When designing larger fare, you dont want to be navigating it on a tiny notebook display.

The differences between macOS and Windows are less pronounced these days and file compatibility is typically strong when using suites available on both systems, such as Adobes Creative Cloud.

What Is Best For Photoshop Mac Still Finds

Nonetheless, the Mac still finds favour with the majority of designers.

But which one is right for you Weve gone through Apples range and figured out the best machine for certain types of designers, but first want to cover some general tips you should be mindful of when buying a new Mac.

Heres the lowdown on the best Macs for creative and design work.

And for tips that are specific to what you plan to do with the Mac, you might also want to read our thoughts on the best Mac for video editing.

Thats not to say there arent still people solely working up magazine layouts in InDesign, but the modern designer is just as likely to be delving into illustration, interface design, and 3D.

A decade ago, perfect colour reproduction might have been the main concern for a designer when it came to buying new kit.

But today, designers are increasingly likely to be working on screen-based design.

The nature of employment may also require them to be more mobile.

In both cases, you need to be careful, because Apple now largely considers Macs sealed units.

In most cases, you can no longer later add extra RAM or storage so you might need to configure at the time of purchase (read our guide to replacing RAM in your Mac for advice here).

With RAM, theres nothing you can do; our advice is to order extra RAM when you buy your Mac, even if Apples pricing for this is akin to having your wallet mugged.

If you buy a Mac where you can still add RAM at a later point, such as the Mac Pro or 27in iMac, or the 2018 Mac mini, you could purchase the RAM from a third party instead - but do bear in mind that you will void your warranty if you add it yourself.

Once, youd have wanted a high-end matte display from a company like Eizo, with almost perfect colour reproduction.

Many designers work primarily on projects intended entirely for screen, including digital magazines, websites, and app interfaces.

You therefore must consider whether your role will primarily entail creating content for such displays, and buy a Mac accordingly.

If your Macs going to last a few years, buy for the present and future, not the present and past.

What Is Best For Photoshop Portable Mac With

Even if you only rarely visit clients or work away from an office, you can take a portable Mac with you.

But theyre also more expensive than broadly equivalent desktops.

It weighs more than a laptop, but with its small form-factor it could be considered portable.

Youd just need a screen to plug into at your various working locations.

Apple introduced a 16in MacBook Pro (reviewed here) at the end of 2019 that, in addition to a bigger screen (although not 4K), offers some pretty impressive specs.

But as a designer do you really want to be working on a laptop - even if it has a 16in screen Probably not.

What Mac Is Best For Photoshop