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Which one? Same price

Which one?

  • Macbook pro 17" Core 2 duo

    Votes: 11 21.2%

  • Macbook pro 15" i5

    Votes: 41 78.8%
  • Total voters
    52
D

Doc750

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Aug 11, 2010
803
4
I can get a brand new macbook pro 17" with intel core 2 duo, or I can get 15" i5. Both are brand new, both are the same price.

Is the i5 processor worth losing the extra screen space? Both are just as portable for me. As far as speed, at the store they both seemed quick. I couldn't tell the difference.

thanks
 
bigjobby said:
that depends on your intended use.
Click to expand...

Was gonna say the same thing... like minds ;)


Doc750 said:
I can get a brand new macbook pro 17" with intel core 2 duo, or I can get 15" i5. Both are brand new, both are the same price.

Is the i5 processor worth losing the extra screen space? Both are just as portable for me. As far as speed, at the store they both seemed quick. I couldn't tell the difference.

thanks
Click to expand...

From my personal experience, the 15" is more portable thus it's not too weighty plus it's based on newer architecture.
If later you need to, you could always plug-in an external display... the rest is up to you.
 
UltraNEO* said:
Was gonna say the same thing... like minds ;)




From my personal experience, the 15" is more portable thus it's not too weighty plus it's based on newer architecture.
If later you need to, you could always plug-in an external display... the rest is up to you.
Click to expand...

portability is not an issue for me. Theyre both about the same size.

I just dont want to buy the core2duo and realize its outdated, and the i5 would have been a better option in the long run.

i honestly don't do anything fancy to fully utilize either one
 
17 inch is heaven. I love mine, and with unibody it got so much sturdier and sexy.

Go for that one, unless you really freak out about portability, but i carry mine everywhere and won't complain. Also, i'm guessing you wont be living off your computer, so the extra speed won't make a difference for years to come. And maybe you can upgrade when it does in 5 years.

EDIT

Sorry I just saw your other post. I would not worry about it if you are doing nothing fancy. My MBP is 4 years old and I honestly have no complaints, and yes, I will be getting an SSD in christmas so that I can get another year out of it.
 
Doc750 said:
portability is not an issue for me. Theyre both about the same size.

I just dont want to buy the core2duo and realize its outdated, and the i5 would have been a better option in the long run.

i honestly don't do anything fancy to fully utilize either one
Click to expand...


Then, you've just answered your own question. Currently I'm using the older non-unibody MBP and it's coping with everything I'm throwing at it. OK.. handbreak is slower compared to the desktop but that's expected.
 
For general use "browsing internet, watching youtube videos, etc" the C2D and i5 won't make a difference. If you are going to do any rendering or number crunching i5 will smoke it. Otherwise performance wise they're very similar. The 330m is a bit faster than 9600gt as well, but honestly, it's not mind blowing.
 
I checked the 17" because I think it's better value for money in MOST CASES. I mean most people don't need power except when they use 3D or editing programs etc...

But if you plan to carry it around with you the 17 inches is definitely too big on my opinion.
 
Doc750 said:
I can get a brand new macbook pro 17" with intel core 2 duo, or I can get 15" i5. Both are brand new, both are the same price.

Is the i5 processor worth losing the extra screen space? Both are just as portable for me. As far as speed, at the store they both seemed quick. I couldn't tell the difference.

thanks
Click to expand...

If you're looking at that $1599 17" @ Microcenter it's a very good deal. Since Apple is only using the dual core i5 I don't see a great difference between the two. Sure the underlying architecture of the i5 is better but for general tasks the 2.8 C2D will be fine and the extra 2" matters when working on multiple tasks or watching a movie.

Cheers,
 
I'd go with the i5, the smaller form factor, newer chipset. makes it a no brainer in my mind.
 
Considering that a brand new MacMini has a 2.66GHz Core2Duo, and the i5 is already to be succeeded by the SandyBridge CPUs soon, get the 17", or wait a bit until you get the 17" i7 for the same price.

Btw, do you refer to these?
bildschirmfoto20100826us.png

If "same price" is $1800 for you, then:
bildschirmfoto20100826u.png
 
TRUCRACKER said:
Doesn't mean it isn't getting outdated.
Click to expand...

Just because it's a few years old it doesn't mean it's a rusting relic. Unlike old CPUs most modern processors have very comparable general purpose performance. Loading chrome isn't going to be any faster because you opted for the i7.

Hell, you want a real boost in speed get a SSD. Mechanical hard drives are the real bottleneck in a modern computer anyways.
 
Do you plan on keeping the computer it's entire life or do you see yourself selling in a couple years?

I personally think the 15" size is an easier sell then the 17". I feel like the 17" causes you to look for the nitch people who want that. The 15" really is the sweet spot for portability vs screen size.
 
Personally, I'd just get whichever you prefer to use. The processor will not make a difference if you aren't using it to capacity, regardless if it is "old" C2D or new i5. Watching youtube, opening apps, browsing the web and typing docs will not be any faster with the newer processor. Sure it won't be absolutely cutting-edge tech, but if the 17" suits your wants and needs better, go for it. That is still a pretty good deal, being $900 off the original price I believe.
 
ok so initially after giving it some more thought, I was going to hold off. But then I found an open box for $1400 for the 17". It's like God is telling me to get it. :D I placed the order, when I get the confirmation email, I'll go out to the store and get it. Hopefully there won't be any snags.

wish me luck!
 
Glad to hear you finally decided

Like what majority of people said..
- Comparing a laptop to its model in the previous year or even a couple of years.. not a huge difference.
- Comparing a laptop to one that is more than 5 years, huge difference.
 
picked it up a few hours ago. Brought it home, and switched out to the hard drive for a faster one that I had previously installed in my macbook. Everything is working flawlessly.

I love the extra screen space. I used to have a large screen PC laptop before I got the macbook 13" a year and half ago. I didn't realize how much I missed it.

thank you everyone for your input. I know it's not the latest and greatest, but for $1400, I think I did alright.



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