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What's The Best Quad-Core Mac? MacBook Pro? iMac 5K? or Mac Pro?
There are various quad-core Macs. Which is the best? The iMac 5K? MacBook Pro? Mac Pro 'tube'? And how about a 2010 quad-core Mac Pro tower?
INSIGHTS
Which Quad-Core Mac is best? It depends on your priorities. CPU speed? GPU speed? Storage speed? All of the above? The Mac Pro 'tube' excels when both GPUs are used for rendering. The iMac 5K has the upper-hand on CPU intensive tasks. The newest MacBook Pro sports the fastest flash storage. The 2010 Mac Pro tower held its own in the Photoshop and OpenGL tests --- compared to the MacBook Pro.
BEST BUY?
When comparing cost, you must look at all features and specs. The Mac Pro 'tube' includes dual workstation GPUs, six Thunderbolt 2 ports (three buses), four USB 3 ports, two gigabit Ethernet ports, and one HDMI port. The iMac 5K includes a 27" Retina screen and muscular mobile GPU. The portable 2015 MacBook Pro 15" has both integrated and discrete GPUs, built-in Retina display, and built-in backlit keyboard. Did I mention it's portable? The 2010 Mac Pro tower is the most versatile when it comes to upgrades. If you own one, it's paid for. The only expense is the upgrades (memory, GPU, storage -- see "PUMPING..." below.). If you don't own one, it is a bargain buy as refurbished or used.
Quad-Core Mac supremacy is a moving target. For example, if the next generation of iMac 5K could match the flash storage speed of the 2015 MacBook Pro, that could make it the unqualified Quad-Core Mac of choice.
PUMPING UP THE 2010 MAC PRO
The 2010 Mac Pro tower with 4-core Xeon needs help in the GPU and storage department to compete with the other Quad-Core Macs. The fix is easy. Add a PCIe M.2 card with an SM951 flash blade to boost the large sequential read speed to the second highest (1517MB/s). Upgrading the Radeon HD 5770 to a Radeon R9 7950 Mac Edition would pump it up to the best FurMark result (65 FPS), second best Heaven result (87 FPS), and second best LuxMark 3 result (9454 KSamples/sec).