New Mac?

"Never mind the quality, feel the width" :D

So would you go for the MacBook given the choice Levi?
 
scotty said:
So would you go for the MacBook given the choice Levi?
No :p I'd pick a windows machine above a mac because all my software is windows based and mac doesn't do quadro gpu's.

If I had to pick a mac personally I'd probably go for the 15 inch non retina, unless money was no object, the macbook air aka ultrabook form factor is nice but it's just not practical for me.

My approach is get higher end desktop hardware for working on, present final imagery on paper/slate or I'd use a higher end aka bulkier laptop if I need to show work in progress (remember I do 3d work). Having said that I don't even have a laptop at the moment, I've not had a need need for one, they can't really manage heat produced during the 'on time' I need for rendering etc
 
Sorry to diverge on a tangent but any advice concerning SSD's? I'm thinking of getting one when I overhaul my computer and I'm definitely interested in an SSD even if only for the reduction in heat. My computer has been struggling a little with the recent spat of hot weather...!

I'm probably only going to get one with between 128 - 256gb and then run my 1TB HDD alongside it, once I've reformatted it at least. I think I might eventually replace it with an external hard drive at some point as the only thing I intend to use mass storage for is backups, my thousands of photos and whatever other media I happen to have at the time.
 
SSD's usually come in 2.5" form factor so you'll likely need an adapter unless you use a laptop or small form factor pc (does a mac mini use 2.5" or normal full size hard drives...), adapters sometimes come with the ssd but they're only a couple of quid if it isn't supplied.

I personally use a marvel based (the chipset to pick in most people's opinion) crucial m4 128gb, cost me about 80 quid, it's quoted stats aren't quite as high as say the sandforce based chips but it has 2 of the more important features - stability and decent read when the drive is loaded with software etc, sandforce (ie ocz agility 3 etc) lose performance when loaded and they've also had some issues with firmware. Also in the real world you will not notice any of the difference quoted by the benchmarks. If there's one you like, let me know and I'll say if it's any good or not :)

As to the external drives - I'd suggest getting a hard drive housing that can support mirrored raid (aka raid 1) or raid 5. This requires a minimum of 2 drives for raid 1 and 3 (I'd recommend 4/5 though) for raid 5 but gives added piece of mind if one of the drives fail.

Alternatively you could have more than one external drive and sync them up.

Now the heat is unlikely to be hard drive related, my pc's are gaining around 10 degrees (room is not nice) during the heatwave... there's only so much you can do to reduce the temps.

The options you have are:
- Stick it in a fridge - not recommended
- improve the cooling - better fans (I use a fan controller to speed mine up during hotter weather), better cpu cooler, better thermal paste etc - easy to do on a windows pc, not so easy on a mac though... also can take time to do
- move to the north pole
- get air con for your room (can be had for about 200 quid)
- dust out the pc case, dust is a major contributor to pc failure due to making things overheat - get one of the air cans, non flammable obviously and spray into the vents on laptops while it's turned off. You'll be surprised by the amount of dust in there
- make sure you have clear air around the pc

- and as daft as this sounds - don't open your windows, just close all your curtains so the sun and heat can't get in. It can actually make your room cooler because you're not letting the heat get in in the first place. Silver window 'privacy' film can help keep the heat out too.

the ones in red are probably the easiest option to try first.
 
Regarding dust and overheating.
My Mac used to get REALLY hot to the point there it would switch to sleep mode all the time even though I'd vacuum the vents.
Seemed I'd been cleaning the wrong vent as the inlet is tucked behind the stand and was full of dust.
Sucked it out and it's been fine since. :D
 
Yeah my pc tower has a dust guard at the front which usually ends up looking like a teddy bear after a while, I think I'll give it a good dusting.

As for SSD's I was looking at the Vertex 4 128GB version. A couple of reviewers from places like Toms Hardware, have recommended this one or stated that it is both good value and quality. They also mentioned the 2.5/3.5" issue and I believe most OCZ models come with an adaptor. What do you reckon Levi?

As for the mirrored RAID drives, I'm afraid you've lost me there :( Why do I need two external HDD's, to back each other up? Most of my stuff is backed up online and this will just be adding another layer of protection, i.e. for my clients websites which I host, so I'm happy to just have one.
 
vertex 4 - it's fast but it's from OCZ, they've been one of if not the worst suppliers of firmware which has caused a fair few ssds to need replacing. Personally I wouldn't be going with them, I went with crucial which are basically up there with intel for the least issues on new firmware... I'd rather lose a small amount of overall speed but gain stability and piece of mind. You can't work if the ssd is bust (assuming it's got the os on)

RAID - basically it's in house piece of mind, I thought the stuff you wanted to store was more important and you didn't have online storage too.

I don't use online storage, personally think it's overpriced for what is essentially a hard drive stuck in a data centre in most cases but I do use a file server which uses raid and I have a nas for remote storage while out of the office. Everything is backed up to dvd(s) just in case - I'd go blu ray but thats still to expensive :(

Also have remote access to my home computers too if absolutely needed.
 
Thanks for the information. I have further researched the issue of the V4's firmware instability and have concluded that these issues have largely subsided since the 1.4 and 1.5 updates to which all I have read about is how people and reviewers have had no problems what so ever since then.

Amongst reviews and discussion, the Samsung 830 was also mentioned a lot. Most people seem to be of the opinion though that the V4 is the way to go since the firmware issues have been addressed as it is one generation ahead of both the Crucial M4 and Samsung 830. It also comes with 5 years warranty as opposed to 3 with the others. I was wondering though, can't seem to find much info online, will the SATA 3 SSD work on my intel core 2 duo e8400? I read that the SATA 1/2/3 is just to indicate speed and not model but that if it isn't supported then you might not reach the top speeds any idea?

Well, my sites are all backed up with expensive data solutions through my web host which I imagine is virtually guaranteed not to fail but I don't like to rely entirely on a single backup because there's always a chance that something can go wrong with technology but the chance of it happening at the same time to two different pieces of the same technology are probably within an a thousandth of a %.

As for my photos, and other things, whilst not all of it is backed up in multiple locations generally speaking my best work or anything that has gained me money/recognition is.

What do you know about getting discounts for equipment as a business? :D In America they have a tax break which allows graphic designers and two other random professions tax-free purchases on any equipment they buy. Curse those Americans...!
 
yeah sata 3 should work with sata 2, you won't get the full rated speeds though as sata 2 maxes out at 300MB/s...

Discounts for business, it's called vat registration, I can claim back the vat on any purchase for business, I just have to charge vat too which makes no difference to my clients :)
 
Ooops, that's my CPU... my mobo is Gigabyte EP45-UD3R... I hope it has SATA3 support or I'm going to have to buy a new one of those too. I bet it doesn't, I've had it for about 2 or 3 years...! Time to google it.

As for claiming on vat, he said I shouldn't do that until I've made back the money on my initial purchases, i.e. computer, software etc etc. So in the future I can look forward to a lump sum payment? Haha.

EDIT: Upon further research it appears my mobo has 8x SATA 3Gb/s connectors :) I do love it when good purchasing decisions come to fruition!
 
you do know that sata 3Gb/s is sata 2 right....sata 3 is 6Gb/s

Like I said sata 3 drives should work on sata 2, it will just be slower

Not got a clue on what your vat bloke is on about, I can claim my vat back straight after purchase (well at the 3 month intervals anyways), I don't need to wait for it to make money....
 
Ahh that sucks... well I suppose if I'm doing my storage and operating system I might as well upgrade my mother board too. It's not like it hasn't lasted me a while.

Hmm, I'm not sure about my what my accountant said either, I will have to have another chat with him again in the near future.
 
he might have been on about hitting the threshold where you HAVE to vat register... not sure though...
 
If budget is a problem check out second hand. I just replaced my old G4 PowerMac (9 years) with a 27" i7 imac, one year old but still current model. Came with additional memory and upgraded graphics card. New equvialent spec over £2500, got mine for £1600 off ebay, all with original packaging and 2 years of Apple care. With the grand I saved I treated my wife to a new 17" HP laptop too!
 
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