So, as I’ve mentioned before, while I LOVE MacOS, Photos, iMovie, Safari, etc., and particularly Logic Pro X, I’ve grown rather weary of Apple’s continued issues with their laptops.
Crappy keyboards that stop working. Version 2 of crappy keyboards that stop working. Version 3 of crappy keyboards that stop working. Ribbon cables to screens that stop working. Sounds par for the course for $500 laptops, amirite? Except that these laptops are $1200-$3000, not $500. It’s just unacceptable, and disappointing to an Apple fan like me, that’s been on the platform for over 11 years.
So that leaves me with three options, as I see it.
- Keep my 2015 MacBook Pro. It runs great, is fast enough for what I do, and shouldn’t lose steam any time soon. It is, however, tiresome to carry, when coupled with everything else I generally carry in my backpack.
- Switch to a 2018 iPad Air+keyboard, and then get a Mac Mini for home. This is a decent option, given how powerful iOS has gotten, and there are rarely complaints about Mac Mini reliability. Additionally, the new Minis are quite the little powerhouse.
- Switch to……….Windows. Yeah I know. I didn’t like it before either.
However…….
My work generously let me borrow a used Surface Pro 4, with a Core i7, 8GB RAM, and a 256GB SSD. I loaded it up with Windows 10 Pro, and it runs really, really well. Nice and fast. Additionally, I LOVE the form factor. laptop mode with keyboard attached, and tablet mode with it removed. I’d love a 12″ iPad Pro that’s MacOS with the keyboard attached, iOS with it removed. Very, very cool. Not sure why Apple doesn’t see the merit in this.
The OS is fine. I think much of it has to do with familiarity (despite my day job), and overtime I’ll get used to it. Windows 10 isn’t an “ugly” OS. It’s just very different.
No, the big hangup is with the apps, of which I personally rely on certain applications in the realm of digital audio (for recording and creating music), video editing, and photo editing. I’ve used Logic for years, and before that, GarageBand. I’ve used iMovie for years as well, and Photos for quite awhile, with iPhoto before that. For heavier photo editing, I love Pixelmator, which is a Mac-only app as well.
Thus far, the only thing I’ve had time to do is the audio element, which I’ve been using Tracktion 7. I free to use DAW, it feels like coming home in a sense, because I was a big time user of 1.6 and 2.0, back in 2005. However, much has been done (as you can imagine) in the time that’s passed, and T7 is a very, very powerful DAW. In short, I’m digging it!
So onward to photo and video I go, to see what can be done. I’ve downloaded Adobe Premiere/Photoshop Elements, Affinity Photo, and BlackMagic Design DaVinci. All are demos, except DaVinci, which is free. We’ll see how I get along with them, going forward!
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