If I get a MB I'll just use it for web, word processing and spreadsheets. I'll use my PC for gaming and photo editing. A MBP would need to be able to run games pretty well.
I guess I'd prefer to just have a MBP, but am a little concerned that it won't be able to run demanding games for the next couple of years. Any thoughts?
As of the past three weeks, the Core2Duo MBP has been hailed as one of the most capable gaming notebook in its class (especially if you're talking about the 15.4" line). My twin brother is a hardcore gamer with obsessive hardware tendencies, and even
he is dumbfounded with the incredible show of power and performance in the notebook's latest revision. He's written some of his thoughts after CalBoy's quote below. Note that the factors discussed function under the assumption that you will be running Windows XP or Vista under BootCamp.
Frankly, no laptop is a great gaming machine. Even current PC laptops can only game for a short period of time, and then their components are too old for the latest games. While I'm a fan of the mbp, for you, the mb wins. The stuff you want the mb for won't change much from mb to mbp. But gaming...that will change.
Gamers do have a tendency to create power-hungry software (games) at full bore until the hardware has a chance to catch up, at which point there are even newer games taxing the newest hardware. However, in most cases games can be played on most mainstream hardware because developers understand that the majority of people don't have the $500 necessary to purchase a single component for their computers (in this case, high-end video cards). If you absolutely need the newest games running at the highest settings with all the eye-candy enabled, then CalBoy definitely has a point.
The only real gaming bottleneck that exists on the MBP is its video card, the M8600 GT. As of right now, this is still the best mobile graphics card capable of running the newly released DirectX 10. The M8700 has been announced, but it will most likely be limited to 17+ inch laptops. Truly high-end DirectX 10 mobile graphics cards will be released in the coming months, but they will have to live inside laptops of the desktop replacement sort to function reasonably.
Honestly, it would be much easier to buy a Macbook or Macbook Pro and build or purchase a nice desktop to play games on than try to compromise. Personally, I'd go with the MBP, but that is only because I don't have the option of keeping a desktop around and would like to have the best gaming capability I can get in a 15.4 inch laptop. 17+ inch laptops (although the MBP 17 inch is quite thin) are almost always desktop replacements, in which case you should seriously consider just buying a desktop.
Also, I really admire that Apple managed to put the same components in the 15.4 inch MBP as they put in the 17 inch MBP. That way, the choice between the two models is limited to screen-size and resolution, instead of a performance hit.
My brother reflects on the doomed nature of compromise in gaming laptops. I would personally like to add that, unless you
demand the absolute pinnacle of performance in your everyday gaming, you should get the MBP 2.4 GHz with the extra RAM and the 7200 RPM disk. It should last you at least two years.
I recommend
this review for additional viewpoints.
