Hi guys!

I'm in the market for a mbp and I'm contemplating purchasing either one of the following from the Apple Store:

Refurbished MacBook Pro 2.53GHz Intel Core i5
Originally released April 2010
15.4-inch LED-backlit glossy widescreen display (1440 x 900 pixel)
4GB (2 x 2GB) of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM
500GB Serial ATA @ 5400 rpm
8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M graphics processor with 256MB of GDDR3 memory
$1,329.00
Save $720.00
35% off

OR

Refurbished MacBook Pro 2.0GHz quad-core Intel i7
Originally released February 2011
15.4-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display, 1440-by-900 resolution
4GB (2 x 2GB) of 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM
500GB Serial ATA @ 5400 rpm
8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Intel HD Graphics 3000 and AMD Radeon HD 6490M
$1,399.00
Save $450.00
24% off

My main question is related to the sizes of the CPU. The first model is 2.53 GHz intel core i5 and the second model is only 2.0 GHz but it's a quad core intel i7. Is the speed difference significantly noticeable between the two? So which is better? The other specs seem to be superior in the i7 model but I'm concerned about the CPU.

I'll be using it for the construction business preparing quotes, invoices, accounting, payroll, IWorks' Pages and Numbers, downloading pictures from SD card, and browsing some sites. For personal use I'll be watching Netflix, browsing, reading, etc.

Your input is much appreciated! Thanks!
Sharon

The i7 is the more powerful one. At the same time, i'm not sure if you're actually going to take advantage of the quad core processor, judging by your description of your usage.

Its only a $70 dollar difference, but the i7 is also a newer model, therefore resale value would probably better down the road.

None of the things youre doing are CPU intensive so it won't make a lick of a difference. The quad core model will go up to 16gb of ram (future proof yourself a little) and it has thunderbolt, but it'll probably get a little less battery life....I would just get the 2011 model and go to8gb of ram and you'll be quite happy.

If you're in the Market for a 15" MBP and you can wait a month or so, I would. There will be new MacBook Pro's released sooner rather than later. And then these refurb models (the 2011 one will perfectly suit you), will be cheaper as well.

Thanks for the replies!

fryefly- Thanks for the heads up! One month you estimate? Yep, I can definitely wait.

Between those two I'd get the i5 since clock speed will matter more then cores for what you are planning on using it for...that said waiting for the new model makes a ton of sense if you can wait that long.

I'm going to go against the grain here, the i5 used in that 2010 model is a previous gen CPU. The Core i7-2635QM is more than twice as powerful than the Core i5-540M, so that means even if you're using just a single core, you still have a power advantage, despite what the clock numbers say. Plus, the Core i7 uses the integrated Intel HD3000 by default so under heavy work load that's not graphics related you're using 45W tops. The Core i5 in the 2010 uses 35W plus whatever the GPU needs, maybe 5W idle?

The price on that 2011 Core i7 model is fantastic. I would not hesitate to jump on that.

That's a very good price and the i7 will turboboost way above that clock speed.

I'd wait if you could. But... if you can't wait I'd say the i7... For sure. As mentioned before... 16gb ram and Thunderbolt are good to have. Thunderbolt will more than likely have a lot of exciting things in the near future! And for only $70 more thats a steal.