Is the 2015 Macbook Pro enough for me?

[areskins]

Hey there! Im torn between getting the 2015 13 inch mbp or the non touchbar 2016 mbp. I would just use it for word processing, movies and ocassional gaming. I never had a macbook before so somewhat confuses me. Of course the 2016 mbp makes you look "cooler" having the new device but I think I don't need it and the price is kinda steep for a college student like me. As for the 2016 macbok though, 12 inches might not be enough for me and its clearly underpowered for my ocassional simulation games. So do you guys think Im making the right choice by going with the baseline 2015 13' mbp? Thank you all for your feedback and please excuse my english. Cheers!

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

Any laptop at at price will handle word processing, anything that you paid for should handle movies, games on the other hand are the main differentiator there.

If gaming is a concern then look at a windows laptop, you'll get a lot better value and gaming experience that way. Otherwise look at the kind of games you want to run, check the specs, and compare to the computer you want. So really does depend on the games but I could safely say the baseline 13" is not really going to run much.

 

[areskins]

Any laptop at at price will handle word processing, anything that you paid for should handle movies, games on the other hand are the main differentiator there.

If gaming is a concern then look at a windows laptop, you'll get a lot better value and gaming experience that way. Otherwise look at the kind of games you want to run, check the specs, and compare to the computer you want. So really does depend on the games but I could safely say the baseline 13" is not really going to run much.

I would actually prefer a mac over a windows laptop though. I guess the 2015MBP is a good compromise with my needs. I'll probably just stick with my ps4 for my gaming needs.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

I would actually prefer a mac over a windows laptop though. I guess the 2015MBP is a good compromise with my needs. I'll probably just stick with my ps4 for my gaming needs.

That's generally the best idea. I think an Xbox would stream to windows 10 under boot camp if an absolute must?

Either way you'll find it's useful to separate work/play, it's one of the reasons I first got a Mac as it's very difficult to game on it, so your use and appreciation of the device becomes solely work related.

 

[raqball]

The 2015 is still a very capable machine and you can find them at very good prices..

Better on the 2016:

Screen
SSD speed
Sound

Better on the 2015

Ports
Price

Debatable depending on the person

The 2016 Keyboard
The 2016 Larger trackpad

Either choice is fine, just depends on what you want. One thing to consider is the base 2015 that can be found at very good prices has 128GB SSD whereas the base 2016 has a 256GB SSD..

 

[kb3uru]

As for the 2016 macbok though, 12 inches might not be enough for me and its clearly underpowered for my ocassional simulation games

Don't rule this out. Yes, on paper it seems under powered, but from real word experience, it runs amazing. I had bought one to take on a cruise for a week, while my 2015 MBP was in for repair, and it did excellent. Side by side the MBP was slightly faster, but not by much.

And into the gaming aspect, NVIDIA is in the process of creating software that lets you run a virtual gaming pc via the cloud, and you can sync all of your steam games to it. Go to HardwareCanucks on YouTube to find out more.

Hope this is helpful!

 

[capathy21]

Hey there! Im torn between getting the 2015 13 inch mbp or the non touchbar 2016 mbp. I would just use it for word processing, movies and ocassional gaming. I never had a macbook before so somewhat confuses me. Of course the 2016 mbp makes you look "cooler" having the new device but I think I don't need it and the price is kinda steep for a college student like me. As for the 2016 macbok though, 12 inches might not be enough for me and its clearly underpowered for my ocassional simulation games. So do you guys think Im making the right choice by going with the baseline 2015 13' mbp? Thank you all for your feedback and please excuse my english. Cheers!

Any MacBook in the last 5 years would serve your needs fine. Any of the mentioned devices would be good. Are you purchasing new or looking for a used/refurbished model?

 

[areskins]

Any MacBook in the last 5 years would serve your needs fine. Any of the mentioned devices would be good. Are you purchasing new or looking for a used/refurbished model?

I will be purchasing new.

Although the Macbook might be good enough for my word processing needs, I think that the 2015 mbp is more future proof device and there prices are almost the same. The extra weight doesn't bother me that much but the extra inch for the screen might be better since I read a lot of pdf files on it.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

I will be purchasing new.

Although the Macbook might be good enough for my word processing needs, I think that the 2015 mbp is more future proof device and there prices are almost the same. The extra weight doesn't bother me that much but the extra inch for the screen might be better since I read a lot of pdf files on it.

The 2015 will be better value and probably a better suited device for you. But the 2016 is more future proof by definition.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

The 2015 13 inch will run skyrim fine at lower resolutions so casual gaming is pretty good on a Mac, as long as you aren't expecting huge frame rates in native resolution in massive online FPSs it will be fine for a bit of gaming in the go.