So Gaming: 2010 air vs 2011 air

jgunn · Jul 21, 2011, 10:48 PM

is there any sort of consensus yet. Is the GPU a step backwards or forwards?

Dark Void · Jul 21, 2011, 10:48 PM

backwards most likely.

alust2013 · Jul 21, 2011, 10:49 PM

More or less backwards. No choice really though.

ovrlrd · Jul 21, 2011, 10:51 PM

The GPU is a step backwards, but the rest of the computer and the processor is a big leap forward and it makes up for it. In the end the performance in games is definitely faster, though how much will depend on the game.

Under Windows though, it's much harsher on the new Air's because the Nvidia drivers were so good for the 300M.

gman901 · Jul 21, 2011, 10:53 PM

So basically what we are saying here is if I am playing a game of Batman Arkham Asylum on my max 2010 11" Air and getting 25 FPS, I would probably get around 15-17 fps on a new maxed out 11" Air using intel integrated graphics?

Jyby · Jul 21, 2011, 11:48 PM

I'm very interested in this topic.

I would like to see the MBA 11" play Diablo 3 on medium lol

Then that would be the only machine I would ever own!

Xaron · Jul 21, 2011, 11:54 PM

In Benchmarks the HD3000 is slightly faster than the 320M. All in all games are likely to perform better on the new one.

HD3000 is not that bad, actually it is the first good Intel GPU.

PaulWog · Jul 22, 2011, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xaron

In Benchmarks the HD3000 is slightly faster than the 320M. All in all games are likely to perform better on the new one.

HD3000 is not that bad, actually it is the first good Intel GPU.

We really need a definitive benchmark between the i5 1.6GHz and the alternative i5/i7 chips.

The difference (1150MHz vs. 1200MHz) on the HD3000 might matter... and no one is benchmarking this!

So frustrating

srxtr · Jul 22, 2011, 12:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jyby

I'm very interested in this topic.

I would like to see the MBA 11" play Diablo 3 on medium lol

Then that would be the only machine I would ever own!

By the time Diablo 3 comes out we will all own a slightly outdated 2012 MBA.

lurker53 · Jul 22, 2011, 01:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulWog

We really need a definitive benchmark between the i5 1.6GHz and the alternative i5/i7 chips.

The difference (1150MHz vs. 1200MHz) on the HD3000 might matter... and no one is benchmarking this!

So frustrating

In case it helps, Portal (the first one) runs pretty well on high'ish settings at the MBA's native resolution. Same with Half Life 2. No hard numbers, but I don't see any hiccups or slowdowns (meaning its consistently above 30 fps). Both at native resolution, with most settings on high/medium. I would expect other source based games to have similar performance.

Using the 13" ultimate.

DavidC1 · Jul 22, 2011, 01:28 AM

The difference in clock between 1150MHz and 1200MHz is only 4.4%. The performance increase can't be greater than that. Probably 5%.

The performance of Macbook Air is way faster than Samsung Series 9. You'd think with a similar CPU, and having a GPU 25% higher clocked on Air would show a similar difference. CPU-wise, the Air is 20-30% faster, and graphics are 50-70% better.

Perhaps Samsung Series 9 was an outlier. I was expecting the results on the Air to be worse when the Series 9 was factored in. I see that Apple decided to wait for the updated 17W chips that feature 1.15-1.2GHz HD 3000 rather than 0.95-1.0GHz in the February chips.

As a result the GPU in the 17W chip for Air is identical to the 35W SV chips.

gman901 · Jul 22, 2011, 05:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulWog

We really need a definitive benchmark between the i5 1.6GHz and the alternative i5/i7 chips.

The difference (1150MHz vs. 1200MHz) on the HD3000 might matter... and no one is benchmarking this!

So frustrating

Agreed! I was told by another poster that most likely owners haven't had time to install Windows 7 yet since the Air just came out. I think the consensus is that all OSX versions of the 5 or so most popular games run around the same as last year's model, I.e. LFD, Portal 1/2, HL2, Civ5, SC2 & WoW. I guess if those are the only games you play on the 2011 Air, you should be set.

Pressure · Jul 22, 2011, 05:27 AM

Seeing as the processor in the new MacBook Air is much more powerful I have a feeling we will be seeing similar, if not better, performance comparing the 2010 and the 2011 model.

Oppressed · Jul 22, 2011, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by srxtr

By the time Diablo 3 comes out we will all own a slightly outdated 2012 MBA.

Actually...

SBruv · Jul 22, 2011, 06:45 AM

Gaming performance on 13" i7 is much, much better than it was on 2010 13". See my thread on this forum...
SB

Jyby · Jul 22, 2011, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oppressed

Actually...

i know this is of topic! But since the beta is coming out this August. Than the release date will have a similar time-frame as Starcraft 2. Meaning closed beta for a ~month.5 and open for a ~month.5 than phase towards release. 2012 or 2015 release dates would be ridiculous. They have to release Diablo 3 because they know Wow isn't growing and players will soon drop like flies. Diablo 3 will bring those players who leave Wow for reasons of boredom back to Blizzard gaming.

Back on topic.

Jul 21, 2011, 10:48 PM	#1
jgunn macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2008	So Gaming: 2010 air vs 2011 air is there any sort of consensus yet. Is the GPU a step backwards or forwards?
	0

Jul 21, 2011, 10:48 PM	#2
Dark Void macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jun 2011	backwards most likely. __________________ ` 13'' MacBook Pro • 2.4 GHz P8600 Intel Core 2 Duo • 8GB 1067 MHz DDR3 • Crucial M4 256GB • NVIDIA GeForce 320M 256MB
	0

Jul 21, 2011, 10:49 PM	#3
alust2013 macrumors 68040 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: On the fence	More or less backwards. No choice really though. __________________ a computer with some GHz and a few GB, some stuff to play music. -witty comment here-
	0

Jul 21, 2011, 10:51 PM	#4
ovrlrd macrumors 65816 Join Date: Aug 2009	The GPU is a step backwards, but the rest of the computer and the processor is a big leap forward and it makes up for it. In the end the performance in games is definitely faster, though how much will depend on the game. Under Windows though, it's much harsher on the new Air's because the Nvidia drivers were so good for the 300M. __________________ 15" rMBP 2.7GHz+16GB+768GB :: iPhone 5 32GB :: iPad Mini 64GB Wi-Fi
	2

Jul 21, 2011, 10:53 PM	#5
gman901 macrumors 6502 Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Houston, TX	So basically what we are saying here is if I am playing a game of Batman Arkham Asylum on my max 2010 11" Air and getting 25 FPS, I would probably get around 15-17 fps on a new maxed out 11" Air using intel integrated graphics? __________________ MacBook Air 13" 2.13/256 GB/4GB nVidia 320M iPad 2 32GB 3G 32 GB iPhone 4
	0

Jul 21, 2011, 11:48 PM	#6
Jyby macrumors member Join Date: May 2011	I'm very interested in this topic. I would like to see the MBA 11" play Diablo 3 on medium lol Then that would be the only machine I would ever own!
	0

Jul 21, 2011, 11:54 PM	#7
Xaron macrumors newbie Join Date: Jul 2011	In Benchmarks the HD3000 is slightly faster than the 320M. All in all games are likely to perform better on the new one. HD3000 is not that bad, actually it is the first good Intel GPU.
	0

Jul 22, 2011, 01:28 AM	#11
DavidC1 macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2006	The difference in clock between 1150MHz and 1200MHz is only 4.4%. The performance increase can't be greater than that. Probably 5%. The performance of Macbook Air is way faster than Samsung Series 9. You'd think with a similar CPU, and having a GPU 25% higher clocked on Air would show a similar difference. CPU-wise, the Air is 20-30% faster, and graphics are 50-70% better. Perhaps Samsung Series 9 was an outlier. I was expecting the results on the Air to be worse when the Series 9 was factored in. I see that Apple decided to wait for the updated 17W chips that feature 1.15-1.2GHz HD 3000 rather than 0.95-1.0GHz in the February chips. As a result the GPU in the 17W chip for Air is identical to the 35W SV chips.
	1

Jul 22, 2011, 05:27 AM	#13
Pressure macrumors 68040 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Denmark	Seeing as the processor in the new MacBook Air is much more powerful I have a feeling we will be seeing similar, if not better, performance comparing the 2010 and the 2011 model. __________________ Never Argue With An idiot. They'll Lower You To Their Level And Then Beat You With Experience!
	0

Jul 22, 2011, 06:45 AM	#15
SBruv macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2008	Gaming performance on 13" i7 is much, much better than it was on 2010 13". See my thread on this forum... SB
	0

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