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My dream 13" machine:

  • antiglare (not necessarily HD) screen
  • no optical drive
  • increased battery life
  • i5 processor
  • cheaper SSD prices

I would order that in a heartbeat.
 
Low-end 13" - Core i3-2310M (2.1GHz)
High-end 13" - Core i5-2410M (2.3/2.9GHz)

Low-end 15" - Core i5-2520M (2.5/3.2GHz)
Mid-level 15" - Core i5-2540M (2.6/3.3GHz)
High-end 15" - Core i7-2620M (2.7/3.4GHz); BTO option for i7-2720QM (2.2/3.3GHz)

17" - Core i5-2540M; BTO options for i7-2620M and i7-2720QM

My guess is that we will see quad core but it's just a guess. Other CPUs should be pretty much the ones I listed as long as Apple uses SB for whole lineup

I have done some serious investigating and really want the 13" MBP. I will be a technology teacher and need to familiarize my self with Mac's more in the next year before I teach so that I can help students, faculty and staff if problems should arise with their mac. I have a strong drafting/design/engineering background and have been told to stay away from the current MBP's unless its the 15" or 17" due to the video card being stand alone with more memry (512)....after further investigation a revised/updated 13" MBP is just around the corner. With Hellhammer's guess and reading some of your others, do you think that the anticipated release of the new 13" MBP can handle these CAD system requirements:


Inventor: (it seems like unless I have 200+ part assemblies I'm fine)

Boot Camp
You can install Autodesk® Inventor® Professional software on a Mac® computer on a Windows partition. The system must use Boot Camp® to manage a dual OS configuration and meet the minimum system requirements.

* Mac OS® X 10.5.x
* Boot Camp V 2.0 or higher
* Intel-based Mac (64-bit Windows Vista requires an Intel Core™2 duo or Xeon processor)
* 3 GB RAM (Recommend 4 GB for 32-bit Windows OS, 8 GB or more for 64-bit Windows OS)
* 20 GB disk space for Apple OS partition or Windows OS partition

Mac Virtualization on Parallels Desktop
Autodesk Inventor Professional can be used on the Mac via Parallels Desktop for Mac without having to boot directly into the Windows OS, so it is easy to switch between platforms. The system must meet the following requirements:

* Mac OS X 10.6.x
* Parallels Desktop 5.0 (5.0.9344 or higher)
* Intel based Mac (64-bit Windows Vista requires an Intel Core 2 duo or Xeon processor)
* Minimum 4 GB RAM (6 GB system memory for 32-bit Windows OS, 8 GB or more for 64-bit Windows OS recommended)
* Minimum 40 GB available disk space (100 GB recommended)


AND MORE IMPORTANTLY...

SolidWorks
Supported Microsoft Windows® Operating Systems:(9)

SW 09 SW 10 SW 2011
Windows 7 x86(2)(10) No Yes Yes
Windows 7 x64(2)(10) No Yes Yes
Vista x86(3) Yes Yes Yes
Vista x64(3)
XP Professional x86(1)(5) Yes Yes Yes
XP Professional x64(1)(5) Yes Yes Yes

Computer and Software Requirements:
RAM
* Minimum: 1GB RAM
* Recommended: 6GB RAM or more on Windows 7 x64 operating system

Video
* A certified graphics card and driver (recommended)
See Graphics Cards Drivers for details


CPU
* Intel® or AMD® processors(7)(11)
* eDrawings® is supported on Apple Macintosh®-based machines(6)

Other
* DVD drive
* Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6.x or higher
* Adobe Acrobat version 7.0.7 or higher
* Microsoft Office Excel 2003(12), 2007, or 2010

Network
* SolidWorks is only tested with Microsoft's Windows Networking and Active Directory network environments(8)

SNL (SolidWorks Network License) Server Requirements:

* USB or parallel port required (prior to SolidWorks 2010)
* Virtual servers are not supported for SNL
* Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Windows Server 2008® or Windows Server 2003® (recommended)
* DVD drive or Internet enabled network connection


(7) SolidWorks is not supported on Apple Macintosh®-based machines.


I've seen Solidworks and Inventor work before on MBP but on a 13" is what I want peoples educated opinions on.
Also does anyone know if I would be under policy/warranty to return a 13"MBP if I installed Windows,Inventor,SolidWorks and wasn't happy with it's performance? Assuming it's within 7-14days.
 
Wirelessly posted (Opera/9.80 (BlackBerry; Opera Mini/5.1.21052/22.414; U; en) Presto/2.5.25 Version/10.54)

I don't care what its called. 13" higher res screen 2.5 GHz 4gb ram. On board flash memory for hd $1200-1300 and I'll buy one.
 
I've seen Solidworks and Inventor work before on MBP but on a 13" is what I want peoples educated opinions on.
Also does anyone know if I would be under policy/warranty to return a 13"MBP if I installed Windows,Inventor,SolidWorks and wasn't happy with it's performance? Assuming it's within 7-14days.

You have 14 days to return it. You can use it during that time but a restocking fee may be charged if it's opened. If you're buying it from someone else than Apple, remember to check their return policy.
 
Bottom line, assuming no structural changes are made, and the optical drive stays, which CPU is most likely to appear in the 13" based on those spreadsheets released by Intel with all the new Sandy Bridge CPUs?

I'd think a pretty good educated guess could be made based on that. As the 13" probably has the most limited choices, making it that much easier to guesstimate.
 
Why?!?!

My dream 13" machine:

  • antiglare (not necessarily HD) screen
  • no optical drive
  • increased battery life
  • i5 processor
  • cheaper SSD prices

I would order that in a heartbeat.
Why in gods name would you not want a optical drive?!?! I use mine every day. If you dont want one buy a macbook air.
 
Why in gods name would you not want a optical drive?!?! I use mine every day. If you dont want one buy a macbook air.
Holy crap. Do we have to go through this again?

Nobody wants the damned thing to just "disappear" so the MBP is a few ounces lighter. Only if they use the room for something more useful to the masses.

And using your drive daily puts you in the minority. I guess you and others like you will be screwed.
 
2.1 and 2.3ghz respectively.

Thanks for that, but what I meant is that how much better the i5 is compared to the i3 overall, not just clock speed. Basically whether it's wise to pay that 300€ more for it, or is it C2D 2.66 all over again.

I'm possibly replacing my desktop PC with MBP 13" if the i5 has enough power in it.
 
Thanks for that, but what I meant is that how much better the i5 is compared to the i3 overall, not just clock speed. Basically whether it's wise to pay that 300€ more for it, or is it C2D 2.66 all over again.

I'm possibly replacing my desktop PC with MBP 13" if the i5 has enough power in it.

I'd imagine the i3 is pretty uninspiring. Probably in the same ballpark as the current CPUs but not sure. If we get the i5 I think things will be looking up.

Personally, if that i3 sits at the 1199 price point and the i5 is at the 1499 price point, I'd definitely pony up the extra loot for the i5. I wouldn't even bother with the i3.
 
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I'd imagine the i3 is pretty uninspiring. Probably in the same ballpark as the current CPUs but not sure. If we get the i5 I think things will be looking up.

Personally, if that i3 sits at the 1199 price point and the i5 is at the 1499 price point, I'd definitely pony up the extra loot for the i5. I wouldn't even bother with the i3.

Thanks for your imput. Guess we'll only have to wait for the update and hope for the best, i5 with turbo boost and all would be quite nice indeed. Oh and hyperthreading!
 
Thanks for that, but what I meant is that how much better the i5 is compared to the i3 overall, not just clock speed. Basically whether it's wise to pay that 300€ more for it, or is it C2D 2.66 all over again.

I'm possibly replacing my desktop PC with MBP 13" if the i5 has enough power in it.

As mentioned. Turbo Boost is on the i5, not on the i3. So you are going to get a preety significant clock speed increase over the i3o

So you are getting 2.2 ghz clock speed on the i3
and you are getting 2.5 ghz on the i5, but it turbo boosts up to 3.2 ghz when doing intenstive stuff. thats a 1ghz clock increase over the i3

But then again, we dont know what cpu's apple will use, so this is all hypotetical
 
Wrong. i3 doesnt have turbo boost as well.

and the i5 turbo boosts to 2.9 ghz

What do you mean, wrong? lol.

56328.jpg


2.1 and 2.3 are the base frequencies of those two processors.
I realize I didn't list the turbo capabilities or speeds, but my base frequencies were as listed by Intel.
 
What do you mean, wrong? lol.

56328.jpg


2.1 and 2.3 are the base frequencies of those two processors.

Wrong as in you dont mentioned turbo boost, which is kinda important.

The question was difference between the cpu's. Not mentioning turbo boost is pretty dumb
 
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Thanks for your imput. Guess we'll only have to wait for the update and hope for the best, i5 with turbo boost and all would be quite nice indeed. Oh and hyperthreading!

Agreed. I'm looking forward to this update. I LOVE my C2D 13" but a little more power is very tempting, especially if I can stay with a 13" and not have to move up to a bigger (and pricier) computer.
 
Thanks for that, but what I meant is that how much better the i5 is compared to the i3 overall, not just clock speed. Basically whether it's wise to pay that 300€ more for it, or is it C2D 2.66 all over again.

I'm possibly replacing my desktop PC with MBP 13" if the i5 has enough power in it.

The only difference between i3 and i5 is the clock speed. Without Turbo, i5 is ~9.5% faster. At maximum dual core Turbo (2.6GHz), i5 can be ~23.8% faster. At maximum single core Turbo (2.9GHz), i5 can be ~38.1% faster. These are theoretical numbers based on the clock speed differences.

This chart compares SB i3 to similarly clocked C2D. i3 is still way faster than C2D due to better architecture and HT
 
Here's what I think going from the same system as you did.

CPU: Core i3
GPU: no change or ATI mobility discrete
RAM: no change
HDD: no change
Connectivity: no change
Chassis: no change
Battery: improved

Yeah, I think it is pretty much going to get a new CPU and bumped resolution and that's it.

I hope you're right. All I need is a bit more CPU power (the C2D is so 00's), and a 1440x900 resolution on the 13", and I'll be ready to replace my 15" MBP.

A 128Gb SSD as default, like in the Air would be perfect for me, but I will be satisfied with a price decrease on the SSD BTO.
 
I hope you're right. All I need is a bit more CPU power (the C2D is so 00's), and a 1440x900 resolution on the 13", and I'll be ready to replace my 15" MBP.

A 128Gb SSD as default, like in the Air would be perfect for me, but I will be satisfied with a price decrease on the SSD BTO.

Hope too
smile.gif
 
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