Processor question for MBP

[MK25toLife]

Hello,

I am about to buy a mid-2017 13" MBP. I am just not sure what processor I will need (see below). The most resource intensive stuff I would do is most likely photo editing via Lightroom. I don't really play video games or do any video editing. The difference b/w the two is about $300. I would be ok spending that if it would "future proof" my MBP for an extra couple years. What are your thoughts regarding my situation?

• 2.3 GHz Intel Core i5 Dual-Core
• 2.5 GHz Intel Core i7 Dual-Core

 

[ZapNZs]

The base processor is sufficient - further, you don't get a huge gain for that $300. If you are going to do an upgrade, the $300 is better put towards the touch bar model as this is a more significant CPU boost (plus several other benefits), towards 16 GB of RAM, or towards a larger SSD.

 

[MK25toLife]

Thanks, anyone else have any feedback?

 

[mj_]

The i7 is not worth the extra money. All it does is give you higher turbo boost clocks which it can't utilize because of the very restricted thermal package. In other words: it'll run hotter and throttle more often than the i5 resulting in effectively the exact same level of performance.

Upgrading to 16 GB instead of 8 GB of RAM will be a much better investment.

 

[kohlson]

For what you describe, I would get the i5. For the 13-MBP, both i5 and i7 are dual core.

 

[leman]

I would be ok spending that if it would "future proof" my MBP for an extra couple years. What are your thoughts regarding my situation?

You cannot "future-proof" a computer by buying a slightly faster CPU. What they will give you is a slight reduction in processing times, allowing to potentially get a bit more work done per day/week/month, if your work can take care of extra power of course. But since the performance difference is actually minimal, both CPUs will become obsolete at the same time (that is, if the slower one gets too slow for everyday processing tasks, the faster one will be to slow for them as well).

As others have pointed out, RAM upgrade or SSD upgrade might be a better option if you are looking to keep the machine for long period of time.
[doublepost=1515433609][/doublepost]

The i7 is not worth the extra money. All it does is give you higher turbo boost clocks which it can't utilize because of the very restricted thermal package. In other words: it'll run hotter and throttle more often than the i5 resulting in effectively the exact same level of performance.

Of course its worth extra money, if you can benefit from extra performance. Despite a popular myth, the modern MacBook Pros actually have quite good thermal management and allow higher turbo boosts over sustained, long-lasting workloads (unlike may competitors which clock down drastically after the initial burst — thats why Geekbench doesn't tell the entire story). If you are a professional who generates money out of CPU processing, the extra $300 can be a worthwhile investment. Then again, you'd probably go for the 15" in the first place

 

[mj_]

@leman: the i5 doesn't throttle much, you're right. It's very good in maintaining a high level of computing performance over long periods of time. The i7, on the other hand, gets much hotter than the i5 and starts to throttle after a while. That's why despite its higher clock speed and higher turbo boost the i7 ends up being only slightly faster than the i5 while producing significantly more heat.

How I know? Because I've had it. My 2016 non-TouchBar was equipped with the 2.4 GHz i7 instead of the 2.0 GHz i5. I didn't even want the i7 - purchased a Refurbished i5 model and received the i7 instead. I've since stopped using the new models completely due to the shoddy and unreliable keyboard but who knows, maybe the i7's extra heat led to my keyboard failing much earlier than it otherwise would have...

 

[leman]

How I know? Because I've had it. My 2016 non-TouchBar was equipped with the 2.4 GHz i7 instead of the 2.0 GHz i5. I didn't even want the i7 - purchased a Refurbished i5 model and received the i7 instead.

Ah, ok. I didn't really test out the non-touchbar model. I didn't see any noteworthy throttling with toucher models though. Maybe its the 15W CPU, its optimised for burst in the first place.

 

[jerryk]

The i7 is overkill for your needs. Save the money or use it for a larger SSD, which will probably better future-proof the system.