Video Editing Oriented Mac Buy

[Maclesss]

Hello Mac-Dandy's,

Im looking to buy a Mac (book) mainly for video editing purposes and needed help to figure out which one would be the best budget buy for me. I've heard a few conflicting things about the usaibility of a Macbook vs a Macbook Pro for video editing which is why im posting this here.

I need clarity on the following:

1. Can i run FCP v x.o on a Macbook? Or is the hardware not compatible for it? Moreso, if I NEED a Macbook pro for FCP, then what configuration would suffice? I'm not completely broke either, but want to spend only as much money as required for my video editing purposes, and can do without some peripheral features, if that be the case.

2. Should i also look into buying an EOL version and upgrade the hardware? I've heard that can save up on some cost. But will they die on me earlier.. and will i get the darn Beachball more than the guy with one of 'em spanking new models?

3. If i should buy a Macbook Pro, then should i do it immediatelly, or wait, because the McRumours Buying guide tells me to wait as there are updates to be released, but they dont specify any time frame and i have family coming from america soon and would like them to pick one up for me and get it back.

It'd be great if you could help me out here. I willl be sure to credit all of you who help me with this buy once I astound the world with my magnificent videting talent and win accolades and what nots, maybe even an oscar or two. LOL!

Thanks
Maclesss
(for the time being)

 

[AnimaLeo]

Why do you want a laptop for video editing? Do you need to be editing while traveling etc? Desktops tend to give you the best bang for your buck. So I would look into that to be honest.

 

[Artmuzz]

Why do you want a laptop for video editing? Do you need to be editing while traveling etc? Desktops tend to give you the best bang for your buck. So I would look into that to be honest.

With the ridiculous high prices Apple ask for their top of the range MacBook Pros you would think that they would be just as powerful as desktops and designed for video editing too but I guess desktops are usually better for video editing than notebooks. I would suggest buying the new iMac Core i5 or i7. The i5 is £100 cheaper than the current top of the range MacBook Pro. If like me you want to do video editing on the move then buy the top of the range MacBook Pro.

One note is that if you are in the UK do not buy from PC World as waiting for orders from them is like waiting for blood to come out stone

 

[yoak]

It depends on what kind of footage you will edit and how big the projects are. A MacBook can run final cut, but not motion and color so depends on what your workflow will be if it's powerfull enough or not.
The mid range 15 mbp is the best bang for the buck I think, but an iMac would be the best

 

[spinnerlys]

Hello Mac-Dandy's,

Im looking to buy a Mac (book) mainly for video editing purposes and needed help to figure out which one would be the best budget buy for me. I've heard a few conflicting things about the usaibility of a Macbook vs a Macbook Pro for video editing which is why im posting this here.

I need clarity on the following:

1. Can i run FCP v x.o on a Macbook? Or is the hardware not compatible for it? Moreso, if I NEED a Macbook pro for FCP, then what configuration would suffice? I'm not completely broke either, but want to spend only as much money as required for my video editing purposes, and can do without some peripheral features, if that be the case.


Yes - http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/specs/
No.
You don't need one, see http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/specs/


2. Should i also look into buying an EOL version and upgrade the hardware? I've heard that can save up on some cost. But will they die on me earlier.. and will i get the darn Beachball more than the guy with one of 'em spanking new models?


You can, but upgrading notebooks is restricted to HDD and RAM.
It will not die earlier just because the model is not as new as the new ones.
It my die though, but so can the new one. The probability is higher that your Mac (whether new or older) will have other defects, but that probability is lower than getting a working Mac (I've got four/five and only one crapped out on me - logic board failure, repaired under warranty at no cost).
No to the beachball, because even the new ones could get them (maybe even more due to some crappy driver or hardware - see current iMac debacle).


3. If i should buy a Macbook Pro, then should i do it immediatelly, or wait, because the McRumours Buying guide tells me to wait as there are updates to be released, but they dont specify any time frame and i have family coming from america soon and would like them to pick one up for me and get it back.


An update (refresh, no new redesign) is expected in the next two to three weeks. Tuesday is the day Apple usually (but no always) uses to refresh or introduce hardware.


It'd be great if you could help me out here. I willl be sure to credit all of you who help me with this buy once I astound the world with my magnificent videting talent and win accolades and what nots, maybe even an oscar or two. LOL!

Thanks
Maclesss
(for the time being)

placeholder, as content between quote tags is not registered as mine. bloody forum software.

 

[Maclesss]

Woah! Thanks a ton for the speedy replies.

My work requires me to travel as well, and also i need mobility with the edits, hence am going in for a Mbook as opposed to the Imac. I dont use a deskop either way and getting the imac will restrict me in a lot of ways.

I will be dealing with mostly HD footage (uncompressed). Which i believe has 4 GB recommended. So that should suffice (?)

Going by what all of you've told me, I'm thinking of going for the high end 13" or the basic 15".

Will motion also work on either of these machines?

 

[spinnerlys]

Woah! Thanks a ton for the speedy replies.

My work requires me to travel as well, and also i need mobility with the edits, hence am going in for a Mbook as opposed to the Imac. I dont use a deskop either way and getting the imac will restrict me in a lot of ways.

I will be dealing with mostly HD footage (uncompressed). Which i believe has 4 GB recommended. So that should suffice (?)

Going by what all of you've told me, I'm thinking of going for the high end 13" or the basic 15".

Will motion also work on either of these machines?

If you want to edit HD footage the 15" is the better one of those two due to the higher resolution and better graphics card option for use with Motion.
The 17" would be better though for HD footage, but that may be to pricey and not as portable as you like.

Also consider external drives, especially if you want to edit uncompressed.
You might even need a RAID for that, as uncompressed takes a lot of bandwidth (200MB/s I recall) to play without stuttering.

What will be your source?

 

[Richardthe4th]

Hi,

I am using an 2008 macbook pro. Works well with the complete FCS3 suite. If you want to use motion in the near future, you will benefit with a lot of video ram (especially with hd). Color also. And believe me, they are programms you will want to use those (well, at least I do now ).

I don't know your budget, but better spend some more than have limitations in the near future (hd material, motion). So perhaps the 15" with 512 mb.

And adding to spinnerlys. Your hd material. Will you need raid through eSata? Check the ports/ extension slots on your -future- macbookpro before buying. Mine (15") still has an express 34 slot, there are esata/raid cards for that. Not sure if that exists for an sd-slot, I think not. Only 17" has esata.
http://theappleblog.com/2009/06/11/macbook-pro-sdexpresscard-slot-tradeoff-brilliant-or-blunder/
So perhaps you will need the 17"...
But do you really use uncompressed? Or prores codec? Saves a lot of bandwith (firewire 800 perhaps sufficient?).

Good luck with your (difficult) choice.

Richard

 

[yoak]

The Express card slot is the reason I bought the previous 15" MBP. I also have the 512 video ram. It´s a great machine and you should be able to find it at a discount. Performance wise they are almost identical to the new ones