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

Flip Flopping between macOS and Windows

kamikazeeMC said:
Quickest switch back yet?
Click to expand...

It might be, unless you count where I buy something and immediately return it?

First few parts have arrived. Amazon are delivering the rest of the system later so I can build and run it off the iGPU until the GPU arrives on Monday.

Went with this recent Lian Li 1000w Platinum PSU instead of my usual Corsair 1000w. Reason being is this is higher rated, cheaper and smaller which will help air flow for the GPU.

IMG_0431.jpeg
 
Hmm, nah I wouldn't count instant reterns. More once you get a new setup, feel like it's right, begin feeling like it's starting to settle in, then decide against it.

I still feel amazed at my sf1000 sfx psu. Having high power (yes overkill, but wasn't much more than the 850) in its form factor. Although I'm in a current RMA process for a noisy fan bearing.
 
1BadManVan said:
Rtx 4080 desktop for games and MacBook Air for the rest
Click to expand...
I own multiple computers but at the end of the day, I'm a one computer type person.

I've tried splitting my usage between work and play but at the end of the day, I typically just use what ever one was on, and given that I tend to play games in the morning that was the PC.

Fast forward to 2026, and I just use my Studio for when I'm in my home office, my PC is off, since the Studio handles the games I play.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MacFoxG4 and Cape Dave
maflynn said:
I own multiple computers but at the end of the day, I'm a one computer type person.

I've tried splitting my usage between work and play but at the end of the day, I typically just use what ever one was on, and given that I tend to play games in the morning that was the PC.

Fast forward to 2026, and I just use my Studio for when I'm in my home office, my PC is off, since the Studio handles the games I play.
Click to expand...
I generally use my air when im just hanging out on the couch in the living room. Obviously not something i can really do on my desktop pc lol. Plus when im travelling on vacation, the air comes with me for that. But yes the majority of my usage is on my gaming pc for me
 
I just ordered a second backup hard drive. I have a primary backup, and some older secondary backup drives but the secondary drives are small so I can't backup everything on them. I usually buy a replacement HDD every four to five years but I'm doing it early this time and will have a longer term backup drive that's static and a Time Machine backup.

I watched a Gamer's Meld video and it appears that AI is starting to affect DDR3 and hard disk drives.
 
I read that Lunar Lake laptops have already gone up due to RAM and SSD prices but it looks like there will be a 20% premium for Panther Lake over Lunar Lake. My question is: is it really that good? What seems to be the case is that GPU performance has improved quite a bit and CPU performance has improved but there weren't any desktop chips shown at CES. I'm guessing that AMD will still be leading on desktop.

I suspect the reason why desktop chips weren't shown in products is that their yields are low and there's less risk in making smaller laptop chips as a defect means less silicon wasted for smaller chips.



SS 2.png
 
pshufd said:
I read that Lunar Lake laptops have already gone up due to RAM and SSD prices but it looks like there will be a 20% premium for Panther Lake over Lunar Lake. My question is: is it really that good? What seems to be the case is that GPU performance has improved quite a bit and CPU performance has improved but there weren't any desktop chips shown at CES. I'm guessing that AMD will still be leading on desktop.

I suspect the reason why desktop chips weren't shown in products is that their yields are low and there's less risk in making smaller laptop chips as a defect means less silicon wasted for smaller chips.



View attachment 2597807
Click to expand...
Since most sales are mobile Intel knows where it's bread gets buttered.

They also didn't announce the expected desktop GPU (B770) either.
 
I would be pretty cautious with brand new chips from intel lately. Especially regarding the burning of conductor tracks on the latest top chips and similar problems. I always fared well using one model below the top model. You also get more bang for the buck and chances are better to not get a "Monday car". ;)
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: eltoslightfoot and Cape Dave
I resolved the Mac/Windows issue by simply having both. The PC (AMD 5950X, nVidia RTX 4070 Ti Super, 64GB DDR4) only gets turned on when I want to play a game, at which point I fire up Moonlight on the Mac so I can remote connect to the PC (running Sunshine) and play the PC game by streaming it to my Mac.

This way I only need one keyboard, and one mouse. The Sunlight/Moonlight combination allows me to play at full 1440p at 120fps over ethernet. When I'm done playing, I turn off the power sucking PC. Gaming is literally the only reason I turn on the Windows computer, and I can't see that changing as Apple is wholly uninterested in gaming except on iOS.

Also, I hate using PC vs Mac, since they're both personal computers.
 
  • Love
  • Like
Reactions: pshufd and eltoslightfoot
diamond.g said:
Since most sales are mobile Intel knows where it's bread gets buttered.

They also didn't announce the expected desktop GPU (B770) either.
Click to expand...

The Intel ARC GPUs are considered a good value as they have $200 models that give you 10 GB of VRAM while you pay a lot more to get more than 8 GB on nVidia models.
 
  • Like
Reactions: diamond.g
UliBaer said:
I would be pretty cautious with brand new chips from intel lately. Especially regarding the burning of conductor tracks on the latest top chips and similar problems. I always fared well using one model below the top model. You also get more bang for the buck and chances are better to not get a "Monday car". ;)
Click to expand...

These are laptops though. I've not heard of any instability problems on Intel laptop chips. The problems that I've seen are mostly in 13th gen through Arrow Lake i7 and i9 CPUs. The issues are theoretically possible in i3 and i5 chips but I've seen no data that problems have been reported on those SKUs.

I have a Lunar Lake laptop and it's been a stellar device.
 
UliBaer said:
I would be pretty cautious with brand new chips from intel lately. Especially regarding the burning of conductor tracks on the latest top chips and similar problems.
Click to expand...
Links please? I've not seen/heard anything regarding Intel's latest chips
 
maflynn said:
Links please? I've not seen/heard anything regarding Intel's latest chips
Click to expand...

This was back in late 2024 and I have read articles that claim that the Raptor Lake instability issues have been seen in Arrow Lake. I have heard of zero instability issues with Lunar Lake though. Lunar Lake feels like Apple Silicon in reliability, battery life and performance.

The Arrow Lake issues were supposedly fixed with Microcode and BIOS fixes (why they launched with Microcode issues is beyond me). I regard Moore's Law is Dead pretty highly though I didn't go back to find the original video on it. I probably did watch it though.


SS 2.png
 
Intel is down a couple of bucks after releasing earnings this afternoon. What hit them was guidance as they said that they have very low inventories in Q1 but that things should improve in Q2 and the rest of the year. This tells me that yields are poor and they could be poor in Q2, Q3 and Q4. It sounds like there will not be much supply for Panther Lake laptops for Q1.
 
Intel is down about 14% in the evening. It's had a strong runup into earnings and I expect a fair amount of regret for a while. Charlie Brown eventually gets tired of trying to kick the football.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cape Dave
I'm back to running all macOS on the desktop (Studio + iMac Pro) and Windows + macOS on the laptops. I'm putting up with the performance loss on one of my programs as I don't have to remember different key combinations between operating systems. An M4 Studio or M4 mini or pair of M4 minis is always on the table at the right price.

It will be very hard to say goodbye to the iMac Pro when the time comes.
 
I'm reaching for the MacBook Pro 16 more often over the yoga. I did about 90% of my pre-surgery weight workout yesterday at about 50% weight and I feel more solid overall. But I do still love the Yoga when I want to grab and go.
 
LiE_ said:
In the end I sent it all back and sold the GPU for what I paid. Just going to stick with GeForce now on the Mac mini. It’s more than enough for my casual needs, I don’t need a £2,500 gaming PC.

I am considering a PS5 for chill sofa gaming.
Click to expand...
Man, I hope you don't regret that in like 6 months when prices get even worse for parts.

Do you like console gaming? I never could get into the controller life. I am strictly a mouse and keyboard guy.
 
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