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AdrainSingapore

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 30, 2012
72
0
I am buying the 2012 MBA with 8GB of RAM and 256 SSD. Now I only need to decide whether to get the i5 or i7. I am planning to use it as my main computer. The only game I play is minecraft. Other than that I use it to browser the web, watch videos on YouTube and Netflix. I don't mind the price but what I am worried about is the fans and heat produced. Any MBA 13" i7 users can tell me how long does it take for the fans to be hearable when you browse the web? I don't mind the fans and heat when I am playing intensive games because I want to get the most out of the game. And how long does it take for the fan to quiet down after you play a game and the fan comes up? If the fans come up earlier then 90 minutes of web browsing or watching videos on youtube I'm going straight for the i5. I do not plan to upgrade it till the 2014 model comes out. Yes I know the fans are always active by saying the fans "come up" I meant when it can be quite noisy.
 
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ixodes

macrumors 601
Jan 11, 2012
4,429
3
Pacific Coast, USA
Macs are designed to look cool, not run cool.

To get a cool running, ultra durable, high quality new laptop for a very good price, look at ThinkPads by Lenovo. They've been my "other laptop" for professional high intensity work, for years. They offer loads of choices, at all price points.

I love my Macs, but cool they're not :)
 

n2deep

macrumors member
Aug 5, 2010
58
0
I have this same machine and you do not hear the fans at all while preforming standard tasks. (web surfing, music play, word processing, ext.) When starting a game I would say the fans are at full speed in a few minutes and they slow back down just as quick when finished. I hope this helps.
 

danistyping

macrumors regular
Dec 8, 2009
181
100
Boston, MA
I have this same machine and you do not hear the fans at all while preforming standard tasks. (web surfing, music play, word processing, ext.) When starting a game I would say the fans are at full speed in a few minutes and they slow back down just as quick when finished. I hope this helps.

Yeah, what he said. I had the i5 for a week before I decided to exchange it for an i7. Fans are the same for both, no difference at all. They only turn on when I play a game and go off a minute or two after I'm done. They have never turned on for any other situation, even using Logic Pro the other day.
 

dixido

macrumors regular
Aug 29, 2010
100
278
I got my self an i7 MBA 2-3 months ago and I have not regretted it for a second. I normally hook it up to an external 24" display when I am working and the fan is normally idling at 2000 rpm. ;)


Any MBA 13" i7 users can tell me how long does it take for the fans to be hearable when you browse the web?
They don't get hearable when browsing the web. Not after one hour. Not after 24 hours. At least not non-flash web.

And how long does it take for the fan to quiet down after you play a game and the fan comes up?
About a minute or two.
 
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crazyxzer0

macrumors 6502
Oct 28, 2008
369
4
my i5's fan is rarely audible unless the fan speeds reach beyond 4000rpm. That is usually because I am encoding audio/video or playing a game. Normal browsing the web is barely audible.
 

comatose81

macrumors 6502a
Dec 17, 2009
585
0
I have noticed the battery drain reported by that comparison link with my 11" i7 MBA. If I am doing even moderate work, it seems like the battery drains pretty quickly (2.5 hours). It makes me kind of wish that I went with the i5, but I guess it will come in handy for any processor-intensive stuff I might do in the future.
 

53x12

macrumors 68000
Feb 16, 2009
1,544
4
I am buying the 2012 MBA with 8GB of RAM and 256 SSD. Now I only need to decide whether to get the i5 or i7. I am planning to use it as my main computer. The only game I play is minecraft. Other than that I use it to browser the web, watch videos on YouTube and Netflix. I don't mind the price but what I am worried about is the fans and heat produced. Any MBA 13" i7 users can tell me how long does it take for the fans to be hearable when you browse the web? I don't mind the fans and heat when I am playing intensive games because I want to get the most out of the game. And how long does it take for the fan to quiet down after you play a game and the fan comes up? If the fans come up earlier then 90 minutes of web browsing or watching videos on youtube I'm going straight for the i5. I do not plan to upgrade it till the 2014 model comes out. Yes I know the fans are always active by saying the fans "come up" I meant when it can be quite noisy.


From pure numbers standpoint (geekbench), the 2.0 GHz i7 scores ~7000 on the benchmark. The 1.8 GHz i5 scores ~6200 on the benchmark (both in 32 bit mode). That comes out to about 13%. If that makes a difference to you, go for it. After all, it is only $100 for the upgrade.


http://browser.primatelabs.com/geekbench2/search?page=2&q=Intel+Core+i7-3667U&utf8=✓
 

AdrainSingapore

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 30, 2012
72
0

bryanmiss

macrumors newbie
Dec 5, 2012
5
0
I have noticed the battery drain reported by that comparison link with my 11" i7 MBA. If I am doing even moderate work, it seems like the battery drains pretty quickly (2.5 hours). It makes me kind of wish that I went with the i5, but I guess it will come in handy for any processor-intensive stuff I might do in the future.
this what I have been looking for pal! battery life! The only reason I was being complex .Btw my MBA 13' i5/8g/128g is right on the way.
 
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