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New 17" MBP: i5 or i7?

WiLLGT09

WiLLGT09

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 13, 2007
213
29
So, yeah, title pretty much says it.

How much of a difference is there between the two? According to Apple, they both have hyper threading and turbo boost. I seem to remember someone saying that the i5 does not have hyper threading (when talking about the iMac).

Thanks.
William
 
Very very little difference. 1MB extra L3 cache (that most users wont EVER notice or benefit from) and a slightly higher clock speed.

So if you think a tiny speed bump (0.13Ghz!!) is worth the price, get it.

If you're sane though, the i5 is all you'll need. :D
 
Go with the i7 it will have a higher resale value, and better performance.
 
I'm in this same dilemma myself, any other advice greatly appreciated. Not many threads about the 17" i5 or i7 around here so I'm glad I found this.
 
I ended up going for the 17' i5 model. Using the difference in price vs the i7, I upgraded to the 128 SSD instead. So, there's a more noticeable performance boost for the money - plus you get the better battery life and "ooh shiny, no moving parts" aspect. Plus, the MBP is just darn fast to restart, CS5 opens in a few seconds, etc.

Very pleased with it.
 
You haven't said if you prefer glossy or matte, but if you're buying retail in an Apple store and want anti-glare, then i7 is the only available choice.
 
drambuie said:
You haven't said if you prefer glossy or matte, but if you're buying retail in an Apple store and want anti-glare, then i7 is the only available choice.
Click to expand...

Local retail near me has both available but I've read it varies from stores.
 
WiLLGT09 said:
I ended up going for the 17' i5 model. Using the difference in price vs the i7, I upgraded to the 128 SSD instead. So, there's a more noticeable performance boost for the money - plus you get the better battery life and "ooh shiny, no moving parts" aspect. Plus, the MBP is just darn fast to restart, CS5 opens in a few seconds, etc.

Very pleased with it.
Click to expand...

I opted for the 7200RPM drive for an extra $50. I'd love an SSD but can't quite give up the capacity/price value. The 7200RPM drive will at least make some difference, won't it?

Also, now that you've gotten the i5, do you ever find that an i7 could have really helped in certain tasks (ie. quicker)?

I've actually heard that the i7 version makes things feel much snappier but not sure how it would if the performance increase over an i5 is supposed to be generally minimal, anyone know if this is true and does in fact make the system feel snappier?
 
cryer said:
I'm in this same dilemma myself, any other advice greatly appreciated. Not many threads about the 17" i5 or i7 around here so I'm glad I found this.
Click to expand...

I have a 15" i5, and a 17" i7. If your budget allows, I highly suggest the i7. It's noticeably faster in real world use, and insures you will have the most resources going forward. The basic rule I follow is to buy as much as I can possibly afford, then I can get the most out of my new Mac for years to come.*
 
WiLLGT09 said:
I ended up going for the 17' i5 model. Using the difference in price vs the i7, I upgraded to the 128 SSD instead. So, there's a more noticeable performance boost for the money - plus you get the better battery life and "ooh shiny, no moving parts" aspect. Plus, the MBP is just darn fast to restart, CS5 opens in a few seconds, etc.

Very pleased with it.
Click to expand...

You did exactly what I would have done. An SSD is going to make a significantly bigger difference in the overall performance as compared to going from an i5 to i7.
 
wirelessmacuser said:
I have a 15" i5, and a 17" i7. If your budget allows, I highly suggest the i7. It's noticeably faster in real world use, and insures you will have the most resources going forward. The basic rule I follow is to buy as much as I can possibly afford, then I can get the most out of my new Mac for years to come.*
Click to expand...

Thanks but isn't testing a 15" i5 against a 17" i7 not quite the same comparison and unreliable to compare versus if both were 17" machines, one i5 and one i7? For example, there's a bigger difference in clock speeds between any of the 15" and a 17" with more vram, etc.
 
I opted for the i7 plus 7200 rpm Anti-Glare.

Get the best you can. It's less expensive to pay slightly more now than buying a whole new machine in the future, meaning, with top features you're computer will keep you satisfied longer.

And isn't 7 a beautiful number.
 
cyberone said:
I opted for the i7 plus 7200 rpm Anti-Glare.

Get the best you can. It's less expensive to pay slightly more now than buying a whole new machine in the future, meaning, with top features you're computer will keep you satisfied longer.

And isn't 7 a beautiful number.
Click to expand...

True, but if I get an ssd for the money I'd spend on the i7, it would make a bigger performance impact, right? At least that's how I'm understanding what some people are saying on this forum.
 
cryer said:
True, but if I get an ssd for the money I'd spend on the i7, it would make a bigger performance impact, right? At least that's how I'm understanding what some people are saying on this forum.
Click to expand...

True, but those SSD upgrades are expensive. If money doesn't matter, I'd sure go with the 500 GB SSD, but hell, not cheap.

Then I'd rather increase RAM to the max, you'll see more difference I guess. But also not cheap.
 
cyberone said:
True, but those SSD upgrades are expensive. If money doesn't matter, I'd sure go with the 500 GB SSD, but hell, not cheap.

Then I'd rather increase RAM to the max, you'll see more difference I guess. But also not cheap.
Click to expand...

I recently purchased a i7 MBP and Installed a Momentus XT Hybrid 500gb drive, this has made it incredibly fast, even over the 7200rpm drive that the computer shipped with. A great compromise of speed and price. You can pick one up for about $130.
 
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