[mfbernstein]

I'm expecting to order an i5 MBP shortly. Ideally, I'd like to be able to replace both of my current machines - a dying Thinkpad (C2D 2.0GHZ) and a Core i7-based (2.8GHZ) desktop - with the MBP.

The only performance-hungry program I depend on is Adobe Lightroom, which runs fine on the desktop and is essentially unusable on the Thinkpad. I think a big part of the problem is that the Thinkpad is prone to overheating and so frequently downlocks during CPU intensive operations. So I'm wondering how much of a problem heat is with the newer MBPs? Would the fans do a good job of dissipating CPU heat and keeping the CPU cool enough to run at full (I guess in the case of the i5, TurboBoost) speed?

The other thing is that I have a sizable image library (2.5TB) on 2 3.5" SATA drives, that I need relatively speedy and regular access to. Obviously I can't stick them both into the MBP like I've done with my desktop. What is the best option for fast access to 2 or more external drives? On the Thinkpad I was using USB 2.0, which was no fun at all. On the desktop, there's internal SATA. On the MBP though, there's only 1 FW800 port. Would I be better off daisy-chaining the drives over FW800, or splitting them between FW and USB? Are there any alternate means of getting fast external connectivity? Is using an NAS via Gigabit viable?

Thanks!

[The Godfather]

Don't do it.
The i7 is more futureproof than the i5.
If you do, you'll see yourself replacing that new MBP next year.
Sell the Thinkpad and pay off your debts.

[OreoCookie]

My recommendation won't be as clear-cut as that of The Godfather. (I hope he doesn't kill me for my disobedience )

First of all, in almost all cases, desktops are faster than notebooks of the same generation: faster cpus, faster harddrives, faster gpus, more RAM, the list goes on. Second of all, if you need portability, you need portability. There is no replacement for it if you need it. I travel quite a bit, I spend at least 6-8 weeks a year in beds in different cities and countries. I cannot live off a desktop. Other than that, I'd love to have an iMac (my boss has one and I'm envious ).

If you need a machine on the go, the MacBook Pro will be a very good option. Don't expect it to rival your desktop in terms of speed or expandability. Do you really need a mobile computer that can handle Lightroom? If so, replace your ThinkPad with a Core i5 MacBook Pro. If not, stick to what you have now.

[mfbernstein]

Originally Posted by The Godfather 

Don't do it.
The i7 is more futureproof than the i5.
If you do, you'll see yourself replacing that new MBP next year.
Sell the Thinkpad and pay off your debts.

Certainly agree that the i7 desktop is more futureproofed. But it does mean sticking to a 2 machine setup, and synchronization, especially across Mac/PC is not something I enjoy. OTOH, if manipulating 12MP files in Lightroom were borderline on the current machine, I guess that would be bad news should I ever get a newer higher-resolution DSLR... Sadly, I don't think a half-dead ThinkPad will be worth selling.

Originally Posted by OreoCookie 

First of all, in almost all cases, desktops are faster than notebooks of the same generation: faster cpus, faster harddrives, faster gpus, more RAM, the list goes on. Second of all, if you need portability, you need portability. There is no replacement for it if you need it. I travel quite a bit, I spend at least 6-8 weeks a year in beds in different cities and countries. I cannot live off a desktop. Other than that, I'd love to have an iMac (my boss has one and I'm envious ).

If you need a machine on the go, the MacBook Pro will be a very good option. Don't expect it to rival your desktop in terms of speed or expandability. Do you really need a mobile computer that can handle Lightroom? If so, replace your ThinkPad with a Core i5 MacBook Pro. If not, stick to what you have now.

Good points. I definitely need a portable machine, and I don't my ThinkPad will survive much longer... Mainly was just hoping to end the hassle of having 2 machines and having to keep them synced. If the MBP can replace the desktop, that's a lot of headache I can do without, and it's worth it for me to go with the higher-end MBP. If not, well, I guess I might have second thoughts given the price tag!

[OreoCookie]

Well, a MacBook Pro might give you sufficient performance for what you do, so you may get by with a single machine. As a matter of fact, the headache of syncing two machines is the reason why I only have one

But given your post and you being used to the level of performance you have now, you may be too spoilt to go back to a slower machine

[macaddict0001]

You would be better off to Daisy-Chain the FW drives, than split them between FW and USB. But if your enclosures support both, you can experiment if you want. eSata would of course be ideal though.
It's more than worth noting that the i7 you have in your desktop has twice as many cores as the one in the MBP. If you can see if a mac retailer will let you install lightroom(if you have a mac license) To see the performance.

[Simon]

Take Lightroom and some of your pics on a USB stick or external disk to an Apple store or dealership. Hook it up to a new i5 or i7 MBP and see how it performs. If you're happy get rid of all your old stuff and replace it with the new MBP. Enjoy consolidation.

[mfbernstein]

Thanks for the suggestions. I did try installing Lightroom on one of the Apple Store machines a while back, but IIRC it required admin privileges which I obviously did not have, and the staff wasn't too keen on helping. They were happy to let me test Aperture and iPhoto though...

Yes, I'm aware of the difference in core-count. For better or worse the LR still isn't very heavily threaded in the Develop module, which is where the performance is most variable in my experience. Indeed, given the Turbo Boost options, I wouldn't be entirely surprised if the MBP was quite comparable.

Of course, if LR 3 is significantly faster than LR 2, this may be a moot discussion!