MBP Advice.....

[mbp.user]

Here is my situation: **** I apologize in advance****

Current 15" MBP 2.2 Core Duo2 Santa Rosa 4GB Ram 500 GB @ 7200.

will the early 2010 15" 2.43 or 2.53 i5 or 2.66 i7 make a huge difference?
- 2.43 vs. 2.53 not so much of difference?
- 2.43 i5 vs 2.66 i7?

If I get a new one, I will upgrade Ram to 8 Gb (not from applestore) and go with a 500 GB @ 7200.

USES. FCP - editing is fine. it's the rendering and exporting which is starting to get to me.,
Photoshop CS4 - saving is a little slower and saving as PDF takes forever now.
Illustrator CS4 - Same as Photoshop
Parallels 5.0 - have to use both mac and pc at the same time for certain things. Seems to be very taxing on my machine now.

GAMING- wow is still fine. sometimes it lags but i figure that's the internet service? Sims 2 was ok, but Sims 3 felt like the FPS was barely making it. Would
like to play starcraft II when it comes out. Oh and Counterstrike sometimes.

** Had my laptop for 3 years now. Surfing the net is fine, still fast. 500 GB was reaching capacity, so I transferred files and emptied got 100GB back.
However, recently with no programs open, just firefox. Opening other apps is slower by 6 sec. or so.

Summary: Money is not really an issue but in this economy, it's about saving money. I don't have to have the newest toy....and if I get a new laptop I would
like to stay within budget which includes
education discount. I will get applecare because I've had to replace my display due to the video chip dying. Just spoke with applecare again and I
need a optical drive replacement cause it won't read and spits out the disc.New is good sure but worth spending the money? and battery
replacement which is still under applecare and that expires this coming july.
OR
should I transfer more files and delete to try and get back at least half of 500 GB.
OR
is it JUST time for an upgrade.

So DOC.........what's the verdict? AND Thank YOU!!!!

 

[stridemat]

There won't be a huge difference for the majority of users, but of course the newer MBP's will work slightly faster.

On the other hand rendering should be quite a lot faster on the new machines.

 

[Hellhammer]

i5 should make a big difference in FCP, so yeah, it's worth it if you need more speed. Get the 2.4GHz, it's bigger bang for your buck

 

[mbp.user]

i5 should make a big difference in FCP, so yeah, it's worth it if you need more speed. Get the 2.4GHz, it's bigger bang for your buck

Thanks, I've changed my order on applestore to 15" 2.66 to 2.4 ...........since it's the weekend. 1 more day to think before I confirm checkout.

2.66 with appcare & tax = $2521.59

2.4 with appcare & tax = $2291.12

$230.47 diff.........does that justify to get the 2.66 i7.....in terms of performance. Sure like 9% or something like that. but like "Stridemat" says, "

There won't be a huge difference for the majority of users, but of course the newer MBP's will work slightly faster.

On the other hand rendering should be quite a lot faster on the new machines. "

will I really notice the faster difference between 2.66 and 2.43? I've read benchmark tests etc... it's like faster by 4-10 seconds on apps pending of course.

Then again. if I get annoyed waiting 6 sec from my first post.....with new macbook, that problem is gone and everything will just be faster. question is, will i be bothered by an extra 4-10 sec difference..............JEEZZZ..... I'm a pain and I really apologize that I've subjected you guys to my questions. I hope it makes sense. By no means am I a mac pro but hellhammer c
and stridemats comments are pretty "real" and it's REALLY helping me pick out what I want. Thank you guys.

 

[stridemat]

I would say that it is not worth the price difference between the two processors - stick with the cheapest one.

 

[seong]

Here is the checklist for how you should consider which one to buy:

1. Money (yes, this is first priority)
2. What will you work on this machine ? (e.g. Photoshop, Gaming, etc)
3. Screen Size & Portability
4. Which processor & graphic card would you like?
i. 2.66GHz one has 512MB RAM + i7 processor. More suitable for gaming, movie editing, and photoshopping.
ii. 2.53GHz and 2.4GHz doesn't have any big difference. If you plan to buy cheaper one, go with 2.4GHz. Don't even think about 2.53GHz, and get 2.66GHz if you have more money.

More RAM for graphic card = less lag and more productivity.

 

[cluthz]

I went from a 2.2GHz MBP to the new 2.4 i5.
(I've upgraded the old 2.2Ghz to a 320GB HD and 4GB ram btw)

General surfing, word processing and day to day usage the new one feel slightly faster, but it's not a world of difference.

In f.ex photoshop I feel that things are a bit speedier, not a world of difference, but very noticeable.

Gaming and such, well, it's much faster.

Keep in mind, my old Santa Rosa wasn't feeling slower after 3 years of service.
(I'd notice if it did, because I'm using several other macs from time to time.)