Which MBP Should I Buy? And How?

I know that there is a "Which Computer Should I Buy Forum", but I've narrowed it down to a MacBook Pro. Just need help deciding on the screen size and where to buy it. I will ONLY be purchasing a 2011 MBP. Keep that in mind

Budget: around $1500

Uses: Internet browsing, word processing, some gaming, music

Applications:
WoW
OpenOffice
Photoshop or Gimp


What screen size should I get?
Where should I buy it?


Thanks

 

depends on your gaming, I would say the 15 or 17" with the AMD discreet card and 512VRAM

web browers and word processing only need a netbook

 

I don't know where you live, but microcenters have good deals on the 13" MBPs.
i5 = $999
i7= $1299

Its hard to say what you should buy not knowing the applications you would like to run. If some gaming means you want med-high graphics, you're going to need a 15" MBP which refurbs are about $1500 through apple BEFORE taxes

If you want the power of the 15, you might want to look at a 2010 MBP. You could probably find a good deal local through craigslist that includes 2 year+ applecare and even some software. I've been having some good luck lately through chicago.craigslist. Or look through the NBR marketplace, there is usually a few mbps added to the list weekly. Or ebay...

Whatever way you decided to go, just be confident and enjoy your purchase. Your not buying a macbook for someone else, you're buying it for yourself.

TL;DR : Buy the model that you feel will best serve you, add some applecare down the road and enjoy a computer that can easily last 4+ years (hopefully )

 

If I bought the 13", I'd probably trick it out and drop 8GB of RAM and a SSD into it. (It'd cost about the same price as a stock 2.0GHz MBP 15")

If I bought a 15", even from the Apple Refurb store or from Amazon, I'd be using my entire budget and not upgrading it at all.

 

Hmm...I live in a tax free state. Don't have to worry about taxes

Is MicroCenter reputable? A.K.A. I'm buying a NEW computer?

*** Edit: Applications I'll be running now in original post.

 

as I said it depends on your gaming requirements, the intel IGP i roughly half that of the AMD and more and more newer games actually outright require a dedicated GPU/512+

also do note that depending on what games you want to play you will be needing a copy of windows as well.

 

WoW isn't very demanding you could easily get away running almost all high setting in full res on the 13" (1280x800)

I just sold my 2009 MBP for a grand earlier today and can't see myself buying another 13", its not the lack of power, but the lack of screen real-estate.... Well the screen was nice, and I loved the size, but couldn't get used to such a low res.

Although I never tried, I'm sure photoshop would be a pain in the on a 13MBP, even my 1080p desktop monitor seems too small at times.

As far as office products, you can forget about working on two documents at once, or reading an article and taking notes. Maybe you wouldn't mind, but I was unable to live with the low res and definitely would be in trouble once my next semester started so I figured I'd sell while I could still get some money.

If you're really looking to "future-proof" grab a 15" You don't NEED a SSD and 8gb or ram right now, especially with what your looking to use it for, but down the road those upgrades will be much cheaper and I'm sure you would find some money to spend on it.

Just remember: the longer you wait, the more dated the hardware becomes

 

I'm just coming off an Alienware M14X that had a 1600x900 display and it was NICE. So I should invest in a stock MBP 15" instead of maxing out a MBP 13" ?

 

I'm sure most will agree. There are just certain things that a maxed 13" MBP can never have that are standard in the stock 15"

1440x900 Res
i7 quad-core
ATI 6490M 256mb DDR5 switchable
Dedicated mic in jack <= is this really a big pro? idk maybe

They should both give you enough batterylife, the 15" will probably get ~ hour less even on the intel 3000HD

Honestly the refurb is a great price (only $200 more than a new i7 13MBP) and still includes the full year warranty and is eligible for applecare. However if you're gonna buy a NEW 15MBP, you're really gonna have to ask yourself if another $200 is worth it just because its "new"

BTW smileys make my post more credible amirite?!?

Best of luck with your decision

 

As previously pointed out, even the baseline 13" MBP would be able to handle all of those programs with ease (and the baseline 13" MBP is overall more powerful than a 2010 17" MBP). It is all going to come down to the display size and display resolution. Some people find 1280X800 to be too low of a resolution while others, including myself, are perfectly fine with that for portable computing.

Another option would be to buy a 13" MBP and then an external monitor that you use while at home. You could buy the $999 MBP from Microcenter, put 8GB of RAM in it (~$80) and buy a 23" 1080p monitor ($200-$300). You would still have $100 or more to roll into a future SSD upgrade.

 

Yes, they are an authorized Apple reseller; got my son's new base 13" MBP (i5) for $999 3 weeks ago. The only catch is there needs to be a physical store near you, the prices are not good for on-line purchases.