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    Macbook Air 11 inch 2015 questions

    Discussion in 'Apple and Mac OS X' started by Stalvros, Jun 29, 2015.

  1. Stalvros

    Stalvros Notebook Evangelist

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    Good evening guys.
    I'm interested in the macbook air 11 inch due to it's size but am unsure about it's capabilities.
    There are just some questions about it and I hope you experts here can answer it.

    1st - I play light gaming, will this laptop support it?
    Some of the titles I play includes; Starcraft 2, Guild Wars 2, Skyrim, Mass Effect Trilogy

    2nd - Any major difference between the core i5 and core i7 with regards to performance when I want to play these games?

    3rd - Any major difference between the 4gb Ram and 8gb Ram with regards to performance when I want to play these games?

    4th - Is it actually possible to reformat the entire laptop and install windows instead on this macbook? (Aside from bootcamp)
     
    Stalvros, Jun 29, 2015
    #1
  2. saturnotaku

    saturnotaku Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    1) Those games will run, but you'd be limited to 720p or lower resolution and low to medium detail settings in order to get them in a playable state (~30 fps).

    2) None that make the cost worthwhile.

    3) Not too much since you're going to be CPU/GPU limited in all those games. I'd still purchase that upgrade, though, in the interest of longevity and resale value.

    4) It is possible, but not something I would recommend given the limitations of the Mac's hardware when running Windows (keyboard, trackpad, battery life). If your intent is to use Windows a majority of the time, you would be far better served purchasing a different ultrabook. You will get better hardware for similar or less money. The Yoga 2 Pro in my signature absolutely pummels the MacBook Air in terms of hardware and only cost $100 more than the base 11-inch model.
     
    saturnotaku, Jun 29, 2015
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    KCETech1 likes this.
  3. Stalvros

    Stalvros Notebook Evangelist

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    Can I also ask about the macbook air 11 inch 2014 and 2013 version?

    Any difference between intel HD 5000 1,536MB and intel HD 5000 1024 MB
    I know that the 2014 macbook air 11 inch has HD 5000 1,536MB graphics card
    and that the 2013 macbook air 11 inch has HD 5000 1024MB graphics card

    I visited this site;
    http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-6000.125588.0.html
    http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-5000.91978.0.html
    http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-4400.91979.0.html

    And I noticed that the Intel HD Graphics 5000 performed slightly better then the Intel HD 6000.
    Why is that I wonder? Also, in that site, is that the Intel Hd 5000 1536MB or the Intel HD 5000 1024MB?
     
    Stalvros, Jul 1, 2015
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  4. saturnotaku

    saturnotaku Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Frame buffer size (1 GB vs 1.5 GB) doesn't make a difference on integrated GPUs because you won't be running games at a high enough resolution and settings to matter.
     
    saturnotaku, Jul 1, 2015
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  5. Stalvros

    Stalvros Notebook Evangelist

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    In that case, in terms of gaming, performance wise is there much of a difference between
    macbook air 11 inch 2013 model (1.3Ghz Core i5, Intel HD5000 1,024MB)
    and macbook air 11 inch 2014 model (1.4 Ghz Core i5, Intel HD5000, 1536MB)

    Also, I visited another site;
    http://www.game-debate.com/gpu/inde...-6000-mobile-vs-intel-hd-graphics-5000-mobile
    and according to this site apparently Intel HD6000 performs better then Intel HD5000. So different from the notebookcheck site I visited?
     
    Stalvros, Jul 1, 2015
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  6. Stalvros

    Stalvros Notebook Evangelist

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    I got a deal for used macbooks, which one do you think is worth it?

    macbook air 11 inch 2013 model (1.3Ghz Core i5, Intel HD5000 1,024MB, 128GB SSD, 4GB Ram) - US$570.00
    macbook air 11 inch 2014 model (1.4 Ghz Core i5, Intel HD5000, 1536MB, 128GB SSD, 4GB Ram) - US$622.00
    macbook air 11 inch 2014 model (1.6 Ghz Core i5, Intel HD6000, 128GB SSD, 4GB Ram) - US$900.00
     
    Stalvros, Jul 1, 2015
    #6