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Macbook Pro - 2.2Ghz or 2.3Ghz?

C

Cabestar :)

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 27, 2011
2
0
The moon :)
Hey everyone :)

So this will be my first Mac, and I want to get the specs just right for it!
I've taken quite an interest in the brand new Macbook Pro's, and I'm considering buying this:
15" MBP with 2.2Ghz, 4GB Ram, 500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200rpm with a High-Res display.

My question is Should I buy a 2.3Ghz or stick with my intended 2.2Ghz and upgrade the ram to 8GB later? I've been saving up for AGES, I just want to place an order god damnit :D

I realise that the processor is non-upgradable, but I've searched the MacRumors forums and everyone is saying there is not much difference between the 2.2Ghz and 2.3Ghz.. speedwise.

I will be using my Mac for THE SIMS 3 (All settings MAXED with good speed), Photoshop and Internet :) xxxxx
 
I guess it's just up to your preference. Like you said, there's not too much difference between 2.2 and 2.3, it just comes down to if you want to pay the extra $100 or whatever. If you aren't going to buy a whole new laptop for a while, just splurge and get it....and you can do RAM upgrades on your own so it's not as expensive.

Have fun with your new laptop! I'll be sitting in my jealousy corner with my 2009 model :p
 
Isn't it a $250 jump? I just left the Apple Store and got the 2.2 as configured myself. I am putting in my Crucial 256SSD now and will order a 8GB off OWC ($114) now.

Btw at the Apple retail store they price matched MacConnection's $ of $2059.99 saving me $140 and gave me a HP printer ($99 with $99 rebate that they submit on the spot)
 
AdamRock said:
2.2GHZ!!!!

why pay 200$ for 100Mhz boost...its not worth it, at all. spend that 200$ on ram.
Click to expand...

It's not just the 100MHz speed boost, it's also the greater L3 cache that the i7-2820QM adds over the i7-2720QM. Still, you're looking at probably a ~10% in performance, if that.

FWIW, Apple's really not bending us over on the upgrade from the 2.2GHz to the 2.3GHz i7. In quantities of 1000, the 2.2GHz i7 is $378 vs $568 for the 2.3GHz i7.

Also, buy the RAM from a third party and install it yourself! You can get high quality DDR3 1333MHz RAM for less than $100 (for example, here or here).
 
Last edited:
The primary difference, aside from the ever-so-slightly increased clock, is that the 2.2 Ghz chip is the Core i7 2720QM processor, where the 2.3 Ghz is the Core i7 2820QM processor... you can see the comparison at Intel's site here: http://ark.intel.com/Compare.aspx?ids=52227,50067,

The 2820QM has 8MB Shared L3 Cache, vs 6MB in the 2720QM; additionally, the 2820QM will turbo 3.4 Ghz instead of 3.3 Ghz.

So there are some minor changes - but wether it's worth the extra cost is really up to you. Unless you get hung up on benchmark scores, or plan to sit two model down side-by-side and compare in a heads-up battle - I doubt you'd ever notice the difference.

Personally - I went for the 2.2Ghz, and opted to spend the extra cash on the hi-res anti-glare display and an 8GB upgrade kit from crucial.
 
You're not paying for the 100Mhz difference, you're paying for the 1GB of RAM in your GPU (vs. 256MB in the 2.2)!
 
I think I've made my mind up now :D
2.2Ghz sounds about right!

I suppose upgrading the ram to 8GB or converting to SSD later would increase my MBP speed anyway? :rolleyes:
 
My primary work is FCP and After Effects. Is the increased graphics spec going to make a tangible difference for me?
 
jasonfj said:
My primary work is FCP and After Effects. Is the increased graphics spec going to make a tangible difference for me?
Click to expand...

when you say increased graphics spec you mean the upgrading from 2.0ghz 15" to the 2.2ghz 15" i guess.... that will for sure make a difference with both programs afx and fcp. :)
 
Yes it will make a difference we just don't know by how much yet. While a gpu really helps for certain tasks in FCS I currently run it on a Nvidia 9400 in my iMac and things seems to run well. Motion bogs down a bit but it hasn't been anything that has prevented me from getting any projects finished.

I'm waiting to upgrade from my iMac until I get solid numbers that show exactly what the difference is going to be for pro applications.
 
Here is an argument for the OP if you haven't purchased yet. RAM is upgradeable and so is the storage capacity of your HDD.

The best thing to do is to upgrade as much as possible the CPU and LCD resolution as those are the things in a laptop that you can't upgrade later. I would pay the extra 100MHz and higher resolution and keep the RAM upgrade for last. Besides, RAM is getting cheaper, CPUs don't get cheaper and lowered clock CPUs don't keep up with their higher clocked peers (even if by only a 100MHz increment).

Also, you are getting an extra 2MB of L3 cache. That's a big difference that you should look into.
 
fil3333 said:
when you say increased graphics spec you mean the upgrading from 2.0ghz 15" to the 2.2ghz 15" i guess.... that will for sure make a difference with both programs afx and fcp. :)
Click to expand...



No, I mean the difference between the 2.2 and 2.3, as iphone1 wrote:
"You're not paying for the 100Mhz difference, you're paying for the 1GB of RAM in your GPU (vs. 256MB in the 2.2)!"

I'll be installing 8gb ram as well, just wondered if it would be worth dropping another $250 on top.
 
the 2.3 is what, 2% difference?

You're not going to notice that.

2.2 I think.
 
jasonfj said:
No, I mean the difference between the 2.2 and 2.3, as IPHONE wrote:
"You're not paying for the 100Mhz difference, you're paying for the 1GB of RAM in your GPU (vs. 256MB in the 2.2)!"

I'll be installing 8gb ram as well, just wondered if it would be worth dropping another $250 on top.
Click to expand...

no graphics increase between 2.2 and 2.3ghz models! (just) cpu and cache...
imo you wont notice the difference... but thats just an assumption i couldnt try it out yet. :eek: however i had my hands on many different macbook (pros) in the past and i think you wont notice it, maybe with a stopwatch :)
 
fil3333 said:
no graphics increase between 2.2 and 2.3ghz models! (just) cpu and cache...
imo you wont notice the difference... but thats just an assumption i couldnt try it out yet. :eek: however i had my hands on many different macbook (pros) in the past and i think you wont notice it, maybe with a stopwatch :)
Click to expand...


Or when I'm sat watching the progress bar in Compressor transcoding 2 hours of h.264 to ProRes?
 
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