Which would you buy?

[James Godfrey]

I am deciding between these two macs…

1. iMac 24-Inch M1 Mid Tier, 256GB, 16GB Ram - £1699

2. Base line MacBook Pro 14” - £1899

For the extra £200 I will be getting a portable device with miniLED and 120hz, plus double the storage, but I will be sacrificing screen real estate….

 

[elvisimprsntr]

3. 14" M1 Pro MBP and an inexpensive external monitor when you are not mobile.

 

[Realityck]

What’s your usage needs? On first glance the 14” just means buying something else to have a larger desktop such as inexpensive LG 32UN650 (4K ultrafine IPS)

 

[James Godfrey]

What’s your usage needs? On first glance the 14” just means buying something else to have a larger desktop such as inexpensive LG 32UN650 (4K ultrafine IPS)

Mostly general web browsing, email, word processing, spreadsheets, movies, music etc…

Also music editing plus website designing.

 

[DNichter]

I like the idea of the iMac, but the portability of the pro, plus promotion, micro led, and the M1 pro make it a better option in my eyes. You can always dock to an external monitor also

 

[fel10]

I actually thought about getting the new iMac and taking my iPad Pro to school. But at the time, there were rumors about a new 14in MBP, so I decided to wait. Boy am I glad I did.

 

[James Godfrey]

I actually thought about getting the new iMac and taking my iPad Pro to school. But at the time, there were rumors about a new 14in MBP, so I decided to wait. Boy am I glad I did.

Yeah at the minute I’m thinking…

At the expense of a larger (but inferior) display and £200 extra, I do feel like the 14” MBP is a better buy… but there is just something about the iMac’s all in one set up which is attractive.

 

[0128672]

Have you tried one of the iMacs in the store?

If I was making this choice, I'd go with the MBP for many of the reasons stated above, but also the resale value will be excellent if you decide to sell or trade-in down the road. The ability to get an inexpensive but good larger than 24" display would give you much more flexibility for not only this MBP but other Macs (say, if you decide to try the Mini or an updated MBP) later on.

Do you really want to be tied to a desk for half the storage and the other spec differences?

 

[Realityck]

Mostly general web browsing, email, word processing, spreadsheets, movies, music etc…

Also music editing plus website designing.

Just remember a MBP doesn’t come with keyboard or mouse besides the external display if you want to eventually use it closed lid. The Applecare is more expensive. The 3 year IMac AppleCare is $169 USD. The 14” is $299 USD. With either selection you need to count how much you are going to spend, as both your configuration is what you are stuck with. Neither is upgradable which is why most of us have to spend slightly more based on our usage.

 

[Realityck]

Yeah at the minute I’m thinking…

At the expense of a larger (but inferior) display and £200 extra, I do feel like the 14” MBP is a better buy… but there is just something about the iMac’s all in one set up which is attractive.

The 14” is also a all in one, just that’s it transportable as well as something you can expand later. I have both a 24” and a 15” MBPS. I think you should look at these both in stores to discover what fits you better.

 

[James Godfrey]

Have you tried one of the iMacs in the store?

If I was making this choice, I'd go with the MBP for many of the reasons stated above, but also the resale value will be excellent if you decide to sell or trade-in down the road. The ability to get an inexpensive but good larger than 24" display would give you much more flexibility for not only this MBP but other Macs (say, if you decide to try the Mini or an updated MBP) later on.

Do you really want to be tied to a desk for half the storage and the other spec differences?

I went to my local curry’s to check out the iMac, it looks far better in person than on Apples website lol, however I did notice on the display model that around the edges it did look shadowy… like some areas of the panel were dull (noticeable on white backgrounds), not sure if this is common.

In all honesty, I would likely never take my MBP out of the house in general, but I can never say never, also the storage is not a major thing for me as I have 2TB iCloud storage.

I also agree resale value on iMacs is awful in comparison to apples line of laptops.

Just remember a MBP doesn’t come with keyboard or mouse besides the external display if you want to eventually use it closed lid. The Applecare is more expensive. The 3 year IMac AppleCare is $169 USD. The 14” is $299 USD. With either selection you need to count how much you are going to spend, as both your configuration is what you are stuck with. Neither is upgradable which is why most of us have to spend slightly more based on our usage.

Mmmm…. I probably wouldn’t get AppleCare as my home insurance covers accidental damage already, so I would likely claim off that if the need arisen, but you do make a good point about keyboard and mouse if I used it with an external monitor in the future… that is additional cost to take into account.

The reason I am mainly on the fence is because of what I am getting extra for £200 is quite a bit (mainly the better display although smaller and the better performance overall and additional ports) but I literally would never take the MBP out of the house, my iPhone/iPad pretty much serves me well when mobile.