Basic 13,3" MBP capable of running LoL descent via bootcamp?

Hello guys

I'm looking for a new 13,3" laptop, which I primarily will use for university in the soon future, but in the meantime and ofc in my sparetime would like to play some games on. I know, apple is not for gaming, buy a pc, which then should be the Sony Vaio SB with 6630m i figure.
But I've also heard that the intel 3000 hd should be enough to run games like League of Legends or Heroes of Newerth without a problem. I have only heard this from friends with Mac's that ofc want me to join them, but nobody has the newest and is able to show me. Does any of you run League of legends via bootcamp on the basic 13,3" mbp 2011 that is ? If so, please tell me on which settings and how high fps

 

For gaming, a 13" Macbook Air is faster, significantly, than 2011 Sandy Bridge Macbook Pro. Intel HD3000 is terrible.

That's not saying terribly much because both are still on the bottom of gaming performance in general.

 

So, the Sony vaio Sb with 6630m with sandy bridge and etc would be a better choice for a uni computer, that's capable of gaming casual games ?

 

Yes. Though the Intel HD 3000 IGP is a much better solution than previous Intel IGP offerings, it still isn't quite as good as what is in the MacBook Air (though it isn't off by much and I doubt you would even notice it especially since the processor on the MBA is going to be the bottleneck compared to even the baseline 13" MBP) but it also isn't as good as what Nvidia and AMD are offering. I believe I read somewhere than the Intel HD 3000 is on par with an Nvidia 310M and ~5400 level AMD graphics (though I am unsure on the second one).

To give you an idea of its gaming performance, I can run Bioshock on mine at the native resolution with all of the settings on high without issues. It runs at a solid ~35 fps (this is under OS X so Windows performance should be even better). I can run Call of Duty 4 under Windows at the native resolution with settings at around medium to high for some things. So the new Intel integrated graphics really aren't bad (and definitely not as bad as most people make them out to be) but there are other, less expensive options running Windows that have better hardware for gaming.

There really is only one reason to buy ANY Apple computer and that is to have the ability to natively run (without any type of "hacking") Mac OS X. Definitely go with a MBP if you want to run Mac OS X. Otherwise, if you are just looking at something for casual gaming, stick with offerings running Windows.

 

Thanks for enlightning me

 

Most benchmarks place the HD3000 inbetween the 320M and 330M GT. The Macbook Air and previous gen Macbook Pro 13 have the 320M. Technically speaking it's slightly better than what the MBA and MBP13 from 2010 have.

 

Right, I am sorry. 320m. That being said, there are some games that take advantage of Nvidia's architecture and they will perform better (just as there are some games that take advantage of AMD's architecture). I still don't think it is the ugly stepchild that people make it out to be. There hasn't been a single thing that my 13" Core i7 MBP has not been able to complete that I have come across. Bioshock at the native resolution with all settings on high, playing back 1080p HD video on a 1080p HDTV and on an external display almost at the maximum supported resolution (which is the same as the 15" and 17" models), run complex code in MATLAB that looks up over 1000 csv files all containing over 2 million different data entry points, and draft in 3D with AutoCAD 2011 (though that is a little slow simply because Autodesk hasn't updated AutoCAD for Mac to full support Intel's IGP).

 

LoL isnt a demanding game at all.

I can play HoN on my 9400m pretty darn good @ native resolution with high fps.

 

Hmm, my old laptop with a dedicated 8600m gt struggles with LoL atm, don't know if my computer is infected or what, but it will only go to 20 fps mind game and even lower in big team fights. Now you've gotten me all confused again. I'll most likely only play games like LoL and HoN since I've no ambitation for games like sc II, and when guild wars 2 and diablo III are being realesed I'll buy a desktop for it.
So atm I'm comparing the Vaio SB with 6630m vs the base mbp 13,3" 2011 edition in terms of study /allrounder computer and casual gaming. I'll bring to school, transport by bike and use it in classes, so battery time is also important. I'll also use it when I hang out at friends to play LoL and Hon. They have pretty similiar specs, except a dedicated gpu on the sony, and even hardware wise I find them pretty close, except for aliminium unibody vs magnisium case. The big diffrence is the software, Windows 7 vs OS X snow leopard and eventually Lion. I've tried OS X and like it and I love the trackpad and the gestures with it - that being said I don't have any issues with my current windows 7 computer - so the OS isn't "that" important to me.

So, which do you think I will be most happy about? P.s, I'm no big Apple fan, at least not Iphone fan - pretty much the right oppesite (Android !), but I don't hold anything about Macs

 

If your considering the Vaio SB I would advise you to take a look at this review from notebook check: Review Sony Vaio VPC-SB1Z9EB Subnotebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

Also something to remember, most mobile or light notebooks (with the exception of the macbook pro or the Vaio Z) are going to feel somewhat flimsy and bendable. I only bring it up here because the notebook check review makes a point of it.

 

As far as I can read, it's a pretty good review I would say ? And about being able to bend, it might be able to bend but will it be able to get a bump like the macbook pro, which will stay forever?

 

hi..guys..what i understood abt the posts over here by varrious members is..one can play mostly all sort of games at a lower resolution..if i am not wrong..

 

If you head over to YouTube and do a search, you should be able to see some gaming clips and judge for yourselves. Also note that the Vaio in the linked review above only has the Radeon HD 6470M. There are many things to consider, but personally I would get the Vaio if it is quiet and has long lasting battery.

 

if you're moving from a struggling 8600m gt, you certainly aren't going to be happy with the hd 3000.

 

Do you plan on using or needing OS X? If you're only going to run Windows, then don't get a mac.

 

...what's with the thread necro?

Anyway, there's an OSX client for LoL that works perfectly fine. Your main issue will still be that horrid HD 3000.

 

I recently sold my Alienware m15x and bought a 2011 13'' Macbook Pro. One thing that really bugged me about my Alienware was having to change graphics setting constantly within the graphics utility and then within the game itself. I mean spending twenty minutes relogging to see the difference in shader rendering just got annoying. Maybe the time is a little exaggerated but doing this for most game settings just gets old.

One thing I love about my macbook pro is I can turn it on, install a game, click on it and play it. I don't have to sit around and fiddle with settings.

If your all about "Oh my laptop is highest on benchmark settings" then I'd agree that a macbook isn't what you should be using. But if you want to install a game and play it natively, then macbook pro is more than fine.

I hear a lot of dissing on the Intel HD 3000 and honestly its just fine when it comes to running most games. I have yet to find a game that I've had issues running, I mostly play WoW and Eve Online of which neither are terribly demanding games but both have recently undergone graphics overhauls and I play both of them on high settings and have a average fps of 30.

Yeah I don't have 6.0 shader rendering with turbo charged direct x13 graphics in 3d but that doesn't mean that the Intel HD 3000 is horrid.

Sorry to hijack your thread, but I had to get that off my chest.....

 

it depends on the situation. obviously the hd 3000 will be able to get playable performance out of some games in some situations. In general, it's not a recommended choice for a 13" notebook where there is a specific desire to play games.

If you want a 13" mac laptop, will it get you by for older or low powered games? In most cases, probably. Is the current 13" macbook air a better choice? Absolutely, yes. Does that indicate, at least in part, the problem? It should.

Also, most games that are available for both platforms have similar settings options on both the mac and the pc. It's not about dx13 or shader model 6.0. It's about decent, consistent performance.

 

Gamers also won't be looking for a 13" notebook either... The MBA's processor also brings it down overall when compared with the MBP.

 

If it's about decent consistent performance and as Kornchild stated, you want to run OSX then the cheapest you're going to get that performance is A MacBook Air. If you want OSX and the newest processor offering on a Mac, then the 13" MacBook pro will give you decent and consistent performance on LoL. I personally will download LoL tonight and try it out on my MacBook pro. I'll post results for you and you can judge from there. I'd say that's the easiest route to take.