which mac?

[Bucket]

I was looking to keep a laptop dedicated to home recording. It's unlikely I'll ever use it for anything else. As it happens, I have two MacBook Pros and I need to sell one. The 2011 i5 is smaller and supports the latest MacOS. The 2012 i7 has a dedicated GPU and USB 3.0 ports. Both have 8GB RAM and solid state drives. The problem is, I have to decide whether processing power is more important than portability. (How much horsepower do I really NEED for Reaper et al?) I might also turn a bigger profit selling the i7. 

 

Opinions, go.

[esselfortium]

I'd go for the faster one, no contest. Instruments and effects can get very CPU-heavy when combined in a complex song.

 

Also, if the smaller one has a smaller display, that's going to be a nuisance in a DAW as well.

[jmickle66666666]

definitely the i7. i had to made a similar decision with my current macbook and have not regretted getting a bigger machine at all

[fraggle]

Depends what you're using it for. I have one of the 13" MBPs which I much prefer but only because I tend to spend my working day running around between meeting rooms so I appreciate the portability. If your laptop spends most of its time sitting on a desk then probably stick with the larger, more powerful one.