Im looking to get a MBP 13 inch but dont know if it is worth paying the extra $200 for the i7 or just getting the base model that comes with the i5. I will be using this for college and to play some games but mainly just Minecraft or other low impact games... my real question is, is the i7 worth it because it will last longer or does that not matter in the life of the MBP
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Mac Book Pro 13inch i5 vs 17
- Thread starter TheRumbble
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I had the same conundrum not too long ago, I would spend the money on making sure the RAM is at least 8GB, and if it already is, I would use that extra 200 quid to make the RAM 16GB for longevity.
The i7 will not make a huge difference based on your usage scenario. I would save the money and make sure you have 16GB RAM as the poster above stated. That will provide more longevity especially since you cannot upgrade the RAM once purchased.
ok Thanks also since im only using it for school would a MBA make more sense. i prefer the Pro because of the extra ports it has and although i may never use them at least i have them.
Air or 13" Retina, battery life is stellar, if you don't use the ports now, doubt you will in the future. The basic MBP is a capable machine, equally it`s an old design and suffers in some respects.
In your shoes I would go for a 13" Air with 8Gb Ram, 256 SSD, unless you can stretch to 512. Retina is another option equally pricing steps up considerably, worth considering if your going to spend a lot of hours behind the notebooks screen. Forget the i7 it won't make any difference to your needs
Q-6
In your shoes I would go for a 13" Air with 8Gb Ram, 256 SSD, unless you can stretch to 512. Retina is another option equally pricing steps up considerably, worth considering if your going to spend a lot of hours behind the notebooks screen. Forget the i7 it won't make any difference to your needs
Q-6
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I would go with the Pro. It has a vastly superior screen to the MBA and I actually find that the HDMI port has come in handy when I wanted to plug into my TV or another TV at someones house for whatever reason.
phew lol. for a second i thought u were getting the non-retina.
Yeah spend your money on the ram, i5 is already good enough
Storage size, same like hard disk , but significantly more expensive and 512 is faster than some of the 256 variants.
Q-6
I am kind of in the same boat. I am thinking about switching over from a PC. I am going to build another gaming PC so I am looking for something that I can work on masters classes, watch netflix, and take when I travel (which is a lot...for sometimes long periods of time).
I am not really sure which configuration to go with (13" rMBP or MBA and which specs to get)
Also, should I wait? I have been reading that upgrades to the MBA and rMBP lines are supposed to happen soon.
Thoughts?
I am not really sure which configuration to go with (13" rMBP or MBA and which specs to get)
Also, should I wait? I have been reading that upgrades to the MBA and rMBP lines are supposed to happen soon.
Thoughts?
the price difference between the macbook air with upgraded ram and the rMBP is so small its no point considering the air at this point in time. the pro's will probably be refreshed towards the end of the year, but the airs are supposed to get a minor spec bump in the next month or so
That thought did cross my mind. I just wish the MBA had a retina display and then I think it would be a no brainer for me. Maybe by the time I figure out what I want there will be a rMBA haha. In terms of performance, isn't the the rMBP significantly better?
True, but the MBA uses slower ULV chipsets, and they're non retina (though the refresh may mean retina screens). My point as it stands today, the 13" MBP has a faster GPU, CPU and a better screen.
exactly, so the price difference and 200g weight difference make it a no brainer to get the rMBP (even though not everyone needs the CPU horsepower). I know everyone is longing for a rMBA, but im pretty sure the battery will take a hit. the rMBP actually in footprint is smaller than the MBA...and the same thickness, albeit uniform instead of wedge shaped. my vote goes for the rMBP especially since its unlikely we'll see significant refreshes till the later half of the year.
so for a bit more money, and not much more weight/bulk....you get
1) way better screen
2) More power
3) enough graphics power to play games decently
minus would be a little less battery life
Sorry to hijack this thread but I have basically the same question as the OP and rather then start a new thread I thought I would ask here.
I currently have a 2011 Mac Mini with a 2.7Ghz dual core i7 and 8GB of 1333Mhz of DDR3 RAM. The GPU is an AMD Radeon HD 6630M with 256MB of RAM.
I am thinking of replacing it with a 13" Retina MacBook Pro with the 512GB SSD. My Mac Mini is quite adequate for what I do which is mainly web browsing, email, listening to music and watching movies through iTunes and light word processing using MS Word. I do play the odd game on it but this is not a necessary function as I have all three of the main home consoles for that.
If I get the MacBook Pro is it worth upgrading to the 3.0Ghz dual core i7 from the 2.8Ghz duo core i5. Should I upgrade the RAM to 16GB for future proofing instead or should I just go with the base configuration of a 2.8Ghz i5 and 8GB of RAM. I definitely want to go with the 512GB SSD.
I currently have a 2011 Mac Mini with a 2.7Ghz dual core i7 and 8GB of 1333Mhz of DDR3 RAM. The GPU is an AMD Radeon HD 6630M with 256MB of RAM.
I am thinking of replacing it with a 13" Retina MacBook Pro with the 512GB SSD. My Mac Mini is quite adequate for what I do which is mainly web browsing, email, listening to music and watching movies through iTunes and light word processing using MS Word. I do play the odd game on it but this is not a necessary function as I have all three of the main home consoles for that.
If I get the MacBook Pro is it worth upgrading to the 3.0Ghz dual core i7 from the 2.8Ghz duo core i5. Should I upgrade the RAM to 16GB for future proofing instead or should I just go with the base configuration of a 2.8Ghz i5 and 8GB of RAM. I definitely want to go with the 512GB SSD.
The i7 upgrade is the least worthy upgrade, for the performance increase is minuscule.
I'd rather go for the 16GB upgrade instead.
That's the impression I'm getting from various forum posts. I suspect even the 2.7Ghz dual core i7 in my Mac Mini is probably overkill for my type of use. Getting 16GB of RAM is probably of more use and worth doing as it can't be upgraded afterwards.
I did think about waiting a few months to see what Intel's new Skylake chip set brings but again I suspect it's probably not going to be an extensive enough upgrade and buying now is probably just fine.
The old first generation MacBook Air in my signature is currently being used by my Parents and I want to replace it with my Mac Mini as the MBA is really slow and and seems to be on its last legs now. It makes a funny click click noise now and then too. My idea is to give my parents my Mac Mini and buy a 19-21" display for it ( I currently use my 32" TV ) and buy myself a MacBook Pro which will have the added advantage of being portable for me.
When the number of cores and threads are the same, i5 and i7 make almost zero difference whatsoever.
When the number of cores are the same, but the number of threads are doubled on the i7, then it makes a substantial difference in tasks that take advantage of hyper threading (like encoding and rendering).
Ended up getting a 13" rMBP w/ 2.8GHz, 8Gb RAM and 512Gb SSD. Slowly learning all the neat little perks of a macbook. Installed Warthunder and it plays alright.
No regrets whatsoever, happy to have finally drank the Koolaid
No regrets whatsoever, happy to have finally drank the Koolaid