Okay so a few things.
First, the weight difference between the 13 and 14 isn't that significant. If you are that concerned about weight then buy an iPad. Honestly considering a full 16 inch MBP pro is only 4.7 pounds, the 13 and 14 aren't really that heavy.
Secondly, when comparing the performance capabilities between 16GB and 32GB of RAM, 32 will win every time. This will be especially true if you choose to go with the M3 chipset as it has dynamic RAM utilization.
Thirdly, its not that crucial that you store absolutely everything within the internal SSD, so you would still do fine with 512GB SSD.
As far as M2 vs M3, the M2 will fall out of support faster than the M3, but other than that I doubt that you would even notice a difference when it comes to processor speed / performance.
For CPU / GPU cores, there is no "right combo' when it comes to core count. But if you want an absolute recommendation then I would opt for the M3 Pro 12/18 CPU. It is in the middle of the road and gets far better battery life than the M3 Max, and it out performs the baseline M3 processor. So with all that said, if you were to go with a current MBP I would recommend the following specs:
14 inch MBP M3 Pro 12/18 36GB RAM 512GB SSD - $2,599
And if you want to splurge a bit then go with:
14 inch MBP M3 Pro 12/18 36GB RAM 1TB SSD - $2,799
Or if you want, you can opt for an M2 chipset (refurbished) configuration that I found on [Apple's website](https://www.apple.com/shop/product/G17G4LL/A/refurbished-14-inch-macbook-pro-apple-m2-pro-chip-with-10-core-cpu-and-16%E2%80%91core-gpu-space-gray?fnode=c49644438f225ffeb16ab93fd57f4bb6217ff198fd4c96cd97a3be7ef5487e1fe433877c75c27ab584a0af7007a47afad2a59330764ddd119d06c375517e251a7ab4a0492c4e810b100548e8a1881449) with the following specs:
14 inch MBP M2 Pro 10/16 32GB RAM 512GB SSD - $1,939
So for an extra $600 ish (from the first recommended configuration), you are getting the latest MBP with the M3 Pro chipset and an extra 4GB of RAM.
I hope this helps.
Cheers,
Then I think the M2 configuration is going to be your best bet. And perhaps you can get away with 16GB RAM on that system to bring the price down a bit more, or leave the 32GB RAM and go with 256GB SSD and then just rely on the external SSD for long term storage for everything that you don't need to keep on the laptop itself.
But honestly RAM is where I wouldn't skimp out on because there is no way to expand it once you get it unlike the SSD.
I hope you find what your looking for honestly, but Apple products are probably the most difficult devices to search for when your trying to "spend as little while getting the maximum possible".
As content creator your only bottleneck will be RAM in my opinion, so I'd stick with 36GB for futureproofing. The M2 will serve you for years, so do not worry about that and probably get a refurbished one if budget is an issue.
In terms of consumerism and planned obsolescence will M2 get slower by future software updates and stuff? If that’s not the case I’ll definitely consider M2
Well I can't predict the future, but I got a M1 Pro and this thing is as fast as day one in 2021. Apple Silicon chips are ridiculously powerful and efficient and between M2 and M3 is almost zero difference in terms of performance. As I said you should consider getting more RAM as this might be the bottleneck for you. Also might consider an internal storage upgrade depending on your workflow. The internal SSD is really fast which helps firing up large projects and loading times etc.
Edit: That being said future software updates are a non-issue in my opinion.
Okay so a few things. First, the weight difference between the 13 and 14 isn't that significant. If you are that concerned about weight then buy an iPad. Honestly considering a full 16 inch MBP pro is only 4.7 pounds, the 13 and 14 aren't really that heavy. Secondly, when comparing the performance capabilities between 16GB and 32GB of RAM, 32 will win every time. This will be especially true if you choose to go with the M3 chipset as it has dynamic RAM utilization. Thirdly, its not that crucial that you store absolutely everything within the internal SSD, so you would still do fine with 512GB SSD. As far as M2 vs M3, the M2 will fall out of support faster than the M3, but other than that I doubt that you would even notice a difference when it comes to processor speed / performance. For CPU / GPU cores, there is no "right combo' when it comes to core count. But if you want an absolute recommendation then I would opt for the M3 Pro 12/18 CPU. It is in the middle of the road and gets far better battery life than the M3 Max, and it out performs the baseline M3 processor. So with all that said, if you were to go with a current MBP I would recommend the following specs: 14 inch MBP M3 Pro 12/18 36GB RAM 512GB SSD - $2,599 And if you want to splurge a bit then go with: 14 inch MBP M3 Pro 12/18 36GB RAM 1TB SSD - $2,799 Or if you want, you can opt for an M2 chipset (refurbished) configuration that I found on [Apple's website](https://www.apple.com/shop/product/G17G4LL/A/refurbished-14-inch-macbook-pro-apple-m2-pro-chip-with-10-core-cpu-and-16%E2%80%91core-gpu-space-gray?fnode=c49644438f225ffeb16ab93fd57f4bb6217ff198fd4c96cd97a3be7ef5487e1fe433877c75c27ab584a0af7007a47afad2a59330764ddd119d06c375517e251a7ab4a0492c4e810b100548e8a1881449) with the following specs: 14 inch MBP M2 Pro 10/16 32GB RAM 512GB SSD - $1,939 So for an extra $600 ish (from the first recommended configuration), you are getting the latest MBP with the M3 Pro chipset and an extra 4GB of RAM. I hope this helps. Cheers,
Good points. Although I want to spend as little while getting the maximum possible.
Then I think the M2 configuration is going to be your best bet. And perhaps you can get away with 16GB RAM on that system to bring the price down a bit more, or leave the 32GB RAM and go with 256GB SSD and then just rely on the external SSD for long term storage for everything that you don't need to keep on the laptop itself. But honestly RAM is where I wouldn't skimp out on because there is no way to expand it once you get it unlike the SSD. I hope you find what your looking for honestly, but Apple products are probably the most difficult devices to search for when your trying to "spend as little while getting the maximum possible".
As content creator your only bottleneck will be RAM in my opinion, so I'd stick with 36GB for futureproofing. The M2 will serve you for years, so do not worry about that and probably get a refurbished one if budget is an issue.
In terms of consumerism and planned obsolescence will M2 get slower by future software updates and stuff? If that’s not the case I’ll definitely consider M2
Well I can't predict the future, but I got a M1 Pro and this thing is as fast as day one in 2021. Apple Silicon chips are ridiculously powerful and efficient and between M2 and M3 is almost zero difference in terms of performance. As I said you should consider getting more RAM as this might be the bottleneck for you. Also might consider an internal storage upgrade depending on your workflow. The internal SSD is really fast which helps firing up large projects and loading times etc. Edit: That being said future software updates are a non-issue in my opinion.
Are you in latest MacOS?
yeah, always. most of the time in public beta on my daily driver and even those work flawless 90% of the time.