Advice: MBP 13" C2D or MBP 15" i5

[nizmoz]

I originally was going to get a MBA, but decided against it due to not being able to upgrade it down the road and since I am in Information Technology field, I kinda need a robust laptop. I also have a D90 SLR camera that I do photography with and sometimes do HD videos. So all this combined with this being my main MAC in the house (vs my Quad Core Win7 PC), I think it should be a more of a work horse for when I am on the road.

My only issue is and I can't decide, what do you guys think between the 13" C2D processor Pro and the 15" Pro with the upgraded screen with base 2.4ghz processor? It's got some money savings with the 13" Pro, so it's tempting. I could get a SSD with those savings. How do you think both of these will run the applications, Win7, etc on it?

Thank you for your time!!! Will be making the purchase by this weekend, maybe even online for black friday.

 

[lickitysplit]

If your going to do video/photo editing the i5/i7 will probably come in handy in the 15" model. I almost bought the 13" and thought about it for a few weeks but I sure am glad I didn't. I even sold my custom built core i7 desktop because i didnt even turn it on for a month after i bought my laptop. It completely got rid of the need for it.

An SSD wont really help in the speed of editing photos, only in opening up/ saving those large file will probably see an improvement. Right now for me personally the performanced gained from SSD's is not worth the huge price. I use Windows 7 bootcamp about half the time im using my laptop for when I play games and do stuff for my tech classes

 

[acurafan]

wait for the next 13" mbp with new hardware or get the base i5 refurb. then upgrade to 8gb/256gb ssd. that's what i did, i don't game, and i can't stand the BS jobs left off the mba for the fact it's still more than any of the existing laptops.

 

[miata]

If you have patience it is always best to wait.

If you don't have patience and you are using an external monitor most of the time like me I would probably go with the 13" and get the SSD drive. You could even replace the SuperDrive with an HDD bay that you could use for Windows boot camp and additional MacOS data.

If you don't have patience and you are not using an external monitor most of the time I would go for a base MBP 15" refurb which can be had for $1549. You could even add the SDD if you go this route.

 

[elpmas]

15" i5 or i7 AG.

 

[jetblk328i]

I currently have a 2.4 c2d 13" with an OWC ssd and it is pretty quick. With that said, I am looking into selling this and buying a refurb i5.

The reason? more screen real estate, better speakers, more futureproof.

I'm pretty confident that my ssd 13" is quicker at opening apps than an i5 with the standard 5400 rpm hard drive but my speakers suck. I don't blast music all day but I do watch some movies/skype without headphones and i have turn my speakers way up.