First post, and OK, this section is for confirmed Appleists but it's all related.
I'm done with Windows, been using it since 95, even have a Windows phone, but I'm done. Have two pretty old Dell laptops both now on Linux, which I quite like, Windows phone rolled back to 8:1 which is doing OK for now but plainly this is not a sustainable situation regarding hardware. Google not an option, so going forward I need to look at Apple.
Also my accounting year ends at the end of this month and there's a wee bit of money in the kitty and it would benefit me to make a hardware purchase.
But what a crazy time to be considering your first Apple purchase! New (revolutionary?) hardware, new operating system, all this chat about even better to come, and probably soon, head fried!
I've been through everything from a basic air to dip a toe in the water, to a maxed out Pro that would hopefully do me for a while. Even dable with the idea of a Mini but have only used laptops this past dozen or more years so have no peripherals and would have to buy all that. Yes, the price difference of the Mini will facilitate that but what if I don't like going back to the desktop like scenario and end up having to buy another laptop anyway?
But also what if I don't get the Apple thing? It seems to be something that requires 'buy in' but I guess I'm not going to figure that out without trying it.
However that then brings me to the side of things relative to here. The 'toe in the water' scenario would suggest basic 'over-the-counter' spec for whatever I buy. But, I don't buy tech for the sake of it and if it was doing OK I'd be keeping it until worn out essentially, so I've always bought my computer stuff with a bit extra over standard as it definitely tends to keep something more usable for longer. So the big question with these new M1 machines for me is the RAM, are they configured in a way that the extra RAM is needed or is ever likely to be? It also makes the difference between me being able to get one locally within half an hour or having to order it through Apple. The only heavy load I'd be giving it is video editing, but that is quite a load in itself. I live in Northern Ireland but our eldest lives in Florida and I shoot 4k footage with a drone which has to be cut and shrunk to send to him or uploaded for him to view. Other than that just browsing and watching media, the old laptops are still well capable of doing everything else.
Sorry for the length of the post, but I feel the quality of the question is often reflected in the quality of the answer and I really do need some outside info to try and nail down an answer in the next few days.
Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions.
