MBPr 15" which CPU?

[Ravenshield]

Hi folks

I am planning to buy a 15" MBPr, but I can't decide between the high end configuration with a 2.3 gHz CPU or the one with the 2.6 gHz.

Will there be a noticable speed difference in everyday tasks? Does it boot (even) quicker with a 2.6 gHz CPU?

My main concern is actually battery life and heat. I don't want to sacrifice some hours on battery just for a little speed bump...and fans that are kicking in all the time would drive me crazy.

In some threads in read that there will be a significant difference in battery life and heat production. But some people say the 2.6 gHz is actually the same CPU as the 2.3 gHz but of better quality, hence able to achieve a higher clock rate with the same power consumption and heat production.

I don't mind paying a premium for the faster CPU, but I DO NOT want to pay a premium for a portable stove with just 6 hours of battery life doing normal tasks.

What is your opinion? Do you have experience with the 2.6 gHz and what do you get out of it? Someone who has both the 2.3 and 2.6 model and can do a comparison?

Thanks in advance.

PS: sorry for my English, I am Belgian

 

[Wuiffi]

what are you doing with your device?
because for "everyday tasks" you won't notice the difference between the 2.6 and 2.3 Ghz processor. For everyday tasks even the dual cores from the 13" rMBP are more than capable.

I think if you are just doing light work the batterylife of the 3 processors will be about the same. Only if you are doing heavy work on battery you will notice a difference.

 

[Ravenshield]

Thank you for answerring

I am mainly going to use it in college for notetaking, iWork and I will be using SPSS.
Although MBP's are not meant to be gaming machines, I will use it as a casual gaming machine so I will be running bootcamp. I like working with virtual box, too, when I am bored.

And 13" is out of the question, I really want a 15" display.

 

[Wuiffi]

Thank you for answerring

I am mainly going to use it in college for notetaking, iWork and I will be using SPSS.
Although MBP's are not meant to be gaming machines, I will use it as a casual gaming machine so I will be running bootcamp. I like working with virtual box, too, when I am bored.

And 13" is out of the question, I really want a 15" display.

For gaming I'd say go for the high end (GT750M) model, but if I look at your cpu choice I guess that's what you were planning to.
Personally (and my gf has a 2.6Ghz right next to me) I wouldn't pay the premium for the 2.6 over the 2.3Ghz i7. I'd spend that money on RAM or SSD or even a NAS.

 

[yjchua95]

Hi folks

I am planning to buy a 15" MBPr, but I can't decide between the high end configuration with a 2.3 gHz CPU or the one with the 2.6 gHz.

Will there be a noticable speed difference in everyday tasks? Does it boot (even) quicker with a 2.6 gHz CPU?

My main concern is actually battery life and heat. I don't want to sacrifice some hours on battery just for a little speed bump...and fans that are kicking in all the time would drive me crazy.

In some threads in read that there will be a significant difference in battery life and heat production. But some people say the 2.6 gHz is actually the same CPU as the 2.3 gHz but of better quality, hence able to achieve a higher clock rate with the same power consumption and heat production.

I don't mind paying a premium for the faster CPU, but I DO NOT want to pay a premium for a portable stove with just 6 hours of battery life doing normal tasks.

What is your opinion? Do you have experience with the 2.6 gHz and what do you get out of it? Someone who has both the 2.3 and 2.6 model and can do a comparison?

Thanks in advance.

PS: sorry for my English, I am Belgian

On my 2.6GHz rMBP 15" I managed to clock in 7.5 hours (with gfxcardstatus preventing it from using the GT750M). This was with iTunes, Preview and two tabs in Safari, plus Pages.

The power usage and TDP between the 2.3GHz and the 2.6GHz should be almost the same, if not identical.

The 2.3GHz is i7-4850HQ and the 2.6GHz is i7-4960HQ.

For everyday tasks, neither will make a difference. But since I do 4K video editing, I need all the speed I can squeeze out of the processor, so I went for the 2.6GHz with a faster 4-lane 1TB SSD. 512GB and smaller capacity SSDs use 2-lane PCIe.