chose mbp with me!

okay I was am still debating on the which mbp 15 is best for me.

i just received my mbp 15 non retina with 2.6 specs customized antiglare.

main use will be photography and gaming. would the 2.3 retina mbp be better one?

I appreciate your responses and willing to reply back.

It sounds like you have some buyers remorse going on there. In all honesty, I personally feel the MBP non-retina is a better option right now. Reading Anandtech kind of solidified it for me - although an incredible technology, the GPU just isn't quite as powerful as it needs to be to really support the resolution of the display consistently. Specifically this page:

AnandTech - The next-gen MacBook Pro with Retina Display Review

General use is showing very low overall frame rates which is concerning because I don't want to have significant slow down when doing simple things like surfing the web or heaven forbid 1080p editing in FCP. I'd rather have lower resolution and consistent performance than have incredible resolution and crappy performance.

Eventually the GPU's (and for the CPU aspect of the limitations) will get there (there are some higher end GPUs that would probably do better but they would probably generate too much heat in the rMBP)

You also can't get antiglare in Retina currently - that will probably change eventually.

Although from your other post it may seem like Apple is taking a dim view on upgrading ones machine as those are user replaceable parts it shouldn't void the entire warranty (at least from what I read in the warranty the other day after noticing your post) unless the new part causes damage to the machine, at least it can be upgraded or the storage replaced should it fail unlike the new rMBP where if the RAM fails (yes, unlikely) or the SSD failed (more likely then the RAM) you are out of luck until you send it in - at least with the non retina you could go and get an off the shelf replacement and be back up and running in a day.

My opinion is right now the non-retina is a better option. when the mobile GPU (and CPU) become stronger, retina will be IMHO a good option. I'd hate to have to run my display at non-native resolution for everything just to maintain quality performance.

Also if you want to use it for gaming you wouldn't be able to run games at the resolution of the retina screen.

Scott_ said:

okay I was am still debating on the which mbp 15 is best for me.

i just received my mbp 15 non retina with 2.6 specs customized antiglare.

main use will be photography and gaming. would the 2.3 retina mbp be better one?

I appreciate your responses and willing to reply back.

Click to expand...

Does this mean that if we don't agree with the non-retina MBP purchase...that you're going to return it?

As far as would the retina MBP be a better choice:

- are you ok with no built-in optical drive?
- are you ok with not being able to upgrade the ram after purchase?
- are you ok (at least at the moment) with not being able to upgrade the storage amount after purchase (this could change if a 3rd party manufacturer comes up with a solution)?

These are three areas for thought for the retina vs. non-retina.

HTH,

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Does this mean that if we don't agree with the non-retina MBP purchase...that you're going to return it?

As far as would the retina MBP be a better choice:

- are you ok with no built-in optical drive?
- are you ok with not being able to upgrade the ram after purchase?
- are you ok (at least at the moment) with not being able to upgrade the storage amount after purchase (this could change if a 3rd party manufacturer comes up with a solution)?

These are three areas for thought for the retina vs. non-retina.

HTH,

- Nick

Click to expand...

Solid points

One thing you would want to do is upgrade the RAM in your computer for Photoshop to work as smoothly as it can. 16gb of RAM is a lot better than the stock 4gb

TheAppleKid said:

One thing you would want to do is upgrade the RAM in your computer for Photoshop to work as smoothly as it can. 16gb of RAM is a lot better than the stock 4gb

Click to expand...

16GB is overkill, sure 4 is low but I wouldn't go as far as to say get 16.

@macmacattack: If getting the retina model, might as well get 16. As the OS develops and applications utilize more and more RAM, getting 16 will extend the life (and resale value) of the retina model - especially considering you can't upgrade the RAM after the fact with Retina.

Now, IMHO a non-retina is a better option right now, but for those plunking down the cash for the Retina (especially the higher end retina) might as well get all that you think you'll need since there is no turning back later.

TheAppleKid said:

One thing you would want to do is upgrade the RAM in your computer for Photoshop to work as smoothly as it can. 16gb of RAM is a lot better than the stock 4gb

Click to expand...

Can the current Lion actually use more than 8gig of memory? I was under the impression that is could not. I must be wrong about this limitation?

V6Pony said:

Can the current Lion actually use more than 8gig of memory? I was under the impression that is could not. I must be wrong about this limitation?

Click to expand...

I don't know WHERE in the world you got that idea. The last max RAM that I had seen tested @ OWC was 128Gig. You can get configured at Apple 64 Gigs of RAM. See:

OWC 128GB MaxRAM Upgrade Unleashes The Performance Beast In Mac Pro With Double The Factory Memory At 49 Percent Lower Cost | Other World Computing Blog

and:

Configure - Apple Store (U.S.)

**uodate I returned the mbp 15 non retina antiglare and got base model retina. I had some discounts with apple it only cost me 1799. So I'm very happy. It's amazing how thinner it is.

Nethfel said:

@macmacattack: If getting the retina model, might as well get 16. As the OS develops and applications utilize more and more RAM, getting 16 will extend the life (and resale value) of the retina model - especially considering you can't upgrade the RAM after the fact with Retina.

Now, IMHO a non-retina is a better option right now, but for those plunking down the cash for the Retina (especially the higher end retina) might as well get all that you think you'll need since there is no turning back later.

Click to expand...

I keep forgetting it's not up-gradable.

macmacattack said:

I keep forgetting it's not up-gradable.

Click to expand...

Yeah, if it was upgradeable, I'd definitely agree to get the 8 (or even the 4 since usually after market memory upgrades are cheaper then what apple offers). Kind of a buzzkill but it's Apples technology so they can do with it whatever they want and people will either buy it in droves (see the 3-4 week wait time for retina on the website) or buy the upgradeable model (like I have )

@scott_: I hope the retina model serves you well. We all have to ultimately purchase what is in our best interest. If having the retina version is what satisfies you then you have made the right choice for your own needs otherwise you'd have buyers remorse for all time.

I wonder if they'll get enough complaints by the next generation to switch back to modular RAM

I am enjoying the retina. It's the base model. Only wish I would of got 16gb ram but I'm ok with it since I was able to get this at the store instead of waiting over a month. (and prob don't need that much ram) Also I got it for 1799 plus tax so I'm very happy with it. Upgraded from my 13mbp

Scott_ said:

I am enjoying the retina. It's the base model. Only wish I would of got 16gb ram but I'm ok with it since I was able to get this at the store instead of waiting over a month. (and prob don't need that much ram) Also I got it for 1799 plus tax so I'm very happy with it. Upgraded from my 13mbp

Click to expand...

Have you found any applications that the retina really shines?