Sims 4 on MacBook
I currently use The Sims 4 on a MacBook Pro 2015 (2.7 Ghz Intel i5, 8GB 1867 MHz DDR3 RAM, Intel Iris HD 6100). However, I have noticed that it has started becoming sluggish and stuttery and I am th...
Forum Discussion
@hybridace101
The fans and cooling are a significant factor in OS throttling. The MBA will get hotter quicker and not cool down as quickly as it only has one fan. When this happens the game will lag (what you are referring to as choppiness). You are unlikely to notice a difference in the CPU between the two because the MBA will start trying to cool itself quicker than the MBP, therefore throttling, therefore lagging. 16GB RAM would be preferable, 8GB is considered low nowadays. The speed of the RAM is faster in the MBA but again, I doubt you will even notice this in performance.
Can you bump up the CPU and RAM in the MBP? I see on Apple's site that will be around $500 without any discounts you may be eligible for.
The fans and cooling are a significant factor in OS throttling. The MBA will get hotter quicker and not cool down as quickly as it only has one fan. When this happens the game will lag (what you are referring to as choppiness). You are unlikely to notice a difference in the CPU between the two because the MBA will start trying to cool itself quicker than the MBP, therefore throttling, therefore lagging. 16GB RAM would be preferable, 8GB is considered low nowadays. The speed of the RAM is faster in the MBA but again, I doubt you will even notice this in performance.
Can you bump up the CPU and RAM in the MBP? I see on Apple's site that will be around $500 without any discounts you may be eligible for.
So let me get this straight: the MBA with an i7 (and 16 GB RAM) may be faster on paper than the MBP with i5 (and 8 GB RAM) but that could be negated by the lack of a second fan in the former?
@hybridace101
Is it faster by performance for graphically intense apps, like the Sims 4? You would need to do some googling and look up comparisons and benchmarks. MBAs are built for long battery life and mobile lifestyles with simple usage for work and college. Never gaming in any form.
My point is that even though the CPU in the MBA is an i7, the MBA is not capable of utilising it to its full potential for gaming because it will get too hot and the Mac will go into damage limitation mode and throttle the power. This is a really informative article - https://www.macworld.co.uk/news/mac/2020-macbook-air-problems-3788127/Smashing article. One other observation: the MBA i7 says only Intel Iris Plus Graphics but no other numbers right after it. The i5 MBP say Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645. Can one get more specific about the former's graphics card when trying to go through the benchmarks?
- @hybridace101
Yeah, I thought it was a great article too 🙂
MBA - https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-1060NG7+%40+1.20GHz&id=3727
MBP - https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-8257U+%40+1.40GHz&id=3605
Side by side comparison - https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8257U-vs-Intel-i7-1060NG7/3605vs3727
- @hybridace101
Using the Apple store online for costs, the MBA you have specified is $1,649. For $150 more I would get the 13" MBP with 2.0 GHz i5 and 16GB RAM.
