She has the 15". No idea about the speed or OS. lol But it was like $1700. She needed it for school.

 

This one:

 

Best buy usually has open box macs for cheaper. I've bought 2 of them. Pretty much brand new with full warranty. My last one was under $950.

 

macs are way better for video editing. I have been using them since 2000 starting with one of the original versions of iMovie. Current version of iMovie will do just about anything you need without going to a full blown editor like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere (never used Premier).
Cant comment on TMS comparison, pc is at work and going through filtering and firewall so that probably hurts the speed

 

Is she pursuing a degree in graphics or audio-visual? Don't understand why they would require a Mac, unless Steve J gave the college a bribe

 

She's pre-graphic design.

 

The one you listed is just a base model MBP, to people coming from PCs, it's an upgrade, but to people who were around Macs 24/7, it's pretty much crap. You're going to need to up your budget if you want to get a good, long lasting, fast machine. PC or Mac. Do you have an Apple Store near by? Make friends with someone there so they give you their 15% off friends and family discount. It's not much, but it helps. I'd recommend you get a 13" MacBook Air with 256gb and 8gb of ram if you want everything local, or even get the 128 and keep everything on an external hdd. If you want the optical drive built in, get a 13" MBP and add the 128 SSD option (you can also get a 3rd party one and install yourself) and upgrade the ram too (again on the MBP you can upgrade the ram yourself). You have options, but for your uses, you are going to need beefier hardware and I will never in my life buy another computer with a hard drive in it.

 

I need a larger hard drive. My Dell is only 250GB and I'm always using an external HD. Drives me crazy trying to work off of it with it plugged in. As far as a more expensive MacBook, the base one is barely in my budget. The Air is a no-go as well since I still like to buy CDs.

 

Another thing about the 13" is I'm so used to using a 15" that I'm not sure I'll like the smaller one as well. I'd be worried that things would be too cramped.


(Lee, shut it. )

 

Well played Nathan

 

Patrick, - How much faster are the SSD's vs a HDD? Noticeable when processing HD video?

 

Ssd drives are much faster in every regard.

 

This, used one as my boot drive for so long Ive forgotten how slow a normal hhd boots.

 

Nathan, I'd say maybe look into the base 15" MBP then, with the 7200 RPM drive option. At least it would be a little faster, but the hard drive failing (and it will fail, they ALL do) is what kills me on hdds. Basically it comes down to this - for what you're doing, a Mac fits your needs, but for what you're doing you need to save up a little more. I never understand people's budgets being so fixed in situations like this - save up for a couple more months and get a machine that better fits your bill, instead of settling and being unhappy.

Also, how often do you really use the optical drive? I've had an air for 3 years now, have the external optical drive, and I've used it less than 5 times. Lastly, I suggest the 13" Air as a good compromise, because it has a higher res screen than the 13" Pro. It has the same amount of pixels as the base 15" (non Retina), but in a smaller area, so it's sharper. It's a very good compromise, and you could pick up a nice 1080P Samsung 23" or bigger monitor from Costco for like $200 to do your bigger projects on. At least go check them out, and for the most part, try to steer clear from best buy. Most apply employees will try to sell you a base 13" MBP because that's the most popular computer they sell, so I'd be surprised if you talk to someone who has broken it down for you as much as I have....

 

I'm blaming you guys when Mrs Patrick asks me why I bought a new Mac!

 

Besides needing the mobility of a laptop, I would advise to always look into building a pc yourself; it's just like Legos

Rdy for a little bf3 action??

 

I'd love to spend more but it just really hurts to spend that much. Plus I'm stil in college so that puts a dent in my budget. I'll see how much I can set aside, but there's definitely constraints on how much I can spend. Plus my Dell is probably not going to last all that much longer so I need something before it dies.

Can't say how often I use it. Whenever I buy a new CD (could be anywhere from a few times a month to whenever), I rip it onto my computer and then it goes into my collection. Don't really have a use for a larger screen. I like to sit on the couch when I'm working on something and not a desk hence the need for a laptop. Wouldn't mind the Retina display, but that's just a ridiculous price. Only reason I'd go to Best Buy is to see if I could live with a 13" laptop. Would never spend my money there. There's a smaller version of an Apple store at school and I think I can get a small discount but then there's tax which kills any difference I could save with buying it online.

Like I said above, I like to use it while I'm sitting on the couch or whatever. Portability is a must.

Where's Scott? I would love his opinion on all this as well.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...=Combo.1173326

Just for reference, you can build a good desktop for nothing vs a Mac where your just paying for a name at this point; love my iPhone tho!!

 

Not necessarily, the OS and software is a lot more polished. Windows 8 is a joke. Windows 7 is actually very Mac OS like, so I wouldn't mind owning a Windows 7 rig. Plus I can't stand the design of PCs, home built or not.

You can also build a Hackintosh....

But from what you said, I'd either get the 13" Air and the external optical drive for when you import CDs (I still do this too), or go with the 13" Pro and upgrade to an SSD and upgrade your ram later. But I personally like the higher res screen on the Air and portability...

 

Ok, how do I save a video I made with iMovie onto an external HD or a flash drive? It won't let me do anything, but I'd like to get it off my sister's mac and onto my PC...