which processor for MBP

[pettit423]

I'm looking to buy a new mac book pro very soon. My plan is to wait until April until the sandy bridge processors come out. My question is which size processor do should I get. I want the 15in MBP so theres three/four processors. I'm a engineering student so I run AutoCAD and photoshop but thats it for school. I also like to rip and edit movies using handbrake and other programs like that.

I was going to get the 2.8 i7 processor but I dont know if its really worth the money.

Anyone's thoughts would be great.

Thanks

 

[brentsg]

If those are the apps that are important to you then you are best to get the most CPU power that you can. They will need it.

Personally I wouldn't purchase a notebook if those were my intended apps.

 

[SuperCachetes]

If those are the apps that are important to you then you are best to get the most CPU power that you can. They will need it.

Personally I wouldn't purchase a notebook if those were my intended apps.

C'mon... Don't let fancy software brand names make your imagination run wild. I have a 2.53 c2d MBP and I run AutoCAD and Photoshop inside Parallels with no issues whatsoever. When you start talking 200MB Revit models, then yeah, you might want to max out every number and every checkbox on the order form.

OP, are you planning on waiting for a SB machine, or are you just waiting for the markdowns on the current machines? Because if you are are waiting for Sandy Bridge, there really isn't much point in speculating about purchases until they appear in MBPs. And who said it was April?

Anyway, if you want to maximize the computer's lifespan, sure, get the Big Kahuna processor. But personally I think any of the MBPs will run what you are talking about for student purposes for the time being. Buy what you can afford, upgrade with third-party memory, and you'll be good-to-go for years.

 

[pettit423]

speculation to the sandy bridge in april. only speculation.

I plan on buying the sandy bridge processor. Do the old computers go on sale when the new ones come out? I guess best buy might do that to get rid of their inventory but i cant see apple doing it.

my plan is to spend the money now and get a great computer and be able to use it after i graduate for many years later.

 

[dallas112678]

I'm looking to buy a new mac book pro very soon. My plan is to wait until April until the sandy bridge processors come out. My question is which size processor do should I get. I want the 15in MBP so theres three/four processors. I'm a engineering student so I run AutoCAD and photoshop but thats it for school. I also like to rip and edit movies using handbrake and other programs like that.

I was going to get the 2.8 i7 processor but I dont know if its really worth the money.

Anyone's thoughts would be great.

Thanks

Theres a pretty good chance that Apple won't put in any quad core processors with sandy bridge and you would have to wait for the CPU Shrink (ivy bridge) to get that. Anyway, they will be more than powerful enough for anything you'll have to do for school.

 

[brentsg]

C'mon... Don't let fancy software brand names make your imagination run wild. I have a 2.53 c2d MBP and I run AutoCAD and Photoshop inside Parallels with no issues whatsoever. When you start talking 200GB Revit models, then yeah, you might want to max out every number and every checkbox on the order form.

I'm not "letting fancy software brand names scare me". I've been through engineering school for a couple of degrees, and I've been doing engineering work for about 15 years. I meant exactly what I said, and I'm speaking from experience not imagination. If my goal was AutoCAD, Photoshop, and video encoding then I wouldn't want to use a notebook.

Now, if the OP absolutely positively must have portability then it is what it is. But I'd still get the best CPU I could or it won't have longevity. My guess is that any of the CPUs will be fine for the bare bones work you need to do for your undergrad school work. The extra power will benefit video encoding for sure. If there's any chance you might pursue a graduate degree then if you're anything like me, you might surpass its capabilities.

For reference I have a 2.53GHz C2D MBP and a hex 3.33GHz Mac Pro. Video encodes alone make me want to jump off the roof when done on the MBP, but perhaps I'm a bit impatient.