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bigdaddysheikh · May 14, 2007, 01:04 PM

Hey,

I am in limbo in making this decision and would like some expert advice. I have 2 options. 1) 1.83 ghz MBP CD and another is 2) 2.0 ghz MB Black C2D. They both have 1 gig of ram.

I had a white macbook CD which was not all that great for web development software and got me frustrated due to waiting periods and loading time. The MBP has lost all its warrant as in the warranty has ran out thus bieng cheap. The black MB is brand new but at a discounted price and comes with warranty. Now in performance reasons, the MBP can allocate all the ram towards my software due to its own seperate video card. With the built in video card, with black MB, the ram will get drained as it did with my first gen. white macbook.

I am more risk averse because my white macbook's battery just died, the palm rest area is brown and the harddrive keeps crashing.

So in conclusion I am seeking some expert advice. I am looking for a system which is able to maintain good performance and is reliable over a long period of time. Is the black MB equal to the MBP? I have been using my freinds powerbook and I love the feel of it. It is alot smoother and has lights on the keyboard.

Thanks to all the posters in advance.

bigdaddysheikh · May 14, 2007, 01:10 PM

On a side note, I had an intel IMac first gen with the same specs as the MBP. The intel imac was low in performance until I added an extra gig of ram then it flew like no tomorrow. They are both couple of hundred dollars apart but I want to know which would suit my purpose better and if the MBP is reliable.

peeb · May 14, 2007, 01:14 PM

What are you going to use it for?

bigdaddysheikh · May 14, 2007, 01:21 PM

I use photohsop, a bit of flash, cs2 softwares, dreamweaver. word and other related work. I have read that these softwares are not that heavy but seem like it due to rosetta conversion. Even though these softwares run fine independently it is when they run all together where the crashing and restarting of the macbook begin.

For ex. I will run dw, then design something in photoshop then go to flash, bring back to dreamweaver wait for 4 mins for the volleyball to go away, then everything starts lagging. And if I have music playing it all goes to hell from there.

But i am leaning more towards the MBP rightdue to the allocation of ram. I could be wrong on that.

Thank you for replying.

bigdaddysheikh · May 14, 2007, 01:29 PM

To test the differences, I had installed windows using bootcamp. The software ran so smoothly on windows it was unbeleivable. So the conclusion I had drawn was that the softwares were geared towards window users or windows all together. Everything ran smoother on the windows platform, it just had upset me that I was unable to do the same with mac OSX.

I think the MBP should be good for my needs as of now just worried about reliability.

peeb · May 14, 2007, 01:30 PM

Well, for one thing, you don't have enough ram for what you are describing. I think you are running old versions of those software under Rosetta, which is a ram hog. Try putting 2 gb in - I think that will solve most of your issues.

ajprice · May 15, 2007, 04:13 AM

I think a lot of your problems would go if you had a) Adobe CS3 and/or b) more RAM. The programs ran better on Bootcamp because the PC versions have no trouble with Rosetta type software emulating a different processor and slowing the computer down. If you put your CS2 on either a black MacBook or a CD MacBook Pro, you are going to have similar problems to what you had with your white MacBook.

bigdaddysheikh · May 16, 2007, 03:21 PM

Thank you very much for your respones. I think i am going to buy the new black macbook because of affordability.

I wanted to know does the performance decrease if I setup dual monitors with my black macbook?

mduell · May 16, 2007, 06:43 PM

Originally Posted by bigdaddysheikh

I wanted to know does the performance decrease if I setup dual monitors with my black macbook?

No change to CPU performance, and the GPU performance won't really be noticeably worse than it already is.

peeb · May 16, 2007, 07:12 PM

Does the MB even have a GPU?

mduell · May 16, 2007, 07:53 PM

Originally Posted by peeb

Does the MB even have a GPU?

Yes, of course it has a GPU: GMA950, integrated into the northbridge of the Intel 945GM chipset.

bigdaddysheikh · May 16, 2007, 09:20 PM

I still can't make up my mind. Either the new MB or old MBP.

It gets me so upset that apple charges so much whereas other laptops offer so much more hardware specs for cheap.

Ok so for MB Pro, I just get better video card/ casing and backlit. MB black, I get bigger HD same ram black casing and lower video card.

It comes down to the video card. Performance should be similar as people mentioned before.

mac128k-1984 · May 16, 2007, 09:33 PM

If your going to use the MB (or MBP) as your primary machine then also consider screen real estate. I was on vacation last week and I was using my MB and I found the when I was using photoshop, the screen size was a severe limitation.

The GPU really won't impact you if you're not running games or anything that is GPU bound like Aperture.

I like my MB because the case is much more durable then the MBP, but I'm now considering the idea of upgrading to a MBP because of the screen size.

iomatic · May 16, 2007, 10:23 PM

Hardware specs are nothing paired with software. It will depend on what you do.

Originally Posted by bigdaddysheikh

I still can't make up my mind. Either the new MB or old MBP.

It gets me so upset that apple charges so much whereas other laptops offer so much more hardware specs for cheap.
...

mpancha · May 17, 2007, 09:50 AM

Screensize was the deciding factor for me (and the 24 months no interest at Futureshop in Toronto didn't hurt either).

Honestly, I used to run Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator (CS not 2), and Dreamweaver together all the time on my iBook (specs below), and I never had any serious beachball issues.

I've done the same on my MBP (specs below) and haven't had any trouble with the factory installed 1gb ram. I don't see why you would have that long of a beachball with your MB which is only different by the cpu speed and gpu.

That aside, if you do web development and graphics work... get the MBP. You'll appreciate the extra screen real estate, and when you hook up an external monitor, you won't slow down your work b/c the GPU is sharing ram on a MB.

bigdaddysheikh · May 17, 2007, 09:50 AM

But I thought it is due to the hardware that laptops performed. Hmmm.

Well these are the programs I am going to run all at once.
PS, Illustrator, Flash, DW , ITUNES, Adium, and other apps.

I do this on my macbook CD first gen 2.0 ghz with 1 gb ram and does it ever lag. When I go from program to program it all goes to hell.

I thought if I could get a MBP then I can get more ram dedicated towards the apps since the video card has built in ram.

bigdaddysheikh · May 17, 2007, 10:18 AM

Hey,

I just called the guy, I am going to buy the MBP for $2000 cash. This guy is selling them brand new. I am going to check out the warranty and serials and everything before I buy it.

MBP is 2.16 ghz
1gb of ram
120 gb HD.

mpancha · May 17, 2007, 10:41 AM

bigdaddyshekh >> I ran all the same programs you listed except Flash on my ibook (1.2ghz with 768mb ram) and granted it wasn't the fasted thing in the world, but I very very very rarely experienced beachballs.

The hardware does make a difference, but OSX is what is supposed to manage the ram properly, and it does a decent job of it.

You will get more ram available to the apps with a MBP, so you will see a bit of a preformance increase. Rosetta will be a bottleneck for you, but honestly it should be equivalent to running PPC apps on older hardware, which basically means fast enough to work with.

Bottom line in my opinion, since you do graphics and web development, screen real estate is probably a huge deal for you, MBP is the way to go. As for the guy selling new MBPs for $2000 cash, most likely they "fell off the back of a truck". I'd be a bit wary when it comes time to use Apple Care on those.

bigdaddysheikh · May 17, 2007, 12:07 PM

Hey,

Yea screen might be a big deal but I am getting a flat panel 17 inch from my brother. Yea I am bit weary of it so I told him give me about a week.

The guy who is selling the used MBP might reduce the price to a lower amount. If he has extra stuff that I want then I will pay him more ofcourse. In the end either system will do what I want to do and much more. If I get the old MBP I can always upgrade ram and HD wih the money I save. So I am waiting his response. If the old MBP does not come to the lower price then I will just get the new MB's because I will be getting a flat panel anyway to help me out with real estate issues. I think the new MBP might be a bit far for me due to the price. My affordability etc..

So no need to spend another $700 for MBP.

mpancha · May 17, 2007, 12:14 PM

Sounds like you have thought it through... I went through a similar dilemna choosing between the MB and MBP a few weeks ago. For me the only reason to pay the extra nearly $1000 for the MBP was the financing option that came up at the same time. And, I'm a sucker for being able to view two documents side by side when I decide to work from a local coffee shop

bigdaddysheikh · May 17, 2007, 12:22 PM

Hey,

Yea I am in toronto as well, well in mississauga. I got financing option as well which makes the MBP c2d alot better. My brother is willing to lend me the extra $500 I need to grab the MBP C2D. So I am going to see how this plays out.

Hopefully that guy makes up his mind soon. HEHe.