[jello24]

Originally Posted by roastpuff

One questions regarding the software - do they all work on Mac?

Another thing is that the 13" Retina's i7 is dual-core, not quad-core, so it may not be as fast when running simulation software or video-editing suites.

My suggestion to add to the Windows side of things is the Samsung 7 Chronos. Great 15" laptop with a decently long battery life (7-8 hours in daily usage), SSD cache drive on hand, quad-core CPU, Radeon 8800M graphics and pretty stylish.

Samsung Series 7 i7-3635QM 15.6inch Notebook - Silver - NP780Z5E-S02C - London Drugs

Thanks for that suggestion. AutoCAD works on Mac, Solidworks doesn't officially according to the Solidworks system requirements page, and even dual booting Windows it's not officially supported.

I knew I was missing the Samsungs, but the Samsung Canada site only listed the Ativ Book 9 (Series 9) which costs just as much as an Apple, so I figured I'd look at them later.

Originally Posted by Spectre_Cdn

Refurbished 15" MBP Retina. It's last year's model, so it doesn't have Haswell, but still has 7-hr battery life.

You still have the normal 1-year warranty with Apple refurbs, and you can purchase AppleCare if you wish to extend it to 3-years.

Refurbished 15.4-inch MacBook Pro 2.3GHz Quad-core Intel i7 with Retina Display - Apple Store (Canada)

Worst comes to worse, if you have to run Windows-specific programs, install Windows along with OSX.

Originally Posted by smarv

I recommend a macbook pro, I have a mid 09 pro and I run cad, office, and photoshop with ease. I also had an m11x from Alienware and it is junk. If you do a lot of graphics work avoid Alienware products. The screen on those things are garbage; they are way too reflective, not bright enough and its like lugging around a brick everywhere you go.

Originally Posted by lowside67

Just a plug, but I bucked up for a 2.9GHz, 8GB Retina Macbook Pro 13" and I fucking LOVE this machine. I was not stoked on spending the money on the Retina but you also get the new case, 1lb lighter, and this AMAZING screen. It's really spendy but I don't regret it for one second.

Cheers

Just a curious question for the MBP users. That refurbished 15" MBP has got me intrigued. How do those perform under CPU- and GPU-intensive applications such as CAD and other productivity programs?