2.26GHz vs. 2.53GHz 13" MBP -- How much of a difference?

[analytical44]

Hello all. I've been waiting patiently for an upgrade to the uMBs and now that it's finally come I'm not sure what to do. I've searched around the forums and sorta got an answer to this question but I still want to know more. How much difference does .27GHz make in terms of speed? I've heard that basic users won't be able to notice the difference between the two but there has to be some performance increase with a faster processor...no?

If one cannot tell the difference doing basic tasks such as word processing, iTunes, bowsing, etc., where can the difference be seen? Are there any processes where a significant difference is noticeable?

Also, in terms of resale value, does anyone expect that the 2.53 model will be able to be sold at a substanially ($100+) higher price? I'm very curious because upgrading the 2.26 to a 500GB hardrive and 4GB of RAM comes out to be relatively cheap and I would do it in an instant if the difference is truly that minimal. On the other hand, if the extra .27GHz will allow me to stay up to snuff with future technological advancements I'd consider the extra money to be a worthwhile investment. Any help would be greatly appreciated and would go a long way in helping me come to a decision. Thanks.

 

[geoffreak]

Your money would be better spent on faster hard drives and more RAM. The increase in GHz offered will only get you a ~10% increase in speed whereas a faster drive can increase read/write speeds by 30-40%.

 

[nukiduz]

Would the SSD drive offer relevant speed increase?

 

[Balthezor]

Would the SSD drive offer relevant speed increase?

Yes I would say it would. Faster boot times and app loading for sure. I am also debating on the difference between the CPUs because the low-end 13" can have 4GB for $90 and its so much cheaper.

 

[thefrenches]

I have a hard time believing that the higher processor speed is limited to improvements ONLY in video editing and huge database work. I don't see how that would justify such a significant price change, particularly when you consider that 3.0ghz+ processors exist and are widely available. If they didn't make much difference but for those doing video editing and/or huge database management, why would they constantly be improved and offered at a premium to 'slower' speeds?

 

[mrrippey]

Not much, better to get a SSD and RAM (which is what I am thinking if I just dont spring for a 15" instead).

 

[analytical44]

I'm no tech guru but I have to assume that there has to be a difference in performance for the reasons you mentioned Balthezor and Thefrences. The 2.26 model is such a better value if the the speed difference is barely noticeable. Even when the 2.0 and 2.4 were the only 13" aluminums many people said the only real difference between the two was the backlight keyboard. Anyone familiar with processors care to comment?

@geoffreak: 10% is a significant difference no? And are you talking about going to a third party for a faster drive?

 

[analytical44]

Sorry to keep posting but I don't want this to get burried. I'm on the verge of making a decision and would really appreciate the help. I also feel there are plently of people out there who have this same question and would benefit greatly from some sound advice.

 

[Barney0]

Personally I would definately go for the 2.26ghz config. You will notice no difference when using iTunes or browsing the internet between the .26 and .53. However, an area which the faster CPU would come in handy would be rendering etc. The 10% or so increase would allow rendering which may take 15 minutes on the 2.26 take roughly 13 minutes on the 2.53.

It all depends if the time it takes off is of great importance to you. If not, then I'd definitely go for the base model, upgrade the ram and then to a SSD when the prices come down a tad. Then you would truly have an extremely nice 13" beast.

This is what I'll be doing next week when I head down to the Regent Street Apple store, I cannot wait

 

[tsa1]

If apple had used the old 2.53 from the first uMBP with the 6mb cache, then it would be a big difference, but im pretty sure its just a P8700 core 2 duo they are using.

 

[analytical44]

Personally I would definately go for the 2.26ghz config. You will notice no difference when using iTunes or browsing the internet between the .26 and .53. However, an area which the faster CPU would come in handy would be rendering etc. The 10% or so increase would allow rendering which may take 15 minutes on the 2.26 take roughly 13 minutes on the 2.53.

It all depends if the time it takes off is of great importance to you. If not, then I'd definitely go for the base model, upgrade the ram and then to a SSD when the prices come down a tad. Then you would truly have an extremely nice 13" beast.

This is what I'll be doing next week when I head down to the Regent Street Apple store, I cannot wait

Shaving 2 minutes off a task that I may never do probably isn't worth $200. I can upgrade to a SSD at any point? And how about resale value; you think there will be a significant difference in the future? Thanks so much for the advice.

 

[Barney0]

@geoffreak: 10% is a significant difference no? And are you talking about going to a third party for a faster drive?

10% isn't that much. When are you going to be using 100% cpu? This is when the extra 10% will prove handy. Otherwise, the 2.26 cpu will do just fine for what you need it to do.

And yes, I believe he is talking about a 3rd party drive, you can get a 7200rpm drive for around £45 (250gb) which is fairly cheap.

http://www.dabs.com/products/hitach...7200rpm-s300-16mb-2-5--5cxj.html?q=travelstar

And a 320gb 7200rpm drive will cost you a mere £5 more. I'm guessing you're in the US and so there will surely be the same prices and websites over your side of the Atlantic

Either that or you can wait around for a couple of months (for price to come down) and purchase a solid state drive which will give a nice 40% speed increase for reading and writing. And not to mention the boot times will be incredible, check out this vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0agBXaODMiI

Enjoy

 

[Barney0]

Shaving 2 minutes off a task that I may never do probably isn't worth $200. I can upgrade to a SSD at any point? And how about resale value; you think there will be a significant difference in the future? Thanks so much for the advice.

I assume that you can still upgrade the hard drive yourself with these new updates, in fact, i bloody well hope you can. Do a google search and find out, I'll be doing the same soon
Re-sale is a tricky one, because generally, the more powerful the computer, the higher price you're likely to get for it. However, if you put the 4gb ram in and in a few months a SSD, this will be far more attractive than a very slight cpu increase. Watch the vid I just posted, it will blow you away. Very worthwhile upgrade
Now to find out if it's still possible.....

 

[analytical44]

10% isn't that much. When are you going to be using 100% cpu? This is when the extra 10% will prove handy. Otherwise, the 2.26 cpu will do just fine for what you need it to do.

And yes, I believe he is talking about a 3rd party drive, you can get a 7200rpm drive for around £45 (250gb) which is fairly cheap.

http://www.dabs.com/products/hitach...7200rpm-s300-16mb-2-5--5cxj.html?q=travelstar

And a 320gb 7200rpm drive will cost you a mere £5 more. I'm guessing you're in the US and so there will surely be the same prices and websites over your side of the Atlantic

Either that or you can wait around for a couple of months (for price to come down) and purchase a solid state drive which will give a nice 40% speed increase for reading and writing. And not to mention the boot times will be incredible, check out this vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0agBXaODMiI

Enjoy

Is this referring the speed at which it will burn DVD's and such? Will it improve application launch speed or anything like that? Does installing a hard drive from a 3rd party void AppleCare? I think you all have convinced me to go with the 2.26 model and a 500GB hard drive but I'm still curious about these things. Thanks for the advice

 

[Poirot818]

Will it improve application launch speed or anything like that?

That's hard drive related. Basically anything you can think of related to system responsiveness is hard drive related. Bootup times, application start times, installation times, etc. A faster hard drive/solid state drive will make your system feel more snappy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi4lASDDsJk

Higher CPU speeds will help you in things like audio/video conversion and other related tasks.

 

[unagimiyagi]

You're just not going to feel a 2.26 to 2.53 ghz difference. No one will feel that. The hard drive and ram are way better ways to spend $200 than a processor upgrade. Unless you plan on running biological simulations, or run nothing but calculating the 10000000343234 prime number, or you're paid by the second in terms of productivity, I see no reason to get the better processor.

 

[analytical44]

@unagimiyagi: Thank you for your input, I'm sold on the 2.26 with 4GB RAM. Now I'm unsure what to do about the hard drive.

@Poirot818: Good to know, thanks for the information. Does installing one of these void AppleCare and will it increase temperature/decrease battery life?

 

[Tweak3D]

@Poirot818: Good to know, thanks for the information. Does installing one of these void AppleCare and will it increase temperature/decrease battery life?[/QUOTE]

not unless you damage something during the install no and it should increase (slightly) your battery life and run significantly cooler than a standard HDD

 

[analytical44]

@Tweak: Useful stuff, thanks. One last question, how much space will a 128GB HD leave me if I want to have both OSX and Windows (XP and then eventually 7) installed? I'm convinced about the utility of an SSD but I can only realistically afford the 128GB at the moment.

Some of you have suggested I wait for a few months until the price drops. If I do this does that mean I shouldn't invest in a bigger HD now? Say if I get a 500GB HDD now and then replace it with a SSD in the future, can I then use the HDD as an external or will I have to sell it?

Essentially I am asking:
- Is the 128GB SSD big enough to install both OSs and leave me a reasonable amount of space (~50GB)?
- If not, and I decide to wait on the SSD and go HDD should I go for a cheaper one with lower capacity since I do plan on upgrading in the future?
- Will I be able to use an HDD I install now as an external in the future?

Sorry for all the questions, and for the slight change in topic, I'm just trying to figure out what's best. Thanks everyone for your help.

 

[analytical44]

Side question. Is there any way to change the title of a thread?

 

[Philflow]

Upgrading your hard drive is a good way to improve performance. SSDs are getting cheaper all the time and 500GB drives are good too.

If you want a 500GB drive here's no point in getting 7200rpm at the moment, as WD5000BEVT performs just as well. (see Techreport.com for the benchmarks)

 

[analytical44]

Upgrading your hard drive is a good way to improve performance. SSDs are getting cheaper all the time and 500GB drives are good too.

If you want a 500GB drive here's no point in getting 7200rpm at the moment, as WD5000BEVT performs just as well. (see Techreport.com for the benchmarks)

I'm reading that there have been some issues with beeping/clicking with this model when used in MacBooks, have you experienced this? I don't want to get a 7200 because I heard they can be noisey and get rather hot. True?

I think I'm going to get an SSD (either now or in the upcoming months), I really just want to know if 128GB is enough for 2 OSs and if not, if whatever HDD I put in now can be used as an external when I do install a SSD.

 

[Philflow]

I'm reading that there have been some issues with beeping/clicking with this model when used in MacBooks, have you experienced this?

I've read several clicking reports. There is a solution available called 'hdparm'. I'm not sure if that works under OS X.

I don't want to get a 7200 because I heard they can be noisey and get rather hot. True?

7200rpm do tend to make more noise and heat than 5400rpm drives. Still some people are perfectly happy with it. But like I said before, at the moment there's no point though for 7200rpm drives

If you have the money and don't mind the smaller space, SSD is the way to go.

 

[nylon]

I don't want to get a 7200 because I heard they can be noisey and get rather hot. True?

I purchased a Seagate 500GB 7200RPM drive for my Unibody Macbook. It uses less power and is considerably faster then the drive shipped with the unit. Additionally it is extremely quiet. I think it is the best bang for the buck at the moment.

I plan on purchasing an SSD at the end of the year. Prices should have decreased significantly and Snow Leopard will be out by then.

 

[Philflow]

Your money would be better spent on faster hard drives and more RAM. The increase in GHz offered will only get you a ~10% increase in speed whereas a faster drive can increase read/write speeds by 30-40%.

True. But the 10% increase will only be there when the CPU is fully utilized. For most people that will rarely (if ever) happen.