Macbook Pro refresh next month?

Anybody have an answer for me? LoL. I just wanna know if the upgrade to an i5 will change the performance in some of my games like black ops and things of that nature, I currently have a 2010 c2d mbp with the nvideo geforce gt 320m.

I would doubt it very strongly.

The CPU is more powerful, but the graphics are going to be the bottleneck

There might be a boost in certain things, like the speed levels load, but you are not going to see noticeable fps increase or have the ability to increase graphics quality.

It's even possible the game performance will go down, the intel chip is not strong on shaders, and will be using intel drivers, which have never been the most optimized.
 
The HD3000 is supposed to be comparable to the 320m. It's possible you might see a little improvement, but nowhere near enough to make upgrading worthwhile just for that.
 
Anybody have an answer for me? LoL. I just wanna know if the upgrade to an i5 will change the performance in some of my games like black ops and things of that nature, I currently have a 2010 c2d mbp with the nvideo geforce gt 320m.

If playing new games is a priority, then you want a 15’’ MBP, not 13’’. I’m sure the 15’’ line will update the discrete GPU.
 
Rumors flying fast and furious.

Rumors of the imminent MacBook Pro refresh are gaining even further momentum. So far, we've heard reports that the new, upcoming MacBook Pros will sport larger trackpads, weigh slightly less than the current models and have a 8 - 16 GB SSD boot drive to house Mac OS X (everything else will be stored on a separate HDD). It's also been reported that the new MacBook Pros will come with a custom all-SSD option, but at a higher price, of course.

Now, French Mac site MacGeneration has chimed in too. The site corroborates claims that the new MacBook Pros will feature a SSD (16GB mSATA) boot drive, providing faster startup times and performance improvements. It also claims that new MacBook Pros will weigh 200 - 300 grams less than the current versions: 1.8 kg for the 13-inch model, 2.3 kg for the 15-inch model and 2.65 kg for the 17-inch model.

The site also expects HD resolution displays (1,440 x 900 for the 13-inch model and 1,680 x 1,050 for the 15-inch model), plus a newer Core i3 chip, an extra USB port and 12 hours of battery life for the 13-inch model. The 15-inch model will have 10 hours of battery life.

Additionally, MacGeneration claims that customers will be able to order the 15- and 17-inch models with additional storage (a solid-state drive replacing the SuperDrive). The 17-inch model is expected to have 8 GB of RAM and the high-end 13-inch model will apparently have a matte screen order option, too. Also, the French site claims the MacBook Pros will see the introduction of a "new technology." Most likely, this will be the introduction of Light Peak, or, if again the rumors are to be believed, the now formally titled Thunderbolt technology.

And last, but not least, MacGeneration says the white MacBook model will be discontinued.
 
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The HD3000 is supposed to be comparable to the 320m. It's possible you might see a little improvement, but nowhere near enough to make upgrading worthwhile just for that.

Here is a decent comparison: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Prod...4.155.158.159.162.163.170.171.178.179.182.183

It isn't a massive upgrade over the NVIDIA 320M, but at least the Intel IGP isn't horrible like it has been in the past, and it finally allows for Apple to move past the Core 2 Duo/NVIDIA combo in their 13" notebooks.
 
I was hoping for a resolution boost on the 13" (same as the mba has).. but i'm still buying one

First macbook for me :)
 
I was hoping for a resolution boost on the 13" (same as the mba has).. but i'm still buying one

First macbook for me :)

Was definitely disappointed with that. The 15" MBP is too much for me considering the upgrades I want for it.
 
I'm going to get one, but I'm now conflicted as to which one.

For my purposes, the graphics card is a wash, I get by with the GMAX3100 of crappiness just fine (it's a work machine).

But I can't decide between the 13" 2.7Ghz i7 Dual and the 15" 2.0Ghz i7 Quad. My usage is rarely going to take much advantage of quad core, but a faster dual core would be useful. Not sure if the i7 quad would keep up with the i7 dual on single threaded programs.


Either way I'm upgrading the ram to 8gb, installing a 120gb SSD as boot drive, and swapping the Optical Drive for a OptiDrive (which will house the 500gb it comes with). Because I want too! ;)
 
I'm glad to see the 13" models have FINALLY moved away from Core2Duo CPUs, but I'm going to hold off on replacing my current MBP, since I have only had it for a year and a few months.
 
I'm going to get one, but I'm now conflicted as to which one.

For my purposes, the graphics card is a wash, I get by with the GMAX3100 of crappiness just fine (it's a work machine).

But I can't decide between the 13" 2.7Ghz i7 Dual and the 15" 2.0Ghz i7 Quad. My usage is rarely going to take much advantage of quad core, but a faster dual core would be useful. Not sure if the i7 quad would keep up with the i7 dual on single threaded programs.


Either way I'm upgrading the ram to 8gb, installing a 120gb SSD as boot drive, and swapping the Optical Drive for a OptiDrive (which will house the 500gb it comes with). Because I want too! ;)

Thought about doing all that but in addition to that I would have gotten the resolution upgrade but by then, cost could possibly be approaching $2K :/
 
Came back from the Apple store with the new base 13" and just ordered a Western Digital 1TB 2.5 HDD and 8GB of RAM. I'll play around with it this weekend and give you guys my view on it. I'll load some Steam games and do a little review on gaming performance with the Intel HD3000.
 
Came back from the Apple store with the new base 13" and just ordered a Western Digital 1TB 2.5 HDD and 8GB of RAM. I'll play around with it this weekend and give you guys my view on it. I'll load some Steam games and do a little review on gaming performance with the Intel HD3000.
Can you please try OnLive and see if it still runs smooth. I have no doubts it will, but still. :)

(It's free to make an account if you don't have one, but you need a decent 3-5 Mbps internet connection and you should live in North America)
 
Can you please try OnLive and see if it still runs smooth. I have no doubts it will, but still. :)

(It's free to make an account if you don't have one, but you need a decent 3-5 Mbps internet connection and you should live in North America)

Yup, I can do that no problem.
 
Thought about doing all that but in addition to that I would have gotten the resolution upgrade but by then, cost could possibly be approaching $2K :/

Yeah, if I go the 15" route, I'll be bumping the resolution.

I already have the SSD (I'd be liberating by 'damn near brand new' one, and installing it there. $100 for an 8gb kit of ram, and 50-100$ for the OptiBay adapter mean I don't have much in the way of "additional" cost.
 
Yeah, if I go the 15" route, I'll be bumping the resolution.

I already have the SSD (I'd be liberating by 'damn near brand new' one, and installing it there. $100 for an 8gb kit of ram, and 50-100$ for the OptiBay adapter mean I don't have much in the way of "additional" cost.

Yeah I know but I think I'll get the 13" MBA fully speced refurbished model for about $1636 in March and then see what happens when the refresh for MBA comes out.
 
Decent upgrades for the MBP line, but nothing spectacular; certainly not enough to get me to switch from my current MBP. I'll keep hoping for a 15" Hi-Res MBA or some radically redesigned MBP for 2012... my final big purchase before our world is laid waste by the coming cataclysm of Niburu. :p
 
The 13" really needs the option for a higher resolution screen like the MBA 13" has. 1280x800 is too low of a resolution for the $1500 version. The $1500 version seems like a terrible deal since for the extra $300 you only get an i7 vs i5 and a larger harddrive. Apple is probably making a killing on the 13" model now that its straight up Intel graphics.

I'll probably get the higher end 15" model since for the extra $300 you get a better cpu, harddrive, and much better video card. I'm a bit concerned about the heat though.
 
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