I am not sure where to ask, but seems like this is actually the place. A macbook. I work with laptop...

# multiplatform

[Vlad]

I am not sure where to ask, but seems like this is actually the place.
A macbook.
I work with laptop and will continue to work on it on regular basis. But sometimes I will have to be on Mac to implement iOS specific stuff. I expect(hope) to use it for 5-10% of working time.
Having such requirements I need advice what to buy, because I never had macs and no clue what do I look for.
I prefer laptop rather then mac mini.
1. Is min 16 ORM required?
2. Is M2 chip a must?
3. Maybe there are recommendation what exactly to get?

[Daniel Seither]

1. 8 GB RAM is going to be very tight, especially if you want to run Android Studio and Xcode and a simulator side by side. I’ve been using 32 GB for a couple of years now, but 16 GB will probably be fine.
2. M2 is a bit faster than M1. A much bigger difference will be M1/M2 vs. M1/M2 Pro though, if you buy one with a 10 or 12 core CPU. Compiling code can use a lot of cores in parallel. Note that the base-level MacBook Pro doesn’t have a Pro CPU, and that the Max CPUs are a waste of money if you’re not after the additional *G*PU power. Their CPU part is the same as in the Pro chips. There are benchmarks for all the machines available. Just switch to the multi-core tab and compare the candidate models.
3. Depends a lot on how much money you want to spend. The minimum I would buy would be a MacBook Air with 16 GB of RAM. You’ll get a considerable upgrade in terms of speed if you get a MacBook Pro with a 10 or 12 core M1/M2 Pro CPU. MBPs also can use their full CPU power for longer than MBAs because they have a fan to keep the CPU cool (not that you’ll notice most of the time, it’s really quiet and even off most of the time). And you should think about whether the base-level SSD with only 256 GB will be sufficient for you, especially when you notice what an amazing (just a bit pricey) machine you just bought and you want to use it more than just occasionally 🙃

[Vlad]

Thank you, Daniel.
Not like I am very limited with budget, but buying top machine and not using it just a shame imo.

amazing (just a bit pricey) machine you just bought and you want to use it more than just occasionally

God, please no.

[Jeff Lockhart]

I agree with the above, and would also add, storage tends to be eaten up quite quickly in cases you might not expect. Xcode itself uses up a large amount of storage. It's not uncommon you need to have multiple versions of Xcode installed at the same time for incompatibility or instability reasons or possibly testing a beta version.

Gradle caches can also grow quite large. If you're using multiple Gradle versions between different projects or upgrading Gradle versions often, you may find the need to prune these caches more often if you're running out of storage.

I have 512GB storage on a Mac that I only use for development and still run into these storage limitations and find myself deleting old Gradle cache and IntelliJ IDEA folders every few months.

[kpgalligan]

I'll second storage. 512 is a productive minimum. You could live on 256, but it's not worth it. I'm on 512 and periodically need to clean things up, although I use this for everything. You'll survive on 16g ram, but 32 is a nice upgrade. No comment on CPU, other than before this machine I was on 16g Intel macbook pros, and it's just wild how different the M chips are.

[christophsturm]

m2 (non pro) macbooks are also available with 24gb of ram which could be a sweet spot. I have a m1 macbook pro with m1 pro, but currently I would wait for the m3 macbook and get it with 24gb ram, or get a m2 macbook if I have to buy something today.

[kpgalligan]

I've been thinking about the 24g. If you're not doing crazy dev work, the air with that and decent storage might be a great option.

[christophsturm]

just make sure to not buy anything before the apple event on oct 31.