MacBook Pro vs Retina MacBook Pro

[njmafl]

Long story short… I need to replace my MacBook Pro and I have one of two choices (with no price difference to me): A) 2011 - standard MacBook Pro with 16 GB of RAM and a 500 GB SSD or B) 2012 - Retina MacBook Pro with 8 GB of RAM and a 250 GB SSD (note: the RAM and SSD in the Retina cannot be upgraded since they are soldered to the motherboard).
While I understand that the retina unit is 1 year newer, better resolution, and longer battery life… the standard unit has twice as much RAM and twice as much HD storage and still has an optical superdrive.
Can anyone tell me which is the better choice for photo and video editing? Is the 8 GB of RAM in the retina somehow just as fast or faster than the 16 GB of RAM in the older MacBook Pro?
Any help or info would be greatly appreciated!

 

[S.SubZero]

RAM in and of itself is not "speed." It's just a container to hold information. Where speed is perceived is in the ability for more RAM to store more stuff, so if you're running out of RAM at 8GB, you won't be at 16GB. You'd only care about having 16GB if you frequently fill 8GB.

The 2012 15" Retina is a little tricky because it still has the Intel HD4000/nVidia GT650 combo. The HD4000 in particular can struggle a little with the 2880x1800 display, especially if you use a higher rendered resolution for scaling. The RAM is soldered, however the storage is a proprietary module, so if you can find a 512GB+ 2012 Retina flash drive somewhere, a pentalobe screwdriver and a small star wrench are all ya need.

Note that for "photo and video editing" resolution of the screen will be important. The stock display on the 15" MBP is 1440x900, with a 1680x1050 option.

 

[chscag]

Long story short… I need to replace my MacBook Pro and I have one of two choices (with no price difference to me): A) 2011 - standard MacBook Pro with 16 GB of RAM and a 500 GB SSD or B) 2012 - Retina MacBook Pro with 8 GB of RAM and a 250 GB SSD (note: the RAM and SSD in the Retina cannot be upgraded since they are soldered to the motherboard).
While I understand that the retina unit is 1 year newer, better resolution, and longer battery life… the standard unit has twice as much RAM and twice as much HD storage and still has an optical superdrive.
Can anyone tell me which is the better choice for photo and video editing? Is the 8 GB of RAM in the retina somehow just as fast or faster than the 16 GB of RAM in the older MacBook Pro?
Any help or info would be greatly appreciated!

You didn't identify which 2012 retina MacBook Pro you intend to buy since the 13" model is single integrated graphics while the 15" model has both integrated and discrete graphics. In any event, the later model MacBook Pro will be faster. Keep in mind that both machines are getting old and specifically the 2011 model has had problems with the graphics chipset. I would avoid the 2011, and quite frankly if you have some extra $$, look for something newer than the 2012. The Apple refurbished store on line is the best place to shop for an older model and will still have Apple's one year warranty included.

 

[njmafl]

Thank you!

Thank you all for your responses! It was a great help!

 

[pigoo3]

Thank you all for your responses! It was a great help!

Is there a happy ending to this story?

- Nick