I do heavy Photoshop / Illustrator work, video editing (4K video generally), and After Effects. These days though, I really only do this kind of work for freelance jobs which come up here and there throughout the year. At my day job I am more of a creative manager / ADHD multitasker / builder of presentations and don’t often get into those apps much anymore.

Even though I don’t do those freelance jobs every single day anymore, my 2019 i9 with 64gb RAM is no longer able to keep up when I do get them. I am curious which (over the top) configuration would work better for me. Rendering speed will be nice, but since I don’t do that every single day, I am more looking for a machine that can be just as useful for day to day use as it can for the heavy jobs.

The configuration options I’m reviewing are:

M3 Max 16-Core | 64GB RAM

M3 Max 14-Core | 96GB Ram

M3 Pro 12-Core | 36GB RAM (for $1k less - though I’m inclined to round up and get a more future-proof machine)