Tag: Pro

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I Tested the NEW $699 MacBook Neo so PROS Don’t Have To!

MacBook Neo in Indigo on my table

Hey everyone,

Apple recently released their lowest-priced MacBook ever—the MacBook Neo. At $699 with only 8GB of RAM, this machine is definitively not marketed to creative professionals. But I know many of you are wondering: can it actually handle Lightroom and Photoshop in a pinch? Could it serve as a reliable, ultra-portable travel backup?

Speed Tested!

To find out, I put it through a real-world gauntlet. I ran 12 side-by-side speed tests, pitting the fanless 8GB Neo directly against my 14″ M4 MacBook Pro.

We look at everything from AI Denoise and Generative Fill to building massive 1:1 preview catalogs. (Spoiler alert: one task took under 4 minutes on the Pro and nearly 45 minutes on the Neo!).

I also break down the hardware quirks you absolutely need to know about before buying, including a sneaky USB speed trap and the strict one-external-display limit.

Watch the full review and speed test below to see exactly where the 8GB memory wall hits, and how you can use the web versions of Adobe apps to bypass those limits.

Drop a comment and let me know—would you pick one of these up for travel, or is the 8GB wall an absolute dealbreaker for you?

Cheers, Terry

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The Best Wacom Intuos Pro Small to Date!

Wacom Intuos Pro Small

I’ve had several Wacom tablets over the years. I use them almost exclusively when I retouch photos and if I ever dabble in creating art. I love my 27″ Cintiq QHD display tablet. However, when I need to take a tablet with me on the go I’ve always preferred carrying a Wacom Intuos Pro Small. With that said, I stopped carrying my previous version. While it was “small” it was still bulky enough to take up more space and weight in my bag than I wanted. My backpack is always heavy. I decided to remove some things to lighten the load. Every ounce matters. I figured I could just use my iPad Pro and Apple Pencil as a tablet if I really needed to. While this solution did work, it just wasn’t the same as a Wacom graphics tablet. Wacom has been refining their pen/tablet technology for years! The newer tablets have a pen that offers 8,192 levels of pressure. This level of precision is amazing. The pen also has configurable buttons on the side and the top can be used as an eraser. Apple Pencil is great, but it just can’t do as many things as you can with a Wacom pen.

The NEW Wacom Intuos Pro Small makes its way back into my life and my backpack!

Continue reading “The Best Wacom Intuos Pro Small to Date!”