Anyone Bought a 2.2Ghz 4Gb Macbook?

I think I've seen someone in the forums who has already bought one of these, but I don't know who.

I'm on the verge of buying one, and I'm just wondering if the 4Gb make a noticeable difference from 2Gb? I'd also like to know if someone's used it for basic video editing.

Also, what's the best video editing software for Mac? I've been using Sony Vegas, which I found far better than Premiere. I'm not massive into video editing (I spend most of my time in Photoshop), but I do make videos now and again. I used Vegas because it was less of a resource hog than Adobe Premiere (or Elements). What video editing software works best on a Macbook?

Thanks!

 

4gb will only make a difference if you plan on using Parallels or VMWare Fusion to run Windows xp or Vista. If not then I think you will be good enough with 'only' 2gb.

 

DO NOT BUY THE 4GB FROM APPLE.

Newegg.com

4GB will only cost you $100 or so save yourself the other $900

 

Depends. If you use virtualization, then 4 GB will be good, but for normal tasks, 2 GB is more than enough.

I'd say Final Cut Express would be a good idea for you. Its powerful, and since you're not professional you won't need Final Cut Pro. Adobe Premiere is another idea, but Final Cut Express is cheaper.

You may want to note the 13.3-inch screen of the MacBook might be a bit small for video editing. But you can always plug in an external display.

And as Airman said, get more RAM from other places such as Newegg, as Apple RAM is expensive.

 

Is Final Cut Express a lot better than iMovie? I hear iMovie is a dog for hoarding HD space. I'm quite sure I wouldn't need the Pro version of FC.
Are there any other options though (apart from Adobe)?

I take it FC Express would run smoothly on a Macbook?

Oh, and don't worry. I may be a little ignorant of Apple products, but if there's one thing I know, it's not to buy upgrades from Apple
I'm not even buying from an Apple store, I'm buying from a reputable Reseller on eBay. Are there any objections to that?

 

my sister has a new mbp 15inch with t7500 and 2gb of ram, and i found ti quite quick for basic tasks, i e web and music and office work, for leopards purposes it should suffice, but sometimes when i run photoshop and such programs, i like the extra ram, especially in vista.
thanks a lot
just a side note, is the newegg ram for the mbp the exact same ram apple sells for 1000$?
thanks a lot

 

Absolutely, Final Cut Express is a huge improvement to iMovie. And not really, Apple and Adobe are the big players in video editing, and frankly I find them quite good.

FC Express runs fine on a MacBook .

And I wouldn't say so...eBay's fine, but buying from Apple Store is fine as well. Unless the one on eBay is quite a bit cheaper, but then I would be suspicious on why it is so .

 

Excellent response, Sam. Just the kind of reply I needed.

Am I allowed to link to an ebayer seller? They look very legit to me, but maybe you could have a look?

 

Yes, no problem. It may be a good idea as well, just to get other forum members' ideas on the sale.

 

I have 2.2 with 4GB and do some light video editing but I mostly use imovie. Ram is cheap so I would say go buy 4GB but DO NOT buy ram from apple.

 

Stjs - I take it video editing isn't too painful without the dedicated graphics card?

Sam - I'm thinking about buying from this guy.

 

Hmm, really a Power Seller. I'd say based on the feedback, and the fact that he actually seems to be a store who happens to list on eBay as well, go for it!

 

Yeah, that's what I thought. I'm in Australia at the moment, so it's good that he ships internationally. To buy a 2.2Ghz 1Gb Macbook from the Aussie Apple store, is AUS$1,899. He's selling the 2.2Ghz with 4Gb for under AUS$1,600 delivered. Saving over AUS$300, and getting and extra 3Gb of ram sounds good to me There may be some import charges, but it'll still be cheaper.

(Rep added, Sam)

 

final cut express should definitely suit your needs just fine, as would iMovie, 08 or past versions, if you have 08, you can download the past, timeline based version for free, that would be my recommendation, as it doesn't seem you need to be doing anything too intense.

in all honestly if you can get a good deal on a MBP with 4gb of RAM go for it, but from the sound of it you probably won't notice a large difference between 2gb and 4gb with what you will be using it for. As someone who uses Final Cut Pro, After Effects, Photoshop, Maya, etc. very extensively and put it through its paces, I can notice quite a difference but I don't believe many people would, I just know exactly what the programs are doing at specific times so I can determine what is quicker, throught enough experience with the program.

that sounds like a good deal as long as it all goes through well. but don't be afraid to also by the base mbp and upgrade the ram yourself as it is extremely cheap nowadays, for that specific type of ram. good luck.

 

circa86 - Thanks for your guidance. I'd love to be able to afford a Macbook Pro, but the cheapest I can find the base model shipped to Oz, is nearly AUS$2200 (AUS$600 more than the Macbook). If that was all I had to buy, I would get it, but I need Photoshop, and a few other programs too.

Maybe you know where I could get it cheaper?

 

oh i just misread, a MacBook will be absolutely fine for your needs as mentioned by many others.

the cheapest ways to get software is usually with student discounts, so if you are a student, definitely check with your school and your friends who know what they are doing with computers about getting good deals on software.

 

Yes, absolutely...Adobe software is significantly cheaper with Student Discounts. Definitely the first things to look at...Student Discounts...

 

i have a 2.2 with 4gb of ram. i only have the 4gb because i use parallels, and i like to give it 2gb by itself. otherwise, all i would need is 2gb. However with memory so cheap, i probably woulda just bought the 4GB anyways.

the 2.2 is fine for what i do, i cant really comment on video editing too much. Last i checked, FCP hadnt been "leopard comp" yet, but that was months ago

one thing i did do, buy the hitachi 7k200. end of story. i got it for a steal too from bestbuy, it was mismarked, cost me 130$

 

Sam - I'm not a student, and because I'm in Australia at the moment, I don't know anyone who is a student. However, don't the student discounts mean you can't use the software to make money?

On eBay (again), you can find some folks selling student versions of Adobe products, so I could get it cheaper if I wanted to. I'm just wondering about restrictions though.

kgeier82 - Thanks. I'll have to run boot camp/parallels for one or two applications now and again, so consider the 4Gb isn't much more expensive, I might as well get it.

Got to love that hard drive. Nice one!

 

i have a 2.2ghz b version macbook with 4 GB ram.. upgrade cost me $110 here in toronto... the ram i got was "mushkin"... its amazing, tottally go for 4gb

 

I got the 2.2ghz with 2gb, and just received my 4gb from Newegg today, will be installing it later tonight, I'll let you know if I see noticeable improvements.

I usually play WoW, in windowed mode with lots of apps open.

 

most people dont need the ram, but if your knowledgable enough, and on here, chances are you want to max it out. for most people i look at the cost, if you can afford another 50$, do it, and dont worry about it later on down the road.

most people on here buy 2gb, and second guess themselves until they purchase the 4gb, so just get it to begin with, and save tht money

 

Thanks again guys.

Yeah. For the price difference, I think it's just best to get it straight away. I'm not that strapped for cash.