Mac Pro or MacBook?

[Steven Albright]

I currently have a Mac Pro which I just bought not too long ago. It has the new dual-core 2.66 with 6 gig of ram (4 gig of what I added later). I got a new IT job and portability is now something that I wish I had. I'm debating on selling my Mac Pro and getting a MacBook. Anyone have any thoughts? Or should I save up my money and get both?...and maybe a lower end MacBook rather then a real expensive one.

Let me know what you think.

[Kyle Nilson]

Really, I would highly highly recommend keeping the Mac Pro and getting the lowest end MacBook.

Working in IT doesn't necessitate the use of heavy processing, graphics, etc. However, I guarantee that you'll want this stuff when you go home everyday, if anything for gaming, Photoshop, and other random computer funness.

Get a MacBook for all your Terminal needs, and run a Mac Pro at home for everything else. It's what I plan to do once I actually have the money to buy one (a Mac Pro).

[Steven Albright]

Really, I would highly highly recommend keeping the Mac Pro and getting the lowest end MacBook.

Working in IT doesn't necessitate the use of heavy processing, graphics, etc. However, I guarantee that you'll want this stuff when you go home everyday, if anything for gaming, Photoshop, and other random computer funness.

Get a MacBook for all your Terminal needs, and run a Mac Pro at home for everything else. It's what I plan to do once I actually have the money to buy one (a Mac Pro).

That is really what I was thinking. I love my Mac Pro with no lagging at all for anything I do. It is amazing what 6 gigs of ram does :) But thanks for your input!

BTW, if you are buying a Mac Pro, I would recommend getting 1 gig of ram then upgrading ram from like new egg. I added WINTEC 2GB DDR@ 667 (PC2 5300) ECC Fully Buffered Memory which I haven't had any trouble with and its about half the price of what apple charges.

[Peety]

Hi Steven,
Stay with your MacBook Pro. You will definitely miss it!!

(And thanks for the ram tip.)

[stephen]

I currently have a Mac Pro which I just bought not too long ago. It has the new dual-core 2.66 with 6 gig of ram (4 gig of what I added later). I got a new IT job and portability is now something that I wish I had. I'm debating on selling my Mac Pro and getting a MacBook. Anyone have any thoughts? Or should I save up my money and get both?...and maybe a lower end MacBook rather then a real expensive one.

Let me know what you think.

I just bought my first Mac, a black Macbook, and I'm loving it. It's by far the best computer I've ever, ever had. You can feel the quality as soon as you put your hands on it, both in the software and hardware. The setup is helpful without being obtrusive and you're up & running in no time.

I would say the Mac Pro is a high-end machine which might be more than you need for IT work. I'm working as a programmer during my summer vacation from uni, although I don't use my mac for work. I can't imaging anything in my job I'd need a Mac Pro for.

[MarvinSum]

Stephen, welcome aboard! Yea, I had the same thoughts when I first got my MacBook.

[v00]

It all depends on what you do no a daily basis. I would definably not get rid of the Mac Pro in favor of a standard MacBook. If you're going to a MacBook Pro that would be acceptable. I'm a systems administrator for a good sized design company and for demoing new software, my MacBook Pro holds up very well. Gaming is amazing especially on a Bootcamp PC side. You wouldn't have the same amount of processing power obviously, however you would gain the portability you seek.

If money is not that big of a deal, I agree with Kyle, keep the Mac Pro and add on a cheap MacBook. This would give you the best of both worlds.

I agree with the RAM, purchase it separately and put it in yourself. The Mac Pros come with great little RAM 'caddies' making it a very simple installation. I use MacMall exclusively for all my new machines and what I do is call my Rep and order the machine with the specs I want with the least amount of RAM and then add it in separately. Savings is around $200-$600 per machine.