Video editing MacBook Pro 2016 upgrade path suggestions

[evbartl]

I currently use a MacBook Pro Touch Bar Late 2016 3.3GHZ Dual-core i7 , 16GB RAM, intel iris graphics, and I'm seeing it slow down as I get into more complicated video editing (color grading, etc). I do connect it to a 32 inch Ben Que PD3200u monitor.

My question is whether people would nudge me towards an eGPU while keeping the current laptop, or if its just more practical to try to sell the current laptop and buy a 15 or 16 inch MacBook Pro with a better gpu. I know I can get a eGPU for $500-700 and my suspicion is it might cost up to $1500 to upgrade to a 2018 15 inch, but I want to know the pros and cons outside of cost of each option.

Thanks!

 

[hftvhftv]

I'd say it's far more practical to get a new 16" MacBook Pro. You'll get far better graphics with the Navi GPUs, up to 4 times the cores with a i9 processor, and faster memory/storage along with the old keyboard. External GPUs while good in theory, lose performance to the Thunderbolt connection, take up a lot of desk space, are hard to take on the go, and are as expensive as buying a graphics card. You could also get a Mac Mini with a Core i7 attached to your monitor for $1100, upgrade the memory yourself to 16GB for $50, and get a budget eGPU setup for around $500 (Razer Core X + RX 5500XT) if you want to have a desktop computer and a mobile computer.

 

[evbartl]

I'd say it's far more practical to get a new 16" MacBook Pro. You'll get far better graphics with the Navi GPUs, up to 4 times the cores with a i9 processor, and faster memory/storage along with the old keyboard. External GPUs while good in theory, lose performance to the Thunderbolt connection, take up a lot of desk space, are hard to take on the go, and are as expensive as buying a graphics card. You could also get a Mac Mini with a Core i7 attached to your monitor for $1100, upgrade the memory yourself to 16GB for $50, and get a budget eGPU setup for around $500 (Razer Core X + RX 5500XT) if you want to have a desktop computer and a mobile computer.

yeah, agreed the MacBook upgrade option would be way more convenient, but the new ones maxxed our cost way more than 2500, no?

would a 2018 MacBook Pro 15 w a Vega 20 still be that much better?

The $500 option wouldn’t be bad because there's a chance I eventually get a Mac mini.

 

[hftvhftv]

yeah, agreed the MacBook upgrade option would be way more convenient, but the new ones maxxed our cost way more than 2500, no?

would a 2018 MacBook Pro 15 w a Vega 20 still be that much better?

The $500 option wouldn’t be bad because there's a chance I eventually get a Mac mini.

I would stay away from any 15" MacBook Pro with the butterfly keyboards. The 16" models while expensive run cooler, faster, and even the base model out performs the older Vega 20. Here's a refurbished one for $2039 Apple Refurb Store.

 

[evbartl]

I would stay away from any 15" MacBook Pro with the butterfly keyboards. The 16" models while expensive run cooler, faster, and even the base model out performs the older Vega 20. Here's a refurbished one for $2039 Apple Refurb Store.

yeah, my 2016 mbptb had a bunch of issues with the keyboard... did they fix it with the 16”?

 

[hftvhftv]

yeah, my 2016 mbptb had a bunch of issues with the keyboard... did they fix it with the 16”?

Yes, they put a very similar keyboard to the 2008 to 2015 keyboards in them.