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Want to buy a Macbook Pro need help!!!

M

Mac-rookie

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 17, 2010
2
0
UK
I'm a mac novice and I have wanted to get a mac for a while now and I've finally got the money together. However as it is quite a lot of cash to part with I am being a bit indecisive. I wanted to get the 15" mac but looking at the buyer's guide on this site it say's not to buy as there may be an update soon. What I don't want is to get it and a few weeks later a newer version comes out.

Any idea as to when this may be; I was looking to get my mac in early Jan. Also I've read that the iPad doesn't support flash is this the same with macbooks??? What is your advice.
 
Suppose it depends on what you want it for; flash is, has been, and can't see it being anything but a bit crummy- I don't find it an issue but then I don't use it so its not really a deal breaker.

The price is substantial and with all the rumourmongering going on about Sandy Bridge in the new year I'd be tempted to wait if I already had something to tide me over, but then again how much of a difference will it make to you? I've the 13"er and its a trojan (imo also represents the best value too)- how much of a performance uplift could justify denying yourself a fast new computer until then? Would you get ever the time back if an app launched half a second faster?

Big descision at a tricky time, don't envy your position but in your shoes I'd just flip a coin (life's a lot more fun that way:D)

ps if you've not had a mac before its sooo much more of an improvement than some any chip architecture, best of luck!
 
You'll not see an update in 2010. Most likely the MBP will see an update sometime in the first quarter. Whether that's end of January, or end of March is anyone's guess.
 
Kyffin said:
Suppose it depends on what you want it for; flash is, has been, and can't see it being anything but a bit crummy- I don't find it an issue but then I don't use it so its not really a deal breaker.

The price is substantial and with all the rumourmongering going on about Sandy Bridge in the new year I'd be tempted to wait if I already had something to tide me over, but then again how much of a difference will it make to you? I've the 13"er and its a trojan (imo also represents the best value too)- how much of a performance uplift could justify denying yourself a fast new computer until then? Would you get ever the time back if an app launched half a second faster?

Big descision at a tricky time, don't envy your position but in your shoes I'd just flip a coin (life's a lot more fun that way:D)

ps if you've not had a mac before its sooo much more of an improvement than some any chip architecture, best of luck!
Click to expand...

Flash will work on a Mac, just to clarify. It just doesn't work on iDevices.

The next revision will likely be late Jan-Feb, but it could be later, as none of us really know.
 
alust2013 said:
Flash will work on a Mac, just to clarify. It just doesn't work on iDevices.

The next revision will likely be late Jan-Feb, but it could be later, as none of us really know.
Click to expand...

alust2013 is right: it does work and I wouldn't want to mislead by suggesting otherwise.

To put 'crummy' into context I've had two glitches with flash content on websites in the last few months (both sorted out by refreshing the page). Still, as mac has preformed flawlessly otherwise so its probably a pee in a mattress sort of thing.
 
You have the money now? sweet

1) put it all in a high interest savings account

2) will till Mar-Apr 2011

3) withdraw your money and buy MBP

4) spend the extra money you gained from interest on a nice new la robe case :D
 
lol i skipped the last sentence in the OP and from then on i was like well duh! Mac's have flash.. i mean have you heard of the new macbook air.

so excuse my foolishness and let me answer the your question:
now i have mentioned this on another thread, but htis is what i recall:

apple is trying different things right now:
so here is problem 1:

Basically, Intel and Nvidia are in a dispute over making graphics chipsets for Intel's Core i-series CPUs, and that's one of the reasons that the 2010 MBP 13" still uses a Core 2 Duo instead of a Core i3. Long story short, if it doesn't get resolved, you're looking at one of five possibilities for the 2011 Macbook.Long, somewhat technical explanation:
ttp://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/…

1. Nvidia and Intel get along, and Intel lets Nvidia make a chipset for their Sandy Bridge CPU. So you get a MBP with an Sandy Bridge Processor, an Nvidia graphics chip, and probably the same phenomenal battery life on the current MBP 13".
2. Nvidia and Intel don't get along. Apple decides to go with a 3-chip solution instead of the current 2-chip solution so that they can still use Nvidia graphics. The problem is that the 3-chip solution takes up more space and draws more power, which means less room for the battery. Battery life suffers.
3. Nvidia and Intel don't get along. Apple decides to to use Intel's on-chip graphics instead of Nvidia's chips, to maintain the current 2-chip configuration. Battery life is still great, but graphics performance suffers.
4. Nvidia and Intel don't get along. Apple stays on Core 2 Duo (really unlikely)
5. Nvidia and Intel don't get along. Apple instead switches to AMD CPUs in their MBP 13", which would somewhat degrade CPU performance.

So:
1) Intel Sandy Bridge, Nvidia Graphics, 4-8GB RAM, 10 hours battery life
2) Intel Sandy Bridge, Nvidia Graphics, 4-8GB RAM, probably 6 hours battery life.
3) Intel Sandy Bridge, Intel Integrated Graphics, 4-8GB RAM, 10 hours battery life.
4) Pretty much the same as the 2010. RAM might get bumped up, and they might use a better Core 2 Duo.
5) Some sort of AMD(Phenom, maybe their due in 2011 "Bulldozer" chip), 4-8GB RAM, Nvidia or ATI graphics, 8-10 hour battery life


here is problem 2:
OSX Lion is coming out in the summer.. this is the back to school season also so.. they might come out with the update during this time.

it will most likely be Q 1.. but when in Q1 exactly is hard to say. the apple event is in feb. so if they really really want to come out with the update it will be feb. but once again this depends on when Intel (if they go with intel) releases the chips
 
adnoh said:
You have the money now? sweet

1) put it all in a high interest savings account

2) will till Mar-Apr 2011

3) withdraw your money and buy MBP

4) spend the extra money you gained from interest on a nice new la robe case :D
Click to expand...

With the non-existent interest rates here in the UK I'm acquiring more in the last year than I have in the last ten! Seriously, I doubt you'd get a pony back on that locked capital- you'll also be putting some liquidity back into the economy:D
 
Last edited:
What are you doing with it? the 15" is a spectacle, i bought mine at the end of august and this machine pwns. I also considered waiting but i had no real reason, i wanted power, i got the 2.66 ghz i7, i want a god graphics card for star craft2, i have the nvidia gt 330m with 512 MB RAM and i am extremely happy with it, i have 4GB of ram and that need to be increased bad but thats not big deal and i want an SSD but i am waiting till actually affordably pricing. I say if the machine does everything you need now and everything you plan to do for a while then its a great investment. The sandy bridge processors are just faster versions of the ix series, its not like they are adding tons of new features that will be insane. Let me know if you have any other questions and enjoy your shopping =D
 
What's the score with the hi res screen as opposed to the bog standard one, should I go for hi res?
 
Mac-rookie said:
What's the score with the hi res screen as opposed to the bog standard one, should I go for hi res?
Click to expand...

How much pixel resolution do you need on the laptop screen? Higher resolution means smaller object sizes on the screen. I'd prefer an external monitor that has a supported resolution and size of my choice.
 
Mac-rookie said:
What's the score with the hi res screen as opposed to the bog standard one, should I go for hi res?
Click to expand...

It all depends on what you want. There is no right/wrong answer. You should go for the one that you decide you need. I'm not trying to sound coy but this is a personal preference. Some want more screen real estate, and don't mind that every appears smaller on the screen. Others think that its too small and opt for the standard resolution.

My advice is to head over to an apple store or any retailer that has both and compare them yourself.
 
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