iMac vs macbook pro

[hedgehogmac]

I am unsure whether to buy an imac or macbook pro. Leaving aside cost, screen size and portability issues, I was wondering how the performance would be on a 17 inch macbook pro core i5 (if I put in a new ssd) COMPARED with the standard current iMac i5 quad core. I usually have a lot of office/iwork docs open and would be using parallels with plenty of office 2007 docs (including ppoint) open in that as well, plus webpages, mail and very large excel files all at once! Also quite interested in gaming but not excessively! Obviously iMac better, but would an SSD and perhaps 8GB ram in macbook make the difference difficult to really notice day-to-day. I would be using my excellent 22 inch HP external monitor anyway.

Probably a very difficult one to assess, but any thoughts much appreciated.

 

[scallopdelion]

I recently had my iMac stolen and I'm making the same decision-

I will be using the computer to run Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Flash, AfterEffects, Premiere Pro, possibly Final Cut, and maybe some Steam games (like Portal).

The configuration I want includes a Solid State Drive (SSD) and the Intel Quadcore i5 Processor. Unfortunately, the current line of iMac's do not offer these configurations unless I go for the hefty 27-inch computer. I can, however, configure this into a Macbook Pro 15".

The Macbook Pro I want would cost about $2,477 before tax with an AppleCare plan.
I estimate that the unreleased iMac would be roughly $1,800 with an AppleCare plan.

Anyone know if the i5 Core is worth the wait? Should I bite the bullet and go for a laptop? Are laptops worth the higher pricetag for less power/ screen real estate? What do you think? I appreciate any advice you have to offer.

 

[TMRaven]

I was wondering how the performance would be on a 17 inch macbook pro core i5 (if I put in a new ssd) COMPARED with the standard current iMac i5 quad core. I usually have a lot of office/iwork docs open and would be using parallels with plenty of office 2007 docs (including ppoint) open in that as well, plus webpages, mail and very large excel files all at once! Also quite interested in gaming but not excessively! Obviously iMac better, but would an SSD and perhaps 8GB ram in macbook make the difference difficult to really notice day-to-day.

The i5 in the macbookpro would be about 60% as fast as the i5 in the iMac. But for the type of rudimentary tasks you're talking about, going with the SSD and ram would make the biggest difference in performance. If you're reeeaaally into gaming, the mobility 4850 the iMac line offers will do you good.

The configuration I want includes a Solid State Drive (SSD) and the Intel Quadcore i5 Processor. Unfortunately, the current line of iMac's do not offer these configurations unless I go for the hefty 27-inch computer. I can, however, configure this into a Macbook Pro 15".

No you can't.

 

[leman]

I am unsure whether to buy an imac or macbook pro. Leaving aside cost, screen size and portability issues, I was wondering how the performance would be on a 17 inch macbook pro core i5 (if I put in a new ssd) COMPARED with the standard current iMac i5 quad core. I usually have a lot of office/iwork docs open and would be using parallels with plenty of office 2007 docs (including ppoint) open in that as well, plus webpages, mail and very large excel files all at once! Also quite interested in gaming but not excessively! Obviously iMac better, but would an SSD and perhaps 8GB ram in macbook make the difference difficult to really notice day-to-day. I would be using my excellent 22 inch HP external monitor anyway.

Probably a very difficult one to assess, but any thoughts much appreciated.

For your usage scenario, there shouldn't be any noticeable difference in performance. With an SSD and 8GB RAM the MBP may even feel faster - large excel files need more memory so faster memory subsystem will help a lot.

 

[Sun Baked]

http://www.barefeats.com/mbpp18.html

The quad i5 will be below the quad i7 -- the performance gap is there.

Should really be more about how much you need the portability and in you can take a 30-50% hit for the Pro apps.

For general surfing and Office stuff. Not a huge difference. getting 1-2 seconds knocked off something won't really be noticeable.

 

[hedgehogmac]

thanks to al - useful!