Sell MB/iMac for MBP + 24" Display?

[glxyjones]

Hello all,

I currently own a white 1st gen Macbook, old enough were it wasn't even "upgradeable" to N wireless, which I use for basic web surfing downstairs and for travel. I also have a 24" iMac which I do most of my computing tasks on in my office. Basically, there is 1 major reason driving this debate for me and 1 minor reason. The major reason I am considering this switch is because I am not a fan of having two computers. I like having everything on one machine so that wherever I go, I have everything I need in front of me without having to worry about preemptively moving files to my MB when I travel. My MB has pretty much become a glorified web surfing machine which I occasionally use on travel.

My other minor gripe is that my MB is the only computer in my house which is stuck on G wireless speeds. As far as I know, if just one machine on the network isn't N compatible, the entire network is brought down to that one computers speed (mine being G). My recent AppleTV purchase made this even more of an issue in the past few weeks.

Obviously, I wouldn't be too thrilled going from the 24" display of the iMac to the 15" display of the MBP, so I would eventually buy an external monitor (probably not the Apple display since it's so expensive) to hook up as a "dock" for the MBP. I love the thought of extended desktop as well.

My questions for you all are as follows...

1) Is it worth the hassle
2) Is it worth the extra ~$500
3) Is a brand new MBP equivalent if not better than a November 07' 24" iMac, performance wise?
4) Would I be able to restore my time machine backup of my iMac (320GB) to my new MBP (also 320GB)?
5) Am I making too big of a deal out of the G vs N network speeds?
6) Why can't able make a super fast 12" laptop, which docks into the side of an iMac looking display, much like that patent which surfaced a few months back?

Ok, the last one is just pure curiosity. Thanks in advance!!

Cheers,
Paul

 

[Battlefield Fan]

1. If you say your bothered by having two computers then it probably would be worth the hassle.

2. I would say yes? I don't know what your financial situation is but as long as your not going to be stressed out from this buy I would go for it.

3. There are a couple websites that have performance test. One of these is http://www.xbench.com/ Just go under the iMac heading or type in your basic system specs and see if anything comes up. Then hit the compare button and find a system that would be like the one you might buy.

4. Time machine is not a mirrored hard drive. I haven't worked with time machine but I do know that much.

5. Well currently I have a G5 iMac that is on a g network and it doesn't kill me. Unless your play online games I wouldn't really but a new computer just to upgrade to N. Think of it as a bonus if you do upgrade though.

6. Normally it can be a few years till some of these patents come true. Don't forget too that they filed a patent for virtual reality googlies lol

If you have any other questions ask and I will try to check back later today/ tomorrow.

 

[VespR]

I just sold my 2.8 24" iMac (Extreme one from last year), and 'upgraded' to the base new MBP.

I'll be getting the new 24" display in a little while as well for the very reason I don't want to lose the screen real estate. In all honesty I haven't noticed much of a performance hit at all. And I do a lot of windows development in virtual machines for SQL server and Sharepoint. You're only going to notice the difference in bench marks, and who encodes stuff 24/7? For real world instances I can't tell the difference at all.

I've also upgraded this MBP to 4Gb of memory, and swapped the hard drive out for a 320Gb WD Scorpio 7200RPM. Which is faster than my 500Gb 5400RPM hard drive in my iMac. Though I've got a 1Tb FW drive for the bulk of my storage.

If I were you I'd do it, lump the two computers and just use one. I had a 12" powerbook before the iMac with the 23" acd, and I missed the portability when I moved to the iMac. This 15" is certainly a lot bigger than the 12" but my needs have changed since the PB days so it hasn't bothered me. If I were you I'd do it.

And yes Time Machine worked like a dream. I did a full backup on my iMac, installed OS X on this MBP and then ran Time Machine to restore my settings. Virtually everything moved over correctly and all apps seem to work. The one thing I've found that didn't work was NTFS for Mac OS X, which isn't surprising. I'll just reinstall it when I get round to the need.

Also I think after selling both Mac's you'll be able to get an MBP + 24" display for very little difference. I just sold my iMac for £1100 on ebay! They're worth £1250 brand new over here. Mac resale value is incredible.

Plus with the 24" LED you can keep your laptop powerbrick in your bag and just close the laptop chuck it in (with care!) and you're good to go. I'll prefer that than two seperate power bricks, or crawling under the desk and untangling things..

 

[glxyjones]

Plus with the 24" LED you can keep your laptop powerbrick in your bag and just close the laptop chuck it in (with care!) and you're good to go. I'll prefer that than two seperate power bricks, or crawling under the desk and untangling things..

Wow, I didn't realize the integration between the Apple Display and the MBP was so well thought out. The magsafe hookup feature alone might be worth saving up a few bucks extra for it.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Battlefield Fan]

Plus with the 24" LED you can keep your laptop powerbrick in your bag and just close the laptop chuck it in (with care!) and you're good to go. I'll prefer that than two separate power bricks, or crawling under the desk and untangling things..

Personally as this guy mentioned I would seriously take a look at apple's new 24" CD. It has just 3 cords:

One to power the laptop. These is a really nice feature as it allows you to leave the original cord in your bag.

The second one is the mini display port. It provides the image and sound.

Lastly is the usb cable. The back of the monitor has 3 usb ports. This would allow you to keep a dedicated keyboard and mouse connected to the screen.

Just these 3 cables make the laptop worth it to me personally. Also keep in mind it is LED which means instant on and instant brightness.

You may be able to find other screens for around $300 but they lack the luster. That reminds me of my dad. He recently needed a new computer screen for his mini so he bought a cheap $175 dell 19". The image is crap. Compared to his 23" and 20" ACD I would HIGHLY recommend considering taking a bullet and stepping up to the new monitor. I don't think I can stress that any more.

check it out: http://store.apple.com/us/product/MB382LL/A?fnode=MTY1NDA5OQ&mco=MjE0NTg5NQ (America store link)
it just started shipping today!

 

[VespR]

Apparently the displayport doesn't carry the audio for the speakers in the new display. It's the USB cable..

Then again I'll be using my AE Aego's!

 

[Battlefield Fan]

Apparently the displayport doesn't carry the audio for the speakers in the new display. It's the USB cable..

Then again I'll be using my AE Aego's!

where did you hear that? If i remember correctly I remember a user saying they were checking out the ACD in store and when they removed the mini displayport the screen and sound went blank.

Also display port and mini display port are listed as carrying audio. Im pretty sure the usb cord is just for the 3 usb ports on the back of the monitor.

 

[VespR]

lol I read it on here also. Someone said they went into the store and the speakers were listed as USB Speakers. It makes sense for it to use the displayport, but I imagine they'll be just like the ones in the iMac, in which case I'd stick to something dedicated. There's just not enough kick for me.

 

[glxyjones]

Well would it be a wise assumption to make that if you are using the Apple display's internal speakers, the sound it output via the Displayport but if you have dedicated speakers connected to the display via USB than it would be output via the USB connection?

 

[Battlefield Fan]

Well would it be a wise assumption to make that if you are using the Apple display's internal speakers, the sound it output via the Displayport but if you have dedicated speakers connected to the display via USB than it would be output via the USB connection?

Well most people with a dedicated speaker set probably would use the standard 3.5 audio out port. Not many speaker sets connect through USB. Only 2 or 3 do.

And no one truely knows what the 24" sounds like. All of the models in the stores were prototypes. Apple just now started shipping the monitor.

And no it probably won't be just like the imac sound. Apple list it as 2.1 meaning it has a subwoofer. Personally it won't come close to a pair of Bose or some other speaker set.

 

[glxyjones]

Well most people with a dedicated speaker set probably would use the standard 3.5 audio out port. Not many speaker sets connect through USB. Only 2 or 3 do.

And no one truely knows what the 24" sounds like. All of the models in the stores were prototypes. Apple just now started shipping the monitor.

And no it probably won't be just like the imac sound. Apple list it as 2.1 meaning it has a subwoofer. Personally it won't come close to a pair of Bose or some other speaker set.

I have yet to buy speakers for my iMac yet so I'm still using its internal one's. I'm surprised to hear their cinema display will have better speakers than the iMac, has this always been the case with previous models?

Anyone know when the Apple Display will actually be in stores for purchase? I live close to DE so I will be driving down in order to purchase both if I choose to go ahead with this.

I'm so close to pulling the trigger, I'm just dreading the process of ebaying and shipping.

 

[Battlefield Fan]

I have yet to buy speakers for my iMac yet so I'm still using its internal one's. I'm surprised to hear their cinema display will have better speakers than the iMac, has this always been the case with previous models?

Anyone know when the Apple Display will actually be in stores for purchase? I live close to DE so I will be driving down in order to purchase both if I choose to go ahead with this.

I'm so close to pulling the trigger, I'm just dreading the process of ebaying and shipping.

well none of their previous CD's have had internal speakers. This is a new feature. And the 24" just started shipping yesterday. So I would say they might have them by Friday? But to be sure call the store and confirm they have enough.

 

[Consultant]

If you are ok with glossy then yes. As to power, depends on what you do, is it games? Motion? Movie editing? Photo editing?

where did you hear that? If i remember correctly I remember a user saying they were checking out the ACD in store and when they removed the mini displayport the screen and sound went blank.

Also display port and mini display port are listed as carrying audio. Im pretty sure the usb cord is just for the 3 usb ports on the back of the monitor.

That is just a rumor and it's WRONG.

If you read the relevant info on apple.com you would know that.

 

[Battlefield Fan]

If you are ok with glossy then yes. As to power, depends on what you do, is it games? Motion? Movie editing? Photo editing?



That is just a rumor and it's WRONG.

If you read the relevant info on apple.com you would know that.

Issue solved. This from a WIKI search on DisplayPort

" The DisplayPort connector supports 1, 2, or 4 data pairs in a Main Link that also carries clock and optional audio signals, each with a symbol rate of 1.62 or 2.7 Gbit/s "

So basically audio is the the DisplayPort connector.

What was that?

 

[QCassidy352]

"On the back of the display, you’ll find three self-powered USB ports. You enable them — along with the built-in iSight camera, microphone, and speakers — the moment you plug the USB connector into your new MacBook."

Clear enough?

 

[Battlefield Fan]

well it looks like for some reason apple decided to use the usb for sound.

Mini displayport can transfer sound though so I was completely wrong.

 

[glxyjones]

well it looks like for some reason apple decided to use the usb for sound.

Mini displayport can transfer sound though so I was completely wrong.

Do the Apple Display speakers override the MBP speakers when plugged in? I can only imagine so but that would be quite an oversight if not.

 

[Battlefield Fan]

Do the Apple Display speakers override the MBP speakers when plugged in? I can only imagine so but that would be quite an oversight if not.

I personally am not sure but I would imagine so. They aren't the greatest to begin with so apple probably has it turn on just the CD.