I am considering using a Macbook air for photo editing.
My entire experience has been with Windows laptops and desktops, but I recently found out that Adobe will allow me to install the new creative cloud apps on Mac even if I bought the PC version, so now I am considering switching. Also, I understand that the new M1 chips are better for photo editing.
The downside as you might expect is a bit of a sticker shock. Actually, the base M1 Air is really cheap, but once you add 16GB of RAM and a bigger SSD (I'm looking at 1TB), the price is hard to swallow. It's very odd how Macbooks are cheap when they are cheap and so incredibly expensive once you add the bells and whistles.
So the question is, is it really worth it?
My research on the Internet suggests that the Mac has the following advantages:
(Source: Mac vs PC for Photography: Why Pro Photographers Prefer Former than the Latter (colorexpertsbd.com)
1. Mac is faster than PC
Quote: "Mac doesn’t have the drawbacks of sluggish operation, unwanted pop-up boxes, crashes, complex installations, reloading the operating system, taking longer time to shut down, etc."
As a Windows user, this is fascinating to me as I never thought that a laptop could boot up and shut down with zero lag, that is incredible. But I have to wonder if waiting a few seconds before putting away the laptop is worth a couple of hundred bucks. Having zero pop-up boxes is intriguing, but then again I am not using it for that, but rather for photo editing.
But how much better is the performance? I understand the M1 chip is very fast.
2. Better integration
So this one I do sorta understand. This is why a Macbook needs less RAM and doesn't really need a dedicated GPU compared to a Windows machine. Nice.
3. Immune to viruses (mostly)
This is nice too, mostly because no need to install antivirus software.
4. Better OS
Do Macs really suffer from so much less crashing and hanging and other issues compared to Windows?
5. Longer battery life
Nice.
6. Better ergo, easier to use
I don't know about easier to use, I am just so familiar with Windows. But I can agree that Macs look nicer. Thing is, I am not sure I really care, I mean except for the display quality, that is important for editing. So how much better is Liquid Retina compared to a windows laptop of similar purpose and price range?
7. Downside: price
For a basic M1, I cannot get a Windows laptop anywhere near comparable. The problem is that comes with 8GB RAM (which I understand is barely enough even for a Macbook), and 256GB of SSD (not enough). Upgrading to 16GB/1TB suddenly makes the Macbook compete price-wise with some pretty specc'd-out Windows laptops! At almost $1800 you can get a fully tricked out pony in the Windows camp (not quite top-end but very nearly there).
Have you used both Windows and Mac? To what extent, do you find this a logical decision to make, moving from Windows to Mac? Or should I just stay with Windows ecosystem? Are there other advantages to a Mac (even if not photo editing related) that I should know about?
My entire experience has been with Windows laptops and desktops, but I recently found out that Adobe will allow me to install the new creative cloud apps on Mac even if I bought the PC version, so now I am considering switching. Also, I understand that the new M1 chips are better for photo editing.
The downside as you might expect is a bit of a sticker shock. Actually, the base M1 Air is really cheap, but once you add 16GB of RAM and a bigger SSD (I'm looking at 1TB), the price is hard to swallow. It's very odd how Macbooks are cheap when they are cheap and so incredibly expensive once you add the bells and whistles.
So the question is, is it really worth it?
My research on the Internet suggests that the Mac has the following advantages:
(Source: Mac vs PC for Photography: Why Pro Photographers Prefer Former than the Latter (colorexpertsbd.com)
1. Mac is faster than PC
Quote: "Mac doesn’t have the drawbacks of sluggish operation, unwanted pop-up boxes, crashes, complex installations, reloading the operating system, taking longer time to shut down, etc."
As a Windows user, this is fascinating to me as I never thought that a laptop could boot up and shut down with zero lag, that is incredible. But I have to wonder if waiting a few seconds before putting away the laptop is worth a couple of hundred bucks. Having zero pop-up boxes is intriguing, but then again I am not using it for that, but rather for photo editing.
But how much better is the performance? I understand the M1 chip is very fast.
2. Better integration
So this one I do sorta understand. This is why a Macbook needs less RAM and doesn't really need a dedicated GPU compared to a Windows machine. Nice.
3. Immune to viruses (mostly)
This is nice too, mostly because no need to install antivirus software.
4. Better OS
Do Macs really suffer from so much less crashing and hanging and other issues compared to Windows?
5. Longer battery life
Nice.
6. Better ergo, easier to use
I don't know about easier to use, I am just so familiar with Windows. But I can agree that Macs look nicer. Thing is, I am not sure I really care, I mean except for the display quality, that is important for editing. So how much better is Liquid Retina compared to a windows laptop of similar purpose and price range?
7. Downside: price
For a basic M1, I cannot get a Windows laptop anywhere near comparable. The problem is that comes with 8GB RAM (which I understand is barely enough even for a Macbook), and 256GB of SSD (not enough). Upgrading to 16GB/1TB suddenly makes the Macbook compete price-wise with some pretty specc'd-out Windows laptops! At almost $1800 you can get a fully tricked out pony in the Windows camp (not quite top-end but very nearly there).
Have you used both Windows and Mac? To what extent, do you find this a logical decision to make, moving from Windows to Mac? Or should I just stay with Windows ecosystem? Are there other advantages to a Mac (even if not photo editing related) that I should know about?
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