Apple Computers...

[Blansky]

I have an iPhone, iPad, but have always used PC desktops/laptops.

I'm considering switching to an Apple laptop and looking on Amazon and see that on what's shown the RAM and storage seems to be a lot lower on the models listed there than what I'm used to.

Now I have a HP 32 GB RAM and 1T storage laptop and wonder if Apple is just faster/better and I could settle for 8/16 GB RAM and 512 or less of storage that I see listed there. I also have an older PC that I used to use for retouching etc but it's getting long in the tooth.

What I dislike about the HP/PC system these days is all the crap that is added to the system that's supposed to be "helpful" but is really just trying to lock you into their universe.

All I'm using it for is storage/retouching and cataloging of a few thousand pictures which are stored on a external hard drive anyways and are brought into the computer through LIGHTROOM.

Any insights or recommendations??

[Maleg]

If you aren’t going to use the Apple universe (sharing, icloud, etc), stick with the PC’s. If you are mostly just using it for Lightroom and Photoshop, you can get much more horsepower for your dollar on a PC than an Apple will get you. The bloatware is easy enough to discard on a PC, not so much with Apple.

[sickened1]

Originally Posted by Blansky

I have an iPhone, iPad, but have always used PC desktops/laptops.

I'm considering switching to an Apple laptop and looking on Amazon and see that on what's shown the RAM and storage seems to be a lot lower on the models listed there than what I'm used to.

Now I have a HP 32 GB RAM and 1T storage and wonder if Apple is just faster/better and I could settle for 8/16 GB RAM and 512 or less of storage that I see listed there.

What I dislike about the HP/PC system these days is all the crap that is added to the system that's supposed to be "helpful" but is really just trying to lock you into their universe.

All I'm using it for is storage/retouching and cataloging of a few thousand pictures which are stored on a external hard drive anyways and are brought into the computer through LIGHTROOM.

Any insights or recommendations??

Depends on what you do. For me I have a MBA (MacBook Air) 13" M2 with 8 GB of RAM and I mostly use it when I travel for web browsing, checking email and some light photo editing, etc. Right now Best Buy has it on sale for around $850 which is a good deal.

I also have a desktop PC (built it myself), laptop & a work laptop as well so I've used all of them. Personally I don't like Windows 11 too much due to intrusive ads. Might go with Linux on my next build.

Hope that helps.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by sickened1

Depends on what you do. For me I have a MBA (MacBook Air) 13" M2 with 8 GB of RAM and I mostly use it when I travel for web browsing, checking email and some light photo editing, etc. Right now Best Buy has it on sale for around $850 which is a good deal.

I also have a desktop PC (built it myself), laptop & a work laptop as well so I've used all of them. Personally I don't like Windows 11 too much due to intrusive ads. Might go with Linux on my next build.

Hope that helps.

Thanks, I saw that as well as the 15 for 1200.

I have a 22 inch older desktop I use for most things and my laptop is 15.5ish and I wonder if I'd find a 13 inch really small especially for picture retouching etc.

[sickened1]

Well, BB has a 15" MBA M3 (newer chip) with 8 GB for $1200 which isn't so bad but it only has 8 gig Ram. If you do a bit more photo editing (Photoshop for example) then you may want to up the RAM to 16 or more. It does make a difference.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/macbook...?skuId=6565838

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by Maleg

If you aren’t going to use the Apple universe (sharing, icloud, etc), stick with the PC’s. If you are mostly just using it for Lightroom and Photoshop, you can get much more horsepower for your dollar on a PC than an Apple will get you. The bloatware is easy enough to discard on a PC, not so much with Apple.

Thanks, I was wondering if I need all that much RAM with what I'm doing these days and since the pics are all stored on the external do I need that much storage as well.

From the old days I have a hot rod PC for doing lots of retouching with multiple layers, and images the RAM was really necessary, now I'm just doing some tweaking on scenics which doesn't need much RAM or storage and wonder if the speed of the Apple chips etc if getting 32RAM and big storage is necessary.

I'm ok spending around $1000-1200.

[brandrea]

I hate to break it to you Blansky, but Apple will suck you into THEIR universe too

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by sickened1

Well, BB has a 15" MBA M3 (newer chip) with 8 GB for $1200 which isn't so bad but it only has 8 gig Ram. If you do a bit more photo editing (Photoshop for example) then you may want to up the RAM to 16 or more. It does make a difference.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/macbook...?skuId=6565838

Thanks, I doubt that I will even be using Photoshop anymore since all the tweaking I do with scenics is just really Lightroom.

Before when I did multiple layers and head swaps and various other 'cheats' I needed Photoshop but probably not now.

And speed is really not an issue anymore either as when I was downloaded hundreds of pictures at a time.

[sickened1]

Originally Posted by brandrea

I hate to break it to you Blansky, but Apple will suck you into THEIR universe too

Brian is right! Their walled garden is even bigger than Microsoft.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by brandrea

I hate to break it to you Blansky, but Apple will suck you into THEIR universe too

With an iPad and iPhone I'm sort of used to it.

Now Windows has all these crappy things that try to copy Apple with stupid names that is a pain to get rid of and is soooo helpful.

I bought an HP a few months ago but the crap that was added on to it pissed me off. The older PC I use for most things never had that crap in it and I was surprised when the new HP came loaded with it. I think eventually in the next year or so the older PC will bite the dust and I'll just have a laptop or 2 for everything and was wondering if now would be a good time to just switch over to Apple and be done with it.

I used to run my photography business with my hot rod PC and run 4 externals for backup and but that was 10-15 years ago. Those days are over.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Blansky

With an iPad and iPhone I'm sort of used to it.

Now Windows has all these crappy things that try to copy Apple with stupid names that is a pain to get rid of and is soooo helpful.

I hear you I guess they’re about equal in that department.

My thought is that since you’re part way into the Apple echo system anyways, you might as well go whole hog


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[Krash]

I also have an iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. But I have a Windows Desktop PC. To be honest, I’m not ready to make the leap to a Mac desktop.

I can’t quote you performance, pricing data, or anything like that. I’m just sticking with Microsoft on the desktop. Probably because of years serving as tech exec for a large bank, and we just standardized on windows as our desktop platform. We never even considered the Macintosh as a serious option.

Admittedly, this might not be rational feedback for home use.


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[Blansky]

Originally Posted by sickened1

Brian is right! Their walled garden is even bigger than Microsoft.

But with using both PC and Apple I'm fighting with 2 walled gardens.

[Tri-Tip]

Originally Posted by Blansky

I have an iPhone, iPad, but have always used PC desktops/laptops.

I'm considering switching to an Apple laptop and looking on Amazon and see that on what's shown the RAM and storage seems to be a lot lower on the models listed there than what I'm used to.

Now I have a HP 32 GB RAM and 1T storage and wonder if Apple is just faster/better and I could settle for 8/16 GB RAM and 512 or less of storage that I see listed there.

What I dislike about the HP/PC system these days is all the crap that is added to the system that's supposed to be "helpful" but is really just trying to lock you into their universe.

All I'm using it for is storage/retouching and cataloging of a few thousand pictures which are stored on a external hard drive anyways and are brought into the computer through LIGHTROOM.

Any insights or recommendations??

Regarding the bolded, Apple is MUCH worse in this area than the Windows environment.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by Krash

I also have an iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. But I have a Windows Desktop PC. To be honest, I’m not ready to make the leap to a Mac desktop.

I can’t quote you performance, pricing data, or anything like that. I’m just sticking with Microsoft on the desktop. Probably because of years serving as tech exec for a large bank, and we just standardized on windows as our desktop platform. We never even considered the Macintosh as a serious option.


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That's funny because in the "serious" photographic/graphic industry Apple was always the standard. I just never wanted to spend the money for a desktop Apple, so I just 'stumpled along' with a PC.

[Blansky]

I saw that Amazon has a bunch of refurbished Apple stuff as well. Is that a serious option or a disaster in the making I wonder?

[Krash]

Originally Posted by Blansky

That's funny because in the "serious" photographic/graphic industry Apple was always the standard. I just never wanted to spend the money for a desktop Apple, so I just 'stumpled along' with a PC.

Yes, of course. Banking is very different. We didn’t edit photos and movies. Our focus was on banking applications (credit cards, savings, checking, mortgages, and wealth management).

Our application systems had to handle trillions of financial transactions a week. We also handled a million customer support calls every three days. We didn’t mess around. All of our agents used Windows desktops.


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[77T]

Originally Posted by Blansky

I saw that Amazon has a bunch of refurbished Apple stuff as well. Is that a serious option or a disaster in the making I wonder?

If you go refurb'd Apple has them on their Apple Store App. You'll save $$$ and know that is "clean".

Since you're image oriented, go as many core GPUs and RAM as your wallet allows.

My MBP is configured with
• Apple M3 Max chip with
14-core CPU, 30-core GPU,
16-core Neural Engine
• 36GB unified memory
• 1TB SSD storage
• 16-inch Liquid Retina XDR display

No complaints

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[JasoninDenver]

I have been on Macs for 20 years now. There is no way I could go back to Windows. Recently my wife and a close friend switched and they are amazed at how much more user friendly they are.

I personally would get 16gb memory since you cannot add memory on these new Macs.

Keep in mind that the Apple can share/swap RAM with the SSD hard drive so you may be fine with 8gb. I do wonder about the demands that will be placed with future software though, especially with the emergence of AI.

As far as storage, I have 1gb and have it 70% filled. If you keep your photo library on an external, you should be okay with a 512 SSD.i would not get 256.

[~JJ]

Refurbished is fine since these tend to run good for a while and are pretty reliable. However, if you are looking for a great user experience, then I would go with the latest 2023+ MacBook Pro. I get a new pro via work every other year so I’ve had several over the past 20 years. The latest version has a much better case and fan design so the machine runs very quiet (no noise on heavy software) and almost no heat. I found the 2016-2022 to have heat issues and terrible keyboard. Pay the extra for a much better experience that will last 7-10 years. Additionally, the new design includes important ports (hdmi, etc..), which removes the dependency of so many dongles and provides a cleaner look.

[SDGT3]

Just less than 10 years ago we went with a powerful (for that time) 32RAM and 3TB Mac desktop necessary to work with photos and film. That machine is still working today and still happy with it. I use a MPB laptop with less specs for on the go while the wife uses a PC. Since that time, Apple is making their own chips and are much faster and use less energy.

We’ve had to replace 3 PCs in the time we’ve had the Macs and it’s time again to replace her PC - trying to convince her to go to an Apple product but she’s not sure about learning a new operating system.

If you do go the Mac route, I would wait for what they announce at the developers conference on Tuesday and see if any AI related items will be incorporated with their new offerings.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by ~JJ

Refurbished is fine since these tend to run good for a while and are pretty reliable. However, if you are looking for a great user experience, then I would go with the latest 2023+ MacBook Pro. I get a new pro via work every other year so I’ve had several over the past 20 years. The latest version has a much better case and fan design so the machine runs very quiet (no noise on heavy software) and almost no heat. I found the 2016-2022 to have heat issues and terrible keyboard. Pay the extra for a much better experience that will last 7-10 years. Additionally, the new design includes important ports (hdmi, etc..), which removes the dependency of so many dongles and provides a cleaner look.

What is refurbished exactly? Is it damaged box, is it returns due to ????, is it year old trade ins, is it malfunctioning ones that have been repaired, floor models that are scratched up, .....any idea?

[~JJ]

Originally Posted by Blansky

What is refurbished exactly? Is it damaged box, is it returns due to ????, is it year old trade ins, is it malfunctioning ones that have been repaired, floor models that are scratched up, .....any idea?

Depends where you purchase the refurb… from Apple they are trade in’s that are a year or two old and they get a deep cleaning and new cables… think CPO of the car world and they generally look new. From box stores, they are often display units or returns with a quick wipe down and factory reset. Amazon is a crap shoot and really depends on the end seller.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by ~JJ

Depends where you purchase the refurb… from Apple they are trade in’s that are a year or two old and they get a deep cleaning and new cables… think CPO of the car world and they generally look new. From box stores, they are often display units or returns with a quick wipe down and factory reset. Amazon is a crap shoot and really depends on the end seller.

Thanks.

[BraveBold]

Lifelong PC user. 3D animation in the 90s when SGI was the standard…then home systems built for 3DS Max, Softimage, Alias/Maya etc. Also audio recording through Cubase / Cakewalk.

Apple user for ipods/iphones/ipads since ipod launched.

Only switched to MacBook Pro in the past month. Got tired of my PC hanging / compatibility issues. I used to be more hands-on and customization was a priority. No more…

My impression is optimization is far better in the Mac ecosystem. Running final cut pro and logic pro now. Of course hard to gauge as running an overbuilt Mac for standard video and audio editing, but it runs flawlessly…

[shaunylw]

32 gb of ram and 1t in a MacBook Pro is going to run $3200-$3500 depending on what size screen in the m3 max. Unless you are running serious video editing or compression, i would get a 14 or 16 MBP with 36gb of ram in the m3 chip and just upgrade the storage for $200 to 1T. I have a 16 pro with the old M1 chip, and it absolutely rips. The m3 is so much faster but i have yet to see any delay.
Mostly running a lot of spreadsheets, some AI stuff, and a lot of report pulling. But this thing is faster than i could ever possibly need and i tend to get 5-6 years out of my pros.


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[Blansky]

As I mentioned I run about 900 GB of pictures on the external hard drive so is a lot of GB of storage really needed since Lightroom is almost the only program I want to run on the Apple computer.

[swils8610]

I’ve had a Mac Book air for 7 years. Love it. Never had any issues with it. I’ll never switch back to a PC.


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[VictorGMT]

Focus on performance, not specifications.

Apple silicon is generations ahead of everything else. Put some work on a USB and try it out on a MacBook at Apple store.

PC sellers focus on "specifications" because those are easy. Twice as much RAM! Must be good!

Performance is MUCH more difficult, easy for Apple with Apple silicon and software optimized for their hardware.