There may be some who still think that tablet computers may soon replaced laptops in the market. However, before that time comes, it is still worth noting the obvious advantage of laptop computers. For instance, it’s the most important gadget that musicians will haul around with them, especially Apple MacBook.
The glowing Apple logo may be the butt of some jokes, but it’s there for a reason. It’s tough to beat the versatility of a laptop for music making – and it’s tough to beat Apple on value.
There is no doubt that the item is prices, but while OS X, like any OS, is a complex beast and far from perfect, it’s still in one of the easiest to maintain for music making. Linux and Windows will probably be closes to third than second place.
Now, that said, Apple’s value equation isn’t so hot when it comes to desktops. The Mac Pro best machines configured similarly, but Apple doesn’t have desktop offerings across the whole range of what you can build in a full-sized enclosure on the PC. And this could be a reason why some have turned to "Hackintosh" solutions when it comes to desktop builds.
But when it comes to the slim, battery-conscious confines of the laptop, it’s another story. What Apple gives you for that premium price is excellent support for high-speed devices (FireWire and Thunderbolt), a ridiculously fast SSD, great-feeling, thin hardware, long battery life, and a ridiculously nice display. MacBooks’ internal storage may be pricey, but nobody wants to run out of internal space.
Recent CPU changes make a huge difference, too. Forget what some critics have said about the end of the CPU: just a difference of a couple of years in Apple models has an enormous impact on CPU load using modern syncs and other processor-intensive music tools.
Performance makes a difference in creativity. It means not having to worry about running out of horsepower, not losing the flow as you wait for your machine to start up or your music tool to load or a plug-in to start responding.
And then there’s the display. It’s been over a decade since anybody used a 13″ display in day-to-day work, and the Retina Display on the 13″ MacBook Pro makes it all possible. Unfortunately, most music apps haven’t caught up yet: Ableton Live and most of plug-ins actually look blurry, and it took some time before anyone would actually feel comfortable using them. However, they’ll get there soon, partly because all these new Retina machines (and similar PCs) are making their way onto the desks of developers, who are just as appalled at what they see as you are.
The glowing Apple logo may be the butt of some jokes, but it’s there for a reason. It’s tough to beat the versatility of a laptop for music making – and it’s tough to beat Apple on value.
There is no doubt that the item is prices, but while OS X, like any OS, is a complex beast and far from perfect, it’s still in one of the easiest to maintain for music making. Linux and Windows will probably be closes to third than second place.
Now, that said, Apple’s value equation isn’t so hot when it comes to desktops. The Mac Pro best machines configured similarly, but Apple doesn’t have desktop offerings across the whole range of what you can build in a full-sized enclosure on the PC. And this could be a reason why some have turned to "Hackintosh" solutions when it comes to desktop builds.
But when it comes to the slim, battery-conscious confines of the laptop, it’s another story. What Apple gives you for that premium price is excellent support for high-speed devices (FireWire and Thunderbolt), a ridiculously fast SSD, great-feeling, thin hardware, long battery life, and a ridiculously nice display. MacBooks’ internal storage may be pricey, but nobody wants to run out of internal space.
Recent CPU changes make a huge difference, too. Forget what some critics have said about the end of the CPU: just a difference of a couple of years in Apple models has an enormous impact on CPU load using modern syncs and other processor-intensive music tools.
Performance makes a difference in creativity. It means not having to worry about running out of horsepower, not losing the flow as you wait for your machine to start up or your music tool to load or a plug-in to start responding.
And then there’s the display. It’s been over a decade since anybody used a 13″ display in day-to-day work, and the Retina Display on the 13″ MacBook Pro makes it all possible. Unfortunately, most music apps haven’t caught up yet: Ableton Live and most of plug-ins actually look blurry, and it took some time before anyone would actually feel comfortable using them. However, they’ll get there soon, partly because all these new Retina machines (and similar PCs) are making their way onto the desks of developers, who are just as appalled at what they see as you are.
Posts
0 comments
Post a Comment