2016 vs 2017 15" MBP - What's the Real Difference?

[mrjohnnyglass]

Is there one? I read that the benchmarks showed it to be 10-15% faster in certain tasks, but what does that mean in the real world?

The bulk of my usage is 30 tabs open simultaneously across 3 Chrome windows, none of which with any heavy graphics, just mainly text based web applications.

Probably less than 5% of my usage will be a combination of Photoshop CC, Logic Pro X and Final Cut Pro X. Very small usage.

B&H has a 2016 model for $1799 (no sales tax in TX either), and the Apple Refurb Store has a 2017 for $2039 (plus tax, would be ~$2200). I'm thinking I should save money and get the 2016 and use the difference on AppleCare+ and a good monitor/accessories I'll need.

Thoughts?

 

[casperes1996]

It's exclusively clock boosting - However, there have also been small tweaks to the keyboard, which is probably the biggest difference to be honest.

None of your work will really feel any different between the two models aside from perhaps the rare use of Final Cut, but even then, you'd have to actively look for the differences.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

Is there one? I read that the benchmarks showed it to be 10-15% faster in certain tasks, but what does that mean in the real world?

The bulk of my usage is 30 tabs open simultaneously across 3 Chrome windows, none of which with any heavy graphics, just mainly text based web applications.

Probably less than 5% of my usage will be a combination of Photoshop CC, Logic Pro X and Final Cut Pro X. Very small usage.

B&H has a 2016 model for $1799 (no sales tax in TX either), and the Apple Refurb Store has a 2017 for $2039 (plus tax, would be ~$2200). I'm thinking I should save money and get the 2016 and use the difference on AppleCare+ and a good monitor/accessories I'll need.

Thoughts?

The failure rate of 2016 keyboards is quite high anecdotally and seemingly better, again anecdotally, on the 2017.

The cpu in the 2017 also has some hardware coding for h.265 codec 4K content that relieves some of the stress on cpu and gpu for those compressed files. It’s also marginally faster and less energy inefficient. The GPU’s are marginally faster.

Other than than that it’s a wash really.

 

[mrjohnnyglass]

I went with the 2017 15" MBPtb in Space Gray when Best Buy dropped their price to $2199 on Monday. Got AppleCare with it, should be delivered on Wednesday! Can't wait!

 

[kudos212]

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[TheArcher]

You can do a direct comparison here. Hopefully it will clarify any ambiguities.

https://everymac.com/ultimate-mac-comparison-chart/

I won't be buying a rMBP until Coffee Lake or Canon Lake releases.