Is it crazy of me to hold out until January for a new MBP?

Here's my situation. I'll be off to college next weekend, and for awhile I thought I'd absolutely need a laptop and was searching everywhere for one. In June I'd decided that I should get a MBP, but doubts and time took their toll, and I spent the better part of 2 months looking at other options. Now I've finally come back to the MBP as my best option, but I can't get one before mid-September.

My other choice is to bring my desktop to college, and lose that portability factor but still retain some kind of computer. I'd use it to tide me over through the first semester and then pick up a Penryn-equipped MBP in January.

I have 2 questions. Is the chance of Apple refreshing the MBP in January anywhere near solid? I figured Intel's early 2008 Penryn deadline coupled with Apple's 6-month MBP cycle would pretty much guarantee it. Also, is it stupid of me to think that buying a MBP in September would be a waste of money when the update is 4 months away?

 

You never know with Apple...I'd say January would be the soonest for an update, and for all we know Apple could hold out until WWDC '08. Apple is really unpredictable about this.

I'd say get it now and take advantage of the Student Discount + free iPod Nano. Penryn is not a significant update and you will lose at least 4 months of school without a notebook, which is tough.

 

Yeah, I'm worried about them pushing it to WWDC, although the original Intel refresh to the MBP happened in February, and the new iMacs were also quietly updated a few weeks back.

My problem with the student discount is also a pain. The earliest I can get the MBP is September 18, and the free iPod deal ends on September 16. My original plan was to order it from my local Apple store on the 15th, pay for it, and ask them to hold it for a few days. I'm not sure if that will work though.

 

There is never a good time to buy hardware...

The barely scalable and yet highly desirable notebook form factor is just a kick in the other nut I'm afraid.

 

Huh? Why can't you get it before the 18th?

 

To be completely honest, it's to avoid NJ's horrendous 7% sales tax. My dad goes to Wilmington, DE for board meetings every month, and Delaware has no sales tax on anything. He offered to pick it up for me while he's down there, and bring it back up. Tax for the entire purchase (including "free" iPod and printer) comes out to about $147, which is, in my college budget, rather significant. Buying now about paying close to $150 more, versus waiting a few weeks and avoiding sales tax.

 

i wouldn't bother waiting for penryn. its a minor update, sort of like santa rosa. the processor in there will still be a core 2 duo.

 

I can't believe people torture themselves this much over computer purchases.

Just get the thing. Even if they release a new MBP in January, it's not like the current one is chopped liver.

 

I paid mine with NJ tax, I'm sure you can also.

 

I read several engineering sample penryn chips are showing significant improvements over the current C2Ds....ranging from 10-15% on several benchmarks, 20-37% on gaming fps and close to 100% on divx encoding.

 

Oh man that KILLED ME! Just cause I got 14% tax's in my location in Canada. hehe

 

how do you know that it won't be a significant update? do you have side by side comparison specs?

I agree with mick, if you need a notebook now, just get it NOW. Or you'll be waiting forever.

 

its pure speculation on my part.

the gpu will be the same, though.

 

I've been thinking the same thing, and you know, it wouldn't at all surprise me if they just waited until Q2 for Montevina. In that scenario, they could quietly slip a Penryn into the current revision when it's available. Personally, I'm waiting for a more major revision to hopefully improve the keyboard damaging the screen issue, and maybe even the sound card noise issues.

 

im pretty sure that was just made up or blown out of proportion. i have heard of a lot of weird problems with laptops in general (and the macbook pro specifically as well) and i have never heard of someone getting a damaged screen from a keyboard.

as far as the sound card noise, have you tried plugging in the 3 prong adapter into the wall outlet? that should solve your problem. you should get some static interference with the audio if you use the two prong adapter.

 

Penryn is a significant update:
- New instruction set (SSE4)
- Faster clock speeds
- More cache memory
- Virtualization improvements

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/pos...sse4-faster-virtualization-bigger-caches.html

I agree though that having to wait for it is probably an even more significant drawback.

 

7%? Please. don't be a wuss lol, The brits deal with 19%, the Germans 17%, the Belgians 21% and the Swedish 25%. Relish the fact you have a mere 7% lol.