I did actually bother to look into the Mac mini and the MacBook Pro. However, several things, besides price have put me off both. The Mac mini isn't really portable enough for my needs and the MacBook has gone downhill.
I am currently looking to buy the HP Z-book with 4k display, the usual ports as well as 2 thunderbolt 3s, sufficient cooling for an i7 hexcore, and able to use in the dusty environment of Issan without the need for Aircon. Not only is it expandable but I can replace RAM and SSD and hardrives if required. It's a pro machine where pro doesn't mean profit.
Ask and ye shall receive...
I'm just gonna edit this to add up all the costings:
Mac mini i5 = $1283
32GB fix RAM = $325
Trackpad = $150
Keyboard = $150
External SSD drive for backup = $250
eGPU = $400
2m TB3 cable = $100 (fuking@£$%%$£@)
screen = $280
Wavcom stylus = 60
Total = $2998 Fukin expensive.
For comparison, a similarly specs'd MacBook Pro which would have lesser outright CPU and GPU performance, slightly slower RAM, get hot and thermal throttle and not have a big screen for multitasking (anybody who doesn't have one of these widescreens, but works from home really does need to get one...) would cost about $500 more. It comes with a bigger onboard storage and could be backed up on the cloud cheaply rather then spending $$$ on a backup drive and it's portable. It really comes down to what you wanna use it for - my system is better for my needs.
Last edited by Bettyboo; 01-02-2019 at 01:26 PM.
Cycling should be banned!!!
That sounds like a nice specification which I hope will serve you well. but beware...
Just be aware that half of those Z-books come with 7th generation processors - do not get one, they are 40% or more slower for many tasks. Only consider a Z-book with an 8th generation processor.
Also, these U-series processors in a laptop are a lot slower than the i5/i7 B processors in the Mac mini (draw much lower wattage) and will also thermal throttle much more - the highest spec Z-book will get at least 20% lower in benchmark tests than my 32GB/i5 and then it'll thermal throttle to even slower speeds under any kind of 'pro' workload. The 'workstation' wording on the Z-book is somewhat deceiving, imho, because it isn't. I use Word, Powerpoint and OneNote on my Mac and they work far better than they ever did on any Windows machine (I have a 365 contract, so it's 'free' on the Mac).
Some other points:
- the DDR4-RAM on the z-book is a tad slow which will affect you on many tasks.
- unless you are working in graphics design, etc, don't get a 4k on a laptop because it will slow down your entire system, suck power like crazy and offer very little if any worthwhile improvements. I considered a 4k monitor for home use, the Mac mini supports them, but it just doesn't add anything to my setup for the tasks I do - films look fantastic on my 2560x1080.
- the Radeon Pro WX3100 isn't really powerful enough to push 4k for any graphics intensive applications, so you'll have to turn the resolution right down anyways. It's a much better card than Intel onboard graphics, but it's not workstation or game capable. For reference, it's about 30% as powerful as the RX580 I've benchmarked/referenced on this thread. It'll be a great card for everyday tasks though, so decent.
Unless you need to pick up a laptop and travel with it then don't buy a laptop for performance. I was in a position to spend $3000+ on a laptop, but as I only use a laptop for light tasks my 12" MacBook is fine, and I can spend decent money on a powerful and 'portable' (when I move home, etc) desktop (or near desktop) class machine.
This overview is decent: https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/cpu-comparison
Last edited by Bettyboo; 01-02-2019 at 12:57 PM.
Coffee-lake hex core with Nvidia P2000. I am happy with my 5 year old hp running Ubuntu for everyday stuff but I need windows or Mac for the Nikon software and lightroom. Adobe have stopped selling lightroom 6 so I am looking at the different CC options for photography. This is the g5 model not the studio but the heavier one. My house in Thailand kills machines with the dirt, high humidity, and curious insects that like to nest in laptops. My old low power hp is one that has survived, where many have died.
I will heed your advice regarding display though...
^ The processor and graphics are nice.
For photos and Lightroom a nice monitor would be nice - maybe get an HD monitor on the Z-book then a 4k monitor for home use (maybe a 28" to not stress the laptop too much)?
It really all depends on one's needs, and that system sounds great for those applications. Write up a report once you make your purchase, it'll be interesting to see how well it works for you.
Nice shitzu Betty, fucking ugly though Did you know they are circus dogs and can stand and walk around on their front legs?
Where exactly is your Mac Mini in that pic? Or have you bolted it to the underside of your desk to stop someone sticking it in their arse pocket and walking off with it?
Chokdee does all sorts of tricks and is a constant pain in the arse.
Top left.
& the Gigabyte at the bottom left to keep the noise as low as possible.
I've done some further research.
It looks like the application that I'd be throwing at mini with an eGPU just wont perform due to the T3 still being too slow compared to an internal GPU.
I decided to wait until the new Trash Can Mac Pro replacement later this year.
In the mean while, I'll upgrade the GPU in my windoze box (currently GTX 1050) with a newer NVIDIA with more onboard memory.
I thought the T3 was supposed to be quick at controlling command signals. Hmmm.
Whatever the new Mac Pro is should be interesting; supposed to be more modular than current Macs, but Apple do love their upgrade money, so we will see.
To throw another cat amongst the pigeons.. The new iMac is a huge leap forward from the previous model.
https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/im...19_imac_lineup
Apple refreshed its iMac lineup on March 19, 2019 after a two-year wait, introducing 8th and 9th-generation Coffee Lake processors and upgraded Radeon Pro Vega graphics options for significant performance improvements over 2017 models. Apple's tagline for this update, is, in fact "freaking powerful."
For the first time, Apple has introduced Radeon Pro Vega graphics in both the 4K and 5K iMac models. In the 4K Macs, Radeon Pro Vega graphics offer 80 percent faster graphics performance, while in the 27-inch model, the upgraded option provides 50 percent faster graphics performance.
^ I wanna up and go anytime by putting the mac mini in my pocket, so an iMac isn't for me... But, I will say that an iMac with an 8th generation chip like in the mac mini, and a good GPU along with the nice 27" screen and decent fast SSD storage would be a good buy. The current model is woefully slow in both CPU and hard disk; a fusion drive ffs...
Just looked on the US site and the basic specs are surprisingly poor although most machines now have 8th generation. To get a 21" specc'd to the level of mine, but the improvement of the Vega 20 is $2749 - a bit cheaper than mine, nice setup, but maybe the 21" screen is a bit smaller than one would want.
Looking at the 27" (the bigger screens are well worth it, imho), you have to go up the range before you get a radeon580 or above, as my set up is $3000 - pretty much the same as mine, but all in one which is nice and a better quality (if smaller) screen. I'd go for that. If you need the radion pro vega (48 which is pretty fine) it's $3500, but that'll be a really nice system (only i5, maybe you'd wanna pay $400 extra for the i9; not sure how well that'd be cooled in the iMac). You can upgrade the RAM on the 27", not the 21", so that'd save you $300 if you buy it with 8GB of RAM and put in 32GBs your self. - I really cannot see many situations that you'd need more than 32GB. I think my system would have been the same almost all the time with 16GB.
A sweetspot could be the 27" i5 (it does not lack speed, I can assure you), 8GB RAM (I'd then put 16GB in myself - a single 16GB in case I wanna buy another single 16GB stick later- you then actually have 24GBs because you can use the stick (2x4 or 1x8, not sure) that come in the iMac because I think there are 4 slots, radeon pro 580x with its own 8GBs of RAM, 512SSD (you can plug fast SSDs in via thunderbolt for backup and extra storage) - you'd be all in for $2600.
Definitely, fucking handbag mutt that one.
the mac purchace was shouting it from the rooftops
and as for that laptop
25k baht will get you a lenovo Y530 and then +2600 baht add a 250gig NVME and you have a screaming machine - I have been looking for a cheapo to buy some one and this is the winner
http://www.invadeit.co.th/product/no...black-p041678/
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo....317420.0.html
^ Shoes on a dog, that's just too much! I assume he sleeps in your bed as well, between you and the missus..
^ he does have lovely soft fur; reminds me a bit of a woman I shagged in Istanbul about 20 years ago.
I was about to take him for a walk the other day when the wife did this... After a decent argument, which I lost, I took him out, walked around the corner pulled them off, threw them away then returned home saying that I didn't know what happened to them, they must have fallen off... She's probably ordered some more, in pink...
Is that a bow tie and tuxedo?
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