

In terms of photo editing, I'm using various HDR programs, that are quite tough for the computer. I don't use aftereffects or any crazy rendering techniques, just video editing with colour corrections and exposures in 4k.

I also play Civ VI, but that should in no way have any issues running on the new machine.

So I'm quite torn here. On one hand, I'm quite certain (or some) that it would be sifficient with the 15" base modek, but on the other hand, i've learned that it is a good idea always to buy a better system than you need for future use.

What is your opinion? Should i cancel my order, and get a better graphics card? That will, unfortunately, make me wait further 3-4 weeks
 
Honestly if you have to ask you probably don't need it. If you can afford the upgrade then do it. It would likely provide a slightly longer lifespan of the machine, but unless in 3-4 years you're running these two configurations side by side you'll never notice.
 
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460 hands down.

What does the 15 inch version do that the 13 inch version cannot?:
- 15 inch screen
- quad core processor
- better graphics

Lessen the graphics performance gap, and you just have a 15 inch screen and quad core processor for a huge price jack-up.

The cost of upgrading to the 460 graphics card is MINUSCULE compared to the cost of the laptop.
 
cube said:
2TB SSD.
Click to expand...

Well over a $1000 price hike over the base 256GB. For someone doing video and photo editing, 256GB may work for some, 512GB is fine for most, and 1TB is more than enough. The reason? Professionals always back their work up externally. You don't store your stuff on the laptop. Once you hit 1TB of storage, you can do any kind of work on the laptop and not fill up your laptop before exporting
 
Chparigi said:
The only gaming I'm gonna do is Civilizations, which is not the most power-hungry game out there :) So this is more in the regard of picture processing and video
Click to expand...

Image processing will gain practically nothing from an upgraded GPU, video work should lead to slightly quicker exports. Again, if you can afford it then by all means do it. But don't think it's a necessary upgrade to do what it is you're saying you want to do with it.
 
Thank you for all your answers

My main issue, i think, was if i could wait. I have been without a laptop (a good one at least) for two months, so this meant i would reeive it in 5 weeks instead of 2. But i thought about it, and it would not make my life too difficult to waut. So i went all in, took the upper tier macbook pro 15", with 512gb SSD, 2.7 GHz i7 and a Radeon 460! Now i just look forward to have a powerhouse! :)
 
Chparigi said:
So, I'm really confused about what graphics card to choose for my new Macbook. I ordered a 15" base model the evening it was announced, but I'm having second thoughts

I used to own a 13" Macbook Pro Late 2013, untill a month ago. I used it for photo editing (mainly from my D810 - 36 Mpix) and a bit for video editing (only 1080p, but i'm moving to 4k).

In terms of photo editing, I'm using various HDR programs, that are quite tough for the computer. I don't use aftereffects or any crazy rendering techniques, just video editing with colour corrections and exposures in 4k.

I also play Civ VI, but that should in no way have any issues running on the new machine.

So I'm quite torn here. On one hand, I'm quite certain (or some) that it would be sifficient with the 15" base modek, but on the other hand, i've learned that it is a good idea always to buy a better system than you need for future use.

What is your opinion? Should i cancel my order, and get a better graphics card? That will, unfortunately, make me wait further 3-4 weeks
Click to expand...

Go for the 460, to me it's a no brainer. If you are looking at the base model for $2400, then in my opinion spending $200 more to get 86% more GPU power is worth doing. That would be way more beneficial compared to upgrading the CPU. Even if you got the high end model, paying $100 is still a no brainer for 40+% more power compared to the 455.
 
I'd get the 460 just for the sake of playing Civ 6 :) It won't hurt photo editing either.
 
Hi guys.
I ordered 13" 550 intel and 15" base model.
Do you think that i will have a lot of improivement between intel 550 and 450?

I couldn't buy 460 because the base 15" is very very expensive and a big sacrifice for my pants.

I Will use photoshop/lightroom and i will play rarely only starcraftII, D3 and wow also at medium details.
 
PaulWog said:
460 hands down.

What does the 15 inch version do that the 13 inch version cannot?:
- 15 inch screen
- quad core processor
- better graphics

Lessen the graphics performance gap, and you just have a 15 inch screen and quad core processor for a huge price jack-up.

The cost of upgrading to the 460 graphics card is MINUSCULE compared to the cost of the laptop.
Click to expand...
Depends, we dont really know how the new graphics cards run. If the op doesnt need it he's better off getting the 450 because it'll most likely run cooler and quieter
 
PaulWog said:
https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/photoshop-cc-gpu-card-faq.html

There's more to it than this, but GPU does matter with Photoshop especially if you're working in photography and using certain features.

Again, not getting the 460 would be a mistake.
Click to expand...

Whilst I was oversimplifying. Photoshop does of course require a GPU, however the iGPU is more than sufficient. Having a more power GPU will not have any gain in Photoshop over this. Yes I know it says '2GB recommended', and this is for all features such as Photoshop 3D. If the OP is the one person using this, then by all means upgrade.

Again if you can then by all means upgrade, it's a good upgrade. But don't think you need it in order to run your software or will be crippled by slower speeds. Photoshop is a really low GPU use programme that will run just as happy on a 3 year old machine as it will in 3 years time.

I was trying to give the OP a balanced opinion based on the use case. The GPU upgrade is reasonably cheap and will possibly extend the use of the machine, but it's not a necessity unless they are using some of the filters or features in PS. And even then, it will only effect speed.
 
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New_Mac_Smell said:
Whilst I was oversimplifying. Photoshop does of course require a GPU, however the iGPU is more than sufficient. Having a more power GPU will not have any gain in Photoshop over this. Yes I know it says '2GB recommended', and this is for all features such as Photoshop 3D. If the OP is the one person using this, then by all means upgrade.

Again if you can then by all means upgrade, it's a good upgrade. But don't think you need it in order to run your software or will be crippled by slower speeds. Photoshop is a really low GPU use programme that will run just as happy on a 3 year old machine as it will in 3 years time.

I was trying to give the OP a balanced opinion based on the use case. The GPU upgrade is reasonably cheap and will possibly extend the use of the machine, but it's not a necessity unless they are using some of the filters or features in PS. And even then, it will only effect speed.
Click to expand...

I originally ordered the 455 because I didn't think Lightroom used the GPU. After more research, I found out that Lightroom has been using the GPU in the develop module since April '15. I'm sure the 450 would be more than enough for Lightroom now, but for only $100 more, I decided to place a new order with the 460 just in case Adobe makes Lightroom work better with a better GPU in 2-6 years. I just hope the 460 doesn't run too hot like my late '08 did. After using LR for half an hour or so, my MBP got so hot that the trackpad stopped working.
 
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I use a pc windows with gtx 660 2gb ram at 2550 resolution = lightroom and photoshop work greats.

I think we don't stay with teory because next week Apple will send first macbook pro 15"s orders = benchmark and serious test .
 
I was original going to get the Iris Pro 580 model, I think that iGPU is extremely capable. Now that that's no longer an option, and the 450 is a lot better than that, anything is an upgrade in my eyes. The 460 is nice but since i'm docked most of the time, I'd rather take that $200 bucks and put that towards an eGPU. In the meantime I have a rig with GTX 1070 to do anything more powerful on.
 
Somebody can link a bench with the three new graphics card (450-455-460)and old card MacBook Pro 15" 2015?
 
PaulWog said:
Well over a $1000 price hike over the base 256GB. For someone doing video and photo editing, 256GB may work for some, 512GB is fine for most, and 1TB is more than enough. The reason? Professionals always back their work up externally. You don't store your stuff on the laptop. Once you hit 1TB of storage, you can do any kind of work on the laptop and not fill up your laptop before exporting
Click to expand...
Also considering how fast the transfer speeds are with USB-C, having an external storage option isn't that much of an inconvenience.

I too think getting the 460 with 4GB of ram is worth the $200... and mainly for the 4GB of ram. Also the 460 gives about 1800 TFLOPS, while the 450 gives about 1 TFLOP, and the 455 is at about 1.3 TFLOP. The difference between the 450 and 460 is quite significant for the minor price bump.

You might not be into heavy graphics usage now or use for gaming, but considering this laptop will likely last you the next 4-5 years... the $200 is a little price to pay for the luxury of having and enjoying the better graphics card for that duration.
 
It's literally £80/$100 more which is peanuts when you think about the cost of the whole laptop.

Personally, I got the 460 for a peace of mind.
 
I went 460 only because I do video editing often and I tend to keep my computers 5+ years. This is replacing a MBP 2009 and MB Air 2011.

If you don't want to wait go into your local Apple Store. Mine had a few options, one had the 460. They were NOT listed as available on the website, even though they had some.
 
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