# Is a cheap Apple good enough?



## goproguy (Mar 20, 2016)

I have a friend that is in the market for a computer. (Unfortunately it isn't me because if this is answered the way I think it will be, I wasted a grand on windows ) Anyway, he is thinking about the normal apple or windows thing. So what I want to know is, is a bottom-of-the-line, cheap Macbook Pro gonna work for photos and video editing. He uses Adobe Premiere on his graphics-card-less windows laptop and it has lagging problems. Will the graphics-card-less Apple work or does he need a computer like my windows with a 2gb ddr3 card? 

Thank you guys for being here, I have learned a lot from you!

P.S. He is on a budget of MAYBE $1100 at the very most. Less is better. and he wants a laptop


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## Victoria Bampton (Mar 20, 2016)

Hi goproguy.  It depends on his expectations, and that's hard to quantify.  If he wants to go that route, I'd go with a second hand refurbished 15" because Lightroom and video will benefit from the quad core processor.  My MBP is about 3 years old now, and dual core.  It runs Lightroom ok but it's not fantastically fast.  There are new MBP's due out in the next few months, which are meant to be a fair bit faster.


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## clee01l (Mar 20, 2016)

My experience are similar to Victoria's.  If you look on the Adobe site you will find "minimum" requirements for running LR.  As long as these are met, LR will run not necessarily fas but run.   However, these minimums do not necessarily provide a satisfactory experience.  IMO, 16GB RAM and a Quad Core processor with a GPU that has ~1GB of VRAM. and meets the GPU standards for LR are a true minimum for reasonable performance.  Like Victoria I have an older dual core rMBP with 8GB of RAM. I can use it for travel but I would not want it for my daily LR work horse. 
Cheap Windows machines are good for doing Email and web surfing but little else. Because of the variety of low end hardware used to construct these PCs, you usually get lots of compatibility issues, especially with complex programs like LR.  Apple OTOH has a standard HW configuration for a given model and year. So it is easier for companies like Adobe to tune performance to acceptable levels on this limited HW set.


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## tspear (Mar 20, 2016)

Get a MS Surface. 
It will do the job, and runs fine.


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## goproguy (Mar 20, 2016)

I'll tell him. Thanks for the info. I didn't know that about the standardized HW... Yet another reason Apple will get me as a customer someday!!


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## clee01l (Mar 20, 2016)

goproguy said:


> I'll tell him. Thanks for the info. I didn't know that about the standardized HW... Yet another reason Apple will get me as a customer someday!!


Yes, it is not so much that the hardware is standardized (it does change from model to model and year to year), it is that Apple specifies a specific hardware and version that is tested to fully function with OS X.   Microsoft has no control over the hardware used in Windows PCs.  A Window PC may come from any of several manufacturers and components come from a plethora ov vendors.  The result is a hodgepodge of components that have managed to pass a Windows test.  It is probably impossible to test LR against all permutations and combinations.


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## tspear (Mar 21, 2016)

If you want to stay with Windows, just do not get bargain machines.
Go to a Microsoft store and look at which models they sell. All of these are standard configs and well supported.

This is direction I am headed for my next machines, I am dumping Apple.


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## clee01l (Mar 21, 2016)

tspear said:


> If you want to stay with Windows, just do not get bargain machines.
> Go to a Microsoft store and look at which models they sell. All of these are standard configs and well supported.
> 
> This is direction I am headed for my next machines, I am dumping Apple.


If it is a laptop, then the Microsoft brand Surface Pro is probably the best choice.  I see no compelling reason to dump Apple or any Windows computer brand for that matter.


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## tspear (Mar 21, 2016)

Cletus,

I am switching from Apple back to Windows after using Apple for over a decade. Since Mavericks, each release of Mac OS has been less stable, harder for me to use (I am a "power user, nomaly I have about fifteen applications open and working), and no longer "just works". My Windows machines have been getting more stable, they "just work", and facilitate my workflow.

Tim


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## happypuppy (Mar 21, 2016)

Since the passing of Jobs it seems clear to me that Apple has lost its way. 

I see no intonation in computer hardware and the ifs like the overpriced iPad Pro that is $$ and still nickel and dimes you to death "want a keyboard " ? "A stylus"? Etc. 

I looked at the new MacBook pros and the new Windows laptop. The Windows laptops are faster and cost much less. After 6 months of use Lightroom and PS CC have not crashed so I am good. 

It was a sad day to switch as at home I have always used macs since my first mac the 512k.


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## goproguy (Mar 21, 2016)

tspear said:


> If you want to stay with Windows, just do not get bargain machines.
> Go to a Microsoft store and look at which models they sell. All of these are standard configs and well supported.
> 
> This is direction I am headed for my next machines, I am dumping Apple.




I read your latest post and I'm wondering specifically what is less stable in apple. The most stuff I have open is a video editor, Photoshop 8, LR4, Itunes, and 3 or 4 chrome tabs. Is it just because you have 15 programs open that your OS has issues? and what are the issues it has.


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## Dave Miller (Mar 21, 2016)

The grass is always greener.........


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## tspear (Mar 21, 2016)

goproguy said:


> I read your latest post and I'm wondering specifically what is less stable in apple. The most stuff I have open is a video editor, Photoshop 8, LR4, Itunes, and 3 or 4 chrome tabs. Is it just because you have 15 programs open that your OS has issues? and what are the issues it has.



I normally have open the following on start for Windows or Mac:
Chrome, Firefox, Safari/Edge, Finder, Eclipse, Outlook, Word and/or Excel, Notepad or TextEdit, Git/Bash, terminal windows, Skype, AIM, Velocity Notes or One Note. Then I add Lightroom on the Mac or Quicken on Windows...

Since I have multiple work projects at the same time, many of which require build processes that can run to 15-20 minutes. While they build, I often open work on something else. Occasionally it might be Lightroom to do facial tagging or other easy tasks.

In terms of stability, all problems introduced since upgrading from Maverick to Yosemite:
-- About once a month the Apple does not wake up from "sleep". In which case I need to do a hard reset.
-- The system occasionally "freezes" while playing a video and a build process is running in the background.
-- Apple updates have over the past year required more reboots of the system then I get with my Windows 10 machine.
-- For about two months this past summer, my primary printer just stopped working. Uninstall the driver, reinstall.... nothing fixed it. Apple then released an update and suddenly it started to work again.

Apple now reminds me of my old Windows days with the constant nagging issues. While my Windows 7 and Windows 10 machines have hummed along without an issue. (Windows 8 sucked, and I removed it)



Dave Miller said:


> The grass is always greener.........


lol, well I already have both. It is mostly as question of which machine is primary, and which has my Lr software installed. And for the next few years will continue to have both; but the next major upgrade I will switch the primary machine.

Tim


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## goproguy (Mar 21, 2016)

I looked at a gaming PC that is AWESOME!!!!    i7 6700, 4GB VRAM, 8 RAM (I can get 32, but wanted to stay under $1700) etc. Really cool machine but if I ever go that route, I'll have to do a lot of research to make sure I need/ want all the extras and what combinations are good. 

Anyway, my friend is gonna go to the states ( I live in Tonga, South Pacific) so if he wants a computer, he will need to look at them and pick the one he needs. 

Thanks for all the replies and info.


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