chopedogg88 Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 Well the time as come again where I need a new laptop... Dropped mine too many times on job sites and it's starting to really show it's scars... Need the best battery life possible. Honing in on the 15" Surface laptop which has great reviews regarding battery life and speed. However it has an ARM processor which apparently some apps aren't compatible with. Anyone know if Composer has any issues with ARM? https://www.bestbuy.com/site/microsoft-surface-laptop-copilot-pc-15-touch-screen-snapdragon-x-elite-32gb-memory-1tb-ssd-7th-edition-graphite/6582831.p?skuId=6582831#tabbed-customerreviews Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 Pretty sure ARM shouldn't be an issue for composer. I usually just get a cheap laptop (ie older model) with limited ram, a basic ssd size and a good battery - Composer doesn't really require any heavy resources, and that laptop is pretty much JUST for composer (and the occasional email check and SDAP) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopedogg88 Posted September 27 Author Share Posted September 27 Thanks. I only want to use one laptop for everything, as I pretty much work all the time and also want to use the same machine for all of my personal computing needs as well (nothing too heavy duty... Just web based stuff mostly). So I want it to be able to do everything and look/feel high quality.Any way to confirm on the ARM thing? Anyone else on here have actual proof of it working for sure? Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gutrmdp Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 I can’t get away from MacBook Pro especially when considering battery life both while in use and asleep. I have a Lenovo X I like quite a but the battery is absolute shit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopedogg88 Posted September 27 Author Share Posted September 27 Yeah I've been using Lenovo Yogas which have been great and pretty durable considering what I put them through. I have a MacBook Air which is nice but I'm more of a Windows guy and don't really trust running Composer on parallels all the time when my livelihood depends on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ekohn00 Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 7 hours ago, chopedogg88 said: Yeah I've been using Lenovo Yogas which have been great and pretty durable considering what I put them through. I have a MacBook Air which is nice but I'm more of a Windows guy and don't really trust running Composer on parallels all the time when my livelihood depends on it. If you have a MacBook AIR with M series CPU, you kind of answered your question about composer on Arm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinegration Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 One of our guys had a MacBook Pro M1 chip and we could never get composer to load via parallels. he now has a m2 and it’s been fine. love my MacBook Pro. Simply the best laptop I’ve ever owned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBZICON Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 Costco has for $1,899. https://www.costco.com/microsoft-surface-laptop-copilot-pc-15-pixelsense-2496-x-1664-touchscreen---qualcomm-snapdragon-x-elite-12-core-processor---windows-11---graphite---microsoft-365-personal-12-month-subscription--e-delivery.product.4000274842.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alt Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 Ran a Yogo 900!!! comp for years and years. Finally replaced it last year with a MacBook Pro M3Pro. Battery Life is incredible! I have VM ware running win11 w/composer. I can leave it unplugged for 6hrs on site with the VM running win11 & composer and still have over 70% battery left. No issues at all, highly recommend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopedogg88 Posted September 27 Author Share Posted September 27 Do you ever have network-related issues using Composer within the VM? or for anyone else running Parallels..from within there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 29 minutes ago, Alt said: Ran a Yogo 900!!! comp for years and years. Finally replaced it last year with a MacBook Pro M3Pro. Battery Life is incredible! I have VM ware running win11 w/composer. I can leave it unplugged for 6hrs on site with the VM running win11 & composer and still have over 70% battery left. No issues at all, highly recommend. I find it funny how people seem to think that a mac running idle for a whole day is something so special. The Asus I'm running right now with a 17" screen is used all day every day and gets charged at most 3 times a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew luecke Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 For installers honestly, windows is the better option. I use a Mac for development, but in practice parallels gets in the way and it only helps that I have 2 massive screens. As an installer with a tiny screen, it's likely to be less productive in my opinion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinegration Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 1 hour ago, chopedogg88 said: Do you ever have network-related issues using Composer within the VM? or for anyone else running Parallels..from within there? Not really... and never with ComposerPro. Had one issue with Lutron but changed my parallels shared-bridged mode. Honestly, I was a windows guy until my MacBook... and it converted me. I use 'Coherence' mode which lays Windows on top of Mac so i don't even notice the two different OS platforms. That being said, Mac is different and if you're unfamiliar with it, take some time understanding menus and settings. Stuff is just in different spots and that took some time to get used to . Lastly, Parallels a yearly subscription so keep that in mind too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 15 hours ago, chopedogg88 said: and also want to use the same machine for all of my personal computing needs as well To each their own. Personally I prefer to have a laptop to bring to clients that does composer, gtools and the other smarthome system programs and standard office stuff, and I have a full computer rig at home for everything else. Those occasional times that I need to use the processing power, I just work form home. My work phone and laptop make enough hours as it is, and my work phone is rarely truly off - but it's nice to have a personal phone and a personal use computer that allow me to be 'actually off work' when I want/need to be. End of day I can silence my work phone, (though it get's checked regularly) and still be available to family and friends. Same with computer: I can have my personal message services up and running on it, including a private email, without getting notified all the time. PS I've no particular opinion on MacOS vs Windows as such, and can work equally well with both - to me (FOR me) it just makes little sense to spend a lot of cash on laptop when all it's used for is to do what a laptop literally 1/4 the cost does just as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopedogg88 Posted September 27 Author Share Posted September 27 Good points by all... Appreciate the feedback!Any reason not to just use my (1 year old) MacBook Air which I already own? It has good battery life and is fast. Just need to renew my parallels license. I bought it to do some Savant stuff but I mostly don't use it at all. Just sits on my desk. Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 27 Share Posted September 27 Heh, 'free' is the best price isn't it? chopedogg88 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ekohn00 Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 6 hours ago, Cinegration said: Not really... and never with ComposerPro. Had one issue with Lutron but changed my parallels shared-bridged mode. Honestly, I was a windows guy until my MacBook... and it converted me. I use 'Coherence' mode which lays Windows on top of Mac so i don't even notice the two different OS platforms. That being said, Mac is different and if you're unfamiliar with it, take some time understanding menus and settings. Stuff is just in different spots and that took some time to get used to . Lastly, Parallels a yearly subscription so keep that in mind too. You could use fusion pro if you don’t want to pay for a license. It’s a little slower with composer (barely) than parallels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alt Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 7 hours ago, Cyknight said: I find it funny how people seem to think that a mac running idle for a whole day is something so special. The Asus I'm running right now with a 17" screen is used all day every day and gets charged at most 3 times a week. What model Asus do you have? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shimms Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 M1 MacBook Pro user here with no issues using Composer Pro in Parallels. It works as expected and isn’t any noticeably slower than when running on my non-ARM Thinkpad that I occasionally pull out too. Might have had to set the network to bridge mode, can’t remember (and don’t have it in front of me to be able to check). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 On 9/27/2024 at 8:49 PM, Alt said: What model Asus do you have? It's nothing more than a Vivo book 17" - though you'll have to forgive me the exact model at this very moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob21 Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 On 9/27/2024 at 3:51 PM, Cinegration said: Not really... and never with ComposerPro. Had one issue with Lutron but changed my parallels shared-bridged mode. Honestly, I was a windows guy until my MacBook... and it converted me. I use 'Coherence' mode which lays Windows on top of Mac so i don't even notice the two different OS platforms. That being said, Mac is different and if you're unfamiliar with it, take some time understanding menus and settings. Stuff is just in different spots and that took some time to get used to . Lastly, Parallels a yearly subscription so keep that in mind too. I have had a great experience with parallels on my 15in MacBook Air, but my one issue was with Lutron... How did you fix this? Are you now able to run Lutron Designer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinegration Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 2 hours ago, Rob21 said: I have had a great experience with parallels on my 15in MacBook Air, but my one issue was with Lutron... How did you fix this? Are you now able to run Lutron Designer? Make sure you use the 'bridged' mode using either wifi/ethernet depending on how you're connecting. Also, make sure to run Lutron Designer as Administrator: Rob21 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time2Jet Posted Tuesday at 02:54 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 02:54 PM Yoga by Lenovo makes some nice 3 n 1 types. I have used Lenovo (variety) for years. Have a Carbon, prefer the folding Yogas. Battery life is good. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnGordon Posted Wednesday at 01:23 PM Share Posted Wednesday at 01:23 PM I really like my Surface Pro laptop. The screen detaches, and this makes it really easy to go from room to room to add or configure Control4 lighting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time2Jet Posted Wednesday at 01:46 PM Share Posted Wednesday at 01:46 PM I really like my Surface Pro laptop. The screen detaches, and this makes it really easy to go from room to room to add or configure Control4 lighting. Hi Dawn, hope you’re doing well. I’ve been Surface tempted for years. The Yoga 3 n 1’s have been so solid, but they don’t detach, just flip all the way into a tablet. I use the 13” models. How do you like the Surface Keyboard? Keyboard is the thing I tend to base my decision on lol. I need another good laptop right now. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.