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Is Penryn really worth the wait??

elfjuice

elfjuice

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 10, 2008
11
0
St Louis, MO
After reading through the MacBook Pro threads, I'm having a hard time seeing much of a benefit to waiting for a Penryn powered iMac. There doesn't appear to be an appreciable speed bump, however it does seem to run cooler.

Are there any other benefits to the Penryn processor that I'm missing that will make this next update worthwhile? Maybe extra L1 cache?

*Note: I'm not looking to start a speculation thread; I'm just trying to find some rationale behind the "Wait For Penryn Furor" going around lately.

:confused:
 
The specs will improve, I expect 2GB RAM across the board, and larger hard drives, expect them to add Penryn soon.
 
elfjuice said:
After reading through the MacBook Pro threads, I'm having a hard time seeing much of a benefit to waiting for a Penryn powered iMac. There doesn't appear to be an appreciable speed bump, however it does seem to run cooler.

Are there any other benefits to the Penryn processor that I'm missing that will make this next update worthwhile? Maybe extra L1 cache?

*Note: I'm not looking to start a speculation thread; I'm just trying to find some rationale behind the "Wait For Penryn Furor" going around lately.

:confused:
Click to expand...

They'll update other components at the same time.
Penryn only offers heat/power reduction and the SSE4 instruction set (which will improve performance in movie apps).

Eraserhead said:
The specs will improve, I expect 2GB RAM across the board, and larger hard drives, expect them to add Penryn soon.
Click to expand...

I hope they don't increase HDD size. 250GB is plenty.
I would think 2GB RAM standard except on the low-end model.
512MB VRAM standard. 256MB on the low-end model.

On the other hand, Apple might hold off until Montevina/Cantiga since Penryn offers less relevant improvements for desktops. (Battery life)
 
I won't go into my cost/benefit analysis again. Sorry, I'm tired of repeating it.

Will apple upgrade? I suppose it depends on whether dell, sony, etc. do. Otherwise, they'll be accused of charging more for inferior products.

Will it really make a difference for casual or consumer users of macs? I'm betting those with C2D models won't be able to notice a performance difference between the two.

Will it offer more opportunities to get discounts at best buys, online retailers, and the refurbed clearance section of the apple store? Probably so.
 
Eraserhead said:
The specs will improve, I expect 2GB RAM across the board, and larger hard drives, expect them to add Penryn soon.
Click to expand...

This is the only reason taht i hope the updates comes before my tax refund check. The chipset i couldn't care less about but if the increase the Ram (and not the cost obviously) then i will be angry.

I know i can get it cheap but as a comptar moron i would much rather have it already installed.
 
IMO - Is it worth the wait? No not really. Depends what you're doing.. The current C2D are plenty with 4GB ram. Although, it sure does look nice on paper that no one but yourself is going to see. It's also nice to tell people your iMac is Penryn. Am I getting anywhere with this? lol
If you need something faster than that for video editing, etc. Go Mac Pro!

Cheers
 
For laptops, it was, because it increases battery life. It's not as big of an issue with desktops, but will save you some $$ on electricity over the long run.
 
elf,

If you don't have a mac now, get one. Why continue suffering with windows waiting for a speculated machine that may or may not materialize?

Let's say a new machine comes out in six months, and it is awesome! It runs rings around your current system! Get on ebay or craigslist and sell your old machine. Macs have pretty good resell value compared to pee-cees.

OTOH, the new machines may offer the same features, slightly lower power consumption, and a processor that's 5-10% more powerful than the existing c2d's. Unless you're a true power user, you'll then be sitting at your current system, nodding your head and smiling as you read the new benchmarks, thankful that you didn't wait the additional three or six months.

Another question is what kind of ram will the new chips use? Right now, laptop ddr2 pc5300 chips are CHEAP since everyone's using them, and they've been around for a while. Last week, Best Buy had one gig chips that the apple guy there recommended for 35 bucks. This week, 2 gig chips for $66. You can get them cheaper online. Therefore, you can max out the ram on the existing systems for less than $150.

If the new chips use a newer, later ram, it won't be as cheap, and it will be much more expensive to do a ram upgrade. If it's a major redesign, you may not be able to count on the ram being user replaceable as it is on the current systems.
 
Have an iMac. Use an iMac. Love my iMac. Worth the wait. No. I waited for aluminum, Santa Rosa, and 4GB RAM, and got it along with the great new keyboard. Would I wait for Penryn. They are due anytime, but will you see any performance gain. Negligible. This is one update that IMHO doesn't make holding off on a purchase worth it. Not at all. Get it, enjoy it.
 
roland.g said:
Have an iMac. Use an iMac. Love my iMac. Worth the wait. No. I waited for aluminum, Santa Rosa, and 4GB RAM, and got it along with the great new keyboard. Would I wait for Penryn. They are due anytime, but will you see any performance gain. Negligible. This is one update that IMHO doesn't make holding off on a purchase worth it. Not at all. Get it, enjoy it.
Click to expand...

Ditto on all counts. If you knew the update was coming in the next couple weeks...sure, hold off. But it could be a couple months, and for the very negligible increase in speed/power, I don't think it's worth it.
 
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