MacBook Pro

[Anonymous]

Hi, I have a question. I never worked with ArchiCAD, but I have to start now. I need to do HW update, cause my notebook is old. I was thinking about MacBook 13 with this spec:

2.9GHz Dual-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz
16GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM — 2x8GB
750GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
Intel HD Graphics 4000

Problem can be Intel HD Graphics 4000 card. Is it enought for ArchiCAD? I will study architecture since september 2013. I have no idea what projects will I do as school works, but I want programs to work corectly, with no lags etc. Is this configuration enought?

[Eduardo Rolon]

It will run but I would not recommend it. The top of the line Macbook Pro Retina 15" should be the ideal. You could sacrifice the screen size and get the 13" but AC will feel cramped in it.

[Karl Ottenstein]

@Michal - IMHO, the 13" Macbook Pro you mention would not be adequate for two main reasons: there are not enough vertical pixels to display the full AC interface, and it uses the onboard Intel graphics only - AC performance demands a dedicated graphics card, as is only available in the 15 inch models.

I agree with Eduardo that about the top of the line Retina MBP 15", but the cost is quite high. If you cannot afford that, there are cheaper 15" configurations that can give you a dedicated graphics chip...

[Anonymous]

Hi. Thanks for answer. I don't have to buy MacBook for sure, altought it would be nice for normal work, when I will do something else. Screen size is not really important for me, cause I can use additional monitor at home, and in school I will mostly do just notes. Anyway, MB 15 is quite expensive, so I will see if there will be enought money in my wallet. I have time to September anyway, to decide.

I was even thinking about ASUS G55VW, which cost 1270 € with so much better configuration:

ASUS NB G55VW 15.6"FHD, Intel i7-3630QM, 12GB RAM, 750GB+128Gb SSD, GTX660M 2Gb,

This should be enought right?

[Laszlo Nagy]

If it is true that the max. resolution of the G55 VW is only 1366x768, then I would not recommend it. The 768 vertical pixels is just not enough for ArchiCAD for production work in my opinion.
It can support Full HD if you use an external monitor, so it is really you to know if that is OK with you.