iMac question

[brentg33]

HI all,

I have a strange question.
I have a 2013 27" iMac (maxed out for the time) and I am an avid photographer.
I was really hoping to replace the iMac with the 2020 version. But now I think I want to wait for the redesign.
The problem with the iMac is that it struggles with some of the larger Photoshop files I work with.
I also have a 2016 (maxed out) MBP......
Now, I don't think we are going to get a new, redesigned iMac anytime soon...
Wondering if it makes sense to get a 4k display and a dock and switch to using the 2016 MBP as my main machine rather than the iMac.
I believe the MBP might work better with PS, while its less ram 16gb vs 32gb (in the iMac) but newer processor and all SSD (iMac has a fusion drive)....
open to suggestions


thanks

 

[ApfelKuchen]

Not so strange.

I also happen to have a late 2013 27" iMac and Fusion Drive, but with 16 GB RAM. I used to run InDesign on it, but I don't use Photoshop. It's still working just fine for my needs, so I'm waiting for a 27-30" iMac with Apple Silicon. But different folks have different needs.

A few factors to consider for the MBP:
Is there space to run your Photoshop files on the SSD, or will you be working from an external HDD for data? If you run on external drive, the Fusion Drive is likely to be faster for disk-related actions, but as long as you have sufficient RAM on the MBP you may not see much of a speed penalty.

Altogether, it's worth trying to do your Photoshop work on the MBP before you go out and spend on an external display, dock, etc. If you're going to spend $300-$500 on a display and other accessories, you want to know whether the MBP is going to be worth the investment. Assuming we see a 27-30" Apple Silicon iMac around the end of 2021, $300-$500 for a one year "benefit" may not be a great investment (if performance is similar between the two Macs), or a genius move (in a business environment, it's pretty easy to recoup $300-$500 in a year if there are significant efficiency gains).

There are potential trade-offs - while you have less RAM on the MBP, overall system performance should be significantly better. You may not need more than 16 GB for what you do, but then again there's "Photoshop work" and "Photoshop work." Different users make different demands on the same software.

So test things out on the MBP. While you test, open Activity Monitor > Memory on the MBP. That will show if you have any memory constraints due to the 16 GB RAM. As long as Memory > Memory Pressure runs Green on a consistent basis, you'll be fine with that 16 GB. An occasional spike to Orange or Red is OK if it's temporary and the graph soon returns to Green, but if it hits Orange and stays there... If it's been several weeks since your last restart, a restart may fix it. If it's consistently in Orange even soon after a restart, you need more RAM.