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2.8 or 2.66 MBP 17" i7 ??

K

Ksb-online

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 4, 2010
117
0
London
Well the time has come. I waited till after the October speed bump to make my purchase and now I'm debating between the top end mbp or the 2nd top mbp...

Is the 2.8 worth it?! I dnt mind spending the extra cash as i'm sure it will do me well and last for many years powering through Photoshop and premiere...

I would want the AG Screen, apple care and 7200rpm drive too.. That's when the total Is nearly as much as my car cost me last year !!!! :(

What do you guys think I should do???
 
lol NO.

$200 ...

Core i7 620M 2.66Ghz costs $332
Core i7 640M 2.80Ghz costs $346

Only like few bucks differences. Upgrade for $200. I definitely say NO.

It's only 133Mhz speed bump.


See for yourself and tell me about it:
2.66Ghz -> http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=43560
2.80Ghz -> http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=49666

Save that $200 buck for SSD. SSD = Serious performance.

No matter how fast is your CPU, your Hard Drive is your BOTTLENECK!
 
Ksb-online said:
ah so it IS the new chip that is being used as predicted?
Click to expand...

Can't see why it wouldn't be. It's not part of Intel's original Rev. A Core i7 chipset; it's a subsequent and improved Rev. B.

DesmoPilot said:
All it is is a speed-bump, nothing more. Don't know where people get the idea that it's more than that.
Click to expand...

No, it is something more. People get the idea that it's more than that because our backgrounds are engineering and know how products progress.:rolleyes:

It's a Rev. B chip. It's more refined, and further optimized. Any engineer in any discipline will tell you that's what it is.
 
puma1552 said:
No, it is something more. People get the idea that it's more than that because our backgrounds are engineering and know how products progress.:rolleyes:

It's a Rev. B chip. It's more refined, and further optimized. Any engineer in any discipline will tell you that's what it is.
Click to expand...

If you say so (any proof? aka benchmarks vs the 2.66?). Even assuming what you say is true, it's nowhere near worth the cost Apple is asking for it.
 
DesmoPilot said:
If you say so (any proof? aka benchmarks vs the 2.66?). Even assuming what you say is true, it's nowhere near worth the cost Apple is asking for it.
Click to expand...

The improvements can't be measured by benchmarks. It's improved in terms of the silicon refinement and optimization.

It's only $200 more than the 2.66, and it's the one part you can never upgrade. I personally follow the 'get as much as possible' in terms of processor mentality, but your needs/mileage may vary.
 
If you are doing audio and can afford it, get it. For anything else, don't get it, but save the money for your next buy.
 
My needs are mainly Photoshop, dreamweaver, audio, video editing and some gaming ....

Does any one know of any benchmarks at all??

I want to get the best now and feel like I still have the near best later next year, it's £2k and the +£200 on top to get the best of the best ... At the mo I think it's worth it BUT this is my 1st ever Mac purchase...
 
puma1552 said:
The improvements can't be measured by benchmarks. It's improved in terms of the silicon refinement and optimization.

It's only $200 more than the 2.66, and it's the one part you can never upgrade. I personally follow the 'get as much as possible' in terms of processor mentality, but your needs/mileage may vary.
Click to expand...

Those improvements you are talking about come with a stepping update. This new core i7 is not a stepping update, so it's just a speed bump.
 
Ksb-online said:
My needs are mainly Photoshop, dreamweaver, audio, video editing and some gaming ....

Does any one know of any benchmarks at all??

I want to get the best now and feel like I still have the near best later next year, it's £2k and the +£200 on top to get the best of the best ... At the mo I think it's worth it BUT this is my 1st ever Mac purchase...
Click to expand...

If you think it's worth it, then go for it :cool:

Next year, Sandy Bridge will kill any current laptops though. Quad core CPU's that have the same clock speed as dual cores. And each core is also faster. So you won't have near the best next year.

( I really don't think Apple will use only dual cores next year. Those quad cores are too powerful not to include them. Probably a redesign of the 15 and 17 inch MBP will come in order to deal with the extra heat )
 
mark28 said:
Those improvements you are talking about come with a stepping update. This new core i7 is not a stepping update, so it's just a speed bump.
Click to expand...

I disagree.

mark28 said:
If you think it's worth it, then go for it :cool:

Next year, Sandy Bridge will kill any current laptops though. Quad core CPU's that have the same clock speed as dual cores. And each core is also faster. So you won't have near the best next year.

( I really don't think Apple will use only dual cores next year. Those quad cores are too powerful not to include them )
Click to expand...

Correct, Apple is only gonna go with dual cores.
 
puma1552 said:
I disagree.



Correct, Apple is only gonna go with dual cores.
Click to expand...

Let's see in a few months. Apple is making a bad move if they won't include Quad cores. Pc laptops will be twice as fast. MBP supposed to be Pro machines and not consumer machines for people that only check e-mails and twitter.
 
mark28 said:
Let's see in a few months. Apple is making a bad move if they won't include Quad cores. Pc laptops will be twice as fast. MBP supposed to be Pro machines and not consumer machines for people that only check e-mails and twitter.
Click to expand...

Apple is always behind, this is nothing new. Just because the machine says "Pro" doesn't at all mean that it's truly a pro machine; that is just rhetoric people perpetuate to feel good about their purchase. There is nothing truly "Pro" about my i7 machine. Certainly nothing drastically better in functionality than anything else on the market.

It's just a computer with a "Pro" moniker on it because Apple had to name the line something.
 
puma1552 said:
Apple is always behind, this is nothing new. Just because the machine says "Pro" doesn't at all mean that it's truly a pro machine; that is just rhetoric people perpetuate to feel good about their purchase. There is nothing truly "Pro" about my i7 machine. Certainly nothing drastically better in functionality than anything else on the market.

It's just a computer with a "Pro" moniker on it because Apple had to name the line something.
Click to expand...

Well, good look finding a PC laptop that has such good latency as a MBP for example. I don't even need to use an external audio interface in order to have great latency.

It's not just a Pro label added by Apple to make people feel good. But if you're just checking e-mails and stuff like that, you won't notice the difference.
 
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