Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Real World uses for a maxed out rMBP??????

C

CochlearArch

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 25, 2014
29
0
Hello good people,


I try to live by the maxim always get the best that you can afford. I would like to understand what can be done with a maxed out rMBP. I surf, game, photograph, create documents and communicate (email, chat, IM, Skype). Why spend $2,500+? What more can you do with such a machine?

I need to know because if i save and purchase one i had darn well better be able to explain why or my little brother (age 46) will tease me. :D

Seriously I would like to know what a person can do with that type of computer.
 
Mine isn't completely maxed out but it is the high end model. (15/750m/16gb ram/512ssd) The reason I got was because I'm a information systems major with a minor in web design/development. I needed the 512gb ssd so I could use bootcamp and use a lot of specialty software. I'm also a casual gamer so the Iris Pro graphics really didn't cut for me. Don't think I'll ever need 16GB of ram to be completely honest, but it just came with the entire package so I didn't object. :p
 
CochlearArch said:
Hello good people,


I try to live by the maxim always get the best that you can afford. I would like to understand what can be done with a maxed out rMBP. I surf, game, photograph, create documents and communicate (email, chat, IM, Skype). Why spend $2,500+? What more can you do with such a machine?

I need to know because if i save and purchase one i had darn well better be able to explain why or my little brother (age 46) will tease me. :D

Seriously I would like to know what a person can do with that type of computer.
Click to expand...

Mine's a fully maxed out rMBP (2.6GHz, 16GB RAM, 2GB GT750M and 1TB SSD) and I use it for running virtual machines and editing 4K video, along with the occasional Photoshop work.
 
If you have to ask you don't need it. It won't make email faster.

But a maxed out rMBP is great for media professionals: photographers, editors, graphic designers, etc on the go. A MacPro is better, but if you need to be mobile it is the next best thing.
 
Mine works for a lot of uses without issues. I can have several browser windows with 60+ tabs, apps, email, you name it. But once I turn on my VM - parallels 9 - the fan comes on and it's just so annoying.

The fan is not as loud as my dell laptop that sounded like a plane about to take off, but in the land of Mac, anything that does not come from speakers seen deafening.
 
rick3000 said:
If you have to ask you don't need it. It won't make email faster.

But a maxed out rMBP is great for media professionals: photographers, editors, graphic designers, etc on the go. A MacPro is better, but if you need to be mobile it is the next best thing.
Click to expand...

So lets configure a MacPro if you will . 1 tb ata hard drive and 8 gb ram for tons of photos and video. Or do we need more ram lets say 16 gig.

I am seriously leaning in that direction.
 
2.9ghz i7 processor
8 gb ram
1 tb ata hard drive

just under $1,600

non retina mac book pro
 
CochlearArch said:
Hello good people,


I try to live by the maxim always get the best that you can afford. I would like to understand what can be done with a maxed out rMBP. I surf, game, photograph, create documents and communicate (email, chat, IM, Skype). Why spend $2,500+? What more can you do with such a machine?

I need to know because if i save and purchase one i had darn well better be able to explain why or my little brother (age 46) will tease me. :D

Seriously I would like to know what a person can do with that type of computer.
Click to expand...

If you take a lot of photographs your photo library will run more smoothly on a more powerful machine. Also, your games will surely look great, but probably not any better than on the iMac posted in your signature.

My opinion is that if you can afford it easily, there is not a huge reason to justify expensive purchases. I have lots of expendable income and I spend it as I please, after saving and paying my rent.
 
Pr0n.

porn-apple.jpg
 
CochlearArch said:
I try to live by the maxim always get the best that you can afford.
Click to expand...

Not sure thats wise....

Anyhow I do complex statistics including Bayesian modelling with thousands of variables on a maxed 2011 MBP 15". Its not fast enough. Models take hours to days to run. I've seriously considered upgrading to a maxed or near maxed 2013 model simply for the 20% improvement on Beekbench metrics over this machine. But trying to stave off my processing lust until Broadwell :D
 
I'd say based on your stated usages a maxed out rMBP isn't called for. Get what you need and what you think you'll need in the next few years.
 
"because i can afford it"
simple, efficient, quick answer.

for every average task a pc from 5 years ago is no different from a 4000$ new one.
pro users may have other reasons though.
 
maxed out is just apples way of getting more money out of you, even with the cMBP, apple always charged way more for RAM and HHD upgrades vs DIY.

the only difference now is the RAM is part of the logic board and the SSD is not as easily available as a 2.5" HHD or SSD used in the cMBP

a base model could do the same as a maxed out RAM but the maxed out one can store more and multitask more and would put less strain on the processor because its more powerfull than the base model
 
heisenberg123 said:
maxed out is just apples way of getting more money out of you, even with the cMBP, apple always charged way more for RAM and HHD upgrades vs DIY.
Click to expand...

The upgrade prices right now are quite good. Apple asks $199 for 16GB, market price is around $160-$180. For SSDs - Appel wants $300 for 512Gb SSD - a retail 512GB Samsung 840 Pro is more than $400.
 
leman said:
The upgrade prices right now are quite good. Apple asks $199 for 16GB, market price is around $160-$180. For SSDs - Appel wants $300 for 512Gb SSD - a retail 512GB Samsung 840 Pro is more than $400.
Click to expand...

I thought the Classic MBP 15 was no more and these retina systems aren't upgradable (except perhaps an expensive SSD stick from macsales.com).

Are there upgradable MBP 15s besides what's available in the refurb store?

Cheers,
 
rick3000 said:
If you have to ask you don't need it.
Click to expand...

This pretty much sums up every "Do I need this?" or "16vs8 ram" Threads. Any pro that actually knows what he/she is doing knows the power they need.

That said, if you want a $3000 facebook machine and you can afford it, I honestly don't care. Who am I to tell you what to do with your $3000?
 
panzer06 said:
I thought the Classic MBP 15 was no more and these retina systems aren't upgradable (except perhaps an expensive SSD stick from macsales.com).

Are there upgradable MBP 15s besides what's available in the refurb store?

Cheers,
Click to expand...

Usually other retailers and authorized resellers have old stock still sitting around. For example, for awhile MacMall sold brand new 2011 17" MacBook Pros as leftover stock even after it was discontinued after the retina update in 2012.
 
panzer06 said:
I thought the Classic MBP 15 was no more and these retina systems aren't upgradable (except perhaps an expensive SSD stick from macsales.com).
Click to expand...

This is correct. What I meant is that buying upgrades from Apple does not hurt your wallet so much as it used to. Nowadays, its more or less comparable for the DYI costs we used to have with the cMBP.
 
leman said:
Appel wants $300 for 512Gb SSD - a retail 512GB Samsung 840 Pro is more than $400.
Click to expand...

If you go the after-market route you get to keep your old SSD. Apple's pricing is for upgrades. In essence, you're already paying for the standard drive and Apple charges an extra $300 to upgrade it, and they get to keep the old one.

It's so-so.
 
leman said:
This is correct. What I meant is that buying upgrades from Apple does not hurt your wallet so much as it used to. Nowadays, its more or less comparable for the DYI costs we used to have with the cMBP.
Click to expand...

Ah, ok, I understand. I stopped looking at Apple laptops once the cMBP went away. Just can't justify the cost. Living with Mac Mini for now.

Cheers,
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back