New Switcher - Which new Mac to buy

Joined
Oct 18, 2008
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Points
1
My wife finally decided to retire her 2.5-year old Dell Latitude and donated to her parents. I am trying to get her a mac notebook instead, as she is pretty much online and uses almost no MS software.

I am very new to Mac even though I have been watching Steve Jobs speech for years. I need to decide between two new Mac notebooks:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001D8S9E2/?tag=macforums0e4-20

and

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001GCTT7G/?tag=macforums0e4-20

It seems the major differences are processor speed (2.0 vs. 2.4 Hz) and hard drive size. Harddrive size is no issue to me. My question is what difference would a faster processor make on a MacOS? Is it beneficial just for certain Mac software like video editing, or has some impact on overall OS performance?

Thanks.
 

CrimsonRequiem


Retired Staff
Joined
Jul 24, 2008
Messages
6,003
Reaction score
125
Points
63
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 2.3 Ghz 4GB RAM 860 GB SSD, iMac 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7 32GB RAM, Fusion Drive 1TB
If all you are doing is word processing, surfing the web and watching movies you don't need the faster processor.

If you do intensive stuff like heavy duty Photo editing at his res and 3D renderings then yeah it helps to have the faster processor.

Oh and the 2.0 model doesn't have a backlit keyboard. >_>?
 
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
2,255
Reaction score
47
Points
48
Your Mac's Specs
Al iMac 20" 2.4Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo
You'll never notice the difference between the two processors. Sure, you'll knock off 10 minutes off an hour's rendering, but that's about it.
 
Joined
Jul 28, 2007
Messages
62
Reaction score
3
Points
8
Location
Plymouth, UK
Your Mac's Specs
24" iMac, 2.8GHZ Core Duo Extreme, 2GB RAM, 750GB Hard Drive - iPhone 3G - Aluminium MacBook 2.4GHZ
I have the 2.4GHZ model, and I can safely say that it's worth every penny. However, you just know the prices are going to come down slightly in a few months; if you can wait that is. I couldn't, and needed it for uni, so I went and snapped one up immediately.

But like Alexis has said, you probably won't notice the difference in processing speeds. On the other hand, if you get the faster processor now you can ensure that the MacBook will be able to carry out almost anything that you throw at it, and will stay that way for a long time.
 
Joined
Jul 17, 2008
Messages
182
Reaction score
1
Points
18
Location
Arizona
I would go for the pro. I didn't want to wait and extra 2 months when saving up for mine and I went with the standard 2.4 processor, 2 gigs of ram and 150HDD and now I wish I went with the pro due to what I do on my macbook. In about a year or 2 years I plan on purchasing the newest MPB that's out at that time. But really it's personal preferance. So in your situation I would personally not do any of those and go for a cheaper Macbook. Since the release of these new Macbooks the older models have become cheaper. Read it here.

Last Gen MacBook Pros $700 Cheaper, MacBook for $849 | The Apple Blog
 
Joined
Oct 15, 2008
Messages
285
Reaction score
6
Points
18
Location
England, UK
Your Mac's Specs
15.4" Macbook Pro, 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3, 128GB SSD Drive, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M+9600M GT
Out of the two options you have provided I'd recommend the 2.4 GHz - In my opinion its always better to go for the faster processor. Also the higher end Macbook has a backlit keyboard unlike the 2ghz model.

If you have the money however the Macbook Pro is a great machine and has a much bigger screen. You may want to consider purchasing that as a option.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top