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13", Core i5 vs Core i7 - worth the upgrade?

L

.Logan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 7, 2010
110
42
Calgary, AB
Hey,

I'm finally ready to press the buy now button on the MBP. As much as I want to wait for the new MBP redesign, I really want a MBP for school in September. It's so inconvenient not having a laptop on campus. I'll survive when the redesign comes out I guess, or I'll do my best to sell for a decent price.

Some quick questions:

1. I want a 13" for the increased portability, however should I do the i5 2.3ghz or 2.7ghz i7? Is it worth the $300 price increase? (I know it includes more HD space too). I don't plan to do anything other than email, web, internet, etc. But I don't want to ever have an issue with speed either. Can you notice a difference between the 2 processors?

2. Does anyone use one of those speck seethru cases and a sleeve? Just wondering if you have a case on it if it'll still fit in the sleeve?

3. I will sometimes be using an external display, and mouse/keyboard. Would this be the best thing to use for ventilation, etc. for storing the Macbook in that configuration?: http://store.apple.com/ca/product/H6364?mco=MjI4ODAxMzA

Thanks so much!
 
I got the base model 13" and have similar needs that you have, I have never had a problem, I did drop in an extra 4gb of ram but don't get it from Apple.

I have tried taxing mine by opening up a bunch of videos plus a bunch of programs all at once and can't slow it down. Save the money for accessories.
 
i have the mbp 13" with 8 gb ram. i doubt you will need the extra ram, much less the expensive processor. except in very few cases, i cannot see a good reason for anyone to get the 2.7. by the way, have you considered a 13" mba (refresh due ina few days)?

i have a clear case. a great idea, especially if you are mobile. i have a sleeve. it fits. but, i suppose that depends pn the sleeve maker.
 
If you're an average user: An upgrade to SSD or Hybrid drive will give you more performance boost than a CPU upgrade.
 
I don't think the i7 is remotely worth it. You can change the hard drive in the i5 and upgrade the RAM and I doubt you'd ever tell the difference in daily use. And if you're a power user, you're looking at the wrong laptop either way--the 15" MBPs are a LOT faster.
 
No. The i7 is only marginally faster than the i5, while that same $300 will buy you 8 GB of RAM and a 128 GB SSD. A solid state drive will make a huge difference in the perceived performance of the machine.

Mind you, if the upgrade offered a quad core i7 and/or a significantly better GPU, I might argue differently, even though $300 is still a ridiculous upcharge for a component that costs Apple very little extra to install (but that's always the case with "options," be it with cars or computers--the baseline model is almost always the best deal to the consumer with regards to what it costs the manufacturer to produce).
 
Naimfan said:
I don't think the i7 is remotely worth it. You can change the hard drive in the i5 and upgrade the RAM and I doubt you'd ever tell the difference in daily use. And if you're a power user, you're looking at the wrong laptop either way--the 15" MBPs are a LOT faster.
Click to expand...
The problem is weight, as much as I want the speed increase with a 15" MBP I don't want to carry it around in my backpack all day. I'd rather not notice it's there, or have it at least feel lighter than a textbook :)

I'm happy to hear that the opinion seems to be the i7 is not worth it. The SSD upgrade sounds worthy, but 128GB is not enough space and the next largest size is way too expensive for me. I wouldn't like carrying around an external HD to supplement the 128GB either.

I think I'm going to go with the base 13". In the future I may upgrade it to 8GB if that doesn't void the warranty?
 
.Logan said:
1. I want a 13" for the increased portability, however should I do the i5 2.3ghz or 2.7ghz i7? Is it worth the $300 price increase? (I know it includes more HD space too). I don't plan to do anything other than email, web, internet, etc. But I don't want to ever have an issue with speed either. Can you notice a difference between the 2 processors?
Click to expand...
The words "is it worth it" isn't always tangible because it's a personal call between the balance of benefit per unit cost. If you ask me the $300 doesn't justify the improvement of the i7, in fact many users have noted that when compared to the i5, they couldn't tell the difference.

If you need more visuals, you can find benchmark test results on Google comparing the 2 models and the difference was negligible. Again on a personal note, I'd rather apply it to maxing out the system RAM and buying either a case, mouse, or whatever with the extra money saved.

.Logan said:
Does it void the warranty if you upgrade the RAM and/or hard drive after purchase?
Click to expand...

Neither will void the warranty.
 
Quick answer: No.

You will barely even notice the difference in the i5 and i7 of the 13" model.
Playing games, I get a good 30FPS for the i5, and if I were to get i7, it'll probably be 34FPS. (World of Warcraft)
For the price that it's worth, $300 more, I rather upgrade to SSD and Ram, then it'll be faster than buying an i7 model.
Remember, the i7 is a dual, NOT a quad.
 
For a 2011 13" i5 MBP w/4g ram, what brand/spec ram would be my options if I wanted to go to 8gb? Also, what is a hybrid drive? I have heard of a ssd, but not a hybrid drive.
 
michaelquerty said:
For a 2011 13" i5 MBP w/4g ram, what brand/spec ram would be my options if I wanted to go to 8gb? Also, what is a hybrid drive? I have heard of a ssd, but not a hybrid drive.
Click to expand...

From my understanding, a hybrid drive is like a traditional drive, except it has a certain amount of space in an SSD that is dedicated to performing the actions you do most regularly (such as powering on, certain app launches, etc.). Correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not very knowledgable on these subjects. :D
 
I haven't really followed the rumors on the new MBA that's supposed to be coming this week, but do you think its capabilities will be the same as the MBP 13"? I really don't want to wait any longer to order my MBP, but I am getting curious.
 
Technically the i7 is not worth the $300 extra.

That said, $300 is a small price to pay for smugness. I'm satisfied with my i7 purchase.
 
.Logan said:
2. Does anyone use one of those speck seethru cases and a sleeve? Just wondering if you have a case on it if it'll still fit in the sleeve?
Click to expand...

I have a Speck case and an Incase sleeve, it's a tight fit. I don't even use the sleeve cus it's annoying getting it in, but it'll go in.
 
Depending on what you will use it for, the new MBA (next Tuesday, maybe?) or even the *old* MBA might be better. I have a MBA for Python programming, Office, and web surfing, and it craps all over a MBP 13" for 90% of what I do (thanks to the SSD), and it's lighter. You won't have a DVD drive, but if you have an old computer (or an external) that might be enough, depending on how much you use it. Also, I think the screen is higher resolution than the MBP, which might be a pro or a con (do you mind smaller text?).

If you use Photoshop, it might be a judgement call. If you do Video or Audio editing, then something a little more heavy-weight might be good.
 
I have the i5 13" with an ssd and looking to upgrade to 8gb of ram. Perfect for day to day tasks.
 
IMO the 2.7GHz i7 upgrade isn't worth the extra $250. I'd rather get the base 2.3GHz i5 model and get third party SSD upgrade. It'll be more worth it.
 
Buy the base model, upgrade to 8GB Ram... $80. Buy SSD $200, buy optibay on ebay $10. Put the original drive on optibay and move out dvd...
Buy dvd enclosure for $10
 
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