Need a new laptop...... it is time

[Danoz]

I'm pretty dead set on a Macbook Pro, but now I'm wondering if I should wait. Budget is about $2500. Advice? It's been about four years since I bought a new computer. I'll be doing a lot of photo and video editing (Final Cut, Photoshop etc) and I like to watch movies. Not much of a gamer. Is it worth jumping to the 8GB RAM from the 4GB? How far are we from 8GB being the new standard?

 

[spinnerlys]

If you can wait a month or two, then wait. An update to a newer microarchitecture called Sandy Bridge is expected soon, though no vaild sources have any exact dates for that update.
But if you need one MBP now, the current line is more than sufficient for your uses.
I have a 2009 MBP and use PS, AE, C4D and Avid MC with it and it is still going strong, but that might be due to adding an SSD to it.

And if you want to upgrade RAM, in the case Apple doesn't offer 8GB as standard in some models, better go with OWC/MacSales (they ship worldwide) or Newegg, as you can save up to 300 USD going that route and still have the original RAM.

 

[Candlelight]

Yeah, wait. Apple are releasing OS X 10.7 Lion in July, and Apple usually do a hardware update a few months before then (so they can force customers to upgrade the OS in July ).

The last Macbook Pro upgrade was in April last year, with the iCore processors added. Personally I'm hoping for 8GB RAM and 1TB HDD as standard for an i7, but I could be dreaming.

As I posted in another thread, it's expected to be four new Macbook Pro models and yet another redesign of the body.