Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Do you have a desktop, laptop, or both?

H

holden15

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 8, 2008
81
0
Austin, TX
Hey all.

I was wondering how many people have a desktop, laptop, or both?

I have a 13" MacBook, so a 21.5" or 27" iMac would be nice. But I don't want to get rid of my MacBook because I frequent coffee shops and such.

Should I keep the MacBook and get the iMac as well? What would you do?
 
Both (see below). If you can only have one, I tell people to go with a Laptop simply because of portability (and add a screen at home). I started with a Powerbook G5, then added a 2007 iMac, then switched the G5 for an Air (now Macbook Pro because of all the issues). Now I am upgrading to the new iMac. I basically go back and forth and now always have two computers. I will go back to the Air once it is built without so many widespread defects.

My iMac is basically home base. It houses everything. The laptop is used for for day to day things (I am a teacher so I find it very useful) and I re-sync all documents and media back when I get home at night. Also the laptop is great for keynotes.

If I were you, i would only buy an iMac if it meant a jump in performance. Since you have a machine with a core2duo processor, you will notice no differences in everyday usage between the iMac and the Macbook Pro unles you buy the high end model (this happened to me when I dumped the Air). If the Quad-Core is beneficial to you, go for it then, because there will be a difference for things like Video Editing and Gaming. If not, just add the awesome Apple LED 24" display and call it a day.
 
Ditto on the more than one thing,
I would find it hard to function with only one Mac. Yikes the thought of it should be a sin haha

MacBook Pro, Mini for the TV, iMac G5 soon to be replaced by the i7 :-D
 
I use to have an iMac and a 13" macbook but now I have a 15" UMBP and an external monitor, wirless keyboard and wireless MM which works wonderfully. It's like having 2 computers but I dont have to keep things in Sync
 
Both...........

15 inch MacBook Pro and a 24 inch Apple LED Cinema Display.

Best of both worlds in my opinion.
 
I used to have a mbp and a Dell desktop. Both really nice. But I had a difficut time keeping libraries and stuff in sync. I was always on the laptop but it wasn't powerful enough to do video editor and the hard drive wasn't big enough to do all the stuff I like to do. So I sold both of them and got the new 21.5" iMac. Its powerful for what I need and it is much nicer not having to sync up two machines or figure out what goes where.
 
Both, see signature below. I like having the mobility options whether it be at home or out and about. The iMac is for more dedicated work and storage/network related stuff. I've actually found myself using screen sharing a lot to set up work on my iMac from my laptop while in another room of the house. For example, I can be in the living room and pick up the MBP to start a new video conversion or check email on the actual desktop without having to go into the other room. Then I'm free to do whatever I want on the laptop while the desktop does the heavy lifting stuff in the office.
 
I've got a 20" iMac (May/08), and a UMBP 17 (Jan/09). I'm basically downloading 24/7 with the iMac (using Transmission and sabnzbd). I take my MBP with me when I go out, so having multiple computers is indispensible for me.

Also have some HP Pavillion and an old Power Mac Centra (?) gathering dust in a closet, and the following beast....the picture isn't mine, but I do have the computer sitting in my room. I got it from a real estate company that was throwing it out and so I snagged it. The CPU weighs over 100 lbs :)
 

Attachments

  • TN_DSC01288.jpg
    TN_DSC01288.jpg
    10.2 KB · Views: 474
I have a 13" aluminum macbook and I plan on purchasing a 27" iMac in March. I was debating whether I should just buy a refurb 24" ACD for my macbook but I like the idea of buying a new computer every two years and switching between laptop and desktop. That way I will always have one computer with the newest technology and a backup if anything goes wrong (like spilling dr. pepper on my macbook... am still waiting for that to come back and bite me... no issues so far).
 
I had my iMac 1st, and now have a MBP to go with it. I use the iMac more often, but if i want a portable Mac i use the MBP. I just like having a separate machine, and the display on the iMac is so rich!
 
Both. I have a 15'' MBP and had a 24'' ACD to use when I was at home. However the ACD decided to have issues and after 2 display returns I decided to just go ahead and get an i5 iMac instead of getting a MacMini as I was planning to hookup with the ACD. Like others have mentioned, I like/need the portability of the MBP for work. However when I am at home I need a larger screen. In the end the new iMac just seemed to work out the best for me. Plus I get a larger screen over the ACD I had just returned. :)
 
I have a 17" unibody with an external 22" monitor. I found that I use my laptop 99% as a desktop so I bought the 27" Quad I7. My wife also just bought a 13" unibody and is giving me her windows laptop so if I need a laptop I can use that one.

I also found that Lightroom has a hard time handling 5D MKII files at 21MP.
 
Both, I suppose.
My first introduction to Apple was via the Ipodtouch Nov 08.
Feb 09 progressed to a 15' MacBookPro (mstand, wireless keyboard & Logitec mouse) and in July added a 24" ACD .
And now I'm considering a mac-mini as an inexpensive way of getting an additional machine.
 
I have the below PowerBook G4 which is the only computer I have ever owned, its now 5 years old and getting slower so I will be buying the i7 after the semester finishes to help with HD video editing.
Hopefully I can get a bit longer out of my PowerBook as I still need a laptop for using while at College.
When it dies I will replace it with another laptop and just continue alternating between buying new laptop and desktop. I need a laptop for portability, but I also use the desktop since its faster, has a bigger hard drive, and i watch movies on the larger screen.
 
Both. Mostly use the iMac. Will get a 'tablet' and sell my Air when it comes out. iPhone really gets me through most things when not on iMac.
 
Right now just two laptops. A new ThinkPad for work and a 3 year old MacBook Pro for personal use. Was planning on getting a new Arrandale MBP next year, but I managed to completely fix the overheating problem (which also resolved all my other issues with the machine), so instead I'm using that cash and buying an i5 iMac.
 
Both --- biggest problem I had was keeping everything in sync. Using XAmrks and Sugarsync and my synching problems are over.

Laptop very handle when mobile, but try running VMware to access Windows only stuff for your job on an MBAir and you would opt for a second machine as well :)

I tall depends on what you need your laptop to do --- most of my friends love laptops, but I find when i have the choice between the two i *always* choose the desktop.
 
both, although pc desktop died a month ago, will be replaced by a new imac by the end of november :p
 
Both. uMBP, early 2009 Mini (soon to be replaced by 24" 3.06 nvidia 8800gs iMac). Desktop machine is for home, music, tv shows, movies and windows games. Laptop is for work and mobile windows gaming.

I've always wanted an iMac so these refurb deals gave made it very attractive to get one. It will be so much faster than this mini.

Cheers,
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back