Thursday, July 19, 2012

Test of MacBook Pro Retina 15 "mai-2012 A 2.6 GHz Core i7

At nearly € 2,900, the MacBook Pro Retina premium is a real Rolls-Royce of computing: it is thin, ultra-powerful and ... expensive! Are small megahertz more have a real impact justifies the expense? The answer in our MacBook Pro Retina test. A upscale ...

The MacBook Pro Core i7 to 2.6 GHz is simply the MacBook Pro Retina upscale. No need therefore to revisit the design of this machine, its brand new ventilation system or the subtleties of his Retina display.


If these details you want and you have not already done so, please refer to our test MacBook Pro Core i7 2.3 Retina GHz. The main difference between the model and the € 2,279 to € 2,899 is the processor: while the entry-level model is "satisfied" with a Core i7 2.3 GHz, this model has a Core i7 to 2.6 GHz. This is specifically the Core i7-3720QM, a chip of the family of Core iX third generation or "Ivy Bridge". Engraved in 22 nm, it is one of the most powerful mobile chips from Intel's range, but still provided economical (TDP 45 W).

Like all recent Intel chips, this processor has hyperthreading: it has four physical cores that are considered by the system as eight logical cores. It is also compatible with Turbo Boost, which adapts the use of these hearts to run applications. The base rate on four physical cores, is 2.6 GHz. If applications are not very or not at all optimized for multicore processor gradually disables its core while increasing speed: 3.4 GHz on three physical cores, 3.5 GHz dual-core, and finally 3 , 6 GHz on a single the heart. We found in this machine an integrated graphics chip, the Intel Graphics HD 4000, whose frequency varies with load of 650 MHz to 1.25 GHz. This chip is relatively economical, yet powerful enough to ensure the basic tasks or decoding HD video, we nevertheless noticed that it was rarely used by the system, the fault with the requirements of the Retina display.

The other graphics card in the MacBook Pro Retina is usually tested. This is, as the entry level model, an Nvidia GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of VRAM, a recent chip located in the upper crust of mid-range segment. Apple was once held to factory specifications of Nvidia, again to meet the requirements of graphics this machine: it has under the hood 384 cores in the core GK107, a clock 900 MHz processor and a memory clock to 1254 MHz.

Recall that the full range of 2012 Apple laptops ships Thunderbolt controller DSL3510 4C, the upscale version of the platform Cactus Ridge. It supports four channels Thunderbolt, two and one DisplayPort input channels and four PCIe channels for consumption of 2.8 W. The MacBook Pro Retina with two Thunderbolt ports and an HDMI port, one can connect three external monitors while using the built in monitor. If we string a Thunderbolt monitor, we can achieve four external monitors, but the internal monitor will turn off so. The MacBook Pro Retina premium is similar to the MacBook Pro "classic" high-end - except that this last, thicker and without SSD or Retina display, costing € 600 less. If you pass the MacBook Pro 15 "high-end SSD of 512 GB for a sheet perfectly equivalent to the MacBook Pro Retina that we are testing, Apple will charge you € 3,179, € 280 or more. We had already noticed the difference pricing model on the other - but buy an SSD of 512 GB in trade and mount it yourself (which you can easily do in a MacBook Pro "classic"), and both machines cost about the same price . You then choose the screen and finesse against the very long term versatility.

Performance in relation to the technical

Performance tests are now rarely surprising: it was expected that the 2.6 GHz MacBook Pro Retina is slightly faster than the 2.3 GHz model, and that's exactly the case. Geekbench is a crude test is testing multiple processor cores and memory. The MacBook Pro 2.6 GHz Core i7 Retina is logically the fastest notebook we've been able to test: it pays the luxury to compete theoretically with a high-end iMac or Mac ProCinebench, which puts the graphics card to the test along with the processor, gives the same conclusions: again, the MacBook Pro Retina upscale intimate terms or exceeds the best iMac and Mac Pro.Ces theoretical conclusions must nevertheless be tempered by application testing ( large table), to better judge the actual performance in everyday life. If we can now say that the MacBook Pro are at the iMac (which has a generation behind it is true), the Mac Pro is still the * leader * of undisputed and indisputable heavier tasks: this is the only machine in the Apple lineup with 12 physical cores, or 24 logical cores, where the MacBook Pro Retina hold eight logical cores.

The 300 MHz more on the first model result, daily, for a few seconds saved here and there. Frankly, unless you work with software optimized for very heavy and multiprocessor can exploit each additional MHz, you will not see the difference between the two MacBook Pro Retina. The entry level model is already a solid machine with impeccable performance and powerful graphics card, the top model is just a little more.

Autonomy and comfort preserved

At least autonomy is not she sacrificed: in each of our tests, the MacBook Pro 2.6 Ghz Retina does a few minutes to a few tens of minutes to his little brother. He established himself as a machine with long battery life, much higher than the MacBook Pro 17 "which takes place in the range, less is actually much thinner.

A reminder to all intents and purposes the procedure of our various tests:

    Play HD movie playback HD 1080p H.264 MKV with VLC, brightness at 80% and 50%, with Mail is open every minute via a Wi-Fi;

    Web music: iTunes playing music loop (MP3 320), Safari refreshing our home page every 30 seconds with Flash installed (Wi-Fi always), brightness at 80% and 50%, opened with Mail falls every minute;

    Normal use: empirical test with standard usage in a working day in MacG with iA Writer, Numbers, iCal, Mail notes with all the minutes, the Twitter client Osfoora push, Firefox with a video here or there, and Dropbox , the screen 80% and its 50%.


The ease of use is also preserved: the Core i7 to 2.6 GHz does not heat more than the particular model at 2.3 GHz, and the machine remains mostly perfectly silent. You really have to push to its limits so that the fans are activated: the sound is more muffled than the old MacBook Pro, and the level goes down very quickly. The vents on the side are not necessarily the most beautiful effect, but we must recognize their effectiveness.

Finally, the SSD plays his usual role as a facilitator: it is faster and quieter than any hard drive. Usually, increasing the capacity of SSD also increases the flow through the multiplication of fleas, it is not the case of transition from 256 to 512 GB since then not only twice the number of chips - they increase their capacity. The measured flow rates are excellent, but comparable with those of model 256 Go.

Conclusion

In short, it will be understood that the € 600 that separate the two MacBook Pro Retina are justified only by doubling the storage capacity and a very slight increase in performance: the account is not quite, and the entry level model should suffice for most purposes.

We must also regret that Apple has once again decided to artificially segmenting its range: if you need 768 GB of storage, you should absolutely buy this top model. A meanness that does not detract from the beautiful qualities of this MacBook Pro Retina, but that does not make the deal of the century.

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