cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

For most photographers, who are not doing Pro work, the new Mac STUDIO might be overkill, but it will also be stellar running LrC and Ps! I now use a STUDIO Ultra with the Studio display and an LG display I used with my previous iMac PRO and am very happy. All of my storage, except the ios and applications are on fast external storage. Cost a bit, but I consider Apple worth it. Best of luck.

RJN Loc: Lacey, Washington

I am in the same boat with a late 2013 27" iMac. A couple of years ago I increased my ram to 32 GB and that helped with the speed immensely. However, I cannot update to the latest OS 12.6.1 that is required to operate the latest Lightroom Classic and Photoshop. Matt Kloskowski wrote an interesting article that would be worth your reading concerning moniters. Check it out:

https://mattk.com/photography-computer-and-monitor-recommendations/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Photography+Computer+and+Monitor+Recommendations+%28%2B+Sale+Ends%29+%F0%9F%93%B7&utm_campaign=Cyber+Monday+%28Computer+Recommendations%29.

I'm looking at using my early 2015 MacBook pro with a Dell monitor until the laptop becomes unuseable and then go with a Mac Mini. I invite others to comment on my solution as well.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Having been a sys admin for Unix servers and Windoze operating systems, my associates and I came to the conclusion that Windoze is a virus people willingly install on their computers. The systems I currently use 99% of the time are Apple and Linux.
--Bob

leftj Loc: Texas

That's not how you spell Winduhs.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

--Bob

rdarlington43 Loc: Charlotte, NC

I agree, wait until March 2023 (?) to see what upgraded products Apple introduces. The iMac, Mini Mac and Mac Studio all have the M1 chip and could be upgraded to the M2 chip in 2023. During the Apple Black Friday event I bought a new 24" iMac, 16gb ram & 1T of memory. So far I am loving this new computer but admittedly have not gotten into PP with it yet. As an FYI a couple of weeks ago I saw a Mac Studio in the Apple refurbished store on sale for $1,799 or $200 off. Probably not there anymore.

Dan Stracner

I had essentially the same issue with a 2013 MacBook Air with which I used an old (but still wonderful) 30” Mac monitor. I’d reached the point where I couldn’t update either my computer or my Adobe programs. After doing some research online, a year or so ago I purchased a maxed-out Mac Mini with an M1 chip and coupled it with a 27” Ben-Q monitor. Great combination and a good value. Both have performed flawlessly with almost daily use (in addition to my photographic work, I produce two full-color publications each month). My only regret is that I didn’t spend the money for the 32” Ben-Q; I’ll do that when it’s time to upgrade again. (Incidentally, the old Mac laptop is still going strong, and I carry it with me when I travel.)

domcomm Loc: Denver, CO

Try Other World Computing (OWC). They have all kinds of good used Macs, and their technicians check them out thoroughly before selling them.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Not inherently... But if you have other priorities and limited funds, there are quite reasonable options. I have a lot of priorities and aim to spread the joy among them.

If I had copious amounts of spendable cash, I doubt I would have done much more than I did with my Mac setup, simply because I knew from trying others' M1 models (an Air, a Mini, and an iMac) that I could do everything I need to do and then some. I would have bought 2TB internal storage, had it been available in the Apple Refurbished store. Storage goes mighty fast when you're editing 4K video!

I have loaded as many as 47 different applications at once before my system showed signs of choking. Two of those were web browsers (Firefox and Safari), each running a different 4K YouTube video.

In another test, I loaded 111 tracks of audio into GarageBand, each with three different processors (compressor, limiter, reverb), and it played back fine. (It sounded like the random garbled mess it was, but hey, it played!)

I rendered 236 Lumix GH4 raw files to full size JPEGs in just 90 seconds.

So I'm set with what I need. Yes, it would be nice to have 32GB memory, but the way this system handles what I throw at it, I don't need it.

What seems to have made such a difference with memory requirements is the architecture. It is a lot more efficient at using that shared, unified memory, because it can use the extremely fast RAM for every core's needs, without moving data from storage to RAM to VRAM to RAM to storage. It just goes from storage to RAM, gets processed, with the result stored. The very fast storage is great for virtual memory, and the net result is all better than the Intel Macs. This is a game Apple's been playing for over a decade in their iPhones and iPads. The M1, etc., are using the same basic architecture. It's just silky smooth performance, and even though the Air has no fan, it seldom gets warm. Battery life is insane, and it does not slow down on battery unless I put it in low power mode.

Will this thing last me five years? I think it will. I'll probably want another one with an M4 by then. Maybe this goes to my wife, when she retires. It's overkill for what she does at home.

Cameralark Loc: Torrington, CT

I have the Mac Studio and a BenQ monitor and I couldn't be happier. What you are suggesting is a wonderful solution. Your might want to look at the Mac mini also, with the M1 chip. That might save you some $ and be more than ample for your usages.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

You might be able to load 12.6.1 if you use the OpenCore Legacy Patcher. It is a program that can load newer versions of MacOS onto older Macs that Apple has orphaned. There are detailed videos on YouTube by "Mr. Macintosh" that explain it all...

Meanwhile, using the 2015 MBP may be a decent solution. You might want to put it on a cooling stand made for laptops, since the Intel MBPs are known space heaters. It'll run faster if kept cooler. But look at this: LG 27UP850-W 27” UHD (3840 x 2160) IPS Monitor — link to it on Amazon in one of my earlier posts in this discussion.

M1911 Loc: DFW Metromess

I had to change from my 2013 IMac because the latest software wouldn't install. Went with the Mini and a BenQ SW271c monitor.

Rich 1

Call Apple ask explain that your Mac isn't up to speed they will be glad to assist you at no cost! On 3 different occasions contacted them by phone and issues here solved without cost the Mac's were over 8 yrs old. Once I went to the Mac store after a repair company told me not to turn my Mac on for it had been hacked; the store not only addressed the issue but also replaced it's battery at no cost. Again the computer was one of my older Mac's. They are all running great. A am so glad I own Apple products even though I do not see eye to eye with its management!

Dennis833 Loc: Australia

I upgraded my old Mac Pro with a Mac Mini M1. I already had a Benq SW2700 and added a dock with an extra SSD to store all of my images. The Mini is very fast for photo processing. My son also purchased one for video work and he's very impressed. For the money I'll be more than happy to throw it away in a few years and get a new one.

tomc601 Loc: Gilbert, AZ

I had the same issue with a 2013 iMac 27". I had maxed out the RAM and even changed to a SSD hard drive. That worked for a few years but still it was lacking. I, too, was hoping for a 27" iMac with Apple silicon. Did not want to go down to 24" as I do a lot of photo editing. I decided on the Mac Studio and couldn't be happier with that decision. The problem, though, was what about the monitor. $1600 for the Apple Studio Display just stuck in my throat. Did a lot of research and came across the Samsung M8 32" 4K Monitor. I paid $700 but the price is now $500. Enough resolution for what I do and it doubles as a 32" HDR TV as well. Only short coming for me are the speakers. Certainly loud enough but on the tinny side. I'll be upgrading them soon. Here's a link to the monitor:
https://www.samsung.com/us/computing/monitors/smart-monitors/32-m8-4k-smart-monitor-and-streaming-tv-white-ls32bm801unxgo/?cid=sem-mktg-pfs-mon-us-google-na-11022022-190162-&ds_e=GOOGLE-cr:0-pl:301662614-&ds_c=FF~AO-Specific+Models_CN~Monitors_PH~on_MK~usnat_BS~vd_PR~mon_SB~mocross_FS~lo_CA~kew_KS~ba_MT~phrase-&ds_ag=AG~M8_MK~usnat_AT~ta_MD~h_PK~roah_PB~google_AI~no_TG~mas_SA~na-&ds_k=samsung+m8&gclid=Cj0KCQiA4aacBhCUARIsAI55maGlwIEed-SvvAeetPnn9fJvuf1OdIpeaGFm-LIe-4leadJlJyfbTosaAoyEEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Also, have you looked into using your existing iMac as a monitor? You might be able to do that. Here's a link.

https://www.lifewire.com/use-imac-as-monitor-with-target-display-mode-2260906

Good luck.