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how much of a difference will merom make?

F

figmentpigment

macrumors member
Original poster
May 26, 2006
35
0
southeastern kentucky
sorry if this has been discussed before--ive been readin around on this site for awhile now and i havent seen anything about this yet.


i plan on buying a 17" macbook pro for college. theres a chance i'll be stuck with it and only it for all 4 years (though im gonna start saving immediately to get a desktop hopefully before i start my 3rd year). i'll be using it for gaming, movies, internetbloggingetcetc, and whatever a graphic design major throws my way.

school starts around august 17th. ive never used a mac and id wanted to order the mbp as soon as possible so i could adjust. but. all this talk about merom has obviously changed things.

id like to wait, but since its only gonna be released in august, and it would take awhile to get the laptop in, thats cutting it *really* close.

ive heard one person say it would be ..easy to upgrade (i dont know much about this stuff, sorry =\) later on, and others say itd be impossible. could someone clear that up?

and, most importantly, would it even make any difference for me? for the things i'm gonna be using it for, will it really be a big deal for me to *not* wait? would i even notice the difference?
 
figmentpigment said:
sorry if this has been discussed before--ive been readin around on this site for awhile now and i havent seen anything about this yet.


i plan on buying a 17" macbook pro for college. theres a chance i'll be stuck with it and only it for all 4 years (though im gonna start saving immediately to get a desktop hopefully before i start my 3rd year). i'll be using it for gaming, movies, internetbloggingetcetc, and whatever a graphic design major throws my way.

school starts around august 17th. ive never used a mac and id wanted to order the mbp as soon as possible so i could adjust. but. all this talk about merom has obviously changed things.

id like to wait, but since its only gonna be released in august, and it would take awhile to get the laptop in, thats cutting it *really* close.

ive heard one person say it would be ..easy to upgrade (i dont know much about this stuff, sorry =\) later on, and others say itd be impossible. could someone clear that up?

and, most importantly, would it even make any difference for me? for the things i'm gonna be using it for, will it really be a big deal for me to *not* wait? would i even notice the difference?
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august 17th? is this school in california by any chance?
 
i think you would be fine just getting the MBP now and upping the ram to at least 1GB (but in your case probably 2GB). i dont think you'll notice that mucb of a difference and the chips may not be put into them until sep-oct.
 
Easy upgrade ...

Yes, if you sell the machine and buy a new one.

Paying a lot of money to remove and replace the CPU and voiding the warranty will net you a 20% boost -- it is major surgery, aka desolder/resolder a CPU.

If you wait for the new Merom AND 965 chipset in the machine, you will have a notebook with an 8GB ram limit -- along with whatever new stuff comes with the chipset.

While it may seem like a lot of memory now, in 3 years in Graphics design -- you may welcome the extra memory.
 
what about the core 2 stuff for desktops (conroe, i think? i dont know =\)? isnt it supposed to be out in july?


i could possibly get an imac and try to save up for a macbook later on. i'd say between doing the disney college program next summer, and saving from work this coming school year, i could afford a macbook (or something like it) by the end of next summer.
 
I go to Pratt for Industrial Design; but most of the kids in COMD run around with old iBooks and get the job done. Point is: the latest and greatest helps, but the machine you get now should make it through fine for the duration of your education. (I also have a friend who does graphic design and alot of his work is done on an older powerbook)

Memron will be faster. But only the chip essentially is going to be faster (and associated hardware) Your harddrive and such will remain basically the same speed, and is a real bottleneck for me when I am doing image editing. The amount of time saved actually processing data with the better chip isnt going to be night-and-day is my point. If you really learn the programs well, with all the shortcuts, you will work faster than if you owned the fastest machine.

I would wait until the end of july and make a decision. By then, you should have a good feel for where the MBPs stand in terms of speed. The machine can only get faster and/or cheaper by then. But the machines, where they stand now, are up-to-task.

Just max out the RAM (get the remainder from somewhere else, not apple, to save some $$) and check out Amazon.coms prices, they are cheaper than Apple Educational. Amazon usually has rebates, and no sales tax. Usually apples edu discount just barely covers the sales tax for me.
 
I strongly suggest checking out your school's computer store for the best education prices on apples. I bought my MBP for $300 off the education price (for a total of $500 off). Right now UCLA's computer store is offering MBP 2.16 for an extra $300 off and 20" iMacs for an extra $200 off.

-- David
 
debrey said:
I strongly suggest checking out your school's computer store for the best education prices on apples. I bought my MBP for $300 off the education price (for a total of $500 off). Right now UCLA's computer store is offering MBP 2.16 for an extra $300 off and 20" iMacs for an extra $200 off.

-- David
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my school only offers stuff like that for dells =\
ick, right?


i'll look into the amazon thing but im really likin the ipod deal th ey have right now. my ipod died (completely) a few months ago and id given up hope on affording a new one. this makes it completely possible.
 
Good question.

Personally I would just get it now. This means you have time to break it in and then evaluate it. I personally think Memrom is overhyped. Sure it has some pretty cool things that comes with it but is it going to be _that_ much better than what we have now? I really don't think so. Just max out on RAM and you'll be golden.


And California Schools start late August. August 28/29 for most.
 
mortey said:
Good question.

Personally I would just get it now. This means you have time to break it in and then evaluate it. I personally think Memrom is overhyped. Sure it has some pretty cool things that comes with it but is it going to be _that_ much better than what we have now? I really don't think so. Just max out on RAM and you'll be golden.


And California Schools start late August. August 28/29 for most.
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i think im gonna have to just get it now after tonight. my stupid dell has been absolutely *crawling* for NO REASON (..that i can figure out). i had 2 IE windows and a few msn messenger conversations open. nothing else that i could see was running.

of course, my task manager thing has just ..NOT worked.. for years now. its like it never existed. so. i can never tell what my computers doing.

i seriously felt like throwing this thing out the window earlier. i was trying to reply to a thread on another message board and each letter took a solid 4 seconds to appear after i typed it. im a patient person but thats honestly a bit much for me.
 
macbook+desktop

If I were you I'd just get a Macbook for now, I'm sure it'd be sufficient,
then later on get a cheap desktop for more demanding games and such.
Paying twice the money just for, basically, an alu cover and a larger screen/better gfx
sounds like a huge waste of money for a student.
Also, I doubt the macbooks pro's will be upgraded before sep/oct.
 
taliz said:
If I were you I'd just get a Macbook for now, I'm sure it'd be sufficient,
then later on get a cheap desktop for more demanding games and such.
Paying twice the money just for, basically, an alu cover and a larger screen/better gfx
sounds like a huge waste of money for a student.
Also, I doubt the macbooks pro's will be upgraded before sep/oct.
Click to expand...

i think i might just get a macbook pro for now. i dont think the macbook could seriously handle hardly any of the games id like to get. but i dunno.

the absolute "cant-do-without" ones are obviously world of warcraft, the sims 2, and rollercoaster tycoon 3. the ones ive always played. and just ... cant live without.

but there are lots of others id seriously like to buy. the most demanding being oblivion.
 
If you buy an iMac now you can also drop a merom chip into it later on down the road for a hundred or two when they've been out for a while so going for the iMac might be the best option for you right now.
 
figmentpigment said:
i think i might just get a macbook pro for now. i dont think the macbook could seriously handle hardly any of the games id like to get. but i dunno.

the absolute "cant-do-without" ones are obviously world of warcraft, the sims 2, and rollercoaster tycoon 3. the ones ive always played. and just ... cant live without.

but there are lots of others id seriously like to buy. the most demanding being oblivion.
Click to expand...

It sound's like your mind is set on the Macbook Pro. But..
From what I hear the Macbook handles WoW without any problems, the 950 chip isnt that bad really, its faster than for example a radeon 8500(which I used to play WoW with on my 24" dell) or a mobile 9600. I'm quite sure The sims and rollercoaster won't require more either. Oblivion might be tough I guess, but then you could get an xbox360 or something to play games on, and still save a bunch of cash(isn't that what matters?). ;)
 
joebells said:
If you buy an iMac now you can also drop a merom chip into it later on down the road for a hundred or two when they've been out for a while so going for the iMac might be the best option for you right now.
Click to expand...

that does sound really nice. i didnt know that.


..anyone have any advice on whether or not i'll really *need* a laptop for my first year of college? i dont plan on going home terribly often so i dont need anything *too* portable. is it inconvenient to have a desktop only in college?
 
taliz said:
It sound's like your mind is set on the Macbook Pro. But..
From what I hear the Macbook handles WoW without any problems, the 950 chip isnt that bad really, its faster than for example a radeon 8500(which I used to play WoW with on my 24" dell) or a mobile 9600. I'm quite sure The sims and rollercoaster won't require more either. Oblivion might be tough I guess, but then you could get an xbox360 or something to play games on, and still save a bunch of cash(isn't that what matters?). ;)
Click to expand...

my only problems with the macbook are the size (seems a bit small =\) and, obviously, the graphics stuff. my dell, when we got it, was able to handle the games at the time "okay," but within a year, it couldnt handle anything coming out. at all. wouldnt even touch 'em. im just really afraid of that happening again. its why i havent played anything new in 4 years =( im still playing the first sims series and rollercoaster tycoon 2. when things went pretty and 3d, i had to stop. and wait. so. lol. im just a bit worried about that.

i would like a macbook to work though. i always wanted a pretty, glossy white mac. also a plus for the imac.
 
Ok here's what I'm hearing.

I want to play WoW on this comp. If you're still playing WoW (and I am so don't feel too bad) you are probably into the PvP and Raid portions of the game. Frankly, the Macbook WILL NOT CUT IT for this type of WoW experience.

Now, if it were me. I would buy an iMac. It has everything that your Macbook will have in the way of power. Upgrade the RAM as much as you can and then decide if you need a laptop. Some college students need them all the time, but usually the Desktop replacement type machines are wasted, bulky, and awkward to haul to and take out in class.

My philosophy is to have a moderately powerful desktop and a very portable laptop.
 
Barham said:
Ok here's what I'm hearing.

I want to play WoW on this comp. If you're still playing WoW (and I am so don't feel too bad) you are probably into the PvP and Raid portions of the game. Frankly, the Macbook WILL NOT CUT IT for this type of WoW experience.

Now, if it were me. I would buy an iMac. It has everything that your Macbook will have in the way of power. Upgrade the RAM as much as you can and then decide if you need a laptop. Some college students need them all the time, but usually the Desktop replacement type machines are wasted, bulky, and awkward to haul to and take out in class.

My philosophy is to have a moderately powerful desktop and a very portable laptop.
Click to expand...


that last part is what i was thinking would be best, and why i was planning on getting an imac sometime in college. but i think you might have the best idea. get the imac now (its a hell of a lot cheaper than the macbook pro, really) and if i really need it, get a macbook later. the macbook pro was gonna have to be on a student loan (thats all that id be using the loan for though--well, and a new digital camera cause my old ones dyin), but i think i can get my parents to pay for the imac. and if i really need it later on, i can get the student loan and buy a macbook during the school year.
 
It's a hassle to own two computers, but some people don't mind. I would get the MBP, it's what you wanted originally, and it will serve you well for years to come.
 
dferrara said:
It's a hassle to own two computers, but some people don't mind. I would get the MBP, it's what you wanted originally, and it will serve you well for years to come.
Click to expand...

It is? Tell that to my Power Mac G5 which I use as a desktop (I'm waiting on delivery of a MBP to replace it), my HP SFF PC running XP Media Center that I use for streaming media to 1 of my HDTVs or watching on the HDTV in my dork room, and finally my Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 EM64T Dell PowerEdge server that just sits under the desk and is used for file serving (and work related tasks) and accessing from work to do stuff when I'm bored. Tetris-BSD over ssh has got me through a heap of boring days. :D

People need as many computers as they need in my case 1 sure isn't enough to do what I need.
 
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