Yet Another Debate Post

[Mac03ForLife]

I'm in the market for a new MBP since my MBA bit the dust a few days ago.

the cost of repair outweighs the cost of buying new, so I'm considering these two configurations:

13in i5 2.3GHz, 16GB LPDDR3, 256GB SSD

13in i7 (dual), 8GB LPDDR3, 256GB SSD

I will be primarily using this laptop for word, chrome, eclipse, vscode, and the occasional game under GEForce NOW. I will NOT be using this for Xcode or any kind of graphics-intensive application, as my thinkpad already can handle it. Just looking for this to be a daily driver for my CS courses

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
[doublepost=1557921202][/doublepost]Is a dual-core i7 going to perform better than a quad-core i5 or can i get away with a dual-core i5 for the uses i've outlined above (merged)
[doublepost=1557921338][/doublepost]Also, if I were to buy a quad-core i5 with 256GB SSD it would come out to be the same price as the dual core i7 but with only 8GB RAM

 

[LogicalApex]

If you're dealing with multi-threaded workloads more cores will be better than fewer cores...

RAM is soldered on and hard to change and more cores suits my workflow better so I'd opt for the quad i5 with 16GB given a choice between those two.

Others may have better opinions...

 

[DcXiao]

Suggest you to buy a certified refurbished 15 inch MacBook Pro on microcenter, only $1600(before tax)
I believe it fits you well, except for the size

 

[AnotherSoftwareEngineer]

chrome, eclipse, vscode,

lol, definitely get the 16gb one.