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i5 or i7? If You Have Experience Please HELP!

imjoee

imjoee

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2012
284
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i was looking to buy the 13" Macbook Air with Definite 8GB Ram and 128gb ssd (will get external if need more space) but my last question is, what about i5 or i7?

I WANT TO KEEP THIS MACBOOK AIR FOR ABOUT 4+ YEARS
my main needs are, writing papers, web searching, ton of photo editing, emailing, and more photo editing!

will the i7 be needed or should i just buy the i5?

thanks!!!
 
Intensive video editing, rendering? i7. I think you should just get an i5. If anything, you could just do the 256gb ssd rather than the i7.
 
For what you are doing you could probably just stick to the i5. Heck my old MacBook Pro with only a 2.26ghz core2duo from 2009 still does all those things just fine (my father in law has it).
 
Get the i5.

My recommended upgrade order (go up as far as you can afford) is:

1) RAM
2) Storage (up to 256GB)
3) CPU
4) Storage (512GB) - the upgrade price is ridiculous.

AppleCare should also be in the mix - if you want to keep it for a few years, then put it at or near the top.
 
If you are not using your MBA to do intensive tasks then I would say i5 would be more than enough for you. From what I see, your tasks are not intensive to the point that you need the i7 so it would kinda be a waste of money.

Now, the most important thing is getting RAM and storage. If you want to upgrade your MBA, you should upgrade to 8 GB RAM and more storage ( I'm going for the 512 GB cuz my current MBP is 250 GB and its not doing so good). More storage means more place for your photos and i'm guessing those photos are getting bigger in size by the day.

You said you want your MBA for a couple of years, so I advice you to get Applecare so you are protected for 3 years, because trust me, you will most definitely need to fix something in the coming 3 years. (I didn't buy Applecare for my current MBP and it was the worst mistake I have ever made. I had my trackpad fixed and it cost a fortune.)
 
4 years is along time. It's probably difficult to predict what you feel you'll be doing by then. If you feel confident your computing needs will be the same or similar to now than the i5 with 8GB ram should be good. If you think there's a chance you'll be doing more intensive work on your mac, for example heavy editing of video, multiple large raw files, or anything such than you'll probably want to consider maxing out as much as possible now and that will include the i7 for processor intensive tasks.
 
Is AppleCare really that necessary? I've had my Macbook for almost five years and have never had any problems.
 
What I would suggest is, don't get AppleCare right away. If you still have it in about 10 months, decide then if you want to get it. With laptops/desktops, Apple lets you buy AppleCare anytime within the device's warranty period.

AppleCare is one of those crapshoot things where it's useless if nothing goes wrong during the extended warranty period, but you REALLY wish you had bought when something does go wrong.

Case in point: My late-2006 MBP and my mid-2010 MBP both had AppleCare, and it lapsed without anything ever happening (the 2010 is still kicking and I intend to keep using it for a while, even buying a 2013 MBA). But, a friend of mine has made EXTENSIVE use of AppleCare on her 2011 MBA. It more than paid for itself in that case.
 
The biggest difference you'll notice with i7 is more heat, more high fan time and reduced battery life. Unless you have an i7 next to an i5, you'll never be aware of the difference. Every time the fan kicks in on your i7, you'll wander if you should have saved your money and gotten the better machine (i5)
 
Cicatrix said:
i have a question for everyone. would you rather have an ivy bridge i7 2.0GHz, or a Haswell i5 1.3GHz?
Click to expand...

That is a pretty loaded question where the particular user's mission for the computer plays a huge role in the answer.

For me? Haswell i5, no hesitation. Better graphics and significantly improved battery life seal the deal. There's nothing I will do on an 11" MBA that would require an i7.
 
SuperCachetes said:
That is a pretty loaded question where the particular user's mission for the computer plays a huge role in the answer.

For me? Haswell i5, no hesitation. Better graphics and significantly improved battery life seal the deal. There's nothing I will do on an 11" MBA that would require an i7.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply! I ask because i am going to be giving my dad my 2012 MBA which has an i7 2.0GHz, and the 2013 MBA that I plan on replacing it with has the i5 1.3 (Haswell). I really don't want my new MBA to be less powerful than my current model. So now i am thinking the i7 maybe?

Oh **** it. Im just going to wait for Skymont. lol.
 
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