Resolved Macbook m3 for an SE student?

[spesifikbrush]

Hello! I'm recently considering to get a Mac, it will be my first one. I am considering about a Macbook because I love how thin and light it is. I watched so many videos about it, it seems to run light games like League of Legends and 2D games pretty well. I'd like to use the Macbook for my college work, also to learn coding. I also have an iPad Pro 9.7, I was thinking to use it with AstroPad to draw and paint on Photoshop as well. Again my main reason to choose it is its lightness and the Retina screen which Air doesn't have. I heard that exporting on coding takes time, but my main concern is how it will perform while I am doing the tasks. It will be my main computer for at least two years.

Edit, September 23: I decided to get a Macbook Pro because of the gpu, I thought it will be more powerful for me to play the games and run Photoshop with acceleration. Also, I will wait for the October update (if it won't update by the end of the October, I will get the current one.) Thanks for the replies!

 

[viperGTS]

Xcode runs fine on my 2016 m3. Smaller projects compile quickly (say, 20-30 C++ and their respective header files) and it has handled nearly everything I've thrown at it with ease, with the only exception being that I can't currently get Unreal Editor 4 to open on it.

 

[Nathan King]

Intel's Core M processors are more powerful than most people realize. You won't notice a performance difference unless you're trying to compile the resulting code of a 30-day Sprint from a large development team.

 

[Traverse]

And here I thought you meant a student with an iPhone SE.

 

[spesifikbrush]

Xcode runs fine on my 2016 m3. Smaller projects compile quickly (say, 20-30 C++ and their respective header files) and it has handled nearly everything I've thrown at it with ease, with the only exception being that I can't currently get Unreal Editor 4 to open on it.

How does it perform while doing the coding? I wonder this.

 

[viperGTS]

How does it perform while doing the coding? I wonder this.

Runs just fine! Very rarely I get a spinning beach ball but I don't think that's because Xcode is stressing the m3 out.

 

[spesifikbrush]

Runs just fine! Very rarely I get a spinning beach ball but I don't think that's because Xcode is stressing the m3 out.

Okay, thanks for your replies. I will get it pretty soon, I will write down my thoughts on the OP when I test it for a week. I hope it will be enough for me

 

[viperGTS]

Okay, thanks for your replies. I will get it pretty soon, I will write down my thoughts on the OP when I test it for a week. I hope it will be enough for me

Is there anything else you'd like me to test? Let me know

 

[spesifikbrush]

Is there anything else you'd like me to test? Let me know

Um, I wanted to test brush lag in Photoshop at high resolutions like 2K, especially airbrushes. I will start learning coding on this machine, so I don't know anything to test about that, I will just stick to your words about it. If you could test the Photoshop, it will be awesome!

 

[Nathan King]

Um, I wanted to test brush lag in Photoshop at high resolutions like 2K, especially airbrushes. I will start learning coding on this machine, so I don't know anything to test about that, I will just stick to your words about it. If you could test the Photoshop, it will be awesome!

I make a portion of my living as a photographer and regularly edit images at resolutions far higher than 2K. The Macbook isn't my main machine, but I have used it in a pinch. Photoshop works very fluidly if you're not working with more than about 15 layers. You will notice a bit of lag in Lightroom after you start making localized adjustments with quite a few brush strokes. This has to do with the way Lightroom catalogs your adjustments without destructively editing the file.

 

[spesifikbrush]

I make a portion of my living as a photographer and regularly edit images at resolutions far higher than 2K. The Macbook isn't my main machine, but I have used it in a pinch. Photoshop works very fluidly if you're not working with more than about 15 layers. You will notice a bit of lag in Lightroom after you start making localized adjustments with quite a few brush strokes. This has to do with the way Lightroom catalogs your adjustments without destructively editing the file.

I'm not into photo editing, I just like to draw and paint. I don't usually make so much layers, so I am thinking it will be fine for me. Thanks for the reply!

 

[willyx]

I'm not into photo editing, I just like to draw and paint. I don't usually make so much layers, so I am thinking it will be fine for me. Thanks for the reply!

In my experience with light gaming with the Macbook, playing Warcraft III will turn it hot and that will mean reduced performance (the computer will display a notification stating this).

The same will happen if you use it outdoors in a hot day. The Macbook will turn itself off at some point and you will have to cool it before using it again.

 

[spesifikbrush]

In my experience with light gaming with the Macbook, playing Warcraft III will turn it hot and that will mean reduced performance (the computer will display a notification stating this).

The same will happen if you use it outdoors in a hot day. The Macbook will turn itself off at some point and you will have to cool it before using it again.

This actually bothers me a lot. Since it doesn't have a fan, I am scared that it will throttle so many times. But other than gaming, my time on computer will be mostly about messaging, writing and drawing on Photoshop. I just hope that using Photoshop will not throttle the machine quickly and cause the brush strokes to lag. I will definitely test this too. I may still buy a rMBP 13 as a last minute decision, only thing that may stop me is the bigger storage on the Macbook.

 

[mrex]

Okay, thanks for your replies. I will get it pretty soon, I will write down my thoughts on the OP when I test it for a week. I hope it will be enough for me

can you try to use the macbook without the turboboost also? (maybe trying handbrake without it?)

it seems to be that macbook gets pretty hot while operating... i would like to know how well does it work when the turbo boost is disabled. Under the load the cpu goes as high as 90C which is too much for a long period... What about if you run it without the turbo boost?

 

[spesifikbrush]

can you try to use the macbook without the turboboost also? (maybe trying handbrake without it?)

it seems to be that macbook gets pretty hot while operating... i would like to know how well does it work when the turbo boost is disabled. Under the load the cpu goes as high as 90C which is too much for a long period... What about if you run it without the turbo boost?

I will try it if I get one. But idk how to disable turbo boost.

 

[viperGTS]

can you try to use the macbook without the turboboost also? (maybe trying handbrake without it?)

it seems to be that macbook gets pretty hot while operating... i would like to know how well does it work when the turbo boost is disabled. Under the load the cpu goes as high as 90C which is too much for a long period... What about if you run it without the turbo boost?

Is it possible to disable turbo boost?

 

[mrex]

Is it possible to disable turbo boost?

Yes, but not as easy as in windows just set the max cpu frequency. In osx you need to install a software for that: https://github.com/rugarciap/Turbo-Boost-Switcher

 

[spesifikbrush]

I decided to get a Macbook Pro because of the gpu, I thought it will be more powerful for me to play the games and run Photoshop with acceleration. Also, I will wait for the October update (if it won't update by the end of the October, I will get the current one.) Thanks for the replies!