Advice please - new 2.7 or last years 2.8?

[666]

I started this in the iMac section last night, but I might have been better placed for advice in the Buying Tips (apologies mods for the double thread)

Long story short for the same price I can have last years top end 2.8 i5 27" with the 1Gb graphcis card or this years uprated 2.7 21". Which one is the better buy do you think - I understand it is largely subjective of course but will I see any real world differences over the lifespan of the computer (planning on getting 5 years out of it I'd say) even though I'm buying into last years tech?

The salesguy reckoned it was all about the screen versus the horsepower based on my usage but in all honesty the screen size isn't that much of an issue as I could happily live with either, I guess I am trying to future-proof myself to some degree with the under the hood stuff so logic would dictate this years models would do that best?

Just trying to rationalise this out in my mind, it is a big purchase and my first entry into the Mac world so I want to know I'm making the right one!

 

[ghostlyorb]

This years model.. mostly for the updated Sandy Bridge line. With hyperthreading 2.0.. you would see a huge difference. And yeah. this years model all the way.

 

[PeckhamBog]

Personally (meaning don't pay any attention to what I'm going to key and continue being nagged by your own doubts) the 27" is much better unless you particularly wanted the smaller screen.

You and I will not be limited by 2009 internals. A professional who's charging for time may warrant the highest spec but not us. So with 2010 or 2011 there isn't any significant real world difference.

The 2011 does feature a Thunderbolt port but currently there are few peripherals available, and they are priced at a premium as new tech. The plethora of USB 2 or Firewire 800 kit will serve all your needs admirably at a regular price.

Future proof? In three to five years time when you feel you'd like to upgrade to the latest generation (or current generation minus one from the refurb store/shop old stock) it will be considerably better than the 2010 / 2011 machines.

I hope this helps (though I don't think it will). If you really want to spice up your machine whether it be the 2010 27" or 2011 21.5" get a SSD fitted!

 

[omicron]

Last year's model - Last gen Core i5, more powerful GPU to drive higher resolution display
Your mode - Sandy Bridge Core i5, less powerful GPU to drive lower resolution display.

Depends... what do you want to do with it?

I personally detest last gen Core i5s mostly because they seem "broken" ... the Turbo freq on the i5 2500S is higher than the i5 760 and should use significantly less power because the 2500S is a low power version...

but it seems you really want a bigger screen. So it just depends on what you need. Honestly I think the larger display would end up choking the graphics card on it so if you're thinking of playing games at full res... forget about it. The 6770M might have a better time.