how powerful is a 2017 i7/16GB vs 2017 i3/GB...worth the upgrade?

[alok87]

I mostly bought this a third device as my 14 inch Macbook Pro is my daily driver, my 2020 M1 Macbook Air 16GB/1TB is my backup driver/portable as I leave my 14 inch Macbook Pro is docked mode 90% of the time....

the 12 inch Macbook intrigued me due being priced as much as a base IPAD...I was able to nab one i3/8GB/256GB for $340..gently used in immaculate condition

I found another for $110 more with i7/16GB/512GB...around $450..would it be less laggy? because my current 2017 model is pretty snappy but it slows down for like 5 minutes once an hour as its probably getting hot and its throttling down....

the worst is when I dock it to my 4k dell 2718Q and IPAD Air using universal control....unlike my M1 Air or 14 inch M1 Pro...It really lags with webpage scrolling, opening finder, new excel workbook, etc.

would upgrading to i7/16GB make this model more usable docked to another display sidecar? or would it still lag docked?

i saw some youtube tests and it showed performance to be unchanged with i7/16gb vs i3/8GB

 

[Dhonk]

I purchased the m3 version. It only had slightly slower benchmarks than the others, but due to the processor I assume it should run cooler with less hiccups. In my experience, it's been a great iPad replacement. I use iPad mini on the go, rMB for around the house lounging or travel, and M1 Air as my daily driver

 

[alok87]

I purchased the m3 version. It only had slightly slower benchmarks than the others, but due to the processor I assume it should run cooler with less hiccups. In my experience, it's been a great iPad replacement. I use iPad mini on the go, rMB for around the house lounging or travel, and M1 Air as my daily driver

So it’s not worth the $100-$150 more to upgrade to an i7 with double ram… performance might be slightly better but not enough

 

[alok87]

Dang it just sold for $435 😭😭

I could have got my hands on a gently used 12 inch space grey i7/17/512GB with 180 cycles

 

[oneMadRssn]

Incidentally, I have both. 2017/i7/16gb/512gb and 2017/m3/8gb/256gb.

I haven't ran benchmark comparisons, but for day to day stuff, they feel identical in terms of speed and responsiveness when using Firefox, MS Office, etc.

 

[JiggyJaggy]

Incidentally, I have both. 2017/i7/16gb/512gb and 2017/m3/8gb/256gb.

I haven't ran benchmark comparisons, but for day to day stuff, they feel identical in terms of speed and responsiveness when using Firefox, MS Office, etc.

Is Safari snappier and faster on the i7 please? Also one ore question: does the M3 run cooler?

Im just trying to decide which 12" to buy as a long term portable option. TIA>

 

[oneMadRssn]

Is Safari snappier and faster on the i7 please? Also one ore question: does the M3 run cooler?

Im just trying to decide which 12" to buy as a long term portable option. TIA>

Fwiw, I've since sold both of those laptops. So I can only answer from what I remember and as of the macOS available in Fall 2022.

Safari was not snappier on the i7. It was pretty much the same on the M3. Maybe from first click to launch, it would launch a bit faster. But once loaded and launched, it was more or less the same.

The M3 certainly ran cooler. And not only ran cooler, but I never had the M3 complain or shut down from overheating, whereas the i7 did throw up a warning and shut down once or twice when I was using it in the sun on a hot sunny day. The passive cooling was simply insufficient for the i7.

 

[JiggyJaggy]

Thanks for that. From memory does anyone know if the M3 came in a 16gb / 512gb HD variant or if it was possible to custom order one back in 2017? Trying to see the best version to purchase pre-owned. I think the 16gb RAM would def help.

I had an online iCloud account so the 512gb is not a deal breaker.