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I'm confused about the new CPUs...

Bendy Walker

Bendy Walker

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 29, 2008
109
1
Manchester, UK
Currently I'm running a 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo in a 20" iMac. I'm looking to buy a 15" MBP for university this summer, and I'm a little confused about the new CPUs.

Now, I understand that Sandy Bridge is the latest CPU technology and that they're quad-core and all that, but aren't they running at a lower clock speed? Let's say, for example, that I'm running an app that requires 2.3 GHz to run smoothly: Won't the lower clock speed effect that?

I don't mean to sound like a complete noob, but I've never really understood CPUs and the way it all works, so some clarification and reassurance that the new CPUs in the 2011 MBPs will scream performance-wise would be great here.

Thanks.
 
http://www.intel.com/technology/turboboost/index.htm

It's my understanding that these chips are able to clock themselves higher when only using a few of cores heavily. I don't know the specifics of the chips on the new MBPs, but as an example it might have the ability to run at 2.0Ghz on all four cores or 3.0Ghz with two cores depending on the load that you put on it.

Edit: Here's the information on the configuration page for one of the 15" MBPS:

The Intel Core i7 processors are based on new 32-nanometer process technology with an advanced Core microarchitecture that features an integrated memory controller and Level 3 cache, giving the MacBook Pro faster, more direct access to memory. In addition, these processors feature:

Turbo Boost 2.0 - a dynamic performance technology that automatically boosts the processor clock speed based on workload, giving you extra processing power when you need it.

HyperThreading - a technology that allows two threads to run simultaneously on each core. So a quad-core MacBook Pro has eight virtual cores, all of which are recognized by Mac OS X. This enables the processor to deliver faster performance by spreading tasks more evenly across a greater number of cores.

You can upgrade the processor in your MacBook Pro to the 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, featuring 8MB L3 cache and Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.40GHz.
Click to expand...
 
There's no such thing as an "app that requires 2.3 Ghz to run smoothly". 2.3 Ghz on one processor will be a completely different level of performance than 2.3 Ghz on another processor. You can only compare clock speeds within identical processor families.

For example, my 2006 Macbook Pro is 2.33 Ghz. It scores roughly 2600 points in the geekbench benchmark. The just released 2.3 Ghz quad core MBP scores about 10,000 points in geekbench - 4x as fast. 2011 model vs. 2006 model, it ought to be. But the clock speed is about the same. In summary, clock speed doesn't mean very much.

To answer your question, you won't have any problems. Forget about the clock speed as it doesn't mean what you think it means.
 
The quad-core processors turbo boost to 2,7ghz if they only use the 2 cores, and to 3,2ghz if only 1 core is used.
That said, they're big improvement.
 
Clock speed is just one element of performance. A dual-core Core i5 can perform up to twice as many tasks per clock cycle as a Core 2 Duo. Think of the Core 2 Duo as a small paddle and the Core i5 as a large oar. Which will propel a boat faster using the same number of strokes?
 
Yeah even though the newer chips have a lower clock speed, they will still be much faster than a core 2 duo, even when running single threaded apps!
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