Turbo creation: why you should buy the most powerful laptop possible:

family laptop portugal

I’m currently working on a 13” MacBook Pro (touch bar, refurbished, maxed out) and I’m creating in turbo speed– and its AMAZING!

I still remember John Talbert (UCLA Undergraduate Admissions IT CHAIR) taught me a lesson when I was working under him as an undergraduate:

When you buy new machines or computers, always max it out. It will be less stress later on, because you will have fewer problems down the line, and you will be able to delay upgrading for a long time.

In modern times, I believe that maxing out your laptop is one of the best monetary investments you can make, especially if you’re a digital entrepreneur and creator.

Advice

eric-kim-red-face-looking-up-hanoi-2000x1325

Okay, so if you got extra money — you can technically buy anything you want.

But this advice is for those of you on a budget. If you have limited money (let’s say you have $1,000 in your savings you want to invest in some sort of digital tool) — don’t waste your money on a new digital camera, phone, tablet, etc. I recommend putting that money towards a laptop!

Why laptop?

It’s funny; in today’s world, it seems a bit old-fashioned to use a laptop. Most people invest all their money into having the newest iPhone or something like that.

But– laptops are awesome. For so many different reasons. For example:

Open: Laptops are by default open platforms — you can download files, transfer files, and you’re less trapped into an ecosystem/operating system. For example, if you’re using an iPhone or iOs device (like iPhone or iPad), the file-management system is more clunky, and less open. You’re stuck in a world of apps, instead of files. And I believe that files are the most superior form of digital material that we have access to! Pro-tip idea: Share more of your ZIP files online with Dropbox Public, or from your own FTP server (you can also upload .ZIP files up to 64MB to your own WordPress.org website).
You are more productive: You can produce, make, and create more! There are so many utilities on a laptop not accessible to iPhones or Android devices, which will speed up your workflow — so you can make more stuff! You can look through your photos faster, export them faster, write faster, and make more stuff (videos, audio, etc).
Thinking outside the box: I’ve found I’ve innovated most with the laptop — using iBooks Author to make my own free photography PDF books, using GarageBand to make my own beats, and sharing more .ZIP files via Dropbox. There’s still so many more opportunities with a laptop! When you’re using an iPhone, you’re stuck in a ghetto of inferior online web experiences: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, What’s App, YouTube Facebook messenger — there’s so much more stuff you can create! I’ve found for myself, when I use a phone a lot, I get stuck more in ‘consumption’ mode, rather than ‘creation’ mode!

Practical Suggestions

I’ve tried PC’s for a long time (since I was 11 years old, until age 21). Honestly, Mac computers/laptops are far better — for the simplicity of the user interface, and everything.

If you’re on a budget, buy a used 11” MacBook Air (maxed out). Buy it on Craigslist, or eBay.
You can also buy a maxed-out MacBook Pro 13” laptop in the refurbished Apple store online (or you can buy a used maxed out MacBook Pro, even buy 1 year older, and you’ll save tons of $$$).
Buy a Mac mini (maxed out) that is refurbished and just get a separate monitor.

For utilities, I recommend (bolded are my favorites):

1Password: store all your sensitive info
Adobe Lightroom Classic CC (get adobe subscription)
Adobe Photoshop
Bartender 3 (clean up menu bar)
BetterSnapTool (keep windows organized)
Caffeine: Your laptop stays on
Camtasia: Screen recording
Evernote: Organize notes , or just use the default NOTES app
iA Writer (essential for writing; what I’m using right now for this blog post too)
iBooks Author (use this to make your own PDF books)
iPull (use this to download YouTube videos and Mp3 files)
JPEGmini (easily convert photos to resize them)!!!
PDF Squeezer (quickly resize PDF files, super good)
Squash (good for optimizing file sizes, or quickly converting PNG files to JPEG)
BetterRenameTool: Easily rename your files!