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KVT_BK 7.3K Views
May 12, 2026 5:06 PM

Apple 16" MacBook Pro (M5 Pro, Space Black) - 64GB RAM - 1TB SSD $2999

$2,999

$3,299

9% off
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https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/pr...ro_m5.html

Apple M5 Pro 18-Core Chip
64GB Unified RAM | 1TB SSD
16" 3456 x 2234 Liquid Retina XDR Screen
20-Core GPU | 16-Core Neural Engine
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) | Bluetooth 6
Thunderbolt 5 | HDMI | MagSafe 3
SDXC Slot | 12MP Center Stage Camera
Magic Keyboard with Touch ID
Force Touch Trackpad
macOS with Apple Intelligence

Guys - I am looking for a machine to run LLMs locally. My current Nvidia RTX 4070Ti with 12GB VRAM is only good for sub 8B models.
Earlier I read of MacMini and apple unified memory architecture. I havent used a MAC before. I am more of windows/linux person.

Came across, Apple 2026 14.2" MacBook Pro with M5 Chip (10-core CPU and 10-core GPU) with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD for $1799. This felt really good deal.
Being a non-apple person, I read about M5 vs M5 pro vs M5 Max and found this deal.
For $1200 more(60% price), I am getting 2x RAM, 2x Memory Badwidth, ~2x CPU and GPU cores.
This is already discounted by $300 and even if I wait, I might see another $100-$150 discount max.

My main goal is not to regret and future-proof it. do you think its a good deal?

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Deal Details
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https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/pr...ro_m5.html

Apple M5 Pro 18-Core Chip
64GB Unified RAM | 1TB SSD
16" 3456 x 2234 Liquid Retina XDR Screen
20-Core GPU | 16-Core Neural Engine
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) | Bluetooth 6
Thunderbolt 5 | HDMI | MagSafe 3
SDXC Slot | 12MP Center Stage Camera
Magic Keyboard with Touch ID
Force Touch Trackpad
macOS with Apple Intelligence

Guys - I am looking for a machine to run LLMs locally. My current Nvidia RTX 4070Ti with 12GB VRAM is only good for sub 8B models.
Earlier I read of MacMini and apple unified memory architecture. I havent used a MAC before. I am more of windows/linux person.

Came across, Apple 2026 14.2" MacBook Pro with M5 Chip (10-core CPU and 10-core GPU) with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD for $1799. This felt really good deal.
Being a non-apple person, I read about M5 vs M5 pro vs M5 Max and found this deal.
For $1200 more(60% price), I am getting 2x RAM, 2x Memory Badwidth, ~2x CPU and GPU cores.
This is already discounted by $300 and even if I wait, I might see another $100-$150 discount max.

My main goal is not to regret and future-proof it. do you think its a good deal?

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14 Comments

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May 12, 2026 5:18 PM
93 Comments
Joined Feb 2019
KnockKnockWhosThereMay 12, 2026 5:18 PM
93 Comments
@KVT_BK , it's cool that you want to join the Mac world. Don't forget to look into Mac Studios, since you were already comfortable with the idea of a Mac Mini.
May 12, 2026 5:46 PM
233 Comments
Joined Jun 2016
konjectureMay 12, 2026 5:46 PM
233 Comments
You cannot future-proof anything, not LLM's for sure. The bandwidth for the M5 Pro chip is 307 GB/s, so even if you can fit bigger models on a 64 GB unified memory, the token generation will not be great for dense models. If you really want to somewhat future-proof (again, that is not possible) then go for the M5 max chip models which have 614 GB/s (double the bandwidth). But they cost a fortune though.
Pro
May 13, 2026 12:39 AM
3.5K Comments
Joined Nov 2010
Elon69
Pro
May 13, 2026 12:39 AM
3.5K Comments
Quote from konjecture View quoted comment :
You cannot future-proof anything, not LLM's for sure. The bandwidth for the M5 Pro chip is 307 GB/s, so even if you can fit bigger models on a 64 GB unified memory, the token generation will not be great for dense models. If you really want to somewhat future-proof (again, that is not possible) then go for the M5 max chip models which have 614 GB/s (double the bandwidth). But they cost a fortune though.
But 614 GB/s is still too slow and it's single threaded basically when it's decoding compared to 3x on the 5090 desktop but limited vram. So may trade offs and rtx 6000 is too is $9000 lol
May 13, 2026 12:55 AM
169 Comments
Joined Feb 2015
divide0May 13, 2026 12:55 AM
169 Comments
I've been looking for a capable dev machine in awhile. My work gave me a M3 Pro 36gb ram laptop which I thought was fine until today when I ran some docker containers and had claude code running alongside some other stuff and ran out of ram. Looks like 48/64 is the way to go these days...
May 13, 2026 1:08 AM
1.2K Comments
Joined Aug 2013
Byron33May 13, 2026 1:08 AM
1.2K Comments
Do you have a budget? Apple's unified RAM is faster than DDR5 but slower than GDDR7. Mac Studios allow you to get up to 512GB of RAM, making it price competitive with what's available in the Windows/Linux desktop world but they're difficult to get right now and they won't be as fast as dedicated GPUs like a 5090 or RTX 6000. Future-proofing means desktops that allow you to upgrade. Once you get your Mac, that's it. No upgrading allowed.
2
May 13, 2026 1:40 AM
6.7K Comments
Joined Aug 2010
gamingdroidMay 13, 2026 1:40 AM
6.7K Comments
Quote from Byron33 View quoted comment :
Do you have a budget? Apple's unified RAM is faster than DDR5 but slower than GDDR7. Mac Studios allow you to get up to 512GB of RAM, making it price competitive with what's available in the Windows/Linux desktop world but they're difficult to get right now and they won't be as fast as dedicated GPUs like a 5090 or RTX 6000. Future-proofing means desktops that allow you to upgrade. Once you get your Mac, that's it. No upgrading allowed.
So the only future proofing is having lots of $$$! 🫰🏽🤑
1
May 13, 2026 1:41 AM
6.7K Comments
Joined Aug 2010
gamingdroidMay 13, 2026 1:41 AM
6.7K Comments
Also if you need higher bandwidth and more RAM:

https://slickdeals.net/f/19512972-apple-16-macbook-pro-m5-max-128gb-2tb-space-black-400-off-4999?
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Pro
May 13, 2026 2:22 AM
3.5K Comments
Joined Nov 2010
Elon69
Pro
May 13, 2026 2:22 AM
3.5K Comments
Quote from divide0 View quoted comment :
I've been looking for a capable dev machine in awhile. My work gave me a M3 Pro 36gb ram laptop which I thought was fine until today when I ran some docker containers and had claude code running alongside some other stuff and ran out of ram. Looks like 48/64 is the way to go these days...
Claude code won't eat up that much ram though. I ran a lot of concurrent sessions on a 24GB Macbook.

Not sure what you are running inside of the containers but those things would really be different for each person. If you need any LLM running then 36GB is def not enough since good models will eat up a ton of ram. good models as in Qwen 3.5 35B moe or 27B dense.
May 13, 2026 2:33 AM
1.2K Comments
Joined Aug 2013
Byron33May 13, 2026 2:33 AM
1.2K Comments
Quote from Elon69 View quoted comment :
Claude code won't eat up that much ram though. I ran a lot of concurrent sessions on a 24GB Macbook.

Not sure what you are running inside of the containers but those things would really be different for each person. If you need any LLM running then 36GB is def not enough since good models will eat up a ton of ram. good models as in Qwen 3.5 35B moe or 27B dense.
If he's a developer then he's probably running some heavy duty environments that require massive amounts of RAM. In addition to coding, development requires a lot of data, images, audio, etc... Processing all of that will saturate the RAM quickly. With Apple's unified RAM, unless your machine came with tons of RAM, it's easy to run out of it real quick. Doubly so considering the RAM is also doing GPU-related work. This is why a lot of development houses buy workstations.
Pro
May 13, 2026 10:21 AM
3.5K Comments
Joined Nov 2010
Elon69
Pro
May 13, 2026 10:21 AM
3.5K Comments
Quote from Byron33 View quoted comment :
If he's a developer then he's probably running some heavy duty environments that require massive amounts of RAM. In addition to coding, development requires a lot of data, images, audio, etc... Processing all of that will saturate the RAM quickly. With Apple's unified RAM, unless your machine came with tons of RAM, it's easy to run out of it real quick. Doubly so considering the RAM is also doing GPU-related work. This is why a lot of development houses buy workstations.
Yes I think you are right. Just wasn't sure what he was running. For a business, a few thousands dollars for productivity and not have Dev running around be slowed down or have to jump hoops to run stuff is also a gain! Crazy times! market is mooning again! woohoo
May 16, 2026 10:01 PM
18 Comments
Joined Feb 2022
PurpleRecess4088May 16, 2026 10:01 PM
18 Comments
While you pros are here, I found an m4 max 32gb 1Tb 16" for 2150ish at micro center. This is my first MacBook and I'm into web apps and newly mobile apps. Is the deal good ?!
May 17, 2026 2:53 AM
146 Comments
Joined Feb 2015
papatechieMay 17, 2026 2:53 AM
146 Comments
Quote from PurpleRecess4088 View quoted comment :
While you pros are here, I found an m4 max 32gb 1Tb 16" for 2150ish at micro center. This is my first MacBook and I'm into web apps and newly mobile apps. Is the deal good ?!
Pick based on screen size preference first. If 14" works, go M5 Pro. If you need 16", M4 Max deal is legitimately the best option at that screen size right now.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Things to check before buying... 1. Is it new, open-box, or refurb? Price suggests open-box. 2. Full AppleCare eligibility intact? 3. Return window at Micro Center (usually 15 days). 4. Cycle count on the battery if open-box.
1
May 18, 2026 6:53 AM
18 Comments
Joined Feb 2022
PurpleRecess4088May 18, 2026 6:53 AM
18 Comments
Quote from papatechie View quoted comment :
Pick based on screen size preference first. If 14" works, go M5 Pro. If you need 16", M4 Max deal is legitimately the best option at that screen size right now.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Things to check before buying... 1. Is it new, open-box, or refurb? Price suggests open-box. 2. Full AppleCare eligibility intact? 3. Return window at Micro Center (usually 15 days). 4. Cycle count on the battery if open-box.
I have a preference for bigger screen so 16" 1. Open box. 2. Eligible but got micro center cause it's cheaper. 3. 15 days window yes. 4. 7 cycles. Thanks for your response!
May 19, 2026 3:25 AM
112 Comments
Joined Apr 2009
mfs2010May 19, 2026 3:25 AM
112 Comments
B&H might look polished online, but people should do their homework before blindly trusting them. The company has faced multiple discrimination lawsuits over the years, including federal cases involving treatment of Hispanic workers, and they've also had hundreds of BBB complaints filed by customers. On top of that, there have been recurring complaints online about customer service, shipping issues, and questionable promo handling. For a company this big, the pattern is hard to ignore. I'd think twice before giving them my money.
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