I’m helping my sister buy a new home computer. She loves photography and takes lots of high resolution photos of wildlife and nature as a hobby. She wants a good computer system that will last her another 6-7 years and that’s not slow. She’s currently getting that spinning beach ball on her 2015 iMac and it’s driving her nuts!! She likes using photoshop and loves to edit photos. She doesn’t do photography as a business but perhaps in the future she might decide to do so. She mostly uses her home computer for browsing the internet, email, word processing, some light graphics, and storing and editing photos that she takes. Shes not a gamer. She is currently looking at these 3 Apple models….. An iMac M3 with 1 terabyte hard drive, a Mac Mini M2 Pro with 1 terabyte hard drive, or the Mac Studio with M2 Max chip. Which one do you think she would like and/or need? She has lots of photos though in her Photos Library.
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What computer should I get
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what's her budget?
no idea what "lots of high res photos means, I'm a hobby photographer and have close to 100k photos, I shoot in RAW, use LR and PS. storage for me is at ~ 1.2TB right now.
PS is a RAM hog, get as much RAM as possible as you cannot upgrade later
1TB in my view is not a lot, 6-7 years of photos could easily need more but you can use external drives.
which iMac does she have? 5k or the 21.5"?
again - budget?
Number 1 thing you need to keep in mind: Prioritize memory. You need more than 8gb, especially for those usages. And you can always connect external SSDs, but you can't upgrade RAM in any of those computers.
I personally would get the M3 iMac with the higher (10-core) GPU and 16gb or 24gb RAM, and then get as much SSD as you want. The iMac is just an all-in-one solution, you don't need to buy an external display or anything.
I personally would get the M3 iMac with the higher (10-core) GPU and 16gb or 24gb RAM, and then get as much SSD as you want. The iMac is just an all-in-one solution, you don't need to buy an external display or anything.
She has a 2015 iMac 5K Retina 27” model. I think it had a 2TB hard drive. Her budget is $2200 or so.
I think the iMac would be better because if you get the Mac mini you have to buy an external display. If that's included in the budget you are much more limited. A good 5k (or 4k) display is $600-700, so you're left with ~$1500 for the Mac mini.
Whereas if you get the iMac, you can get the max 24gb RAM and still have money to upgrade the SSD. Keep in mind, too, that the iMac display is a lot better than any external display you can buy in your price range. It has much better colors, quality, etc. than anything else around $600.
OP wrote:
"Mac Mini M2 Pro with 1 terabyte hard drive, or the Mac Studio with M2 Max chip"
I'm thinking that an m2pro Mini would do just fine.
However, she might consider adding more RAM -- 32gb instead of 16.
The 1tb SSD is fine (it's 2x as fast as the 512gb version).
If price is a consideration, she might buy from Apple's online refurbished store.
I did (with my 2018 Mini) -- good purchase.
I don't think the Studio would really offer "that much more".
However, it does come with the forward-facing SD card slot.
Get a GOOD display to go with it.
27" 4k ought to do. Lots of choices.
I consider the Apple Studio display to be way overpriced and not worth it.
"Mac Mini M2 Pro with 1 terabyte hard drive, or the Mac Studio with M2 Max chip"
I'm thinking that an m2pro Mini would do just fine.
However, she might consider adding more RAM -- 32gb instead of 16.
The 1tb SSD is fine (it's 2x as fast as the 512gb version).
If price is a consideration, she might buy from Apple's online refurbished store.
I did (with my 2018 Mini) -- good purchase.
I don't think the Studio would really offer "that much more".
However, it does come with the forward-facing SD card slot.
Get a GOOD display to go with it.
27" 4k ought to do. Lots of choices.
I consider the Apple Studio display to be way overpriced and not worth it.
HobeSoundDarryl
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Advice in this thread is already good: get more RAM (than base 8GB) in prob Mac Mini or Mini Pro... and a GREAT monitor since her work and potential is in visual media. ASD could be a good choice but that $999 Samsung Viewfinity S9 is also 5K "retina" with most of the stand options and a much better camera, etc for substantially less cost than ASD.
Alternatively, while that 2015 is getting old, odds are high you could spend peanuts on a significant RAM upgrade and probably resolve most of the beach ball issues. By "peanuts", I mean a FRACTION of Apple RAM pricing in silicon machines, courtesy of robust competition for that RAM. Example: just took a quick look at Macsales Mac memory for the latter 2015 iMac 27" and see only $77 to quadruple her 8GB RAM. If it's the early 2015 iMac, drop that price by $7 for 32GB of RAM. Because competition is very good for us consumers, shopping around may shave some more off those prices.
If that iMac has a HDD inside or perhaps the Apple Fusion drive, another beach ball minimizer would be to run it into a shop and swap HDD into a SSD. That would speed up the storage "guts" (and the shop could put the RAM in for you too if you like). Again, there is great pricing competition for SSD storage in pre-Silicon Macs so that would also be a relative "peanuts" expense.
Now, if she just wants a new Mac, nothing wrong with that at all. No need investing in a Mac that is probably in the vintaged window already or about to be. But she could likely kick this can another year+ down the road with cheap RAM and maybe SSD upgrades in that iMac. Or maybe a RAM upgrade INSIDE and a cheaper (no internal service required) SSD upgrade OUTSIDE?
Alternatively, while that 2015 is getting old, odds are high you could spend peanuts on a significant RAM upgrade and probably resolve most of the beach ball issues. By "peanuts", I mean a FRACTION of Apple RAM pricing in silicon machines, courtesy of robust competition for that RAM. Example: just took a quick look at Macsales Mac memory for the latter 2015 iMac 27" and see only $77 to quadruple her 8GB RAM. If it's the early 2015 iMac, drop that price by $7 for 32GB of RAM. Because competition is very good for us consumers, shopping around may shave some more off those prices.
If that iMac has a HDD inside or perhaps the Apple Fusion drive, another beach ball minimizer would be to run it into a shop and swap HDD into a SSD. That would speed up the storage "guts" (and the shop could put the RAM in for you too if you like). Again, there is great pricing competition for SSD storage in pre-Silicon Macs so that would also be a relative "peanuts" expense.
Now, if she just wants a new Mac, nothing wrong with that at all. No need investing in a Mac that is probably in the vintaged window already or about to be. But she could likely kick this can another year+ down the road with cheap RAM and maybe SSD upgrades in that iMac. Or maybe a RAM upgrade INSIDE and a cheaper (no internal service required) SSD upgrade OUTSIDE?
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Start with adding more ram to her current machine. She could end up being very happy to delay a new purchace.
for that budget, an iMac is probably the best choice ...
But, going from 27" 5k to 24" 4.5k might or might not work, I'd strongly suggest to test-drive the M3 iMac before committing ...
if her iMac has 2TB drive - how much of that is used? you don't want to load up a 1TB drive from the get go.
Alternatives as suggested: get 16 or even 32GB RAM for that 2015 iMac, also consider an external fast SSD as the boot drive, both those options probably cost ~ $250 tops and then save some more for an update.
personally, I went from a 2017 5k iMac to a Studio + ASD, would never go below 5k resolution, but that's just me.
You've gotten some good advice.
The key words in your description are this: photography, Photoshop.
This is a use case (unlike, say, web browsing and email) where more RAM is better.
To save money, as others have suggested, first try to upgrade the current iMac. Those beach balls may go away if you max out the RAM on her current iMac.
Also: if you go with a headless Mac you will have to buy a monitor, and for color photography you will want a monitor with good color calibration. Apple's own monitors (iMac, ASD, MacBook) tend to be much higher quality than the cheap monitors many people pair with Mac Mini computers.
The key words in your description are this: photography, Photoshop.
This is a use case (unlike, say, web browsing and email) where more RAM is better.
To save money, as others have suggested, first try to upgrade the current iMac. Those beach balls may go away if you max out the RAM on her current iMac.
Also: if you go with a headless Mac you will have to buy a monitor, and for color photography you will want a monitor with good color calibration. Apple's own monitors (iMac, ASD, MacBook) tend to be much higher quality than the cheap monitors many people pair with Mac Mini computers.
That would be the most cost-effective solution that would work. I have an M2 with 16GB RAM and use it for the same purpose. It is fast enough that my brain is the bottleneck and never the computer.
But she is going to have to think about external storage. and backups. a 1TB internal drive works well for the files you are using but is small for bulk storage especially if you shoot a lot of video..
With a bigger budget, of course get more, A Mac Studio would be ideal but at a higher cost. The base M2-Pro mini is a very cost-effective solution.
You are right to Prioritize memory, but 16 GB RAM is quite lame and even 24 GB will likely bring SBBOD long before 6-7 year intended life cycle.
All-in-one computers suck because when the display needs upgrading or goes out you throw the computer away and when the computer needs upgrading or goes out you throw the display away. You are correct about display quality however.
My workfl;ow is not dissimilar. Any of the chips are strong enough. Focus on RAM most importantly (IMO 32 GB minimum), but also note that M2 Max chip is stronger than M3 Pro chip. iMac is pretty but IMO all-in-one computers are a bad idea long term. I TB internal is appropriate mass storage since external TB SSDs work well.
An M3 Mini with 32 GB RAM works but an M2 Max Studio is much more computer, IMO a much better choice at similar price and RAM. I wanted a Studio but the delayed release lead me to instead get a M2 Max MBP with 96 GB RAM. IMO she should get 64 GB or 96 GB in her Studio, but 32 will work if money is tight.
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Unless more than 16 GB RAM can be added, adding RAM is a waste of time and money. My 2016 MBP with 16 GB RAM had SBBOD with similar workflow and forced me to upgrading.
Edit: it appears that OWC has 48 GB RAM available for that iMac for $379. So then the question is whether or not one pours money into a box Apple stopped upgrading the OS on more than a year ago. My decades of experience suggest that for anyone dealing with images 6-7 years is maximum life cycle, so that 2015 box is done. I recommend the M2 Max Studio.
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What kind of photography gear is she using now? Does she have plans to upgrade that in the future? Does she shoot RAW or .JPG? These factors must be considered, too, prior to purchasing a new computer. If, for example, she is currently using or planning to purchase any full-frame camera which has 50- 60 MP and she currently or plans to shoot in RAW with that camera, she needs to keep that in mind while making her purchase of a new computer.
In addition, since you mention that she shoots wildlife, does she shoot many frames per second (20-30 fps) in Continuous High+ mode? That can make a big difference, too, when it comes to transferring all those files into a computer. That computer needs to be able to safely support and manage those files.
The new computer should have plenty of "oomph," a powerful processor with the ability to easily handle many large files, and it should have plenty of space to accept and temporarily store large photographic files, and it also should have plenty of RAM to easily handle the reviewing/culling/editing process of those images.
A few years ago when I was considering moving from using DSLRs to using mirrorless cameras, as I was reading reviews and information about the options available at the time I quickly realized that first I was going to need to update my computer in order to have one which would handle what I was anticipating would be an increased workload on many fronts. Did that, then made the purchase of the new camera gear. Two or three years after that, now having had more experience in working with the larger files and also paying attention to my somewhat changed shooting patterns and such, I again updated my computer, this time significantly increasing both the storage space and the RAM in particular. I had found that I needed to do so.
And, yes, in addition to the computer itself, external HDDs and external SSDs are one's friend, both for backups and for everyday use in various ways in order to take some of the load off the computer. I prefer to review, cull and process my images in the computer but then shift the edited files to an external drive. Actually before I even start doing anything with those files, though, I immediately copy any card filled with newly-shot images right to an external SSD to ensure I have a backup. Everything is backed up and eventually archived throughout the process. This requires plenty of storage both within the computer itself and with the use of external drives.
Of course your sister knows her own needs and preferences better than any of us here but since you asked on this forum for advice but without providing us much in the way of information about how she deals with photography now, what gear or accessories she is currently using or planning to use and how that will have an impact on whatever new computer she finally chooses.
Hope this helps provide some things for her to think about....
In addition, since you mention that she shoots wildlife, does she shoot many frames per second (20-30 fps) in Continuous High+ mode? That can make a big difference, too, when it comes to transferring all those files into a computer. That computer needs to be able to safely support and manage those files.
The new computer should have plenty of "oomph," a powerful processor with the ability to easily handle many large files, and it should have plenty of space to accept and temporarily store large photographic files, and it also should have plenty of RAM to easily handle the reviewing/culling/editing process of those images.
A few years ago when I was considering moving from using DSLRs to using mirrorless cameras, as I was reading reviews and information about the options available at the time I quickly realized that first I was going to need to update my computer in order to have one which would handle what I was anticipating would be an increased workload on many fronts. Did that, then made the purchase of the new camera gear. Two or three years after that, now having had more experience in working with the larger files and also paying attention to my somewhat changed shooting patterns and such, I again updated my computer, this time significantly increasing both the storage space and the RAM in particular. I had found that I needed to do so.
And, yes, in addition to the computer itself, external HDDs and external SSDs are one's friend, both for backups and for everyday use in various ways in order to take some of the load off the computer. I prefer to review, cull and process my images in the computer but then shift the edited files to an external drive. Actually before I even start doing anything with those files, though, I immediately copy any card filled with newly-shot images right to an external SSD to ensure I have a backup. Everything is backed up and eventually archived throughout the process. This requires plenty of storage both within the computer itself and with the use of external drives.
Of course your sister knows her own needs and preferences better than any of us here but since you asked on this forum for advice but without providing us much in the way of information about how she deals with photography now, what gear or accessories she is currently using or planning to use and how that will have an impact on whatever new computer she finally chooses.
Hope this helps provide some things for her to think about....
What's the budget? IF you're really tight on money, as others recommend, upgrade the ram on the existing machine.
I don't have time to throw out machines and specs that might be good, if we don't know what the budget is
I don't have time to throw out machines and specs that might be good, if we don't know what the budget is
This, and it's slow because of the HDD. Also add in OCLP to install Sonoma, like i did with my 2013 mac, and she'll be good.
She's going to want a 27" 5k display given the computer she's coming from. I therefore suggest an Apple Studio display with a Mac mini that has *at least* 16 GB of memory (32 GB if she shoots in RAW and edits heavily) and a 2 TB SSD. If her budget allows the Mac Studio instead of the mini, that would be a worthwhile upgrade.
The woman in question works with images, and all parts of computer hardware/software age out: RAM, Hard Drives, WiFi, Bluetooth, etc. Using ancient hardware for images work is very sub-optimal. Suggesting she throw money at 8-year-old hardware is bad advice made worse because it is an all-in-one computer and the display also ages out and/or fails.
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Agreed. It's great to keep older hardware going, but at a certain point it becomes a sub-optimal investment of time and resources. We're 3 years into the transition from Intel to Apple Silicon, so the clock is really ticking on the viable lives of Intel Macs for the vast majority of users out there.
A Mac Studio with a good external display is the most likely new system that will last a good 6-7 years.
Get an iMac M3 24GB RAM/1TB SSD. She could probably even get away with 24/512 since she can use an external SSD for more storage expansion as needed. Simplicity and plenty of power for her use case.
