Wanting to purchase mac for iPhone game development, need help

[Sageoen]

Hello everyone, I'm new here and have read the rules so I won't be asking a "whether it is a good time to buy now or wait" type of question.

I have never owned a mac before but have an iPhone at this point. I have been reading books on iPhone game development for some time and need Xcode to start actually getting into practicing. As Xcode is only for MAC OS, I need a mac. I have been leaning towards the MacBook Pro 15" High Res with Antiglare and an Apple SSD with 128mb storage on it (as this computer will only be used for iPhone development and music production [I have a keyboard that I might connect to it]).

My question is, first off, I don't really need portability but it could happen occasionally. Is the MacBook Pro what I need or can I settle for an iMac or another Mac (laptop or desktop). What would guys think would be the best value for me?

Thanks in advance.

 

[GGJstudios]

Any Mac, even the Mac Mini, will do what you need.

 

[Bernard SG]

If you can do without portability, the most cost-efficient option for you is a Mac Mini - assuming that you already have a PC running on Windows and/or Linux and that the Mac is just a dedicated secondary machine.
On the other hand, if budget is not an issue, you can consider ditching your current hardware and go for a high-end MBP or iMac and use Bootcamp. But not if you do a lot of gaming.

 

[MartyF81]

Any system that Apple sells right now will suit your needs to develop for iPhone. They all have more "power" than the iPhone... so if it won't run on the cheapest device they sell.... well it certainly won't run on the phone.

I would just go with whatever the cheapest model that you can support. Which would probably be the Mini.

 

[Sageoen]

money is no object. I mean I'm looking at spending about 2.5k USD for the MBP! lol but I mean I'm developing games, possibly working with 3D engines, I need power as well. Like I also said, this is my 2nd machine dedicated to only program development. I think the portability would be preferable as I occasionally might change the location where I develop (making stuff in bed sounds nice lol).

So in that case I guess the MBP is good for me(now that I think about it). Only question is how much performance do I need for it to last me 4-5 yrs (I take very good care of my electronics (my iPhone looks mint and runs fast and I have it for 2 years already)?

Having a higher res is also better for me because in the future with newer iPhones and/or other apple products having higher res, I won't be completely out-of-date.

What do you guys think?

 

[Cathode]

What do you guys think?

It sounds like you've already made up your mind.

 

[Bernard SG]

Your MBP will work like a charm in 5 years - unless it had a faulty component in the first place, it happens but it's extremely rare with a Mac.
I infer you're looking at the i7 at 2.8 GHz? That should hold its ground for quite a while for the use you described.
Now, here's a piece of opinion: it's very likely that you'll find yourself strongly drawn to the Mac OS X ecosystem, and 128 GB of SSD might end up feeling too constraining. Of course, old fashion drives are slower, but really, they still work quite well. Just my $ 0.02

 

[SatyMahajan]

money is no object. I mean I'm looking at spending about 2.5k USD for the MBP! lol but I mean I'm developing games, possibly working with 3D engines, I need power as well. Like I also said, this is my 2nd machine dedicated to only program development. I think the portability would be preferable as I occasionally might change the location where I develop (making stuff in bed sounds nice lol).

So in that case I guess the MBP is good for me(now that I think about it). Only question is how much performance do I need for it to last me 4-5 yrs (I take very good care of my electronics (my iPhone looks mint and runs fast and I have it for 2 years already)?

Having a higher res is also better for me because in the future with newer iPhones and/or other apple products having higher res, I won't be completely out-of-date.

What do you guys think?

Do yourself a favor. Go to nearest Microcenter and pick up a 13" MacBook Pro for $999. Don't waste your money on a 2.5k laptop just for building apps. I use a 13" 2009 base model upgraded to 4GB RAM and 320 GB 7200 RPM hard drive to code iOS games and apps.

As for graphics power, you'll have to run the app on-device anyway, since the simulator doesn't support engines or advanced input directly. So the issue is moot.

 

[Sageoen]

Thx for the idea, 128GB might be a bit low for the future, I will consider it and yes the i7 2.8GHz, yeah and talking about the subject has helped in me making up my mind. Thank you everyone for your comments!

Oh and ByteOfApple, I'm not only going to be using it for Apps. I need it for music production. I have a Yamaha Motif XS8 keyboard and that thing draws power like nuts when processing high quality sound with Logic/Cubase, etc. I need the power mostly for that. Correct about the sim, I will use my iPhone to test the apps mostly.

 

[SatyMahajan]

Thx for the idea, 128GB might be a bit low for the future, I will consider it and yes the i7 2.8GHz, yeah and talking about the subject has helped in me making up my mind. Thank you everyone for your comments!

Oh and ByteOfApple, I'm not only going to be using it for Apps. I need it for music production. I have a Yamaha Motif XS8 keyboard and that thing draws power like nuts when processing high quality sound with Logic/Cubase, etc. I need the power mostly for that. Correct about the sim, I will use my iPhone to test the apps mostly.

No problem. I do music production as well (Fantom X8). Be sure to check out this:

http://www.gearspace.com/board/music-computers/371545-logic-pro-multicore-benchmarktest.html

If I were you and spending $2.5k and audio production was necessary...I'd buy a Mac Pro or iMac. For Logic, MacBook Pro (of any flavor) is only going to take you so far before you have to start bouncing tracks to reduce CPU load from effects.

Good luck!