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Going to buy 2018 MBP - is 13" a better choice due to throttling of 15"? It will be my only computer

KensaiMage

KensaiMage

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 25, 2017
235
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Please advice me which route to go:

1. 2018 13" i7 quad core 16 gb of lpddr3
2. 2018 15" i9 hexa core 32 gb of ddr4

I have no other computer. I need it for teaching (working as a teacher), website management, watching movies online, 4k video editing and light gaming like hearthstone, diablo 3 and classic blizzard games like diablo 2 and also baldur's gate, sometimes light photo edition.

What to do? Bigger screen would be nice but that throttling...

I have 1 month before making final decission.
 
I'd say if you go 15" get the mid-tier with the 2.6 i7 and 16 GB RAM. If you go 13", go for the i5, which will (probably?) have better battery life than the i7 with no noticeable sacrifice in performance.

For your use cases I wouldn't be too concerned about throttling expect for possibly the i9.
 
If you think you would benefit from the bigger screen, why don't you just go for the 15" base model with the amount of storage you need? Should run cooler than the higher-tier configs, and for your usage you should need neither the i9 nor the 32 GB.
 
Sterkenburg said:
If you think you would benefit from the bigger screen, why don't you just go for the 15" base model with the amount of storage you need? Should run cooler than the higher-tier configs, and for your usage you should need neither the i9 nor the 32 GB.
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I forgot to add I would like to keep it for 5 years so I guess higher specs would be better.
 
KensaiMage said:
I forgot to add I would like to keep it for 5 years so I guess higher specs would be better.
Click to expand...
Not necessarily. It's looking like you get to a point with the specs where you have diminishing returns regarding thermal limits.

Any of these systems will easily last 5 years, even the base models.
 
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KensaiMage said:
I forgot to add I would like to keep it for 5 years so I guess higher specs would be better.
Click to expand...
The 2018 15" Base is all you need...no worries about throttling on it. I have it and I plan to keep it for at most, 5 years. Doing 4K60 video editing and multitrack recording on Logic on mine with no problems.

13 vs 15 is a big difference in screen real estate. Once you go 15, you'll never want to go back.
 
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donster28 said:
The 2018 15" Base is all you need...no worries about throttling on it. I have it and I plan to keep it for at most, 5 years.
Click to expand...
But the base 15" model with i7 also throttles. Wouldn't it be better to go with 13" even though it has smaller screen? (watching movies or light gaming wouldn't be so nice).
 
KensaiMage said:
But the base 15" model with i7 also throttles. Wouldn't it be better to go with 13" even though it has smaller screen? (watching movies or light gaming wouldn't be so nice).
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The 13" also throttles. All Macs do. Even the lower clocked i5 in the 13" is showing some pretty significant throttling in testing.

But without sustained high intensity workloads, it's not going to happen to you and it doesn't matter.
 
Would have said the 13''... but since you intend to do a bit of gaming, i think you should go with the 15'', because of the dedicated GPU
 
Personally, I think a 15" model is going to be the best option and depending on your tasks you may not even incur any throttling. There's been a number of video reviews already and some of them don't even mention throttling or heat.
 
donster28 said:
Compared to the i9, it's the next best thing you can buy at this point without it throttling like it.
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TBH the i9 has higher boost and slightly higher base clock (2.6 to 2.9), so while the i7 is better, it is by no means innocent of this issue, it just won't have it as bad.

See this thread. https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2018-i7-macbook-pro-throttling-discussion.2128104/

That being said if I was in the market for a 15", the i7 is what I would get, without reservation.
 
A 15” without upgrading the CPU would still be more powerful than a 13” if throttling is your only concern...
 
Unless you want a smaller screen for better portability go with the 15". Chances are you won't even notice anything in actual use.
 
donster28 said:
The 2018 15" Base is all you need...no worries about throttling on it. I have it and I plan to keep it for at most, 5 years. Doing 4K60 video editing and multitrack recording on Logic on mine with no problems.

13 vs 15 is a big difference in screen real estate. Once you go 15, you'll never want to go back.
Click to expand...

How is the battery life and heat on your base model? That's the one I'm looking at. Is it much worse compared to previous MBPs?
 
Guys... The more I read about the current MBPs the more I realise that each of these throttles... Why can't apple release a macbook without issues? This makes me so angry, because I dreamed of a new MBP and really wanted to buy it when it's reworked and without issues, so I skipped the 2016 release, then skipped the 2017 release and the 2018 release also has issues... damn it. I gradually lose my will to buy a MBP. I don't know if I can wait 2 years more for a redesign with my 17" 10- year-old vaio which runs perfectly well, but it is simply an oldie, and slows me down a little.
 
KensaiMage said:
Guys... The more I read about the current MBPs the more I realise that each of these throttles... Why can't apple release a macbook without issues? This makes me so angry, because I dreamed of a new MBP and really wanted to buy it when it's reworked and without issues, so I skipped the 2016 release, then skipped the 2017 release and the 2018 release also has issues... damn it. I gradually lose my will to buy a MBP. I don't know if I can wait 2 years more for a redesign with my 17" 10- year-old vaio which runs perfectly well, but it is simply an oldie, and slows me down a little.
Click to expand...
Any of the new MacBook Pros will be light years ahead of a 10 year old Vaio.

And believe me, every year, we WILL find something to bitch about. It’s like our specialty. At the end of the day pick one up when you need one regardless of all the complaining.
 
mikethebigo said:
Any of the new MacBook Pros will be light years ahead of a 10 year old Vaio.

And believe me, every year, we WILL find something to bitch about. It’s like our specialty. At the end of the day pick one up when you need one regardless of all the complaining.
Click to expand...

I would do so now, however, throttling reminds me of my Gaming Toshiba laptop which I had about 10 years ago. It was getting so hot that it got burned just after my warranty expired. So I lost a lot of money, and I do not want it to happen again.
 
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KensaiMage said:
I would do so now, however, throttling reminds me of my Gaming Toshiba laptop which I had about 10 years ago. It was getting so hot that it got burned just after my warranty expired. So I lost a lot of money, and I do not want it to happen again.
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That really isn't going to happen here.
 
donster28 said:
The 2018 15" Base is all you need...no worries about throttling on it. I have it and I plan to keep it for at most, 5 years. Doing 4K60 video editing and multitrack recording on Logic on mine with no problems.

13 vs 15 is a big difference in screen real estate. Once you go 15, you'll never want to go back.
Click to expand...

Do you hear fan noise under normal productivity work and when under heavy load? Does the bottom get hot?
 
Get a base 15” or a the 2.6 i7. Throttling is probably not something that’s going to affect your use case. Throttling is an issue for people who use these computers professionally and want the value for their money.

The i9 is still fast even with its thermal issues, however it’s not providing its true value. It’s like buying a car rated to go 150 mph but yours tops out at 120. 120 is still damn fast but you paid for the 150.
 
hajime said:
Do you hear fan noise under normal productivity work and when under heavy load? Does the bottom get hot?
Click to expand...
The fans do not turn on for me under normal load. The bottom, although a little warm is bearable too.
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Saturn1217 said:
How is the battery life and heat on your base model? That's the one I'm looking at. Is it much worse compared to previous MBPs?
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The battery life is surprisingly longer lasting than the 2017 base 15’s. Mine lasts about 45 mins to 1 hour. Heat on the bottom is almost the same or even a little cooler too.
 
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