Value for money: Core 2 Duo gen vs i5/i7

[vexecuter]

Hey there,

So close to buying an i5 2.53ghz, 500GB hd, 4GB Ram.. then I thought, I could save a packet if I went for the last gen macbook pro.

I'm wanting to do audio recording, a bit of non-intense video, and a bit of gaming (Unreal Tournament 3, FPSes etc) eventually and want to run it into the ground (my current machine is 7 years old).

What are the reasons not to go for a Core 2 Duo over the i5/i7 on a performance/cost basis? Educate me...

Many thanks,
V.

 

[bunit]

I bought a refurbished Macbook Pro 2.8 Ghz with the 500 GB har-drive because of the money savings. I just think it's a great idea, and Apple technology never really gets to out of date, they just seem like you can keep around longer than Windows computers.

 

[Guiguiga]

You can go with this if your use is moderate (low demand on the video card) $1529 for: 2.66 C2D + 4GB + GeForce 9600mGT 256mb

or

You can go with this if your use is heavy (higher demand video card) $1779 for: 29 C2D + 4GB + GeForce 9600mGT 512mb

It all depends on how much power you really need. Don't forget, of you're a student you can get the student discount here if you decide for a brand new one.

Just so you know, I bought a refurbished mbp last year, it had the 9600m GT 512mb, I used to play call of duty modern warfare 2 just fine on it. I couldn't use the max resolution or have every single extra graphics feature ON, but I could play it with no lags on a medium resolution. SO I hope the new 330m GT 512mb will give me a little more power.

Get the newest one if money is no subject or if you're upgrading from an older mac like I did. I don't keep my computers for over a year, I sell them fast so I can always have the latest model and not lose a lot of money. Same with cars, etc...

Good luck.