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Author Topic: Which PC or MAC would you buy "now"?  (Read 32319 times)

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Sri

« Reply #75 on: May 06, 2014, 12:25 »
0
Thanks for starting this topic luis. I have also been trying to get the right machine for me as i was so sick of my dell laptop, specially their support in my country.. Pathetic. Probably dell providing good support in states and Europian country but not in asia. After searching a lot and considering my budget, i have decided to Hp envy tower pc as i want a work horse for my images,footage and games also. But seriously dell laptop was nightmare for me. Do let us know in this thread when you decide and buy one ;)


« Reply #76 on: May 06, 2014, 22:06 »
+2
The one thing that i see (and hear) over and over is "laptop." I'm not sure why anyone wanting to get a serious volume of work done would consider a laptop in the first place. You get much more bang for your buck (Mac or PC) from a desktop. And honestly, how often are you doing heavy-duty work when you're not in your home or office?

YMMV, but for me, when I'm not in my office in front of my computer, I don't want my computer following me!  ;D

« Reply #77 on: May 07, 2014, 00:44 »
0
lb for lb MACs are at least twice the price - I'd prefer to spend on CPU and RAM than badges or complete non-essentials like SSDs.

I would hesitate to put SSDs into the non-essential category. The increase in performance is pretty amazing!

I'd agree. I tested the boot time between a HDD vs Hybrid HDD/SSD. HDD was 42 seconds. Hybrid was 20 seconds. I haven't timed anything else but a lot of apps seem a lot quicker to load and run with the Hybrid.

And I'm not sure the price thing is accurate. I always believed this too but when I spec'd out a Dell laptop with similar configuration to a Macbook Pro the price was pretty close. Seems like Apple doesn't make bare bones stuff which is why PC is cheaper on average but not apples to apples.

Of course it's quicker to load.  What do you spend your time on, loading or working and is 20 seconds at the start really worth the money?  When working it's all in RAM anyway.

It's not much money so that alone would be worth it. Also it would be obvious to anyone with a bit of computer literacy that starting programs and swapping/caching is also hell of lot faster with ssd... because no, it's almost never ever all RAM when working, even if you have a lot of it. It's right there in photoshop, one of the most basic settings to do after install, swap disc / ram usage: edit-->preferences-->performance. Glad I could help.

« Reply #78 on: May 07, 2014, 00:52 »
+2
I've had more serious trouble with my MACs than I ever had with PCs - in 2012 both my iMac and my Macbook crashed within 2 days of each other! My antivirus software finds the occasional virus and cleans it.

Yet, despite the higher cost and their track record, I wouldn't go back to a PC. I've used my husband's and friend's PCs from time to time over the past 6-7 years since I switched and find them far less user-friendly than MACs.

As a photographer, when I print the colors match, even from my uncalibrated laptop prints look much as they do on my screen. Personally, I find it worth the difference. And the convenience of the MAC stores and their online help beats any of the PC manufacturers I've dealt with (I had trouble with my Dell and HP PCs/laptops too - and getting help was always a trial).
Just one woman's opinion.

Once you get the hang of the MAC again, I think you'll be happy. Apple Care is a necessity. Good choice.

Same experience here. I worked with macs for years and years, they crash like any other computer, but when they do it's a lot more severe issue than with a PC. With a PC it was always just the application in use dying and doing it instantly, I could reload it in 2 secs. With macs, it was the wheel spinning for god knows how long, because you never knew if it was a crash or just the system getting clogged up. When it didn't come back after about 5-10 mins, it always needed cold reset and waiting for the whole system to reboot. You get very-very quickly disillusioned from the mac myth when you do some professional workload on them.

« Reply #79 on: May 07, 2014, 01:21 »
+1
I would wait a bit more and buy the new upcoming Mac Mini i7 with maximum RAM, as I am doing "now"

« Reply #80 on: May 07, 2014, 01:34 »
0
I have

- iMac 27" 2011 2.7ghz i5 8gb ram
- 2011 MBP13" 2.4ghz i5 8gb ram

Both works well with adobe illustrator. When I edit photos with lightroom, 8gb sometimes is the problem. If I have anything else going on at the same time, both computers comes sick slow.

I still never would go back to windows as they suck so bad in my opinion. It's not about the hardware, but the windows. I'm too newbie and lazy to build a hackintosh.

Next time I'll buy a new 27" iMac with 32gb ram. Or then I'll just upgrade now to 32gb.

JKB

« Reply #81 on: May 10, 2014, 08:31 »
0
Lots of good info in this thread, thanks!

« Reply #82 on: May 10, 2014, 08:34 »
-2
Ignorance is a bad beast. :-X

« Reply #83 on: May 10, 2014, 08:53 »
0
Ignorance is a bad beast. :-X

cheers man, that was brilliant!

PaulieWalnuts

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« Reply #84 on: May 10, 2014, 12:37 »
+1
The one thing that i see (and hear) over and over is "laptop." I'm not sure why anyone wanting to get a serious volume of work done would consider a laptop in the first place. You get much more bang for your buck (Mac or PC) from a desktop. And honestly, how often are you doing heavy-duty work when you're not in your home or office?

YMMV, but for me, when I'm not in my office in front of my computer, I don't want my computer following me!  ;D

Having one computer is more efficient. I was using a Windows desktop and laptop and managing data between the two was a pain. I picked up a MacBook Pro with I7, 16GB, SSD Hybrid and connected it to a 24" monitor. I no longer need a desktop. It runs Lightroom, Photoshop and everything else great. And if I need to travel I have everything on my laptop.

« Reply #85 on: May 10, 2014, 16:36 »
0
lb for lb MACs are at least twice the price - I'd prefer to spend on CPU and RAM than badges or complete non-essentials like SSDs.

I would hesitate to put SSDs into the non-essential category. The increase in performance is pretty amazing!

I'd agree. I tested the boot time between a HDD vs Hybrid HDD/SSD. HDD was 42 seconds. Hybrid was 20 seconds. I haven't timed anything else but a lot of apps seem a lot quicker to load and run with the Hybrid.

And I'm not sure the price thing is accurate. I always believed this too but when I spec'd out a Dell laptop with similar configuration to a Macbook Pro the price was pretty close. Seems like Apple doesn't make bare bones stuff which is why PC is cheaper on average but not apples to apples.

Of course it's quicker to load.  What do you spend your time on, loading or working and is 20 seconds at the start really worth the money?  When working it's all in RAM anyway.

It's not much money so that alone would be worth it. Also it would be obvious to anyone with a bit of computer literacy that starting programs and swapping/caching is also hell of lot faster with ssd... because no, it's almost never ever all RAM when working, even if you have a lot of it. It's right there in photoshop, one of the most basic settings to do after install, swap disc / ram usage: edit-->preferences-->performance. Glad I could help.

You didn't - anyone with basic computer literacy knows that processing requires the program and data to be in RAM - SSDs certainly get it in there faster but, unless you're working on high transaction volumes, it's not much of an issue.

« Reply #86 on: May 10, 2014, 16:54 »
0
any comments regarding video cards ?

I don't want to run 3d games but video from my 5dMkII stalls my present 5 year old computer.

Any comments on Dell Inspiron Vs XPS series desktops.

« Reply #87 on: May 12, 2014, 11:52 »
0
I'm no MAC zealot, but if you're working with huge files (processing can turn a 34MB RAW file into a 400+MB layered PSD giant really fast ) I'd go with a MAC and opt for a SSD as the main hard drive as those processing seconds you save turn into minutes and hours really fast.

I had planned to upgrade my iMac to 16 GB RAM when I had the funds (bought it after two computers crashed in three days due to some electrical issues-nightmare), but never bothered because since I got the SSD/HD hybrid iMac, I can keep working at peak performance even with my terrible habit of keeping too many windows & apps open. (I can work really fast in PS with no crashes even with LR, PS (5-8 files open) along with a Nik filter window I"m working on, Bridge, Word, Excel, Mail (with a few accounts) 2 browsers (lots of windows open - 70+), Adobe Reader and Preview ( a duplicative waste I know) all open at once)

On the iMac, all my apps are on the SSD. I have a few other items on the SSD - my documents and Mail, a few photos but most of the photos are on the  second internal HD or the external one. Caches are split between the SSD and other HDs - I do go in every month or so and clear them out.

With the laptop it's all on SSD (since it's the only internal drive) and since I use the laptop when traveling I don't usually have an external drive attached except for daily backup.
 
Again, just my experience, but IMHO I'm glad I spent the $ on the SSD rather than more RAM. I have a 2.8 Ghz i7 processor on the macbook and not sure if the one on the iMac is a 2.5 or 2.8 and an i5 or i7. This little 13" macbookpro packs so much power and weighs next to nothing.

The graphics card on the macbook is an Intel Iris 1024 MB - I really know nothing about gaming or graphic cards so doubt that is much help.
« Last Edit: May 12, 2014, 12:22 by wordplanet »

« Reply #88 on: May 13, 2014, 04:42 »
0
I think you can get by cheaper by buying a PC, or building a hackintosh.

My configuration:

Proc: Intel Core i7 4770   
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO - 250 GB
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 - SATA III 6 Gb/s - 2 TB   
Graphics: MSI GeForce GTX 760 (2 GB)   
RAM: G.Skill Kit Extreme3 16 GB PC12800 Ripjaws X CAS10

Packed everything in the quietest case I could find, the CPU temperature is around 30 degrees, it's a joy to work and play (I upgraded like 10 days ago so I'm still surprised how fast it is, especially compared to my old computer) and you can barely hear the computer when it's on.

Anyway, if you're doing anything serious, an SSD and 16 GB of RAM is a must. And the strongest proc your money can buy. Cuda cores are a plus.

« Reply #89 on: May 13, 2014, 05:50 »
+2
Well, I had Windows (xp,2000, 7) the whole life, I have android phone and tablet. But I need new laptop for uploading editorial to news agency during the matches.

As I hate win8, I will buy now MacBook Pro 13 Retina (i5 2,4GHz/8GB/256GB/Intel Iris). Good performance for the money.

I will stay on android and Win on the workstation. No need to change that. If you are going to use standard photo tools like LR/PS/PhotoMech/. You dont have to have everything from apple :) I will backup to normal cheap NAS storage from seagate, I will use 24" BenQ monitor etc..

Just buy what you need and ask your self why you need that. Anything will deliver the goods today :)

« Reply #90 on: May 13, 2014, 06:14 »
0
Recently got one of these for drawing on the screen.. (Sony vaio flip + sony stylus)

does the job just fine..

14 inch version is quite cheap too..

« Last Edit: May 13, 2014, 07:33 by cidepix »

« Reply #91 on: May 18, 2014, 11:45 »
0
I saw many person using imac for photo related job, is the imac screen good for it?

for a PC+good display, will the price come close to imac?

I would like to work on a bigger display after using lightroom on laptop screen..

now i put lightroom catalog on a portable drive so i can work on different computer, will it be able to share it for an imac OS?

« Reply #92 on: May 18, 2014, 12:46 »
+1
Thanks for starting this topic luis. I have also been trying to get the right machine for me as i was so sick of my dell laptop, specially their support in my country.. Pathetic. Probably dell providing good support in states and Europian country but not in asia.

No Dell is not providing good support in the US - their support is downright horrible! Dell has lost me as a customer forever. They treat their customers like dirt.

« Reply #93 on: May 18, 2014, 14:41 »
+1
not in the UK

Sri

« Reply #94 on: May 18, 2014, 14:52 »
0
Thanks for starting this topic luis. I have also been trying to get the right machine for me as i was so sick of my dell laptop, specially their support in my country.. Pathetic. Probably dell providing good support in states and Europian country but not in asia.

No Dell is not providing good support in the US - their support is downright horrible! Dell has lost me as a customer forever. They treat their customers like dirt.
oh. Sad to hear that. HP is also an US company but i dont hear much from Americans about them. Its support is better in my country. I have a HP printer and even after rough use, its working perfectly and its support has been great so HP probably my next brand. When i was buying dell, i was so optimistic about it but HELL. Completely regretting. Now i think the brand which advertise more (in my country), are not so good
« Last Edit: May 18, 2014, 14:57 by Sri »

« Reply #95 on: May 19, 2014, 12:32 »
0
Back in my PC days I had both Dells and HPs - my husband still has an HP - and I've always had HP printers. HP's customer service is quite good. Dell was always awful.

I love my iMac but I have been told that a Mac tower with a separate screen is slightly better because the iMac screen will always make your photos look a little bluer (cooler) than they really are, even when you color calibrate it. I keep that in mind and if something looks a little warm I'll tend to tweak the white balance to make it a little cooler, but I get excellent color fidelity when I print - I have a Canon Pixma - so I would go for the iMac.

I've used the tower Mac (Mac Pro desktop) when I was assisting another photographer and helping her print up her portfolio on a very expensive Epson Pro printer and honestly don't feel the extra cost and space required by the tower is worth it. Most of the designers out there are going to be looking at your work on an iMac.

There are plenty of good PCs out there too from what I've heard - I think the most important thing is to get a powerful machine and if you get a Solid State Drive and at least 8MB RAM it will be blazing fast. If you're used to a PC, I'd price out both a PC and an iMac customized the way you want them and then decide.

Batman

« Reply #96 on: May 19, 2014, 17:16 »
0
The one thing that i see (and hear) over and over is "laptop." I'm not sure why anyone wanting to get a serious volume of work done would consider a laptop in the first place. You get much more bang for your buck (Mac or PC) from a desktop. And honestly, how often are you doing heavy-duty work when you're not in your home or office?

YMMV, but for me, when I'm not in my office in front of my computer, I don't want my computer following me!  ;D

Having one computer is more efficient. I was using a Windows desktop and laptop and managing data between the two was a pain. I picked up a MacBook Pro with I7, 16GB, SSD Hybrid and connected it to a 24" monitor. I no longer need a desktop. It runs Lightroom, Photoshop and everything else great. And if I need to travel I have everything on my laptop.

If you lose MacBook you lose everything. iMac 27 work, with local backup. PC laptop road. Cloud storage share files.

Beppe Grillo

« Reply #97 on: May 20, 2014, 00:56 »
0
The one thing that i see (and hear) over and over is "laptop." I'm not sure why anyone wanting to get a serious volume of work done would consider a laptop in the first place. You get much more bang for your buck (Mac or PC) from a desktop. And honestly, how often are you doing heavy-duty work when you're not in your home or office?

YMMV, but for me, when I'm not in my office in front of my computer, I don't want my computer following me!  ;D

Having one computer is more efficient. I was using a Windows desktop and laptop and managing data between the two was a pain. I picked up a MacBook Pro with I7, 16GB, SSD Hybrid and connected it to a 24" monitor. I no longer need a desktop. It runs Lightroom, Photoshop and everything else great. And if I need to travel I have everything on my laptop.

If you lose MacBook you lose everything. iMac 27 work, with local backup. PC laptop road. Cloud storage share files.

Why?
During a travel you can have a portable HD (less than 100 g) as Back-up / Time Machine HD
And you still can make a back-up of important data (or a complete back-up) in the cloud if you want.
And you can have another Back-up / Time Machine HD at home too.


PaulieWalnuts

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« Reply #98 on: May 20, 2014, 05:07 »
0
The one thing that i see (and hear) over and over is "laptop." I'm not sure why anyone wanting to get a serious volume of work done would consider a laptop in the first place. You get much more bang for your buck (Mac or PC) from a desktop. And honestly, how often are you doing heavy-duty work when you're not in your home or office?

YMMV, but for me, when I'm not in my office in front of my computer, I don't want my computer following me!  ;D

Having one computer is more efficient. I was using a Windows desktop and laptop and managing data between the two was a pain. I picked up a MacBook Pro with I7, 16GB, SSD Hybrid and connected it to a 24" monitor. I no longer need a desktop. It runs Lightroom, Photoshop and everything else great. And if I need to travel I have everything on my laptop.

If you lose MacBook you lose everything. iMac 27 work, with local backup. PC laptop road. Cloud storage share files.

I use a portable external 2TB mini drive for images. Everything gets backed up weekly to a regular 4TB portable drive at home that's stored in a safe. I'm planning on adding another backup drive to store offsite.

« Reply #99 on: June 27, 2023, 08:23 »
0
I want to buy a laptop for video processing in 4k and 6k. Advise configuration or model?
This configuration is already outdated:?

- Intel Core I7-10750H;
- 32 gb (DDR4)
- SSD 512 gb.
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, Intel UHD, 6 gb GDDR6


 

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