HELP Macbook Pro Buyer

[amalkan]

I'm a college student who needs to run...

8 tabs of Chrome
Word and Excel (sometimes but mostly just word or excel)

No real graphics or anything, currently have a 2009 Macbook Pro 15 inch and it's slow as heck!

Thinking about

Mbp 2015
16 gb RAM
Dual core i7

Is that good or too much power for me?

 

[Dark Void]

If you want the 13'' rMBP just get the base model.

 

[z31fanatic]

That's overkill for your use. As a college student, the base 15/8/128 should be plenty.

 

[Dark Void]

That's overkill for your use. As a college student, the base 15/8/128 should be plenty.

I believe he is talking about a 13'' because he mentions a dual-core CPU.

 

[amalkan]

Yeah, I am. I am not really considering a 15" due to the lack of portability in comparison to the 13". Do you really think the base model is enough? I feel like my current computer can hardly handle what I do. Also If i want to hook up my rmbp to an external monitor do i need to upgrade any of the internal components to help it support that?

 

[z31fanatic]

I believe he is talking about a 13'' because he mentions a dual-core CPU.

I know he was talking about the 13". That 15 was supposed to be i5. It was a typo.

 

[z31fanatic]

Not surprised that your 2009 is slow.

 

[Dark Void]

Do you really think the base model is enough? I feel like my current computer can hardly handle what I do.

I think the base model is more than enough. I think you can get away with any notebook, which is why I began my reply with "if you want the 13'' rMBP" as opposed to talking about necessities.

Your current computer can handle what you do (what you've listed anyway), but it's just aged. That's all.

 

[lowendlinux]

I'd get a new SSD and some RAM for the old computer and keep the $1000 in my pocket.

 

[maflynn]

No real graphics or anything, currently have a 2009 Macbook Pro 15 inch and it's slow as heck!

I'd try upgrading the 2009 with a SSD and maybe the ram (you don't specify how much ram it has).

Short of that, I'd say the base model 13" rMBP will handle it as others stated.

 

[yjchua95]

I'm a college student who needs to run...

8 tabs of Chrome
Word and Excel (sometimes but mostly just word or excel)

No real graphics or anything, currently have a 2009 Macbook Pro 15 inch and it's slow as heck!

Thinking about

Mbp 2015
16 gb RAM
Dual core i7

Is that good or too much power for me?

The i7 in the 13" is the biggest ripoff in computer history. Barely 5% faster than the base 2.7GFHz i7 and one hell of a lot pricier.

Just get the sweet spot model - 2.7/8/256 variant.
PS don't use Chrome. It's the worst browser for OS X and is a massive resource hog + power drain. Chrome Canary seems to be better but not phenomenal either.

 

[amalkan]

What's the best browser then? Safari?

 

[yjchua95]

What's the best browser then? Safari?

Yes.

 

[T5BRICK]

Is that good or too much power for me?

Yes. Just get the model with the storage that you need. The RAM and CPU upgrade aren't needed for your usage, and would really be a waste of money.

You could probably go with the base model MacBook if you want something even more portable.

 

[snaky69]

I'm a college student who needs to run...

8 tabs of Chrome
Word and Excel (sometimes but mostly just word or excel)

No real graphics or anything, currently have a 2009 Macbook Pro 15 inch and it's slow as heck!

Thinking about

Mbp 2015
16 gb RAM
Dual core i7

Is that good or too much power for me?

Your current computer is powerful enough for that, and more. Something's amiss if it's slow.
You're either running out of RAM (you never mentioned how much you have) or your hard drive is about to crap out on you (they tend to slow to a crawl before croaking).

 

[nStyle]

Yes.

...if we're talking power efficiency. I would never say Safari > Chrome in other areas.

And I agree with others. It would be pretty dumb to drop $1k if those are your only uses. Spend time time researching how to replace components in your machine and buy those components and you'll be much better off (if that's even necessary).

 

[bobbytomorow]

I'd get a new SSD and some RAM for the old computer and keep the $1000 in my pocket.

+1

I recently added an SSD & 8GB RAM to a late 2008 15" MBP and performance was great...I'm on a mid 2012 as my daily driver now but in 95% of tasks I don't notice a difference in performance.

 

[RobbieTT]

I'd try upgrading the 2009 with a SSD and maybe the ram (you don't specify how much ram it has).

This is the path I have just gone down with my mid-2009 13" MBP. I maxed out the RAM, as it was cheap but probably an overkill, and added a Samsung 850 Evo 500 GB SSD.

The machine is a different beast now and I have a big chunk of money still in the bank - an amazing upgrade.