New Portable Editing Machine

TheSkateyBird · 15 Jan 2019 at 22:52

Hey All,

Since I started taking photographs back in April, I've been using my Mid-2012 15" Non-Retina Macbook Pro. It's been a great machine with no real issues at all. But I've now reached a point where I want to start taking a device with me to review and edit photos while traveling - not something that is comfortable with a 2.5kg 15" laptop.

I have my Thinkpad for general home use which as some of you may know has an appalling screen, but this second machine will be my main photo machine.

I'm looking at replacements and I've gotten it down to a few devices and was hoping for some input and advice. I'm looking at the following:
iPad Pro 10.5 256GB
Surface Pro 6 - seems a lot of £ to come without a keyboard/mouse and only 128GB
HP Envy X360

I'm not really sure which way to be looking, I like the idea of the iPad as it'll be very familiar as I use an iPhone however the appeal of the other two is obviously a full desktop OS and Adobe programs to go with that. But I'm not a massive fan of Windows after years of MacOS.

Are there any other devices that would be worth considering or things that I've overlooked with the products I've picked out? Would really appreciate it!

TheSkateyBird · 16 Jan 2019 at 14:19

Main reason for not looking at another Mac is price, and hatred of the new keyboard. Second hand 13” 2015 worth considering?

TheSkateyBird · 16 Jan 2019 at 14:32

I see what you mean about the keyboard and upgrade. That just leaves me with price, even the 13 seems expensive considering I paid around £1500 for my 2012 model. But I guess things move on!is there realistically any other option I can consider other than a MBP for >£1000?

TheSkateyBird · 16 Jan 2019 at 19:51

Back home now and have spend a little more time looking at the different devices. With MacOS, what sort of usable space am I looking at from the 128GB model?

If I can get a decent amount of RW2s on the 128GB model I'd consider it, I've only had 128GB OS drive on Windows and I felt like that was a bit of a joke. I do have two external drive, one LaCie 1TB Rugged Drive and a 2TB Seagate external so I can offload pictures. But it's not something I want to be doing after a weekend of shooting.

TheSkateyBird · 16 Jan 2019 at 23:04

And said:
Stick with your existing MBP, buy an optical drive-->HD kit and replace the optical drive with 1tb or bigger 2.5" 5400rpm drive. Save a bundle of cash. I can appreciate things take a little longer on an older machine but the end result will still be the same and whatever you buy you're still going to be faffing about with that device, charger, external drive, bag for it all etc.

FWIW mine is a 240gb ssd for OS/apps and the original 500gb 5400rpm drive for storage and I find that more than enough for two weeks away while everything fits in a crumpler messenger bag.

Already put an OWC data doubler in the optical bay, issue isn't performance or storage. My issue is the weight and size of the thing. Hence looking at tablets and 13" machines instead.

TheSkateyBird · 17 Jan 2019 at 09:51

Zaf said:
I’d say it all comes down to how much editing you are planning to do on the road. If it’s just a few tweaks ready to upload to social media or a full blown workflow ready for print etc.

I’ve got a MBP 13” and iPad Pro with Apple Pencil and find myself using the iPad Pro more.

In my office I’ve got a PC and calibrated 27” Dell display I use for my main workflow.

Plus the iPad is easier to travel with and less nervous about breaking in my camera bag on flights etc

That's why the iPad Pro was somewhat appealing to me. I don't have the means to print so all of my photography is pretty much edited then posted to 500px, Instagram and DeviantArt.

Is it possible to create panorama stitches on iOS?

Don't get me wrong, I would love another Macbook Pro but cost vs what I'd use it for is kind of hard to swallow!

TheSkateyBird · 18 Jan 2019 at 22:02

I'm going to be heading into a couple of shops over the weekend to have a bit of hands on with the products mentioned so far and will see how they feel and look!

TheSkateyBird · 20 Jan 2019 at 17:26

Back from visiting Apple and Currys today and find myself even more unsure to be honest, I think it's just where I am trying to replace a device that has been my soul device for six years! I really found myself enjoying the iPad Pro and the Apple Pencil felt really good for some editing stuff and almost think it's what I want. I completely and very quickly wrote off all of the Windows machines that I tried. Another Macbook Pro would be nice but the cost for 256GB is eye watering to me. I'm thinking I'll go the iPad Pro route for now as I mostly just import, adjust and share my photos so it'll cover all my bases for now and then invest in a new Macbook Pro when I want to move onto actual edits opposed to adjustments and touch ups.

TheSkateyBird · 20 Jan 2019 at 21:23

Bes said:
What’s your budget?

Originally I was looking at around the £700-£800 mark maximum. That's the reason I've been looking at Windows machines and the iPad. As per my OP I have a Thinkpad T430s that does all of my general computing so this second device needs to have a good screen, import and make adjustments to RAWs and be able to share them to Instagram, Flickr, DeviantArt and 500px.