How to "downsize" 2011 15" 2.0ghz Macbook Pro

[tpmaxwell2]

I currently have a 2011 Macbook Pro, core i7 2.0ghz, 16gb 1600mhz ddr3 RAM, 512 Samsung EVO 840 SSD.

It still functions amazingly, but it's too big. I'm looking to replace it with one of this year's models (2017) but I can't decide. The geekbench for my machine still destroys all the current models (within my budget ~$1300) and so I've been waiting to upgrade for a few years. i do mid-level photo/video editing, leave at least 10 tabs open at all times, and that's pretty much it.

I don't care for the touchbar, so that's not an issue. Portability is my main desire, so, I'm wondering if I should go with the baseline macbook pro 13.3" or baseline 12" macbook. I was even considering a 2015 or 2016 12" macbook, or the baseline 2016 13.3" macbook pro. But, again, the benchmarks scare me and I don't want to lose too much power for portability.

Is it worth to upgrade or should I save for another year and just buy the top of the line 2018 12" macbook that should have newer, better chips? Or what other options should I consider? I don't mind buying refurbished either.

Thanks!

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

Get whatever you want. Don't worry about benchmarks, as they display optimum burst potential of a computer, not sustained real world performance. You could have double the benchmark score, but it's only capable of achieving that for 60 seconds, then it goes to 50% the performance of a newer one... Any newer computer should be faster, however for your use a 12" would be perfectly fine so again, don't look at that metric. You say portability is the main criteria anyway so focus on that.

If you don't need one at the moment you may as well wait till you do. As there will always be newer ones to use. The 12" will always be less powerful than the 13" Pro, but it's still a worthy computer. The 13" Pro will probably be a better buy unless you absolutely need it to be portable at the expense of performance.

 

[ZapNZs]

The base 2017 retina MacBook with the base Core m3 CPU outperforms your current system on several key metrics - surprisingly, it has nearly as good multicore performance, despite lacking two physical cores compared to your current system. (The 2016 and 2015 MacBooks are different stories - the 2017 m3 made a massive jump compared to the previous two iterations.)

So any level of the MacBook Pro is going to outperform your machine, both in regards to single core and multicore performance. If you do heavy editing, the MacBook Pro may be the best decision over the MacBook (if for no other reason than for P3), unless you desire portability over everything else.

 

[robvas]

I would upgrade right away before the 2011 Video card can fail

 

[tpmaxwell2]

I would upgrade right away before the 2011 Video card can fail

The video card failed last year, but I was able to get it fixed for free. That is what got me started looking for a new computer.

Thanks for the info ZapNZs. I feel much more confident about pulling the trigger and buying a retina Macbook. and if the m3 is better than my current processor, that m7/i7 should blow it's socks off!

 

[robvas]

Be careful. I realize the 2017 is even faster, but I have a 2016 MacBook and my 2013 MacBook Pro 13" was much faster. Very obvious when installing new software etc (like say NetBeans or something large)

 

[ZapNZs]

The video card failed last year, but I was able to get it fixed for free. That is what got me started looking for a new computer.

Thanks for the info ZapNZs. I feel much more confident about pulling the trigger and buying a retina Macbook. and if the m3 is better than my current processor, that m7/i7 should blow it's socks off!

Do note that the one area your 2011 MBP will still have a notable advantage is sustained multicore performance.

If you choose the MacBook, before spending a lot of time customizing it, it might be worth installing your most intensive-use Apps, using them at their most intensive settings, and seeing how the MacBook handles this. Chances are you will be thrilled - but, if not, then you are within the 14 day return policy and you have not spent a ton of time customizing macOS and installing every individual software App, meaning it would be relatively simple to trade the MacBook in for the MacBook Pro.

From what I gather, it sounds like you are seeking a reasonable amount of power but with maximum portability. In this situation, the 2017 rMB is IMO a great choice. If your budget is $1,300, that's enough for a refurb 2017 rMB with the base m3/8GB RAM/256 SSD and AppleCare+ (IMO AC+ is a must-have with the current generation rMB and MBP.)

 

[SarcasticJoe]

If your budget is $1300, i.e way than the base price of the older machine (which came with a mechanical HDD and 4GB of RAM), then you may want to look into second hand machines as a 4C/8T CPU is going to be faster or equal to a 2C/4T one in heavily multithreaded CPU benchmarks for still some time. Only way I see this changing is if Intel can make quadcores that fit into the 15W TDP space and uses for their 13" machines.

Single core performance is obviously way better on current 2C/4T machines and so is the speed of the storage media (even with your aftermarket SSD) so performance in what you're actually going to end up using it for may actually be better.

However I do have to admit that I have exactly the same machine (thou only with 8GB of RAM and a 250 GB Samsung 840) and despite thinking about replacing it with something newer since the summer of 2014, I just haven't been able to justify the cost. Even more so now that I've graduated and most of the use the machine gets is as my couch machine while I do my serious work and gaming on a Linux box I built this spring when AMD's Ryzen line came out.