I am considering a Macbook Pro with Retina display but I am unsure whether to splurge for the 16 MB of RAM. I am also unclear about what i7 processor to upgrade to. Finally, do I need to upgrade the ssd from 256 to 512? I am an intensive trader with lots of windows and applications open so I don't want to shortchange myself. I will be running both IB TWS and TOS. This is what I am currently looking at: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/871860-REG/Apple_MC975LL_A_15_4_MacBook_Pro_Notebook.html 2.3GHz Intel Core i7 Quad-Core 8GB of DDR3 Onboard RAM 256GB Flash Storage Thank you for any feedback!
I trade on a 2010 17" Macbook pro with 8GB of Ram and a 512 ssd (aftermarket upgrade) hard drive. I have windows 7 in bootcamp as well as parallels. I typically boot my Mac right in windows if the only thing that I am doing is trading. If want to have any other applications open, I run parallels. It runs flawlessly with 8GB of RAM, however, I have a pre-retina display mac. From what i understand, the retina display requires more system resources. If you are going to trade via windows on bootcamp, then the 8GB should be fine. If you intend to get parallels of vmware fusion, then upgrade to 16gb of Ram. Overall, i love my mac and will never go back to a windows machine. However, if i were to ever set up a desktop for trading only, it wouldn't make sense to get a Mac. If you intend to trade on your mac, you need to think about putting windows on it. Trading platforms for mac are very limited. TOS is way too expensive if you are going to trade futures.
I have many desktop computers but last month I bought a macbook pro retina 16gb ram with the biggest flash drive 700gb and the 2.8 cpu that burst higher if needed. I also have a very heavy leonovo laptop with i7 cpu and ssd (I like the keyboards). This apple laptop is the best thing I ever bought or ever had. Is it cheap, no. Is it good. Oh yes. I run parallels for the windows trading tools without any problems. I also run sierrachart with crossover. It runs perfect .Don't need to dual boot anymore for me. Don't forget that after 4 years I will still be able to sell this apple laptop for 40 to 50% of the initial purchase price. Try that with a Dell. One thing I like a lot are the multiple desktops (virtual desktops) I have all my different screens on like 8 different desktops and I can very easily switch with my keyboard from one to another. I CANNOT BELIEVE THEY DID NOT IMPLEMENT THIS IN WINDOWS8 !! welcome in 2013, Mac os X is the most advanced OS in the world.
then I don't understand why you are planning on using a laptop instead of a desktop with more than one monitor... what is your trading style... "intensive trader" doesn't really tell much... but overall, that MBP should be fine...
Donât most trading platforms run on Windows? Youâd have to figure getting a license for Windows as well on your MacBook Pro⦠Donât get me wrong, itâs sleek hardware so I can see why it would be good, but there might be cheaper alternatives that have a 512GB SSD built in, etc.
I'm no expert on older computers but just because you might be able to sell a four year old apple for 35 or 40% of what you paid for it (50% sounds a stretch) I would not assume that ratio holds. My guess is you could be looking at 10 or 15% (or even zero) on equipment bought today and sold 4 years from now. The tech world could (probably will) be massively different over that span of time and what is top of the line today may (again, probably will) be close to a joke. Who will pay even $350 for a used machine when they can buy more capacity for $500 (or less) new? I'm not knocking apple products. Just saying your best bet is to buy what works best for you today in terms of performance/value, probably buy a touch more capacity -- 30 to 50% -- than you currently require (without going overboard) and pretty much ignore resale potential. Betting on cashing out for anything significant 4 years down the road seems a bad bet particulary for a trader when opportunity cost on capital is so damn high.
By the way I have never owned an apple product and am impressed by the following they have among many with real tech expertise. The Dell i5 works just fine for my limited needs and is so cheap.
I have three; a 2010 MBP 13", 2012 MBA and a Retina 15" with SSD. They're all great, but I wouldn't buy one for a primary workstation. It's fantastic if you need to be mobile. They're really bulletproof, but you're probably better off with an i7 mini with 8GB. I run IBTWS, UBS option trader, superderivatives, BBG and some other front-ends. The only use they see is when I am traveling or around the house and yard when I'm babysitting positions. The older machines are OS X and the Retina is dual boot.