I have been following this thread closely as I too am about to switch. You all might want to check out Lynda.com for tutorials on these workflow questions.

Now for an off topic question. I have tried to buy a MacBook Pro 17" system from one of our sponsors and have not had a great deal of success. Does anyone have a reference you could send to me by Email or PM.

Thanks

Jim

I have been looking at Lynda.
Coming from Sony Vegas where to my mind, everything makes sense with how I edit. I find editing with FCS slower. Vegas is so easy and FCS seems backwards and I know that FCS users will say the same going into Vegas.

If I didn't need to have FCS experience to apply for jobs I wouldn’t bother, Vegas rocks with the way I work.
When you have industry standards you have to go with the flow. I guess I’m fortunate to purchase this tool but at the same time I find it complete non sense that I cant use the tool of my choice and this be accepted within the industry.
Anyway I’ll get over it and Mac FCS will be great and I’ll never look back at Vegas and PC editing again I guess.

Nick

Anyone out there who purchased a new MBP 15"? I would like to know about comfort of editing on 15". I am looking forward to see the NEW 17" but maybe 15" could be an alternative.

Markus

I just purchased a new MBP 15" for editing. But it took me awhile to decide, there are some really great deals out there going on right now. (Also picked up the previous Macbook Air for US$1,399) I went back and forth awhile between the older 17", but decided I could live without the screen real estate, since I almost always arrange for a 2nd monitor when travelling. But, if the Macbook is your only monitor, the 17" is really nice for the FCP timeline.

Re: matte vs. glossy, I've been using a glossy screen on a PC laptop for awhile and it turns out I prefer the glossy - something I really didn't think about until all the brouhaha over the new glossy screens.

I have a 15" MBP with FCP 6 that I use for field editing. It works great. I shoot with an EX-1 and transfer the files to a G Tech fw800 250 gb external drive for editing, using either Sony's XDCam transfer or Sony's Clip Browser if I need to down convert to SD. I also have the latest Mac Pro tower and can easily connect the G Tech drive to it to finish a project at home, if time allows. Some days I'd swear the MBP is faster than the Mac Pro.

Michael, side by side which is better machine in your opinion for running FCS?

I like the 15" machine but would have preferred it come with a high res screen like the 17" as well as a matte option.

Having just switched to Macs early this year, by no means am I a Mac expert. If I had to choose to work with only one, I would take the MBP for the flexibility of working at home and on location. Also, it's nice to be able to take my SxS cards straight from my EX-1 and pop them into the MBP's express slot to transfer the files to the external drive.

I think the performance of FCS will be exactly the same. It's really about which machine you prefer. For me, I don't mind the glossy screen, I like that 15" notebooks fit into most travel bags / backpacks, and anytime I have a long editing session, I always arrange for a second monitor or a Mac Pro, so screen resolution isn't an issue for me.

Thank to the two Michaels for your report but just let me know if you feel comfortable with the FCS windows on the 15" screen. I am to change from Dell Inspiron 17" to MBP and my idea is to replace - during a period of time - the Windows tower with the MBP and an external monitor.

Thanks
Markus

Visit an Apple store to get some hands on time. They load FCS2 onto every machine. I know I can live with a 15" screen, but it might be different for you.

I agree. Visit an Apple store. That's what I did. I looked at a 17" next to a 15" MBP. I didn't think it was that big a difference. So I chose the 15". My wife has a 15" MBP with a glossy screen. The reflections drive me crazy. She doesn't notice them. Maybe you get used to it.

Michael

I have a 17'' Mac Book Pro I used for several years as my only editing system. It is a great computer but I would recommend getting an extra keyboard as leaning over the small mac can get very grueling on your eyes and back.

I use WD Hard drives and have never had an issue.