Mac laptop recommendation

Groov-E

Silver Member
Hi,

I am getting a new cpu for work and I would like to use it to record a bit and do simple video editing (zoom qn2, imovie and garageband, nothing fancy).

The real question is this : with a mac, will I have the possibility of connecting to my remote pc at work ? I need access to outlook, word, excel and excel based programs.

If no, game over.

If yes, which model would you suggest ? I like the little macbook air as it is easy to travel with, but will it have enough inputs and memory for my intended use ?

I do not consider the fact that my company is paying as a reason to get the uber model.

I am supposed to be the one setting the example and it would put me in an awkward position if others demanded the exact same laptop as mine...

Thanks for your input!
 
I am sure there are Mac apps that will accommodate Windows applications. I use Word for Mac Occasionally. There is also Boot Camp and parallels that let you run Windows on a Mac simultaneously . Give it a Google search. The Air start at $999. and from what I can see on Apple.com it only has one USB connector. I'm not sure how many inputs it will accomodate using a USB hub. Upon further research it has one Lightning connector and two USB connectors.

https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/features/
 
There isn't much a Mac can't do, unless you're a gamer. Office 2016 for Mac looks almost identical, so switching between the two versions isn't much of an issue. If you're a super heavy Excel user, there are some macro functions that are missing. Microsoft has a free Remote Desktop app, that you can download. I actually like that version better than using Windows to connect to Windows. On the Mac the app can use both or more monitors simultaneously and you can swipe between Mac and Windows, where in Windows you have to minimize one window to see the other.

I've been using a MacBook Pro 15 i7 Quad Core to play around with recordings too. Works well, but trying to record audio and video directly into Garage Band and photo booth takes some horsepower. If you're using a zoom, then transferring, then you don't need as much power. 13 or 15, go with the i7, if you plan to do anything with video. The 13 can be had with a faster processor and the 15 with more CPU cores. If you're just dumping down video and processing it, then I'm sure the 13 will hang just fine. Simultaneously recording two sources, may tax the 13, but likely someone else with one will have to chime in.

I'm a heavy Mac user at work and home and I was finally able to cut my Windows box loose when we went to Office 2016. I was limping fairly regularly with Office 2011. Otherwise, it's been a strong platform for work and play, as long as it excludes heavy gaming. You can game on it, but will have to go into boot camp and fire up Windows.
 
Mac has an RDP client available for rDesktop access, though the one I have came with Office for Mac. The built in VPN client connects to my work's Cisco IPSec GW, and I can rDesktop to all of my Windows VMs from there.

You can also run a number of local VMs via VMWare Fusion (Windows, Linux, etc).
 
If you're editing video definitely get the largest Macbook Pro (wish Apple had never discontinued the 17" model), with the best graphics card and as much RAM and memory as you can afford.

I have friends who have partitioned their Mac laptop hard drives between Mac and Windows applications but have never heard any positive comments about going that route.
 
Never had a problem with accessing things from home on my Mac. I have Office on here (licenced from work) and I have the Apple equivalents. It's all basically seamless. I have my personal invoices stored on iCloud but can sign in at work and edit them online in a web browser. In terms of going from Office document to Office document between Mac and Windows, I have no issues whatsoever.

I also have Windows installed on my Mac and it works just like it would on any other laptop. Arguably better because I have a decent trackpad...
 
You're probably fine, as most of the time you can use an enterprise terminal server, citrix, or similar remote control setup.

The correct answer is to ask IT, though. Might save you some frustration.
 
Back
Top