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15inch for gaming
- Thread starter Arsenal09
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Macs aren't designed to be gaming machines, the low end will work okay for older games, the high end can play some more recent games at medium settings or so.
I'd consider building a cheap gaming desktop long before gaming on a laptop.
If you want it to be able to game competently for the next few years I would definately say go with the 2.2GHz 15-inch. It can play most current and new games at medium to high graphics and I expect that to hold true for at least the next few years. I am hoping that it will be able to play Skyrim and Battlefield 3 at high graphics and I don't think thats unreasonable with some tweaking.
If you're looking for a computer to game, a mac is not the road to go down. As said above, macs are not designed to play high end games, of course it's your choice if you do play games on them, but you'll have a much better experience with a gaming laptop (windows) or a gaming desktop (windows). Also at a much cheaper price.
I agree with the others. If your only goal is to game, then go with a Windows gaming desktop or laptop. However, I also realize that you may have other reasons to want a Mac, and as such, if gaming is not the main goal of the computer, the 2.2GHz MacBook Pro is a pretty competent gaming notebook in my honest opinion.
2.0 with 6490M probably won't be sufficient for a couple years down the line. The positive is that xbox 360 etc don't plan on doing a hardware upgrade in that time frame (it looks) so most computer games will stay around similar requirements. As with that the 6750 should be able to handle games for the next couple years much much better than the 6490. I would spend the extra bucks if gaming down the line is a big interest for you.
I don't think the high-end 15" will be able to play Battlefield 3 at high settings without taking a big hit to fps. I play BF2BC on medium for multiplayer. I could probably crank it to high, but I wouldn't do that on multiplayer, only single-player where a good fps isn't that important.
Like everyone else said, if you want a gaming rig, go Windows. However, if you're like me and only want 1 computer and be able to play some games on it, too, then get the high-end. The 6490 is only marginally better than last year's 330m, but the 6750 is a big leap forward for graphics on a Macbook.
Like everyone else said, if you want a gaming rig, go Windows. However, if you're like me and only want 1 computer and be able to play some games on it, too, then get the high-end. The 6490 is only marginally better than last year's 330m, but the 6750 is a big leap forward for graphics on a Macbook.
The low-end MBP models are so-so. Settings would go low-mid. Expect more intensive games that will come out in the future which need higher CPU speeds, maybe another i7 2.7 GHz or more paired with an awesome video card.
I would go stick with a desktop. Desktops do great as gaming machines than laptops -- like MBP -- at half the price. Laptops always have HEAT problems - ventilation !
I guess, no MBP model is perfect afterall.
I would go stick with a desktop. Desktops do great as gaming machines than laptops -- like MBP -- at half the price. Laptops always have HEAT problems - ventilation !
I guess, no MBP model is perfect afterall.
I got the low end 15", and ive been playing stuff on high on average. I dunno what everyone else is talking about when they say the low end can only play low/medium. My SC2 is high. Borderlands on Mac is maxed out, while Left for dead 2 on Mac is high medium. Mass effect 2 and assassin's creed brotherhood on my bootcamp are essentially maxed out.
Thanks everyone, but i wanna say That gaming surely is not the main thing
When you create a thread asking if you can game on it but mention nothing else, what do you expect people to think?
It is all about the GPU and frankly the Radeon 6750M is one of the better midrange ones on the market.
Excluding SC2 since I never played it, I would say the other titles you've mentioned aren't what we have in mind when we say low-to-medium settings. AC2 runs exceptionally well with low fps (on Windows) and the others just aren't very graphically demanding compared to current titles. On the 330m AC2 was running high at 20 fps and I thought it was great, but then I saw what it was like to get 30 fps (busy areas) on the 6750 and remembered everything is subjective.
The 6490 is not crap. It's an improvement over the 330m. However, my suggestion still stands with going for the higher end, especially if future titles are a concern.
Gaming is not the main thing i'm gonna do on it, but i surely will, and than i want a mbp that will be good at it for some years, so what's so bad about my question? I was just saying this to let know that it 's not the most important thing cause i know a Windows is a better option than
Gaming is not the main thing i'm gonna do on it, but i surely will, and than i want a mbp that will be good at it for some years, so what's so bad about my question? I was just saying this to let know that it 's not the most important thing cause i know a Windows is a better option than
Just keep your expectations in check and keep in mind that the 6750 is a mid range laptop GPU. Don't expect it to play bleeding edge games at native resolution all the eye candy turned on. If you can live with that - I'm sure you'll be fine.
And yes, there are obviously Windows laptops with GPUs that would walk all over the 6750.
768p gaming is what most midrange GPUs excel at though the GeForce GT 540M performed admirably at 900p and Medium settings. Even the lowly Core i3 manages a good gaming score.
The 6770/6850M or GeForce 555M are what I look for in a notebook.
If you want a machine with decent battery life(in terms of eg.watching movies), GOOD LOOKS, portability and a decent graphic card that can play games around 2-3 more years into the future the high end 15inch would be perfect you. No other pc gaming laptop has the attractive looks, the portability and the craftsmanship this Macbook Pro has.
note: This is as of now ONLY. We'll have to see what the PC world has to offer because their Sandy Bridge laptops were delayed
note: This is as of now ONLY. We'll have to see what the PC world has to offer because their Sandy Bridge laptops were delayed
One more strike against the MacBook Pro is the power supply can not supply enough power at full load. You will start to drain the battery when gaming.
Yeah this is kind of annoying, although I don't play long enough to have run into this yet, but yeah that kind of sucks. I have in the past done some long WoW sessions. Also after gaming you have to recharge back up to make sure you're topped off. Bummer, wonder if this will be addressed with a larger power supply some how.
I would agree. 768p is probably well matched with a midrange GPU - though you still shouldn't expect to play any games with all the eye candy on. And at native 1440x900, the 6750 will provide just a mediocre gaming experience at best. But I suppose "gaming experience" is a subjective matter.
Also - the bottleneck in modern games is usually the GPU - and this shows even in the benchmarks you linked. A lowly Core i3 is, at worst, a couple frames shy of an i7 and at best, better than an i7.
Most games these days are unable to utilize all cores and clock speed is a more significant factor than the number of cores. Same can be said for their desktop counterparts.
You're all so wrong. I have the 2.2GHz 15" with 6750 overclocked to 780/880 and at 1440x900 all the games I play are amazing with maximum graphics (only AA pegged at x4): Crysis 2, BFBC2, all COD games from WaW onwards. 50fps+, this is simply an amazing gaming laptop.
You're all so wrong. I have the 2.2GHz 15" with 6750 overclocked to 780/880 and at 1440x900 all the games I play are amazing with maximum graphics (only AA pegged at x4): Crysis 2, BFBC2, all COD games from WaW onwards. 50fps+, this is simply an amazing gaming laptop.
hooray,this person gets it,what a lot of rubbish in this thread,btw,has anyone here that says the latest 15-2.2 is not much good for games actually got one?
they are good,and with a bit of tweaking,ie 8 ram and ssd,they are great,im getting between 25-60 fps on mid to hi settings on mine,in win 7,and they play unreal and look great,im even outputting to 1920x1080 lcd 40 " tele,and that look s and plays amazing too,the old moniker of macs are no good for gaming is over,as of latest hi end 15 with 6750.go get a 15 with i7 and 6750,these folks dont know they dont have one ,or dont know how to set it up for gaming if they do.
You're all so wrong. I have the 2.2GHz 15" with 6750 overclocked to 780/880 and at 1440x900 all the games I play are amazing with maximum graphics (only AA pegged at x4): Crysis 2, BFBC2, all COD games from WaW onwards. 50fps+, this is simply an amazing gaming laptop.
You get 50fps+ on Crysis 2 and Battlefield Bad Company 2 at maximum settings?? If that's really true i'll be even more happy with my 15inch MBP. Care to tell me how you overclock it to 780/880?
MSI Afterburner, you'll need to edit the config file to overclock - search on this forum and you'll find the info. Others have been able to overclock theirs to 800/1000 or so but I'm happy with mine. It's better than the PS3 I sold earlier this year. Get a Logitech G700 mouse and XScorch/Aimon nunchuck to make it even better.