Ideal Mac specs

hey_homes

Hi guys,

I'm not a Sketch Up user but my girlfried has just become one and needs a new laptop and has asked me to help her find one.

She currently uses an HP laptop which is getting a bit long in the tooth. I've suggested a Thinkpad T420 or T420s but she doesn't like the look of them; she is quite keen on a Macbook. But I don't know anything about them so what I'd like to know is: What is the minimum specced Macbook that will run Sketch Up nicely?

The recommended specs call for a dedicated graphics card and from what I've found that would require a MacBook Pro that is significantly more expensive than the base model - and is very expensive compared to a PC of similar spec. I guess what I'm asking is will the program run okay on the entry level MacBook Pro or even a Macbook Air?

Cheers,
Rob

Mike Lucey

Hi Rob and welcome,

I to am a Mac user and have been since Macs started using the Intel chip. I have never looked back and am now on my forth MBP.

To answer your question. From what I gather SketchUp works fine with the MacBook but if your girlfriend will be working on large models, it gets slow, as with any low spec lappie.

There is a comprehensive thread here talking about this very subject. I will see if I can locate it and provide a link. The other suggestion would be that your girlfriend visit one of the Apple Stores and actually have one of the Apples Geniuses download Sketchup on a MacBook and then your girlfriend can give it a hands on test.

Now modelhead as regards your misguided opinion on Macs. Mac users have all the quality apps they need, the Windows only apps can be works via Bootcamp (free) of others, Parallels etc. Its the best of both worlds for a Mac user

The reason Macs are 30% more expensive than 'lookalike' Win laptops is the same reason that BMWs, Mercs, Lexus etc cost 30%+ more than Fords etc. If you want quality you have to pay for it. Joking aside! Overall, Macs have worked out cheaper for me compared the the number of Dell lappies I had over the years. Two reasons, virtually no servicing costs, good trade-in and re-sale values.

To say Apple is not into computers is accurate to an extent. But everyone will have to agree that Apple 'are into' personal computers After all they were the first personal computer to introduce Windows ..... if they didn't we might still be scratching our heads with MS-DOS.

My MacBook Pro, iPhone and iPad make for a great platform to get my work done ... I'm looking forward to Apple 'getting in to' TVs, which I believe is around the corners

Mike

hey_homes

@mike lucey said:

Hi Rob and welcome,

I to am a Mac user and have been since Macs started using the Intel chip. I have never looked back and am now on my forth MBP.

To answer your question. From what I gather SketchUp works fine with the MacBook but if your girlfriend will be working on large models, it gets slow, as with any low spec lappie.

Mike

Cheers Mike, thanks very much for the reply.

Just one thing: Can you please clarify the specs of your Macbook - does it have integrated graphics or a dedicated graphics card?

Mike Lucey

No problem Rob.

This is a what I am using, Apple MacBook Pro "Core i7" 2.66 17" Mid-2010 Specs
http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook_pro/stats/macbook-pro-core-i7-2.66-aluminum-17-mid-2010-unibody-specs.html Only extra is a Ram upgrade to 8GB

This, http://groups.google.com/group/sketchupissues/browse_thread/thread/f8582b8dc80daaef?pli=1 outlines SU problems on the MacBook (old model). As I said, try it out in a Mac Store if you can. An other option is to look at a MacBook Air. Do a search on these forums as there are a few threads on it ..... it looks quite good.

Mike

Gaieus

@hey_homes said:

...Just one thing: Can you please clarify the specs of your Macbook - does it have integrated graphics or a dedicated graphics card?

So just have a look at the specs and you will see that it does have a dedicated card (beside the integrated chipset).

No matter what your choice will be, do NOT decide with any laptop / macbook which only has the Integrated chipset. A waste of money and time and very soon you will bang your head into the wall that you did not devote that difference to the performance. She has to decide if she needs a fashionable computer she can show off with and switch it on to check emails and maybe even watch a video OR she wants to use it for 3D work. Without graphic support, SU will just crawl. Don't listen to Mike that it can get along - he has never put more than a dozen of edges into a model!

Mike Lucey

Modelhead,

I think you may not have grasped the initial inquiry. Rob's girlfriend obviously does not have a requirement for a power laptop otherwise she would not be looking at a Macbook. Its a case of 'horses for courses' on this one. I have no idea what she will be using SU for but am guessing in will probably be light work and for light SU work the MacBook is just fine.

Then again, I did advise that she visit an Apple Store and have a test run on Google SketchUp. The guys and gals there are normally more than willing to go through the trouble of demoing for customers

So the 'recommendations' are valid, if you take the time to have a think about it

Mike

Mike Lucey

...... But the woman WANTS a Mac ...... from my experience with women, its best to just give them what they want even if its not what you 'think' best for them.

BTW, I hope we see a LOT more women running the World in the future as they are not anywhere near as greedy as men, generally speaking The few that have got into powerful positions have had to adopt so called 'manly' traits ..... IMO Margaret Thatcher and Hilary Clinton would be examples examples.

Women are more 'in tune' with nature also ..... well most of the time! After all, its 'Mother Nature' not 'Father Nature'!

Now, how about that for a subject switch to a far more interesting subject?

solo

Mike,

We are talking about the same gender that drool over these:

Manolo Blahnik alligator boots, at a whopping $14,000

Mike Lucey

Okay Pete, I agree on that one, my good lady likes her shoe collection also!

I won't even go into the useless stuff that men drool over just to mention just one. What's the point in having a road car, outside of Germany, that can reach a speed of 250kph+ when most max road speed limits are in the region of 120kph?

I still think, all in all, the World Economy would not be in the mess that its in or there would be as many people staving to death on a daily basis, if women had more of a controlling hand.

bigstick

I have been using a 15" Core i5 mid 2010 MBP for a while. I have 8Gb of RAM and it works perfectly. I use it for fairly big/complex models for SketchUp and Podium. It's fast enough for me, and I have an 8 core Mac Pro in the office. Considering what desktop machines some people have (and there are lots of people still using XP) this machine is plenty fast enough for serious SketchUp work and rendering.

Before I had my current machine, I had the old model 15" Core 2 Duo MBP with the Santa Rosa Chipset and 4Gb of RAM. I didn't have a problem with that either.

Any decent spec MBP ought to be better than any Desktop PC running XP 32 bit.

The DVD writer in my old machine failed 5 times over the space of 3 years, and just before my AppleCare warranty expired, Apple replaced the machine for free with a brand new model of the latest spec.

AppleCare is awesome! I would advise anyone who buys an Apple machine to budget for this if remotely possible. If you don't live close to an Apple store, ring them up and they'll send a courier to collect your machine, and return it around 3 days later. They'll even supply a box

I haven't seen any reports of MacBook Air machines with SketchUp. I would have thought it would be fine for smaller models, but for rendering or very complex models, the 15" Pro model is the best balance between power and portability - IMO.