New Mac Book Pro worth it?

Vodoochild81

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Jan 2, 2014
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I am a pro video editor and used to be a mac user my whole life. Recently I built a PC with "gaming hardware" for editing and it has worked better than any Mac I ever had. I need a lap top and was planning on getting the new Mac Book Pro if in June they released a much more powerful one. Well, it doesn't appear to be so. I just can't see why I should buy a Mac Book Pro when I can get a lap top like this for half the price. I could even buy 2 lap tops and still it would be cheaper. Plus it seems they are equal in specs but the Acer has a better video card with 6gbs or ram. Let me know what you guys think and if there is something I am not understanding.

I know OSX is a big selling point but Premiere and AFX runs the same on Windows 10 and in my experience better. Apple just clearly has their priorities now elsewhere and aren't miles above Windows as they used to be.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/475656/Aspire_V17_Nitro_Black_Edition_VN7-793G-717L_173_Gaming_Laptop_Computer_-_Slate_Black
 
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Apple prioritizes form over function. They refuse to cut vent holes into the bottom of their laptops. This means they can't pump as much heat out of the interior of their laptop, limiting the CPU and GPU they can use. The MBPs have historically used Intel's lower power CPUs (one of the reasons they're never a launch partner for new CPUs), and mid-grade GPUs.

So yeah, you're going to get better performance at a lower price from a PC laptop. The primary reason to get a MBP is because Apple does a decent job color calibrating all their screens at the factory. If you do graphics or photo or video work and need color accuracy, you can just buy a MBP and be done with it. With the PC laptops, you have to scour reviews to find a screen...

Vodoochild81

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Jan 2, 2014
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So the parts speak for themselves? Apple doesn't do some sort of special customization for their lap tops? It would also be a good thing if there is one with a color accurate display because I know the Mac Book Pro comes with a retina.

Which lap tops can you recommend that would blow this Mac Book Pro away?

Touch Bar and Touch ID
2.9GHz Processor
512GB Storage
2.9GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor
Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz
16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 memory
512GB SSD storage1
Radeon Pro 560 with 4GB memory
Four Thunderbolt 3 ports
Touch Bar and Touch ID
 

jaslion

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Dec 17, 2012
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http://www.ultrabookreview.com/11702-laptops-nvidia-1060/

Apple buys them from intel, amd,.. and sometimes even underclocks them to keep the laptops cool (their smaller laptops have this issue.) then they charge you a lot extra for the laptop. You are getting the same stuff anyone else is getting nothing altered about it.

Any one of them on this list that have a ips screen or depending on where you live you can get costum orderd laptop (Clevo,sager,...) that have everything you need for less than the mac. Of course 4 thunderbolt ports won't be found that easily but at least these laptops have one + all the other connections without needing a adapter.
 

Vodoochild81

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Jan 2, 2014
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Thank you. Which brand on that list would your recommend? Acer seems the cheapest but idk if they got better but they used to be terrible/
 
Apple prioritizes form over function. They refuse to cut vent holes into the bottom of their laptops. This means they can't pump as much heat out of the interior of their laptop, limiting the CPU and GPU they can use. The MBPs have historically used Intel's lower power CPUs (one of the reasons they're never a launch partner for new CPUs), and mid-grade GPUs.

So yeah, you're going to get better performance at a lower price from a PC laptop. The primary reason to get a MBP is because Apple does a decent job color calibrating all their screens at the factory. If you do graphics or photo or video work and need color accuracy, you can just buy a MBP and be done with it. With the PC laptops, you have to scour reviews to find a screen which hits close to 100% sRGB color gamut, then buy a colorimeter to calibrate the screen on your own. A high-end Sony laptop was the only one I've owned which came pre-calibrated (probably because its screen hit about 130% sRGB, so a profile was needed to dial the colors back down to normal).

Apple has also been on a crusade to eliminate your ability to upgrade the system. If you want x GB of RAM, or a y GB SSD, you have to buy it that way (paying Apple's exorbitant prices). You used to be able to upgrade those on your own in older MBPs, but since about 2 years ago they've both been soldered to the mainboard.

If you can find a MBP which meets your now and future needs at a reasonable price, it's definitely easier to buy it than look for an equivalent PC. But if your requirements might change in the future, or you want better performance, and/or you don't want to pay as much, a PC laptop will be better. Unfortunately you caught me between laptop upgrades, so I don't have a ready list of PC laptops with 100% sRGB screens and decent gaming GPUs.


The brand doesn't really matter except for warranty service. The vast majority of laptops are built by ODMs - they're like an OEM except they also design the laptop. Most brands use multiple ODMs, so a particular HP model may actually have more in common with a Dell model than it does with other HP models. The Macbooks and MBPs are made by Quanta, who also happens to make most of HP's and Dell's laptops (I suspect the high-end models, though the industry is very secretive about ODMs so it's tough to be sure).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_laptop_brands_and_manufacturers#Original_design_manufacturers_.28ODMs.29

Acer used to be an ODM, but they spun off that division as Wistron back in 2000. The Acer brand now gets its laptops from multiple ODMs, so quality varies depending on model (and which ODM build that model).
 
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jaslion

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Dec 17, 2012
529
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Acers predators are ok it's mostly hit or miss. The same site has reviews for almost all of them tho.