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10 Months on, How are you 15" rMBP owners?

Quu

Quu

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Apr 2, 2007
3,453
6,995
It has been 10 months and 21 days since the Retina MacBook Pro 15" came out. There is a good bet that at WWDC in June they will refresh the machine and I'm curious how you guys who bought the first one have got on with it.

How is the graphical performance? After using many applications on it do you feel the GPU is fast enough to drive that large density display?

How is the application catalogue are there still a lot of apps that aren't Retina ready?

How has the build quality held up? Have any of you felt you should have upgraded to the 16GB RAM model instead of buying an 8GB model?

Also how many of you would still recommend a rMBP after owning one and if you do intend to upgrade to the new one can you give some reasons why? Is your current rMBP not meeting your expectations?

Thanks :)
 
I can easily say the rMBP is the best laptop I've owned. I still highly recommend it.

This may not be the best fit laptop for everyone, i.e., one size does not fit all. If you can live without the optical drive and storage options, then its a great product.

Its holding up extremely well and I've had zero regrets.
 
The first one I bought upon their release was dreadful. It spent more time at AppleCare than it did with me.

Finally it was replaced, with the new one having its own set of issues that kept the techs at AppleCare busy. Unable to find any justice in Apple having both my money AND my computer I demanded a refund.

Fast forward to three months ago, we received four in a row at work, all of which were just fine, with visible build quality improvements, and of greater importance, they functioned properly.

So I gambled and ordered another fully optioned BTO model. This time I received one that looks and functions as new. Just what I had hoped to receive the first time around.

Two months in, I'm glad I wasn't hesitant to gamble, again.
 
Quu said:
How is the graphical performance? After using many applications on it do you feel the GPU is fast enough to drive that large density display?
Click to expand...

Well, it plays any modern game at high resolutions and good settings, so yes, its most certainly fast enough.

Quu said:
How is the application catalogue are there still a lot of apps that aren't Retina ready?
Click to expand...

I don't think I use a single application which is not retina ready. But my needs are also a bit limited compared to most of you...

Quu said:
How has the build quality held up? Have any of you felt you should have upgraded to the 16GB RAM model instead of buying an 8GB model?
Click to expand...

Build quality is excellent. I have the 16GB model and sometimes I think I could have saved soem money and got the 8GB. Then again, my institution payed ;)

Quu said:
Also how many of you would still recommend a rMBP after owning one and if you do intend to upgrade to the new one can you give some reasons why? Is your current rMBP not meeting your expectations?
Click to expand...

Best laptop I have ever owned, period.
 
Quu said:
How is the graphical performance? After using many applications on it do you feel the GPU is fast enough to drive that large density display?
Click to expand...

Overall, yes. It's not perfect but the latest 10.8.3 build did a great job in reducing the amount of UI and Safari browser lag in OS X. Hopefully it continues to improve.

How is the application catalogue are there still a lot of apps that aren't Retina ready?
Click to expand...

All the native OS X and iLife apps are of course perfect. Third Party Apps are hit and miss based on my experience. Portions of the UI for major programs like Spotify and Adobe Photoshop and Premier Elements are sadly still not Retina ready (although the programs themselves function fine). On the other hand I just installed a relatively new app Delicious Library 3 and it is retina ready top to bottom.

TBH I'm not surprised as this is a 1st generation of retina MacBooks. Developers will be more active in updating/creating their apps to be retina ready as the user base grows and Apple makes them standard.

How has the build quality held up?
Click to expand...

Build quality is perfect 4 months in for me.

Also how many of you would still recommend a rMBP after owning one and if you do intend to upgrade to the new one can you give some reasons why? Is your current rMBP not meeting your expectations?
Click to expand...

I would definitely recommend a rMBP as long as you know its limitations beforehand (upgradability of RAM and SSD to a lesser extent). Otherwise ownership has been a great experience so far.
 
Thank you for your feedback everyone this has been really interesting to read.
 
Best laptop I have ever owned. I use this for my developement work on all platforms and honestly don't have any regrets.
 
Honestly, i am still wowed by it, it's truly a great machine. It's also the first laptop i PLAN on keeping for more than a year, it's super fast even while running VMs heavily for work.
 
i wasnt convinced at all after 10 months, it didnt perform fast and the ui lag made me crazy all day long, for gaming its superb and i cant talk bad about it.

i had a problem where the logic board died and burned my screen, waiting replacements maybe all the problem was in the LB all the time :)

beside from that, the build quality and weight cant be better!
 
I'm still really happy with it. It is, by far, the best screen and laptop I've ever owned.

Highly recommend it? Absolutely! After using the Retina screen for many months now, it's hard to use any other display.
 
My first 2.3 had an LG screen and ghosting issues, the second one (26/16/768) did not had ghosting but has the LG 1st generation screen as well and was concerned with getting ghosting over time, so sold it. I managed to get a very nice max out 1st gen with the Samsung screen recently and am very happy with it!
 
I would echo most other's comments. In two and a half decades of computer buying and ownership, it's the best machine I've owned by a mile. I bought mine in October...one had an LG screen, in December it was replaced with Samsung display and has been dine since. My wife also has one...hers came w/Samsung. Other than that...NO issues. We use them daily, mine is sometimes running 12-14 hours straight. GPU power is fantastic. CPU power is phenomenal for a laptop (I bought the 2.7/16/786). I'm glad I chose 16gb of RAM.

I have no problems recommending this machine to anyone for anything. The 13" for regular users without the need for extra GPU and/or extra real estate...if a power user is looking for a machine for travel, for portability...the 15" is a fine choice.

As far as apps...I'm pleasantly surprised how quickly third party developers have supported the high DPI. Chrome is excellent. I've got the creative suite and use the production elements and while not every app has been optimized...most have, all work well especially with the nVidia GPU for added horsepower in AE and Premier.

If I'd have waited til now without buying I'd certainly wait on the Haswell offerings certain to come this summer or fall. I'm definitely going to buy another this fall

They're awesome machines. Design. Power. Flexibility. Portability. Absolutely the pinnacle of computing today IMHO
 
Quu said:
It has been 10 months and 21 days since the Retina MacBook Pro 15" came out. There is a good bet that at WWDC in June they will refresh the machine and I'm curious how you guys who bought the first one have got on with it.

How is the graphical performance? After using many applications on it do you feel the GPU is fast enough to drive that large density display?

How is the application catalogue are there still a lot of apps that aren't Retina ready?

How has the build quality held up? Have any of you felt you should have upgraded to the 16GB RAM model instead of buying an 8GB model?

Also how many of you would still recommend a rMBP after owning one and if you do intend to upgrade to the new one can you give some reasons why? Is your current rMBP not meeting your expectations?

Thanks :)
Click to expand...

I just purchased mine about half a month ago, and It has easily been the best laptop I have ever owned. Nothing is sluggish or slow, and performance is top notch. I did opt for the 16GB ram just because I am planning on keeping this machine for several years. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a new computer and has the money to spend on it. Most apps I have used are retina ready (which surprised me to be honest). Graphical performance in Final Cut Pro X is fantastic. The only thing slowing it down is the speed of my external HDD. I am not planning on purchasing the new computer. Just got this one a few weeks ago and it is holding up great!
 
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After changing Macbooks frequently i am now on a point that i am will keep my 15 rMBP longer than usual. It is from the first day when i started it a experience which i not want to miss again in my daily duties.
 
First gen here. I have very few regrets about this machine and the ones that I do have are mostly my fault.

Graphical performance has been great. I regularly play Skyrim on here and it runs great even on higher settings. Every single application I use is Retina ready now. It was frustrating at first, but I don't remember the last time I used one that wasn't. I got the 8GB and don't regret that choice at all. Even with all I do, I haven't felt the need for more.

I'm very pleased with the build quality. I do use a Speck clear case on it which makes me a little more comfortable taking it places, but the uncovered parts have held up just as well. There is no staining on the palm rests and the keyboard looks new, which is surprising given how heavily used this computer is.

My only two issues are that I underestimated how much I could fit on the 256GB hard drive and the size can be a little annoying at times. Like I said, I knew both of these going into the purchase, but they are my only regrets. Aside from that, it's been an incredible machine that I see myself keeping for 5+ years to come.
 
i still don't get it, if you build a macbook pro 15" with 8GB ram and 256ssd like the base retina model it is 100$ more, i mean they kill the classic 15" model MP
 
Serban said:
i still don't get it, if you build a macbook pro 15" with 8GB ram and 256ssd like the base retina model it is 100$ more, i mean they kill the classic 15" model MP
Click to expand...

Oh my god, you're right! :eek: You should write an email to Apple and tell them, I bet they haven't noticed that ;)
 
Quu said:
It has been 10 months and 21 days since the Retina MacBook Pro 15" came out. There is a good bet that at WWDC in June they will refresh the machine
Click to expand...

as minor as it was, the macbook pros were spec-bumped less than three months ago. they even carry the "new" tags in the online apple store. i wouldn't bet on an update at wwdc this year.
 
they need this for macbook line up, so i bet in august at max will can get the haswell updated MacBooks
they will announce the 50bil mark of app downloaded like they love
 
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