Which Macbook would be sufficient for HD Video Editing?

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Which Macbook would be sufficient for HD Video Editing?

Hello everyone. I am looking into switching to a Macbook from Windows. I've been an avid Windows user since...well since I have used computers. However, as I got older I started getting into photography and built my own pc. I have recently been getting into videography. Well, long story short, my windows pc works for editing video...barely. I did the math and to upgrade it to something decent, it'd cost half as much as it would to just get a mac and everyone says that Macbooks are great for editing videos, photos and music. So I thought, might as well just sell my pc and pay off the rest to get myself a mac.

My question is this:
What exactly would be minimum for editing video. Particularly, HD video. 1080p or 720p @ 60fps. I also am a photographer and need something that can handle dumping 40 RAW files into photoshop as well. Finally, something that can handle extremely mild gaming. I built my pc mostly for gaming, and have since curbed playing games on a computer severely. Frankly, if I want to game, I'll just use a ps3 or 360 or something.

Anyways, what would be the minimum setup required to handle HD videos with a few plugins and such? I can't afford to spend 3k+ to get something super fancy, but I definitely need something that won't lag out too much in photo/video editing software. Could I just get a used Macbook Pro online? Perhaps a core 2 duo with 4 gigs of ddr3?

Thank you for your help!

Notebook-OTHER

Posted on Aug 20, 2011 10:15 PM

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Answer 1

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KeanuReeves

Level 3

570 points

Aug 20, 2011 10:36 PM in response to Raichu206

I would get the 15" macbook pro, mainly because it comes with the dedicated graphics card (AMD). Also it has thunderbolt, so when devices come out that support thunderbolt, it would be really handy ----> Can transfer large HD files in a flash!

All the features about the 13" are great, except I don't know how well the Intel HD Graphics 3000 card is suited to editing video. This is a question you can ask the people at the apple store. (about Intel HD Graphics 3000)

I think getting one of the new macbook pro's is certainly worth it.

You can certainly purchase a used macbook online.

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Answer 2

Raichu206 Author

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Aug 21, 2011 3:29 AM in response to KeanuReeves

Alright good to know.

What about a used macbook pro? Would something like a Core2 Duo with 4gigs of DDR3 be alright?

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Answer 3

samberl

Level 4

2,007 points

Aug 21, 2011 3:42 AM in response to Raichu206

Here are benchmarks for all Macs, including the current and recent past models.

mac-benchmarks

The quad-core MBP is an awesome computer, but what about an iMac? Do you need your Mac to be portable?

HD video rendering is very demanding so you want the fastest Mac available.

You also need to consider whether your software is able to address all available cores.

Once you have decided on your video editing suite, I suggest you search for software benchmarks.

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Answer 4

samberl

Level 4

2,007 points

Aug 21, 2011 3:44 AM in response to Raichu206

I should say you want the fastest Mac you can afford.

Here are some benchmarks for Final Cut Pro X

http://barefeats.com/fcpx01.html

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Answer 5

Raichu206 Author

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Aug 21, 2011 3:46 AM in response to samberl

Yes and no. Bottom line is that it doesn't HAVE to be portable, but makes more sense for what I can use it for. I can bring the notebook with me on a photoshoot, and edit a couple of the photos right then and there, burn a dvd of them (if so desired) and such. Plus a few other ideas I had in mind. It just seems to fit more for what I might do.

Thank you for the link to the benchmarks. I think this will help quite a bit with my search!

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Answer 6

samberl

Level 4

2,007 points

Aug 21, 2011 4:03 AM in response to Raichu206

When it comes to video editing, you will want at least a quad-core MBP.

The quad-core MBP and iMac are almost identical in performance.

Looks like the 2011 (15") MacBook Pro 2.3GHz Quad-Core i7 with 8G of DDR3 1333MHz RAM and Radeon HD 6750M GPU (1G GDDR5) is your best bet, if it fits within your budget.

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Answer 7

samberl

Level 4

2,007 points

Aug 21, 2011 4:14 AM in response to Raichu206

Here is another good resource for maxing out the performance of your MBP, whichever model you decide on.

http://macperformanceguide.com/

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Answer 8

Aug 21, 2011 5:22 AM in response to Raichu206

Consider how long you intend to use this laptop for.

If it is to be atleast 3 years, then you may as well get the best one you can afford.

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