Are you currently on the path to learning app development with Xcode and need recommendation on the best macbook for xcode development now?
Honestly, you’ll need at least 16 gigs of RAM if you do light coding. For more serios cross platform development, go for 32 gigs of RAM. 8 Gig will not last you at all.
From experience, the 16″ is the best choice if the money isn’t an issue. I’d get at least 16GB of RAM, or 32 GB if you want it to last several years. 512GB SSD is enough unless you run a lot of virtual machines or do a lot of video or audio editing.
Best Macbook For Xcode Development
The best best macbook pro for xcode include:
NAME | SHOP |
2019 Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, 16GB RAM, 1TB Storage, 2.3GHz Intel Core i9) | CHECK ON AMAZON |
Apple MacBook Pro 16″ with Touch Bar, 9th-Gen 8-Core Intel i9 2.4GHz, 64GB RAM, 2TB SSD, AMD Radeon Pro 5500M 8GB | BUY ON AMAZON |
New Apple MacBook Pro (16-Inch, 16GB RAM, 512GB Storage, 2.6GHz Intel Core i7) | see on amazon |
The recommendations done in this section are according to my opinion.
From experience, being an iOS developer myself, I would prefer a MacBook over iMac.
The primary reason is because of portability and you can debug/code and test anytime and anywhere, while traveling, at coffee shop, on the bus or work from home, you can take it anywhere.
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You don’t really have to tethered for the desk.
13/16″ MacBook Air
If you’re on a tight budget you could go for the 13” or 16” Macbook Air, as this has the best battery life, hands down! I and my friends have written code on Xcode and we did successfully squeeze out 10 hours of battery life on MacBook Air.
13″ or 16” MacBook Pro with Retina Display
Now, if budget isn’t an issue then you should go for the 13″ MacBook Pro with Retina Display, and I would prefer this model as it has the Retina display that means a better screen resolution and it will help you see the code so well like it’s a published book.
The best macbook pro for xcode is the 16” Macbook Pro with retina display!
There’s no denying that it’s such a pleasure to write code while using a Retina display where one can scale the resolution and enjoy a bigger screen real estate as you can see and write more code on Xcode But hey, if you choose Retina display, there’s no turning back and you won’t be able to tolerate other display.
No matter which machine you chose, just make sure that it has 8GB RAM and 256GB storage.
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Best iMac for Xcode Development
2021 Apple iMac (24-inch, Apple M1 chip with 8‑core CPU and 7‑core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB) | BUY ON AMAZON |
2020 Apple iMac with Retina 5K Display (27-inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) | SEE ON AMAZON |
2019 Apple iMac with Retina 4K/3.6 GHz Intel Core i3 Quad-Core (21.5-Inch, 8GB RAM, 1TB) – Silver | CHECK ON AMAZON |
The iMac like the MacBook Pro is available in two sizes – 21.5in and the 27in models.
Both have high-resolution retina displays. In fact, August 2020 witnessed an update with newer processors in the 27in iMac models.
They are now available in 6-and 8-core 10th-gen processor options, the 21.5in iMac didn’t get new processors though so they’re still 8th gen (and in the case of the entry-level model 7th gen). However, the 21.5in iMac did, at least, get its standard hard drives swapped out for SSDs (at last).
The 27in costs more than the 21.5in iMac. You can always plug in an additional screen if you need a wider area to work with.
Remember to upgrade the RAM to 16GB. The bigger, the better.
Best Mac mini for Xcode
NAME | WHERE TO BUY |
Apple Mac mini late 2018 Space Gray, Intel core i3 – 8GB Ram – 128GB SSD | SEE ON AMAZON |
2020 Apple Mac Mini with Apple M1 Chip (8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) | CHECK ON AMAZON |
The Mac mini enjoyed an M1 chip in November 2020, although Apple still sell some model from 2018.
The Mac mini is an attractive device and it’s quite affordable. Some even label it as the cheapest Mac going (although you will have to factor in the cost of a monitor and keyboard and mouse – but you probably have them anyway).
With the Mac mini, you enjoy an impressive and powerful machine for a fraction of the iMac price. For instance, for example, for £699 or less you can get a Mac mini with 8-core CPU, 8-core, 256GB SSD, 8GB RAM (update that to 16GB for another £200). The graphics are integrated, so they may not be quite as good as those on the iMac, which has discrete graphics, but they are proving to be very impressive.
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Is Macbook Air good for Xcode Development?
Yes, it is. But Macbook pro is a much better option!
Conclusion
For learning, any good Macbook Pro model is great! However, for more serious stuff, I recommend getting the latest Macbook Pro. It’s costly but usually worth it in the long run.
Go for something with more than 8 gigs ram and a stronger processor. For starters, we recommend 16Gig of ram.
Lastly, because storage space is not a hard requirement, Xcode can end up consuming plenty of space if you don’t pay close attention to which stimulators you’re installing, and how many versions of it you have on your device.
Congrats, and enjoy learning! And don’t forget, at the end of the day the best choice is the one that fits in your budget- don’t let a desire for more high end equipment be the roadblock!
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