Hi guys,
Hope everyone is managing to stay safe and well during the current climate.
I am the proud owner of a (now vintage) MacBook Pro 8,2 from October 2011. It's a quad-core 2.2Ghz i7 model with a ATI Radeon with about half a gig of VRAM, as well as a 500GB HDD & 16GB of RAM. I've had the computer from new, and while I still runs fantastic for a computer nearing a decade old, I have had the logic board replaced twice - 2013 & 2016 due to graphics failure - and am looking to make a move over into current Apple territory before I require a third replacement.
I am having quite a hard time picking though, as money is somewhat of an object I want to make sure i'm making the right decision for my lifestyle.
While I don't necessarily need the power of a MacBook Pro, my obvious first choice was a like for like replacement with the current 16" range of MBP's which would bolster a larger & higher resolution display than I currently have but also lose a number of ports I currently use (USB-A, Thunderbolt 1) and i'd lose the optical drive which I do still use on occasion to burn CD's. Understandably, i'd have to make sacrifices here as optical media has gone the way of the Dodo and external drives would be fine for the occasional use. The MBP of present day is considerably more expensive (£500+) than the days of old however, as my current MBP cost £1799 when new compared to the today price of £2399. Ouch. While doing some research, i've noticed many people still having thermal issues with the new 16" range and don't want to jump from thermal deficiency to thermal deficiency. Could this be an argument toward an iMac, as it's a desktop platform does it have better thermal architecture?
I have also been considering the iPad Pro 12.9", but don't know enough about the current iPadOS or the machines capabilities. I absolutely love my iPhone XS, which is my only other Apple product that I still use. The display is absolutely great, the cameras are fantastic and I have more-or-less abandoned my MBP for digesting visual media thanks to the XS' stereo speakers, which actually sound better than those in the larger chassis of my laptop. This has also got me to thinking if my lifestyle really warrants as powerful a machine as the 16" MBP, as I seldom use photoshop these days, no longer create motion pictures and don't use the machine to game. That being said, these things are possible on iOS, so would I be able to get away with an iPad? I'd be mostly using it for reading, surfing, watching YouTube and movies, as well as some arbitrary stuff. I do like having the extra power there for the 'just-in-case' scenarios, for the same reason i'd love a big engine in my car, which is where the MacBook Pro & iMac has it's appeal. The quad (stereo) speakers, larger display, thinner bezels and Face-ID are the main reason i'd prefer the iPad Pro over any of the other iPads.
My main concern with the iPad is I have an extensive iTunes library that lives on my local and backup HDD, weighing in at some 250 odd gigabytes. I get a lot of my music from sources other than iTunes Store and do not use Music nor do I use Spotify. Would I still have control over my hundreds of playlists on the iPadOS as I do using iTunes with the sidebar and list-view? Is there any way to add music outside of iTunes in this environment, and can I create burnable playlists to burn to an external CD using iPad?
Lastly, I had looked at the iMac 27". I used an iMac Core 2 Duo 20" back in the day and loved it, but after using a laptop for many years I have become accustomed to the portability it brings me. The colossal display seems like an absolute luxury to use, and I was considering this to be a main 'hub' if needed, should I be fortunate enough to purchase two separate products on a broader scale rather than one expensive one to do both jobs (desktop & portable).
Which brings me to my final question for you folks, does the current macOS/iPadOS setup use seamless intergration between the platforms? As my MacBook Pro is too old to receive current software I have fallen behind the trend of features the eco-system presents and need your help to suggest to me what you think would be a smart decision, future upgrades and all. Ideally i'd like this purchase to last me a minimum of 5 years, with the following 5 years only really requiring a minor push to upgrade. Would I be able to do everything I currently do on my MacBook Pro, on a current day iPad Pro?
Thanks for reading and I look forward to your responses,
GaelenSky
P.S I have attatched my current iTunes setup as a .PNG. I understand the latest macOS updates come without iTunes, so would this setup even work on a modern Mac?
Hope everyone is managing to stay safe and well during the current climate.
I am the proud owner of a (now vintage) MacBook Pro 8,2 from October 2011. It's a quad-core 2.2Ghz i7 model with a ATI Radeon with about half a gig of VRAM, as well as a 500GB HDD & 16GB of RAM. I've had the computer from new, and while I still runs fantastic for a computer nearing a decade old, I have had the logic board replaced twice - 2013 & 2016 due to graphics failure - and am looking to make a move over into current Apple territory before I require a third replacement.
I am having quite a hard time picking though, as money is somewhat of an object I want to make sure i'm making the right decision for my lifestyle.
While I don't necessarily need the power of a MacBook Pro, my obvious first choice was a like for like replacement with the current 16" range of MBP's which would bolster a larger & higher resolution display than I currently have but also lose a number of ports I currently use (USB-A, Thunderbolt 1) and i'd lose the optical drive which I do still use on occasion to burn CD's. Understandably, i'd have to make sacrifices here as optical media has gone the way of the Dodo and external drives would be fine for the occasional use. The MBP of present day is considerably more expensive (£500+) than the days of old however, as my current MBP cost £1799 when new compared to the today price of £2399. Ouch. While doing some research, i've noticed many people still having thermal issues with the new 16" range and don't want to jump from thermal deficiency to thermal deficiency. Could this be an argument toward an iMac, as it's a desktop platform does it have better thermal architecture?
I have also been considering the iPad Pro 12.9", but don't know enough about the current iPadOS or the machines capabilities. I absolutely love my iPhone XS, which is my only other Apple product that I still use. The display is absolutely great, the cameras are fantastic and I have more-or-less abandoned my MBP for digesting visual media thanks to the XS' stereo speakers, which actually sound better than those in the larger chassis of my laptop. This has also got me to thinking if my lifestyle really warrants as powerful a machine as the 16" MBP, as I seldom use photoshop these days, no longer create motion pictures and don't use the machine to game. That being said, these things are possible on iOS, so would I be able to get away with an iPad? I'd be mostly using it for reading, surfing, watching YouTube and movies, as well as some arbitrary stuff. I do like having the extra power there for the 'just-in-case' scenarios, for the same reason i'd love a big engine in my car, which is where the MacBook Pro & iMac has it's appeal. The quad (stereo) speakers, larger display, thinner bezels and Face-ID are the main reason i'd prefer the iPad Pro over any of the other iPads.
My main concern with the iPad is I have an extensive iTunes library that lives on my local and backup HDD, weighing in at some 250 odd gigabytes. I get a lot of my music from sources other than iTunes Store and do not use Music nor do I use Spotify. Would I still have control over my hundreds of playlists on the iPadOS as I do using iTunes with the sidebar and list-view? Is there any way to add music outside of iTunes in this environment, and can I create burnable playlists to burn to an external CD using iPad?
Lastly, I had looked at the iMac 27". I used an iMac Core 2 Duo 20" back in the day and loved it, but after using a laptop for many years I have become accustomed to the portability it brings me. The colossal display seems like an absolute luxury to use, and I was considering this to be a main 'hub' if needed, should I be fortunate enough to purchase two separate products on a broader scale rather than one expensive one to do both jobs (desktop & portable).
Which brings me to my final question for you folks, does the current macOS/iPadOS setup use seamless intergration between the platforms? As my MacBook Pro is too old to receive current software I have fallen behind the trend of features the eco-system presents and need your help to suggest to me what you think would be a smart decision, future upgrades and all. Ideally i'd like this purchase to last me a minimum of 5 years, with the following 5 years only really requiring a minor push to upgrade. Would I be able to do everything I currently do on my MacBook Pro, on a current day iPad Pro?
Thanks for reading and I look forward to your responses,
GaelenSky
P.S I have attatched my current iTunes setup as a .PNG. I understand the latest macOS updates come without iTunes, so would this setup even work on a modern Mac?
