Which Apple laptop for web development?

[tzhu07]

Photoshop will probably be the most intensive program I'd use on it. Other than that it's mostly just a text editor.

I'm thinking that a top of the line MBP would be overkill since web development is all I would do on this computer and it will not be my primary machine. I already have a custom-built Windows desktop as my main workhorse.

So do you think the base Macbook Air 13" would be enough? It looks to be the perfect balance between portability and speed.

 

[CEpeep]

Whichever one you prefer. They are all powerful enough for everything you mention. The Air is indeed a great balance of power and speed as it is the original "Ultrabook."

 

[Zinn]

Why do you want an Apple laptop?

 

[Terpfen]

Go with the Retina MacBook Pro. More and more people will be using Retina Displays to view sites; might as well have one when making yours.

 

[pwrusr]

Go with the Retina MacBook Pro. More and more people will be using Retina Displays to view sites; might as well have one when making yours.

Maybe alot of people here will be, however I don't see the masses jumping to get a super high rez display when a 1366x768 display "does just fine" *shudders*. You might see that happen if apple goes to exclusively retina on all laptops/desktops. It's just not something I can see being widely available for another 2-4 years unless there are sweeping changes to oust low rez displays (YES please!!).

Granted there are inexpensive 1080p displays out now, but nothing like the retina display other then a 30" dell or the uber 4k displays that require you to sell a organ or two to purchase

 

[450]

rMBP.

It's the best machine I've used in my life. If you need me to elaborate more LMK.

 

[Eulogy]

rMBP.

It's the best machine I've used in my life. If you need me to elaborate more LMK.

I'd like to hear more on this. I've been half eyeballing these for photography (and light video) editing, but from what I've read and talked to more than a few people who use them for video/photography editing, they actually kind of suck.

 

[jest]

Photoshop will probably be the most intensive program I'd use on it. Other than that it's mostly just a text editor.

I don't imagine that you will be doing any heavy photoshoping when working on websites, so the 13" air will be fine.

The retina is cool and all, but if you have a workstation already then there is no point.

 

[Ashton]

rMBP.

It's the best machine I've used in my life. If you need me to elaborate more LMK.

I agree with the sentiment, but like everyone else I think it's overkill for web development (Though if you have the cash to burn or other needs that would require it, it's certainly the best laptop out there (discounting possibly a few of the Alienwares for raw power))

 

[tzhu07]

To answer some questions:

1) I want an Apple laptop because I want to run MacOS natively, and supplement my Windows machine. And I also believe Apple makes the best laptops.

2) The rMBP is indeed total overkill, and I really do not see myself using my future laptop as a workhorse. Even with Photoshop, web design compositions are at the lighter end of the spectrum.

 

[tzhu07]

Another thing...is the Macbook Air inaudible when you're doing light work? I don't want to be distracted by a noisy fan when I'm writing code. That will grind away at me.

 

[Terpfen]

Maybe alot of people here will be, however I don't see the masses jumping to get a super high rez display when a 1366x768 display "does just fine" *shudders*.

It's already happening.

 

[InorganicMatter]

I have a 15" MBP. Development work on anything less than a 1680x1050 screen is torture. Trust me, don't let yourself be undersold on resolution. More is ALWAYS better, period. I'd even suggest the new Retina screen if you can afford it, but I know that's a huge price jump.

Why do you want an Apple laptop?

Most likely to write an iOS app to go along with his website. It's an extremely common scenario - I use Apple hardware but almost all my time is spent in Windows. I write my web backed in .NET and host it in Microsoft Azure, but still need Mac OS for iOS development. Any developer artificially limiting their app's market share availability is stupid.

 

[pwrusr]

It's already happening.

Key words there "the masses" meaning the average joe. Many of my friends/relatives look at the price of the apple notebook with retina display and run the other direction. Prices need to come down before said masses (myself included) will adopt high dpi equipped laptops/desktops.

That said that article was informative and told the story of a web developer. And he has a point. Devs would do well to be the early adopters of the tech to get the ball rolling for high dpi websites that better support high dpi displays.

 

[Terpfen]

Key words there "the masses" meaning the average joe.

I take it you haven't looked at iPad 3 sales figures.

Web development shouldn't lag behind adoption rates, it should lead them.

 

[jest]

I have a 15" MBP. Development work on anything less than a 1680x1050 screen is torture. Trust me, don't let yourself be undersold on resolution.

Agreed, however I suggested the Air since he already has a desktop.

To answer some questions:

1) I want an Apple laptop because I want to run MacOS natively, and supplement my Windows machine. And I also believe Apple makes the best laptops.

......

Another thing...is the Macbook Air inaudible when you're doing light work? I don't want to be distracted by a noisy fan when I'm writing code. That will grind away at me.

No computer makes noise running a text editor. With photoshop is processing something and when compiling you will hear it.

I assume that you actually need a laptop, but otherwise have you thought about a mini or even to install OSX on your current rig (hackintosh)?

 

[pwrusr]

I take it you haven't looked at iPad 3 sales figures.

Web development shouldn't lag behind adoption rates, it should lead them.

I thought this thread was about laptops not tablets (though the sales figures are pretty darn epic!).

Please check the second paragraph in my post above, I completely agree with you on that.

 

[Terpfen]

I thought this thread was about laptops not tablets (though the sales figures are pretty darn epic!).

Please check the second paragraph in my post above, I completely agree with you on that.

This thread is about which Apple product the thread starter should buy for purposes of web development. I said he should get the Retina MacBook Pro to get ahead of the coming trend. You disparaged this by saying that no one has a Retina Display or will for a long time. I cited the iPad 3 as proof that the Retina Display is already in the wild and that web developers should be concerned whether or not their sites work well with the technology. Your response was the quoted part above, intimating that the iPad 3 somehow does not count in this discussion because it's a tablet, even though it already has a good and growing web traffic share.

The point is that web developers should begin to worry about how their pages look on Retina Displays. The best way to test pages on an RD is to own an RD capable device. In this instance, the Retina MacBook Pro.

 

[pwrusr]

Terpfen, allow me to be clear here, I'm NOT disagreeing with you. OP should buy a retina laptop. I also agree that we need more devs out there on the cutting edge to make those sites better for higher dpi displays.

To clarify more, my responses earlier in the thread were more "big picture" mac/pc/tablet/phone users as a whole. Many users are content to use a low rez display until it breaks. And coming from a computer support perspective, they will typically ask for a inexpensive display that "just works" for Facebook and general internet browsing and text document editing.

 

[450]

I'd like to hear more on this. I've been half eyeballing these for photography (and light video) editing, but from what I've read and talked to more than a few people who use them for video/photography editing, they actually kind of suck.

The rMBP replaced my main desktop since the same machine that I can take with me is the same machine that I have 3 large monitors connected to. It might not have the outright performance figures of a high end desktop, but because I need both portability and lots of screen real estate, this is a great computer for me. I'm not a serious video or photo editor so my usage really won't help you. I'm in economics/finance.

 

[Terpfen]

Terpfen, allow me to be clear here, I'm NOT disagreeing with you. OP should buy a retina laptop. I also agree that we need more devs out there on the cutting edge to make those sites better for higher dpi displays.

To clarify more, my responses earlier in the thread were more "big picture" mac/pc/tablet/phone users as a whole. Many users are content to use a low rez display until it breaks. And coming from a computer support perspective, they will typically ask for a inexpensive display that "just works" for Facebook and general internet browsing and text document editing.

Again, the point of buying an rMBP for web development is to lead the trend, not lag it.

It's not about whether or not "many users" are content to use low resolution displays. Thanks to the iPad and growing Mac adoption, they will be using high resolution displays whether regardless of whether or not they know or even care about the resolution of their display. Likewise, you'll start to see Apple's competitors ape the Retina Display by including higher resolution displays on their devices. This is already happening in the cell phone arena, and will move to the desktop and tablet space now that Apple has made their move.

This isn't a matter of consumers opting in. It's happening. If anything, sales of the iPhone 4 and iPad 3 have shown that the average consumer likes clear, high resolution displays and will buy them if available. Sitting back and saying "Eh, it's just a micro-niche" might be true today, but will not be true a year from now.

 

[tzhu07]

I think I'll just visit my local Best Buy and play around with the various Macbook models and see which one I like.

 

[Ashton]

I think I'll just visit my local Best Buy and play around with the various Macbook models and see which one I like.

Just a warning, my BB didnt carry the full line when I was there - I had to go to an Apple Store to get a rMBP, though they did have the Air, Ipad2/3, and iPhone4/s (and zero iMacs or Apple TVs) might be location-based though...

 

[robvas]

Just a warning, my BB didnt carry the full line when I was there - I had to go to an Apple Store to get a rMBP, though they did have the Air, Ipad2/3, and iPhone4/s (and zero iMacs or Apple TVs) might be location-based though...

The BBuy near me had the Retina.

One issue I could see with the Retina is you'd probably want to have a secondary monitor running at a regular resolution, just to make sure stuff 'looks' right.

 

[Zinn]

Most likely to write an iOS app to go along with his website. It's an extremely common scenario - I use Apple hardware but almost all my time is spent in Windows. I write my web backed in .NET and host it in Microsoft Azure, but still need Mac OS for iOS development. Any developer artificially limiting their app's market share availability is stupid.

Yea that's why I use an Apple laptop I just had to ask tho...

 

[tzhu07]

Alright guys, I just visited Best Buy and messed around with the 13" Macbook Air and the rMBP.

I gotta say the retina display is amazing and text really does feel like print quality. It's also light weight enough as well. I guess now I have a tough decision to make.

 

[robvas]

You could buy an 11" Air and an iMac for the price of the MBPr!

 

[Zoop99]

Photoshop will probably be the most intensive program I'd use on it. Other than that it's mostly just a text editor.

I'm thinking that a top of the line MBP would be overkill since web development is all I would do on this computer and it will not be my primary machine. I already have a custom-built Windows desktop as my main workhorse.

So do you think the base Macbook Air 13" would be enough? It looks to be the perfect balance between portability and speed.

macbook air for sure. no need to look at anything else... just look for a decent deal on craigslist that has applecare remaining and grab it....

applecare is so amazing that ive never been scared to get an apple macbook from craigslist with a verified applecare warranty remaining... they literally just give u a new one on the spot if u make a bit of a scene

 

[Serpico]

I'd like to hear more on this. I've been half eyeballing these for photography (and light video) editing, but from what I've read and talked to more than a few people who use them for video/photography editing, they actually kind of suck.

In what way? Forget resolution, color accuracy is why they make sense for me. It is the best display outside of a dedicated desktop IPS monitor you can get. For color correction on the road it is pretty perfect. The only things hold me back is that I only got my MBP last year and I'd like to hold onto it another year, the Haswell update is going to be a big boost in performance over Ivy Bridge, and I'm fine waiting while applications catch up with the display resolution.

 

[Grentz]

In what way? Forget resolution, color accuracy is why they make sense for me. It is the best display outside of a dedicated desktop IPS monitor you can get. For color correction on the road it is pretty perfect. The only things hold me back is that I only got my MBP last year and I'd like to hold onto it another year, the Haswell update is going to be a big boost in performance over Ivy Bridge, and I'm fine waiting while applications catch up with the display resolution.

Is it that good in color accuracy? Even the iMac tends to be better than many, but still not the best.

 

[martinmsj]

In what way? Forget resolution, color accuracy is why they make sense for me. It is the best display outside of a dedicated desktop IPS monitor you can get. For color correction on the road it is pretty perfect. The only things hold me back is that I only got my MBP last year and I'd like to hold onto it another year, the Haswell update is going to be a big boost in performance over Ivy Bridge, and I'm fine waiting while applications catch up with the display resolution.

It's not perfect and it's not the best screen you can get on a mobile system in regards to professional mobile displays. The color performance still doesn't compare to a professional dream color display for example. In fact, the color accuracy has regressed from last years models. (To be fair, those HP notebooks are more expensive then a rMBP.)

Don't mean to call you out however that person you quoted was talking about video/photography users who worked with rMBPs. If those people are professionals, then they would be type of individuals who can objectively and truthfully say "the screens kind of suck" and that would be putting it nicely.

I don't demand color performance/accuracy in my line of work moreover, I wouldn't mind an rMBP however my 2011 MBP13 is far from needing an upgrade. (Use a nice pro Hp screen at work I can connect to.) As to the OP, whether the color performance is important depends on his/her line of web development work and even then it's up to the OP.

 

[Serpico]

It's not perfect and it's not the best screen you can get on a mobile system in regards to professional mobile displays. The color performance still doesn't compare to a professional dream color display for example. In fact, the color accuracy has regressed from last years models. (To be fair, those HP notebooks are more expensive then a rMBP.)

Don't mean to call you out however that person you quoted was talking about video/photography users who worked with rMBPs. If those people are professionals, then they would be type of individuals who can objectively and truthfully say "the screens kind of suck" and that would be putting it nicely.

I'm a cinematographer, I have pretty good experience with a wide array of displays for color correction. My main color correction display at home is still my trusty NEC 2490WUXi, fantastic and accurate monitor.

I have yet to see a side-by-side comparison with the rMBP and the HP Elitebooks. Having seen it in person and also based on Anandtech's review, I'm certain that with a Spyder I could get it pretty darn good for mobile color work. Even out of the box it is better than pretty much any laptop display I've seen. There really aren't a lot of IPS options outside of the rMBP, the IPS upgraded HP Elitebooks (which as you pointed out are very expensive, around $3k), or the Zenbook Prime.

Anyway, it is why I asked. My impression playing around with Aperture on it is that this is a dream laptop for photographers. I would certainly get one for image work over a Macbook Pro. The only reason I'm waiting on getting one myself is that I prefer holding onto my hardware for two years, and I only got my MBP last year, plus I want to hold out for the Haswell/GPU update.

I don't demand color performance/accuracy in my line of work moreover, I wouldn't mind an rMBP however my 2011 MBP13 is far from needing an upgrade. (Use a nice pro Hp screen at work I can connect to.) As to the OP, whether the color performance is important depends on his/her line of web development work and even then it's up to the OP.

In your case I'd honestly consider a 13" MBA. Fast and light without compromising the keyboard or trackpad in any way.

 

[mope54]

it's possible the 13" rMBP is around the corner...like in month two tops. if you can wait two months I'd suggest doing that. I suspect the 13"'s will be slightly better performers, too.

 

[martinmsj]

I'm a cinematographer, I have pretty good experience with a wide array of displays for color correction. My main color correction display at home is still my trusty NEC 2490WUXi, fantastic and accurate monitor.

I have yet to see a side-by-side comparison with the rMBP and the HP Elitebooks. Having seen it in person and also based on Anandtech's review, I'm certain that with a Spyder I could get it pretty darn good for mobile color work...

Actually, in Anand's review he points out about the color performance reduction in comparison to the previous MBP screens. Oddly enough, in the rMBP screen evaluations for some reason Anand didn't post any in depth color performance pieces compared to other professional display reviews. Moreover, it's there just really easy to miss.

Even out of the box it is better than pretty much any laptop display I've seen. There really aren't a lot of IPS options outside of the rMBP, the IPS upgraded HP Elitebooks (which as you pointed out are very expensive, around $3k), or the Zenbook Prime.

Anyway, it is why I asked. My impression playing around with Aperture on it is that this is a dream laptop for photographers. I would certainly get one for image work over a Macbook Pro. The only reason I'm waiting on getting one myself is that I prefer holding onto my hardware for two years, and I only got my MBP last year, plus I want to hold out for the Haswell/GPU update.

In your case I'd honestly consider a 13" MBA. Fast and light without compromising the keyboard or trackpad in any way.

It's the opposite for me however I may be biased because I have a nice professional display at work so I would be able to spot the difference. It's one of those "once you try it you can never go back" situations. I believe if image is important, the 15" MBP with the upgraded matte screen option is better if your priority is color performance.

I love my 13" and quite frankly my Asus 14" with the C2D @ 2.23 GHz (P8300) was awesome and I had frankly planned to hold on to it for 2 more years (as of 2011.) However, I decided to make the jump for access to the OSX platform (software development.)

I agree on the 13" recommendation. I honestly rather buy a nicer external display before an rMBP for the time being. Now an MBP 13" with an upgraded *matte display I would upgrade in an instant. I LOATHE the MBP 13" shiny reflective screen.

 

[Serpico]

It's the opposite for me however I may be biased because I have a nice professional display at work so I would be able to spot the difference. It's one of those "once you try it you can never go back" situations. I believe if image is important, the 15" MBP with the upgraded matte screen option is better if your priority is color performance.

I have the 15" MBP with matte option and I disagree completely. Black levels, contrast, color accuracy, there is a huge and very noticeable difference between the TN+ in a MBP and the IPS panel in the rMBP.

I use a calibrated 2490WUXi at home and for color correction I work in DaVinci or Baselight equipped telecine suites using broadcast evaluation monitors. The place I go to now uses these: http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/cat-monitors/cat-oledmonitors/product-BVME250/

Hell, for simple movie watching I have a calibrated (and discontinued) Pioneer Elite Plasma. Differences in display quality and what they are capable of are clear as a bell for me.

There is a much lower ceiling to color quality with the TN+ panel in the MBP compared to the IPS in the rMBP. A little color calibration with a Spyder can easily shore up the slight difference between it and something like an upgraded HP Elitebook. Both will leave a MBP in the dust. Frankly, I'm surprised anyone would recommend one for color work over an IPS equipped notebook.

I agree on the 13" recommendation. I honestly rather buy a nicer external display before an rMBP for the time being. Now an MBP 13" with an upgraded *matte display I would upgrade in an instant. I LOATHE the MBP 13" shiny reflective screen.

The 13" MBA is the sweet spot for most people IMHO, it is a nearly perfect laptop with Mountain Lion on it. Light, powerful, fast, with no compromise on the trackpad or keyboard. I wouldn't recommend the 15" rMBP to people other than professionals who would benefit from the display.

 

[pwrusr]

The 13" MBA is the sweet spot for most people IMHO, it is a nearly perfect laptop with Mountain Lion on it. Light, powerful, fast, with no compromise on the trackpad or keyboard. I wouldn't recommend the 15" rMBP to people other than professionals who would benefit from the display.

I am by no means a apple fanboy, however using a 13" MBA really had me rethinking my stance. That is a fantastic little laptop!