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Dedicated GPU vs Iris Pro
- Thread starter macman4789
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My 2012 rMBP is running strong as well, but I'd be lying if I didn't say I'm nervous at this stage. The 2008, 2010 and 2011 models all have issues with the dGPU. In the 2011 case, it didn't start appearing for a few years, so in a sense, I'm on the clock now. If something will occur, it may very well happen in the next year or two.
Given track record, concern is understandable. But Keplers are reliable and have good thermal fail-safe protection. I have got a year to go before warranty expires, and so far no problems. Hopefully this proves to be the norm in next 2-3 years.
I have a late 2008 MBP with Radeon 9600M GT which is locked in dGPU mode as my son uses it every time he plays Minecraft. I bought in the day after the '09 refresh and it is still kicking today (after a HDD upgrade, RAM upgrade, and 2nd battery).
This is exactly what I'm pondering. If the iGPU continues to play catch-up with dGPU's, chances are that power consumption and thus heat dissipation will increase as well.
Haswell CPU's can already run pretty hot. Now if a powerful iGPU adds significantly more heat in the same (or smaller) chip size, coupled with Apple`s anemic housings and limited cooling concepts, in the future perhaps it's the CPU that starts to desolder itself instead of "only" the GPU.
Sure, Intel will try to work on that (e.g. via die-shrink and/or reduced clock-rates) and Apple will claim to have suitable cooling in place. But with the infamous reputation Apple has "earned" with crucial parts like heat paste or the low-quality heat sink finish (as mentioned by GavMack), that may well stay theory.
Only a few dGPU's can drive a 4k (not to mention 5k) display properly nowadays, leave alone two or more. I would expect Intel's iGPU's to take at least 2 more generations before they finally get there.
With 4k monitors becoming affordable now and Apple already going for 5k in its latest iMacs, in my opinion the dGPU is going nowhere for the time being. I wouldn't even be surprised if the next gen MBP's would offer a dGPU throughout the whole lineup again (coupled with the Iris Pro successor).
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Unfortunately even the best GPU fail-safe protection does not apply to the soldering joints or other, simple parts in the vicinity ...
Not worried about any of that. Reason being my mbp's been subjected to extreme temps (-30c at times xD) and I oc when gaming under bootcamp. If there were a solder problem or the like it'd have caused problems by now.
Obviously nothing guaranteed, but I like my chances when it comes to that particular issue.
The MacBook Pro models without discrete GPUs have never had such problems.
The best approach is to go to an Apple store and try out your applications on the model you want to buy. The Apple store employees will be cooperative.
Apple will completely eliminate discrete GPUs from the MacBook Pro line. The only question is when.
the dgpu is going to fail at some point its just when is it going to fail. any modern Intel chips have igpu in them so even if the dgpu fails you could still have somewhat decent graphics for doing basic stuff like browsing the web
And when the iGPU fails at some point, with a dGPU you would at least still have a fallback option. With an iGPU-only system ... not.
it really depends on what you do. I do a lot of video editing and therefore I can take advantages of the dgpu - and yeah, it's way faster when it comes to rendering and playback than the iris pro.
So if you do any graphic-heavy-stuff, then go for the dgpu
So if you do any graphic-heavy-stuff, then go for the dgpu
I really do not understand this obsession with integrated GPUs.
I have a high-end late 2013 model with GT 750M graphics. I've tested running both the Iris Pro and the 750M. When gaming on the dGPU, fans stay at 3000 rpm, GPU temperatures at around 70, and CPU temperatures at 85. Running the same game, exact same settings, but with the Iris Pro results in reduced performance, CPU temperatures of 95 degrees and fan speeds of 4500rpm.
Therefore, the dGPU not only provides higher performance but makes the machine run much quieter and somewhat cooler. Won't that mean that the iGPU will result in more failures due to higher fan speeds and higher temperatures?
I'm really hoping for both 15-inch models to regain the dGPU, in the form of an 850M or 950M, before my next purchase around 2017 - the dGPU is the only reason I chose the higher-end model.
I have a high-end late 2013 model with GT 750M graphics. I've tested running both the Iris Pro and the 750M. When gaming on the dGPU, fans stay at 3000 rpm, GPU temperatures at around 70, and CPU temperatures at 85. Running the same game, exact same settings, but with the Iris Pro results in reduced performance, CPU temperatures of 95 degrees and fan speeds of 4500rpm.
Therefore, the dGPU not only provides higher performance but makes the machine run much quieter and somewhat cooler. Won't that mean that the iGPU will result in more failures due to higher fan speeds and higher temperatures?
I'm really hoping for both 15-inch models to regain the dGPU, in the form of an 850M or 950M, before my next purchase around 2017 - the dGPU is the only reason I chose the higher-end model.
Integrated GPUs do not have the history of failures that discrete GPUs have. Integration improves not only performance but also reliability.
All the advances in integrated circuits over the last 43 years have been through increased integration, putting more and more functionality onto each die, iteratively combining what used to be on separate dies. This whole argument is exactly like the discrete versus integrated FPU argument of about 25-30 years ago. No Apple product (with the possible exception of the Mac Pro) and no laptop from any manufacturer will have an integrated GPU in 2020.
Kind of. My Mid-2012 with dGPU is having issues with heat on the dGPU causing GPU panics whenever I fire up a game. The computer still works most of the time with the iGPU doing graphics processing. I dropped it off at the repair place this morning. Hoping they can re-apply the thermal paste and get me back running.
Either way, I'll probably replace it with a new 2014 model with the dGPU. One thing is for sure, however.... I will be buying AppleCare with any MBP purchase and especially with any that include a dGPU. Way too many problems to be stuck again (2x already) with a failing and out of warranty MBP.
No. dGPU means discrete GPU. Integrated GPUs are just as dedicated as discrete GPUs.
Discrete means that the GPU is on a separate die from the CPU. Integrating the CPU and GPU onto the same die obviously results in improved communication performance between them. The advantage that discrete GPUs have is that there is, for any given level of process technology, a practical limit to how many devices can fit onto a single die. With current technology, it's a compromise among number of CPU cores, cache size, and GPU performance.
Hi guys,
I am considering purchasing a 15" rMBP with Iris Pro only.
But I am a PC gamer and even though majority of the PC gamers do not go with a macbook, I am in the minority.
So contrary to most of the people here on this thread, my main issue is gaming performance under Bootcamp.
I see that there is not a very big performance difference between 750M and Iris, but when it comes to gaming, does the gap increase?
I am considering purchasing a 15" rMBP with Iris Pro only.
But I am a PC gamer and even though majority of the PC gamers do not go with a macbook, I am in the minority.
So contrary to most of the people here on this thread, my main issue is gaming performance under Bootcamp.
I see that there is not a very big performance difference between 750M and Iris, but when it comes to gaming, does the gap increase?
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Wat? Really? I mean, that kinda sucks. Everytime I do some heavy color correction/video NLE stuff, I really wish there will be more juice in GPU, memory in particular.
Hope those new iGPU will be beefy enough.
My next MacBook Pro will also be iGPU only. iGPU performance is already good enough for me (and obviously for most MacBook Pro buyers) and is getting dramatically faster each year.
The increase is quite big.
And note that the GT 750M used in the rMBPs are of the GDDR5 variant, which makes it slightly above the GTX 660M.
That's not very good news for me. Because I got my new rMBP without dGPU last night.
Well, I will lover the quality settings and hope for the best. At least it will be better than my previous dGPU which was Ati HD6750 on a Early 2011 Macbook Pro.
Thanks.
Well if you have the resources, you can buy a Sonnet IIID TB2 enclosure and a GTX 780 Ti, stick the GPU into the enclosure, hook the whole thing up via TB2 to the Mac, start up in Boot Camp, install NVIDIA drivers and you're good to go for serious gaming
The difference isn't big. The only people that say so just assume a dedicated GPU has to be so much better. The 750M is basically a 650M. Nvidia introduced a Turbo mode on the 700M series that adds 15% performance but it is deactivated and not available (even in Windows) on the MacBook Pro. Default clock is slightly lower than normal for a 750M. Basically it is a 650M. Iris Pro came out much later than a 650M and is 22nm so it isn't surprising that Intel comes close in performance. It is equal for many things and about 30% slower in games which is nothing compared to what one would usually expect from a dedicated GPU compared to an IGP.
The 850M would be a serious upgrade but Apple doesn't offer it. Similar current Windows notebooks with 850M are massively better but the 750M is a joke of a dedicated GPU next to the Iris Pro. Apple probably just waits for Iris Pro 2.0 to drop the dGPU. Otherwise they are really behind on the 850M update.
Well if you have the resources, you can buy a Sonnet IIID TB2 enclosure and a GTX 780 Ti, stick the GPU into the enclosure, hook the whole thing up via TB2 to the Mac, start up in Boot Camp, install NVIDIA drivers and you're good to go for serious gaming
That would probably cost me the amount of money people pay for a macbook air. Becuase technology is a little pricey where I live. Thanks though
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That cools me down a little. Also when I check youtube videos about gaming on Iris Pro, I see that people are playing most contemprary games easily. Anyway I'll be seeing the performans on gaming with Iris Pro in a few weeks when I finish migrating and settling to my new mbp. Thanks