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Will 13" MBP ever have quad core CPU?

N

NutFlush920

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Aug 31, 2011
280
34
I love the 13" MBP form factor but want the power of a quad core CPU. Do you think Apple will put a quad core CPU in the 13" MBP this fall or should I get a 15" fall 2011 refurbished MBP for $1360 (only $160 more than the 2012 13" and $440 cheaper than the 2012 15" model)?

I plan to upgrade to 8gb of RAM and a Crucial M4 SSD either way I go.
 
in future yes.. maybe it will translate into a macbook air with quad-core.. or maybe a 13" retina.. nobody knows!
 
NutFlush920 said:
I love the 13" MBP form factor but want the power of a quad core CPU. Do you think Apple will put a quad core CPU in the 13" MBP this fall or should I get a 15" fall 2011 refurbished MBP for $1360 (only $160 more than the 2012 13" and $440 cheaper than the 2012 15" model)?

I plan to upgrade to 8gb of RAM and a Crucial M4 SSD either way I go.
Click to expand...

If you can live without the HD 3000 -> HD 4000 and USB 2.0 -> USB 3.0
then definitely go for it.
 
Southernboyj said:
If you can live without the HD 3000 -> HD 4000 and USB 2.0 -> USB 3.0
then definitely go for it.
Click to expand...

Good point, USB 3.0 would be my only complaint if I went with the refurb. Never even thought of that. Ugh, I hate decisions. Now my problem is USB 3.0 or quad core more important?

Bottom line is, I can't afford $1800 for a new 15" MBP and wanted quad core for Handbrake video conversion. On the other hand, USB 3.0 will be nice to be future proof for awhile.

i5 dual core isn't bad is it? I mean, it will blow away my Core 2 Dou MBP and Sony Vaio i3 I have now right?
 
NutFlush920 said:
Good point, USB 3.0 would be my only complaint if I went with the refurb. Never even thought of that. Ugh, I hate decisions. Now my problem is USB 3.0 or quad core more important?

Bottom line is, I can't afford $1800 for a new 15" MBP and wanted quad core for Handbrake video conversion. On the other hand, USB 3.0 will be nice to be future proof for awhile.

i5 dual core isn't bad is it? I mean, it will blow away my Core 2 Dou MBP and Sony Vaio i3 I have now right?
Click to expand...

Don't forget, Thunderbolt.

I'm sure adapters will be available soon for TB > USB3.0.

There are already hubs from TB to a plethora of connections, but it's quite expensive.
 
I would wait a bit for a retina model, we are hoping that these models should arrive this year
 
The benchmarks and tests I've seen for the current i5 13" MacBook Pro peg it at 2 to 3 times faster than my 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo Unibody MacBook.

That's a huge leap forward.

The eventual quad cores will come but man, it's compelling to upgrade right now.
 
I do recall there being a 35W TDP quadcore Ivy processor. I'd say its only time before the 13" gets it, the Retina probably being the time (whenever that comes out).

Although once you stick a quad in a 13" there really isnt much separating the 13 and 15 (besides a nice price hike), presuming they'd need to also put some sort of dedicated graphics into the 13 to power the retina.
 
My big complaint about retina is upgradeability. Don't get me wrong, the retina is badass but, I want to be able to upgrade my RAM and hard drive at my own leisure when I choose. With retina, you better buy now what you'll want down the road since you'll be stuck with that configuration til your next computer purchase.
 
NewbieCanada said:
When it gets quad core, the 15" will have moved on to octocore.
Click to expand...

Yeah... that could happen, but you won't see it anytime soon. That's just not the direction of the notebooks right now.


nuckinfutz said:
Yes

Haswell

Quad Cores should be mainstream for everything that isn't an Air or Ultrabook config.
Click to expand...

Actually they seem to be headed the direction of allocating any extra space and transistors to the gpu rather than additional cpu cores.
 
thekev said:
Yeah... that could happen, but you won't see it anytime soon. That's just not the direction of the notebooks right now.
Click to expand...

Just my shorthand for "whatever advances come to the 13-inch MBP (or the MacBook Air) they will always lag behind the 15-inch"
 
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