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I need help with a choice! MBP vs MBP

T

TexasJr

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 18, 2010
22
0
Im going to be buying a macbook pro soon and I am stuck between two choices. Both cost the same price.

First Choice is:
MacBook Pro 13"
8GB Ram
2.66ghz Core 2 Duo

Second Choice:
MacBook Pro 15"
4GB Ram
2.53 Ghz i5 processor

My dilemna is which one is better. Forget about the screen size, thats the least of my problems. What should I go for, more ram + a bit faster but older processor or less ram + a bit slower but newer processor?

Also, it doesn't really matter but I am just curious whether these systems can handle games like Starcraft 2 and Team Fortress 2. I really don't mind if they don't, whether the laptops support the games or not will not affect my decision, I am getting one of these laptops.
:apple:
 
TexasJr said:
Im going to be buying a macbook pro soon and I am stuck between two choices. Both cost the same price.

First Choice is:
MacBook Pro 13"
8GB Ram
2.66ghz Core 2 Duo

Second Choice:
MacBook Pro 15"
4GB Ram
2.53 Ghz i5 processor

My dilemna is which one is better. Forget about the screen size, thats the least of my problems. What should I go for, more ram + a bit faster but older processor or less ram + a bit slower but newer processor?

Also, it doesn't really matter but I am just curious whether these systems can handle games like Starcraft 2 and Team Fortress 2. I really don't mind if they don't, whether the laptops support the games or not will not affect my decision, I am getting one of these laptops.
:apple:
Click to expand...

I would say neither. I would not pay for the upgrade to the 2.66 or 2.53 or buy RAM from apple, those are all way overpriced. It all really depends on what you want to do with it though, as to which size to get. It would be very helpful if you would explain your needs for this computer as well
 
College, Video making, Graphics making, a little gaming if possible (I know macs aren't exactly for gaming so its no priority).
 
get the 15". newer processor is always more future proofing.

if you can wait, wait until the next update which should be in q1 2011...
 
When exactly is Q1 and would the price increase? I'm on a $2,000 (including tax) budget, and I'm getting the MBP on the education price discount.
 
Thank you guys, I'll take these things into consideration
if anyone has anything else to say, go ahead
 
2.4ghz i5, but choose either high res glossy or antiglare (your choice). you wont be able to change the display later on.

however, you can upgrade the ram and hard drive whenever, so i would leave those stock.
 
Just go with the base model MBP, and use the spare $ to dump in a fast SSD,

that's what i did, the 2.53 ghz upgrade wasn't worth it, and I don't have the dough to bump it up to a Ci7 (also those things get mad hot anyways). so i used the spare dough to drop a SSD and cheap ebay Caddy, and I'm happy with the speed,
 
definitely a 2.4Ghz i5 man. Go for the SSD update, you won't regret it for even 1 second! Everyone I recommended SSD was like "why so expensive and limited space" at first. But now, they are all like "I can't live without it"....

you know what to do....^^
 
For college, I think the 13" is a better choice for portability, but if you're doing anything with Video, you'll want the 15" for its screen and dedicated GPU. Just order the RAM upgrade on your own later, its a very easy installation.
 
kellen said:
Thats what I would do as well. Base 15.4 2.4, add in a SSD.

I don't see 8gb helping with what you are doing.
Click to expand...

My thoughts as well. SSD optional, but not a bad idea. Just don't buy SSD/HDD or RAM from apple. Price is more likely to decrease than increase, as there has been a decreasing trend over the past couple iterations.
 
TexasJr said:
My dilemna is which one is better. Forget about the screen size, thats the least of my problems. What should I go for, more ram + a bit faster but older processor or less ram + a bit slower but newer processor?
Click to expand...

8GB is generally overkill unless you leave ALOT of browser tabs and applications open. Besides, buying 8GB from Newegg and upgrading only costs ~$150 now, and prices are supposed to plummet even more in early 2011!

As far as processor, 2.53Ghz i5 >> 2.66Ghz C2D. Don't fall for the old Ghz trick, those numbers are only comparable between the same type of processors. The new processor is faster in EVERY way than the C2D. Also the graphics card on the 15" will handle games MUCH better.

Summary: 15" has faster CPU, better graphics card, and upgrading to 8GB later (if you really feel the need) will cost <$150.

P.S. Instead of upgrading the ram to 8GB, spend the a couple hundred dollars on an SSD, your world will change :) As previous posters have mentioned, don't buy either of these upgrades from Apple, they charge WAY too much.
 
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