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MacBook Pro for programming

  • 19-06-2017 10:38AM
    #1
    PCSharkey
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 120 ✭✭


    So I currently have a HP spectre it's 2 years old, it has a dual core i3, 1tb slow hdd, 4gb of ram and 720p display. I'm a computer science student heading into 3rd year, this machine has done me so far however it's getting quite slow, I work in an electronics store and the 2016 macbook pros have gone on clearance and I have a macbook pro 13inch 2ghz i5 without the touchbar set aside and I am hoping to get it for 1050.

    I'm currently doing some python web development and general programming. The main attraction for me is the 256gb ssd and the pretty screen. My laptops disk is pegged 99% the whole time.

    I really just need a reliable programming laptop that looks pretty to be honest. Is the Pro a good pick debating the 1050 price point bit of a sting to be fair, any input would be appreciated, Thanks :)


Comments

  • #2
    Alanstrainor
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,146 ✭✭✭✭Alanstrainor


    I'd have it at that price. Great for software, and having the non-touch version isn't necessarily a bad thing. 8GB of RAM and 256GB should be adequate.


  • #3
    Gumbo
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 40,959 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    Are they on clearance to staff only or the general public?


  • #4
    bonzodog2
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,334 ✭✭✭bonzodog2


    Personally I'd be inclined to max out the RAM in what you have, get a 128/256GB SSD for the essentials, a 64bit OS so it can use >4GB RAM, and external disks for storage of things that don't change.

    1050 for pretty?


  • #5
    beauf
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,461 ✭✭✭✭beauf


    You should check how much ram and cpu and io your current machine is using.


  • #6
    Alanstrainor
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,146 ✭✭✭✭Alanstrainor


    bonzodog2 wrote: »
    1050 for pretty?

    To be fair, the Mac is more than just pretty. High res screen, decent performance on both SSD and CPU, RAM front. And having a Unix based OS for software is a nice plus too imo. (Yes you can install Ubuntu etc, but for me I want other productivity apps that are not available on Linux).

    1050 is a very good price, hard to beat even on a comparable Windows machine.


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  • #7
    beauf
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,461 ✭✭✭✭beauf


    The mac has fantastic hardware. Even if you were to use it as a Windows laptop. You'd really have to compare it with the Dell XPS models and they aren't cheap.

    Problem is a lot of machines are coming with RAM soldered on. So no upgrades. So choose carefully.


  • #8
    Alanstrainor
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,146 ✭✭✭✭Alanstrainor


    beauf wrote: »
    The mac has fantastic hardware. Even if you were to use it as a Windows laptop. You'd really have to compare it with the Dell XPS models and they aren't cheap.

    Problem is a lot of machines are coming with RAM soldered on. So no upgrades. So choose carefully.

    Yes and all Macbook Pro retina and newer machines have soldered RAM. The XPS13 too (XPS 15 is one of the few that has RAM slots).


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