rMBP 15" or new 5k iMac?

[Charlemagne]

Hi all,

I have a 2009 4,1 Mac Pro and am thinking of upgrading it to either a rMBP 15" (highest model) or the new 5K iMac, but I'm not sure which one I should get. I have a 27" Viewsonic monitor and would connect the MBP to that vs. using the screen. I don't really need the portability, but it is nice to have it in a small, transportable package if I move. I mainly use the machine for music apps (Logic X, Pro Tools) and photography (Lightroom, Photoshop). One nice thing with the iMac is it takes 32GB of RAM (which is helpful for large sample libraries). However, there are some concerns around the new iMac's GPU with a 5K screen and I wonder if it will be overkill.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[blooperz]

I haven't had a chance to look at the specs but from what I've heard they are both roughly the same pixel density. The new GPU in the iMac is a step above the 750m which is a middling card to begin with so there really shouldn't be any problems in that regard. It really comes down to whether you need something portable or not IMO. Desktops are too clunky for me and I would personally hate to be tied down to one room in the house if i wanted to use the computer...

 

[poiihy]

I'd go with the iMac

 

[terraphantm]

If you don't need the portability, get the iMac. Otherwise stick with the macbook

 

[Lachhh]

You sound like you'd do better with the iMac, however hooking the MBP up to an external monitor while at a desk and then unplugging it for easy sofa / bed surfing is a pretty slick proposition too, I feel.

 

[maflynn]

If you don't need portability, the then iMac is a no brainer. If you can wait until the Broadwell MBPs are released, then wait. Maybe, just maybe apple will release a 5k display for the laptops. I kind of doubt it, at least right now (price of the display panels would be horrifically expensive) but you never know.

 

[Charlemagne]

Are Broadwell CPUs going to be much of a step change or just incremental? Also, I doubt we'll see those in MBPs before 6 months right?

Waiting on iMac benchmarks - my 2009 Mac Pro still gets pretty close to the new rMBP in Novabench CPU numbers.

 

[maflynn]

Are Broadwell CPUs going to be much of a step change or just incremental? Also, I doubt we'll see those in MBPs before 6 months right?

Its going to incremental AFAIK, the big thing for broadwell is the iGPU is supposed to be much better then the already great performing Iris Pro