13" Mac Pro & Photoshop

The graphics on the 15" Pro are really great. However, I am looking for something smaller and lighter. What are the opinions about the quality of the graphics on the 13" (since it uses a different video card)?

I am looking for a Photoshop/Lightroom capable laptop, but one as small and light as possible.

Thanks.

I suppose it'd depend on what you're doing with it to be very honest. CS5.1 and LR3 run just fine on my wifes 2010 13" macbook.. it's just slower than my 2011mbp. Now, it's actually just about as fast as my 08 mbp is (and that ran it fine too really).

I use CS3 on my 2007 MacBook (not pro), no complaints.

Thank you for the feedback. My eyes are not what they use to be so I was worried about the quality of the image on the smaller screen.

Native is 1280 by 800 on those, so it should be about the same (proportionally) as the resolution on the base 15". If you can, go to an apple store and play with them. That will give you the best idea since that's a completely personal thing

Unfortunately, no Apple store in Arkansas. I have a friend that has a 15" Pro and the graphics are great at 1440x900. But it is too big and heavy for my needs. That is why I thought I would check on this forum.

I was thinking about the 13" Air, but it is so costly. Besides, I am not sure 256GB is enough storage.

Well, you can always upgrade the hard drive.. or, and possibly even better actually, store your images on an external drive. This is what I do, even if I have to work on the local drive I just move the images to an external in Lightroom when I'm back to where I have the drive.

I did not know a 512GB flash storage drive was available.

However, your external drive idea is certainly a choice except that I am trying to reduce the weight and size of what I have to carry. I have a 500MB passport that might work on the road and a !TB when home.

If you think the Macbook Air w/256GB flash storage is expensive ... a 480GB SSD drive (the largest I know to be available is likely to cost nearly as much as the entire computer!

OWC Mercury Extreme Pro Solid State Drive (SSD) Solutions - High Performance, Reliability, and Endurance

480GB drive -- $880 plus shipping.

I have a 13' Air (the one with 2.13Ghz, 4GB and 256 SSD) and I run both Lightroom (3) and Photoshop Cs5 on it with no issues. It's also extremly light and portable and has and awesome display with a resolution of 1440x900. It's true, it cost me an arm and a leg (well, not quite but you get my point ) but it's so worth it! If the 256 is not enough you cand always store some of the images on an exernal hard drive that you can get for a very decent price.

I looked at the 13" Air and it is very nice.

Here is my dilemma. The Air is using somewhat dated processor and graphics technology. Considering when it was released and the technology being used on the Pros, it is not unreasonable to expect a replacement, maybe in a couple of months.

I wish they had an Air with the Pro processor & graphics.

So you say get a Pro. Indeed the 13" Pro is an option; however, its resolution is limited to 1280x800 compared to 1440x900 on the Air (the 15" Pro has 1440x900). Also, the Pro weighs 4.5 lbs compared to 3 lbs for the Air. One might replace the 500GB Pro hard drive with a 256GB or 512GB SSD drive, but now we are starting to talk big bucks! I do not know how much it would reduce the Pro's weight either. My guess, from specs of available internal drives is a reduction in weight of 1.25 lbs. If correct, that gets the weight of the Pro down to around 3.25 lbs which makes it competitive in terms of weight, but not in terms of cost and resolution. I have no idea what noticeable difference 1280x800 versus 1440x900 would make when using Photoshop on a raw file.

The current Air certainly does the job. I just hate to pay market price for technology that might soon to be upgraded.

Those chocolates just keep on causing uncertainty.

Regards.

Mike

If you can afford to wait a little while, roumor has it there's a new Macbook Air coming out this year, keeping the looks of the existent one but with Sandy Bridge

MikeV99 said:

I wish they had an Air with the Pro processor & graphics.

Click to expand...

So does Apple, but those items you wish for generate a LOT of heat (and in the case of the graphics card, significant weight compared to a chipset). You simply can't get everything that might be nice into that form factor, at that weight. At least, not now or in the near-term future.

Those chocolates just keep on causing uncertainty.

Click to expand...

I have no idea what this means, but I like it. May have to snag that for the quotefile.

get a MB pro over the Air you will be so glad you did. i have the 13" MB pro,installed a SSD for my OS and a 1 TB in the optical drive bay. Also upgraded the RAM to 8GB. All you will need. i will upgrade my ssd as they get cheaper

He seems to be interested quite a bit in portability also, and the pro is a little bit heavier. I guess, in the end, it just comes down to what's more important: processing power or portability, because you can't have both in the same machine unfortunately

My thanks to all that responded. I think I will hang on for a little while to see what develops.

Regards

kdyarb2002 said:

get a MB pro over the Air you will be so glad you did. i have the 13" MB pro,installed a SSD for my OS and a 1 TB in the optical drive bay. Also upgraded the RAM to 8GB. All you will need. i will upgrade my ssd as they get cheaper

Click to expand...

Now that the new MBA's are out I need to make a decision.

How does the weight & heat of your Pro compare with the MBA?

I am thinking about the MBA for a light weight laptop (travel & sitting in my recliner). I would use it for standard things. However, I would want to use it with Photoshop & Lightroom (image reviews and ranking, doing tutorials, quick & dirty image editing).

Will the MBA be acceptable for those uses compared to the Pro?

Thanks,

Mike

I use my MBP while reclining in my recliner and I don't find that it is too heavy at all. I use it at work and traveling and I think the size and weight is just fine and I don't have to worry about a lack of processor power.

I personally would go with the Pro as it essentially eliminates the need for an external drive and you can upgrade the Pro as well before you buy. I just think the Pro gives you many more options over the Air since your needs could/may change with time.

Regards,

Pat

PatM,

Thanks for the advice. I guess if one got the SSD it would decrease the weight? How much does your Pro weigh? Does it get hot sitting on your lap?

I have a 15" Dell that is heavy and hot. I have to use a small lap desk to avoid all the heat on my legs. Holding it on my lap is also tiring due to the weight. I'd really like to avoid having that problem with the replacement.

I am hoping to visit an Apple store before I leave Fort Worth for home.

Regards,

Mike

PS

The Mac Air has better resolution (1440 by 900 pixels) than on the Pro (1280 by 800 pixels). Would that be noticeable when editing photos?

I think the SSD would decrease the weight a little but I don't think you would notice it. I know I would not. My Mac does not get hot. I see posts here and there where folks complain that it gets hot when watching video on You Tube and such but I have never experienced that. I've watched all kinds of videos for hours on end and the unit just barely gets warm.

I think some people get processes running in the background that causes this in a lot of cases. I keep the small activity monitor up so that I can monitor any run away processes. I don't have a lot of extraneous software etc on my system and keep the hidden files hidden. (That way I can't screw things up.) I considered myself a windows power user but with Mac I think I am going to be the opposite.

Keep in mind that I have the 13 inch. The 15 I'm sure is heavier. I'm not exactly sure of the weight of my notebook but the Apple site should tell you. It's light compared to other brands. I just think the 13 inch gives a lot of options compared to the Air. And options is a good thing. (The new air is pretty powerful compared to the previous model.)

Regards,

Pat