New 15″ or new 17″ MBP?

[Jeremy Garchow]

My vote will be the 17. You will always miss an extra 40 Gigs, you will be glad that you have it (if you load all of FCP studio and it’s contents, it’s close to 40 gigs itself).

I used to have a 15 and have not looked back since getting a 17. You’ll like it on the road.

Jeremy

[Michael Sacci]

[JeremyG] “You’ll like it on the road.”
But not on a plane. 🙂

Always get the biggest HD, the most RAM and the biggest screen you can afford.

[Pat Defilippo]

Hello,

I just went through this same dilema and ended up going for the MBP 17″ for the same, exact reasons – the extra 40gb hard drive and the extra 1.5 inches of screen for that much more height and width on tracksheets.

Another thing that you’ll want to consider, too, is Matte or Glossy. After reading the Cow, Matte was the way to go. Someone even quoted that Glossy “is like looking in a mirror” and certainly nothing that you’d want to fight with while editing.

Yet another thing to consider is that the 160gb MBP 17″ hard drive is 5400 speed – not 7200. You wouldn’t really want your capture and render files edited off of the internal drive anyway. So, even if you travel a lot, you probably won’t end up editing WHILE traveling (on the plane, train, etc.) unless you want a second box on your lap as well. What I mean is that, realistically, you’ll need to invest in at least an external FW800 drive and add a 34 card ($100 or less) to the MBP because the FW hookup that the external drive uses will make FCP hickup when the other MBP FW400 port is used during capture from something like a video camera or capture box, etc. Using both the FW800 and FW400 (on the same bus) at the same time makes FCP unhappy! So, the price keeps going up a bit to accomodate this.

I ended up buying a 1TB external SATA II drive and will buy the 34 card upon getting my first remote job! In the mean time, I’m using the PCI-E card that comes in the SATA II package on my PCI-E Quad and increasing my desktop storage from 1.6TB to 2.6TB.

I’ll just switch it for use with the MBP as needed but, again, the SATA II drive would also need an external battery powered supply if I were to edit while on the plane or train anyway! So, realistically, I’m only going to edit AT the site anyway. I make this point because I don’t think that the argument to go smaller (MBP 15″) matters that much anyway just because that model is less in size and weight to schlepp. Realistically, your still going to have at least a FW800 or SATA drive to schlepp as well – not just the MBP.

My only concern at this point, a few days before Steve Jobs’ MacWorld keynote, is that Apple doesn’t come out with a new MBP! I bought all of this on December 29 & 30 so that I could deduct the expense for 2006. I’d hate to see the MBP 2.33 model be second fiddle before I even receive it (all of the my purchases should be arriving by Monday)! At this point, you might want to wait until Monday afternoon before you buy – after you see what Steve says.

Also, MBP prices appear to be going down as we speak.

Good luck – and if you know anyone who can use a seasoned editor with my similar remote MBP setup, my phone number is below!
-Pat

G5 Quad 2.5 Desktop with 4GB Ram, 500GB HD & Fiber Card ~
30″ Cinema Display & 17″ Sony SVGA ~
Swift Data 200 Internal 1.6TB SATA II RAID 0 ~
AJA Io LA ~
Final Cut Studio ~
Sony UVW-1800 Beta-SP ~~~

P D Post Productions, Inc. ~
TV~DVD~VHS~CD~WEB
for Corporate Communications, Commercials, Infomercials, Television Programs, Family Occasions since 1983 ~
E-mail PD@PDPost.com ~
Website http://www.PDPost.com ~
Business/Cell Phone (847) 275-5671

[Neil Jay]

Thanks. Great info. Where did you hear that MBP prices were dropping?
Neil

[Pat Defilippo]

Hello,

Just do a web search for “macbook pro 2.33 17″ price” and see what comes up. I saw a couple of places had it listed for $2299 this morning, but that might have been for a refurbished one.

Good luck with that!
-Pat

G5 Quad 2.5 Desktop with 4GB Ram, 500GB HD & Fiber Card ~
30″ Cinema Display & 17″ Sony SVGA ~
Swift Data 200 Internal 1.6TB SATA II RAID 0 ~
AJA Io LA ~
Final Cut Studio ~
Sony UVW-1800 Beta-SP ~~~

P D Post Productions, Inc. ~
TV~DVD~VHS~CD~WEB
for Corporate Communications, Commercials, Infomercials, Television Programs, Family Occasions since 1983 ~
E-mail PD@PDPost.com ~
Website http://www.PDPost.com ~
Business/Cell Phone (847) 275-5671

[Ben Holmes]

[PDPost] “After reading the Cow, Matte was the way to go. Someone even quoted that Glossy “is like looking in a mirror” and certainly nothing that you’d want to fight with while editing.”

Actually, you’ll find more people (who actually have a glossy) who rave about the glossy screens, and most of the criticism from people who haven’t got one, or saw it in a shop once.

The glossy gives spectacular colour for video (not false, over-coloured like the original ones) and you can only see any real reflection in it when the screen is off – the truth is that the brightness is so good now that either matte or glossy looks great.

And for what it’s worth, I wouldn’t want to travel with a 17″ lappy on a regular basis. Since any proper editing will require an external monitor, I’d rather travel with a Mac Pro and a 23″ monitor in a peli-case. That’s a portable setup! My 15″ is more than enough for the odd DV project or mess around – for anything else, why use a laptop?!

Ben

[Neil Jay]

I currently use a 23″ monitor at my office but my situation has changed in that I will have to edit from my lap top without the aid of an additional monitor. I was hoping that most people would recommend the 15″ but it seems the 17″ is the one to go with. Thanks for all of the input. I also like the glossy as I have a 13″macbook and I haven’t had any reflection problems.
Neil

[Jeremy Garchow]

[Ben Holmes] “And for what it’s worth, I wouldn’t want to travel with a 17″ lappy on a regular basis. Since any proper editing will require an external monitor, I’d rather travel with a Mac Pro and a 23″ monitor in a peli-case. That’s a portable setup! My 15” is more than enough for the odd DV project or mess around – for anything else, why use a laptop?! “

Sorry Ben, but I find this to be wrong and outdated thinking on many levels but I agree to disagree. A 17″ is much better for editing (I’ve had both 15 & 17 and I could never go back to a 15). A 17 is really not that much bigger and the extra size is worth it with FCPs interface. With the new core 2 duo machines, editing HD on a laptop is a huge reality, hell I was doing DVCPRO HD on a single G4 for a while with no issues. I have not tried the MXO, but it seems to be getting good reviews and will allow you to use ‘proper monitoring’. Uncompressed SD is also a reality with aja io and has been for a number of years on a laptop. There is no problems there at all. WIth the new express card interface, you aren’t limited to a two drive SATA raid anymore, you can add a couple of really fast 5 or 10 disc arrays to edit uncompressed HD. In many ways, my laptop is faster than my trusty ole G5.

These are my opinions and perhaps I shouldn’t tell you you are wrong, perhaps I should say that you should look at it in another way.

Jeremy

[Pat Defilippo]

Hi all,

I’m the guy who responded fourth in this chain, the one who is expecting my new Matte screen 17″ MacBook Pro to be delivered on Monday, January 8th. I’m also the same guy hoping that Steve Jobs doesn’t roll out a new MacBook Pro at MacWorld on that same day because then I might have to return the one I expecting! (You might think that I should have waited, but I had to make the equipment expenditure before 12/31 so that I could deduct it from my ’06 taxes – so, I waited until 12/30 to buy it so that I can still return it on January 8th if necessary).

This question is for Jeremy. I did order one of those two-disk SATA drives that you were referring to – a 1TB SATA II with a PCI-E card (which I can use in my Quad). I know I’d need to get a SATA II Express 34 card (about $100) to used the drive with the MBP, but I was wondering what your experience was with FW800 on a MBP when the FW400 is tied up?

I have an AJA Io LA box (like you also referred to) and would have the FW400 port on the MBP used up on this for an analog deck and monitor. I read one other post that said that if I use this with the FW800 port with an external hard drive simultaneously, FCP will hickup during capture because both the FW400 AND FW800 go to the same MBP bus. This makes it necessary to get a FW800 Express 34 card (about $80) so that both FW drives are not hooked up to the same MBP bus at the same time.

Jeremy (or anyone), in your experience editing with the MBP, do you find this to be true? If I’m using both a FW800 external hard drive AND the FW400 AJA Io LA, do I also need to buy the FW800 Express 34 card or will it actually work without it?

Thanks in advance for your help with this,
-Pat

G5 Quad 2.5 Desktop with 4GB Ram, 500GB HD & Fiber Card ~
30″ Cinema Display & 17″ Sony SVGA ~
Swift Data 200 Internal 1.6TB SATA II RAID 0 ~
AJA Io LA ~
Final Cut Studio ~
Sony UVW-1800 Beta-SP ~~~

P D Post Productions, Inc. ~
TV~DVD~VHS~CD~WEB
for Corporate Communications, Commercials, Infomercials, Television Programs, Family Occasions since 1983 ~
E-mail PD@PDPost.com ~
Website http://www.PDPost.com ~
Business/Cell Phone (847) 275-5671

[Debe]

To add…

It’s all relative.

My 17″ G4 PB is lighter than my husband’s 15″ HP notebook. I have a shoulder bag that was made for a 15″ PC laptop that the 17″ PB fits into nicely. When my PB is in it, it’s lighter than when the PC is in it. However, usually I use a wheeled pilot’s case to get from A to B. Weight matters not.

The 17″ isn’t as unweildly as many think. It’s less of a pain in the arse than a 15″ PC notebook! Yes, a 15″ Mac laptop is going to be lighter than a 17″, of course, but it’s not as heavy as folks think.

The only time I’ve ever felt that it was “too big” was once on a VERY packed airplane. My business doesn’t require me to actually work while I’m flying, so for my decision-making purposes, it’s not relevant. I have an iPod and a portable DVD player for my in-flight distraction. The laptop is in the overhed bin, and it generally stays there. The other bits are under the seat in front of me, easily accessible. Having a DVD player that’s a part of the computer is invaluable for checking burned DVDs while on-site, so I’d carry it regardless.

Having more screen real estate and not needing to lug around an additional monitor are benefits to me. When I replace my G4 PB with a MacBook Pro, I won’t hem and haw or even consider the 15″. When I can ship an second monitor, I certainly do, but that’s not always possible, so I chose the biggest screen I could get for the times I don’t get second monitor.

But I respect those who love their 15-inchers!

debe