Hi, I really need some buying advice for a 2018 15" MacBook Pro. I am going to be replacing an older 15" MacBook Pro and I have all the specs picked out except for the processor: i7 or i9. I am looking to purchase the one that will give my computer the most longevity and not need replacing for a while. This will be my sole computer and my average uses are school work, basic photo and video editing, lots of web-browsing and email, streaming of movies/TV/music, reading ebooks, etc. I am definitely not a "pro" user. So, I think the i7 would suit my daily use, but I do not want it to become obsolete or outdated sooner that the i9 will. I would rather pay a little more now and have it last longer. However, I also do not want the one that will have the most problems. I am not very tech or computer-savvy and just need some of this community's knowledge and expert advice since I am going out-of-my mind with research! Thank you in advance for your help!
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Buying Advice Needed for 2018 MacBook Pro
- Thread starter Mellis7
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Tbh, given that the Coffee Lake chipset has 6 cores, the base model is probably more then enough for most people's needs. Some of the benchmarks have shown it produces less heat so it can actually run faster then the i9, at least in some benchmarks. The hex core, i7 2.2GHz is quite capable, and personally, I don't see the need to upgrade to the 2.6Ghz or the i9. Save your money and increase the ram or storage if you feel you need either one.
Wish I could afford a MBP when I was still at school 
I agree with @maflynn...for your purposes if screen real estate wasn’t an issue even the base 13” i5 would be more than enough for your use case but if you need the 15” screen then go for the base i7 2.2GHz and upgrade the SSD as 256GB is a joke given how much you are going to be spending on it.
I agree with @maflynn...for your purposes if screen real estate wasn’t an issue even the base 13” i5 would be more than enough for your use case but if you need the 15” screen then go for the base i7 2.2GHz and upgrade the SSD as 256GB is a joke given how much you are going to be spending on it.
I used my 2010 15" MacBook Pro "dual-core" laptop for seven years for writing, photo editing, surfing the web, managing my finances, you name it, and it never skipped a beat. To this day, it still works like a champ and is fairly quick by today's standards (has SSD and 8GB of RAM.) My point being, if you get a 2018 MBP, it will probably serve you well for many many years to come, even when it's considered obsolete by all the techies who just have to have the latest and greatest year after year after year. Hell, you could probably even get a 2016/17 MBP and be happy for the next five years at least. I'm just saying...Apple products have longevity. Buy what you want for your current needs and start enjoying it for many years to come.
My 2012 MBP still runs Lightroom, and PS, so anything newer will be even better, hence my mention of needing only the base configuration
Save your money. Go with the i7. As already stated, it's more than enough for your needs.
The i9 (on the Mac) is really a marketing gimmick anyway, mostly to appease power users who are going to wait for a Mac Pro or go with the iMac Pro with Xeon processors anyway. There's almost no reason to get an i9 in a laptop, IMO.
The i9 (on the Mac) is really a marketing gimmick anyway, mostly to appease power users who are going to wait for a Mac Pro or go with the iMac Pro with Xeon processors anyway. There's almost no reason to get an i9 in a laptop, IMO.
I got the i9 to handle some of the pro apps I use, whether the benchmarks are right or not about the comparison of the i7 to i9 I felt comfortable with my purchase knowing Apple can always release patches to take full advantage of the i9.
Apple already takes full advantage of the i9. The problem is that there just isn't much advantage to it for the price you pay. It's like adding Michael Phelps to your swim team but only letting him use one arm during the race.
The only people who will see the speed increase are those using Logic, Motion, Handbreak, and a few other very high-end apps that perform raw number crunching. And those people, by-and-large, aren't going to waste money on an i9 when they can see real horsepower gains with Xeon processors & super high-end video cards—which are only available in the iMac Pro and Mac Pro (of the future, or on a Windows-based computer).
Best value on the 15” is probably the midrange stock config 2.6/512/560X
OP wrote:
"This will be my sole computer and my average uses are school work, basic photo and video editing, lots of web-browsing and email, streaming of movies/TV/music, reading ebooks, etc. I am definitely not a "pro" user."
You don't need an i9.
Wasted money as far as I can see.
The i7 would do you much better.
I would take that money and put it towards a 512gb SSD (I think the 1gb is also "wasted money"), and perhaps 16gb of RAM (but I'll bet 8gb would serve you well and that you'll never need more than that).
"This will be my sole computer and my average uses are school work, basic photo and video editing, lots of web-browsing and email, streaming of movies/TV/music, reading ebooks, etc. I am definitely not a "pro" user."
You don't need an i9.
Wasted money as far as I can see.
The i7 would do you much better.
I would take that money and put it towards a 512gb SSD (I think the 1gb is also "wasted money"), and perhaps 16gb of RAM (but I'll bet 8gb would serve you well and that you'll never need more than that).
... or even get a 13" model? 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD and you can pick up an external monitor from Dell for pennies.
Unless you need the performance, dGPU and screen size of the 15", this current generation of 13s really are nice machines to have and are now pretty powerful too.
Unless you need the performance, dGPU and screen size of the 15", this current generation of 13s really are nice machines to have and are now pretty powerful too.
Wow- thank you all so much for the feedback! I knew that I came to the right place
The i9 has the same number of cores as the i7 but just a higher clock. Apple aren’t going to update the processors again significantly till end of 2019 at the earliest but more likely the following year.
Wow- thank you all so much for the feedback! I knew that I came to the right place
The thing is, you aren't doing anything that's going to tax the processor anyway. So even if Intel introduced a new processor line (lets call it the i10 processor for the sake of discussion) tomorrow and Apple managed to get it in the MacBook line, it's just going to be a little bit faster. It's not like it's going to change the way you use the computer—it's closer to being able to go 160MPH instead of 150MPH... it sounds good on paper, but the reality is you won't notice the difference.
For your needs the i7 base model is more than enough. I've been using a late 2013 15" MacBook pro and it's still chugging along pretty well. Any i7 you buy will last you a long time for your needs. I would spend the money on RAM and HD storage since those are not upgradeable. 16 GB RAM should be fine for you. Get at least 512GB of storage or more if you can afford it.
Honestly if I could find a good deal on a 2017 I would go after that them then TBH.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342532-REG/apple_mptt2ll_a_15_4_macbook_pro_with.html
The model I have that I spent $2,600 with a student discount.
That is $2,400 and not a bad deal for a laptop that will last a while.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1342532-REG/apple_mptt2ll_a_15_4_macbook_pro_with.html
The model I have that I spent $2,600 with a student discount.
That is $2,400 and not a bad deal for a laptop that will last a while.