Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

jakeopolis

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 27, 2007
97
0
hey guys,

apologies if this has been discussed before, i didn't see a specific post/thread about this...

i'm considering replacing my white macbook 2.16 with a new aluminium macbook 2.0. the question is, will i see a noticeable change in performance/speed - either for the better or worse?

my current specs:
white macbook 2.16 ghz core 2 duo
4 gb ram (ddr2)

new specs:
aluminium macbook 2.0 ghz core 2 duo
2 gb ram (ddr3)

so obviously the graphics will be improved on the new one, but i'll be dropping my processor speed and amount of ram down. does the DDR3 make up for it? will the improved graphics make up for the slower processor?

thanks guys!
 

jakeopolis

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 27, 2007
97
0
What kind of stuff do you do?

lots of internet, word processing, spreadsheets, torrents, some (limited) graphics editing (like really basic photoshop). the thing i'm most worried about is audio editing. i don't actually record music, but i spend a good amount of time editing multitrack audio recordings (in logic pro).
 

rd261

macrumors regular
Sep 24, 2007
136
8
If Im not much mistaken, audio editing depends on the speed of the processor. I don't think you'll see much difference at all, if any, since the macbook you currently have is good enough for basic photoshop and every other thing you do. Unless you really want the new design, I don't see any need for you to upgrade.
 

hazoomeh

macrumors member
Oct 15, 2008
40
0
You have a pretty sweet machine as it is! I'd stick with it and refashion your own image as a vintage fellow. ;)
 

Andrmgic

macrumors 6502a
Jun 27, 2007
531
1
The penryn chips are slightly faster and use less energy than the older core 2 chips. Not to mention that the 9400m blows away the GMA 950 in your current macbook.

There should not be a decrease in performance going to the 2.0.. it is only a 160Mhz difference, and you've got a faster front-side bus and much faster memory and graphics that are in a whole other category of power than your old notebook.

If you can sell your 2.16 whitebook for a nice price and won't miss the firewire, I'd say go for it :)
 

jakeopolis

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 27, 2007
97
0
The penryn chips are slightly faster and use less energy than the older core 2 chips. Not to mention that the 9400m blows away the GMA 950 in your current macbook.

There should not be a decrease in performance going to the 2.0.. it is only a 160Mhz difference, and you've got a faster front-side bus and much faster memory and graphics that are in a whole other category of power than your old notebook.

If you can sell your 2.16 whitebook for a nice price and won't miss the firewire, I'd say go for it :)

you make a good point about the pennryn processor, i forgot about that key difference. and as you say, it does all depend on whether i can sell this lappy for a good price. i'm not about to lose a lot of money on a somewhat unnecessary upgrade.
 

Hyuga

macrumors regular
May 16, 2006
139
17
Helsinki or Barcelona
We actually faced this already at our company, old macbook user who uses lot of cpu sensitive processes had "upgrade" to new 2GHz MacBook and actually had "less performance" after that as he said.

Artist actually said same but he saw even more drop, but then again, not all programs benefit from 9400M, be it releated graphics or not.

Both were somewhat happy that its slightly smaller than previous white macbook and brighter screen when not using exterior screen.
 

jade

macrumors 6502
May 3, 2003
332
2
I'd say it is a waste of time to replace at this juncture. The new one won't be faster except for in graphics intensive apps. The size is significantly smaller, but that isn't enough in my book to justify a switch. Wait a year, then tradeup.
 

gyumilly

macrumors member
Oct 3, 2007
90
3
I would say yes especially when you get annoyed by loud / frequent fans on MB. I had a white MB and every time I do something (youtube flash, watching TV and movies), CPU gets hot and fans go to 5000-7000 rpm.

With the new laptop, fans stay at a default speed (2000) and CPU seems to stay around 50C.

Graphics boost from Intel 3100 to NVIDA was a big improvement to me. I don't do heavy graphics, but I can see the difference by looking at how easily the new MB handles.

The downside is, my wife wanted a new computer, so I gave mine, but it seems an old MB's resale value dropped quite a bit since the new one came out.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.