Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

13.3 inch rMBP in September

L

lockerc18

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 17, 2012
553
209
There's a lot of press today about a 13.3 inch Retina MBP being part of the September announcement. Of course, there isn't a wealth of information about the actual specs of such a system, other than it would have a smaller Retina display. There have been a couple of speculative articles saying it would be the same architecturally as the current 15.4 in models, which means soldered-on RAM and an SSD instead of HDD. I presume there would be no ODD, either.

What's the best guess about the system configuration?

If this is really just a smaller display version of the current rMBP, and goes for the rumored $1500 MSRP, that could be a real barn burner of a system.
 
I really think apple needs to put it in a dedicated GPU with this one. If this it going have the same design they could easily do it. An nvidia GT630m would be perfect.
 
I'd be quite pissed if they did announce one so soon. Just got my 15" Retina last week and I really want a 13" I believe. The 15" is just a bit too big for my liking. I guess I can always sell/trade the 15" once they come out, but I was under the impression Apple would wait until after the holiday season this year to bring out the next big gun in their lineup. That way they span two separate fiscal years with these new retina displays. But alas, they are pretty difficult to predict.
 
dbdynsty25 said:
I'd be quite pissed if they did announce one so soon. Just got my 15" Retina last week and I really want a 13" I believe. The 15" is just a bit too big for my liking. I guess I can always sell/trade the 15" once they come out, but I was under the impression Apple would wait until after the holiday season this year to bring out the next big gun in their lineup. That way they span two separate fiscal years with these new retina displays. But alas, they are pretty difficult to predict.
Click to expand...

Then just return it and get the computer you need. Why would you be mad? You made the choice, its not like someone made you buy it. And its not like you had to have a retina display NOW. Even at the launch of the 15" there was already rumors of a 13" coming in October, so this is no surprise anyway.

I always thought 15" was too big and 13" was perfect, but I bit on the 15 rMBP and after getting used to it I don't see myself going back. The extra screen space is perfect as this is my only machine. With the 13" (which I had on the Air) I felt like everything was just a little too small for use 24/7.
 
i'd rather have a 13" than the 15" rmbp. but if that means losing out on the 650m and only having the intel hd4000 to power the retina display? hell no. even WITH the 650m the performance is bad enough as it is.
 
Gregintosh said:
I always thought 15" was too big and 13" was perfect, but I bit on the 15 rMBP and after getting used to it I don't see myself going back. The extra screen space is perfect as this is my only machine. With the 13" (which I had on the Air) I felt like everything was just a little too small for use 24/7.
Click to expand...

My significant other got a 2012 MBA with a 13 inch screen. I really, really like everything about that system. I haven't found the screen to be space challenged at all, which is really a matter of individual preference, I suppose. But I've had a 15 inch screen on my laptops for years now, and I do like the extra screen real estate. I've just had a hard time coming to grips with the pricing for the new rMBP. I think a 13 inch Retina Pro would be a VERY interesting system to consider if the pricing is where it's rumored to be.
 
Gregintosh said:
I always thought 15" was too big and 13" was perfect, but I bit on the 15 rMBP and after getting used to it I don't see myself going back. The extra screen space is perfect as this is my only machine. With the 13" (which I had on the Air) I felt like everything was just a little too small for use 24/7.
Click to expand...

Which is exactly why I ended up getting the 15". Figured I'd get used to it. I had an 11" Air previously, an a retina iPad and those are essentially the same product (lol). So wanted something bigger and was trying to decide between 13" MBA and rMBP...went big. This is really an "accessory" machine as I've got my 24" gaming PC at home and I am connected to a 24" monitor at work most of the time, so really the 15 rMBP is a splurge for the screen and doing some photo editing and video work...that's really the only reason I got it.

I guess pissed or mad is the wrong emotion...disappointed maybe? Yes, everyone has been rumoring there would be a 13" retina this fall, but if there really was something coming out in September or October, I'd think we'd have some more concrete evidence. I know I can return mine, and if for some reason a 13" Retina is confirmed before my 14 day return window has elapsed, but I'm finally getting used to the size, but I'd rather have $400 bucks. :)
 
lockerc18 said:
There have been a couple of speculative articles saying it would be the same architecturally as the current 15.4 in models, which means soldered-on RAM and an SSD instead of HDD. I presume there would be no ODD, either..
Click to expand...

That's a pretty high likelyhood.

I doubt it will have the same raw processing power as the 15". Maybe a dual core CPU (that's what the 'leaked' benchmarks show) and a lower end GPU.

Other than that I would say the same footprint as the current 13", just a bit thinner, similar port layout to the 15" RMBP, a 2560x1600 display, probably 128GB SSD as standard, and a starting cost of $1500-$1600.
 
Stetrain said:
That's a pretty high likelyhood.

I doubt it will have the same raw processing power as the 15". Maybe a dual core CPU (that's what the 'leaked' benchmarks show) and a lower end GPU.

Other than that I would say the same footprint as the current 13", just a bit thinner, similar port layout to the 15" RMBP, a 2560x1600 display, probably 128GB SSD as standard, and a starting cost of $1500-$1600.
Click to expand...

Any sort of reasonable discreet graphix, same thickness as the 15", under $2k and I'm sold.
 
teeteetee said:
Hopefully the LG panels for the 13" rmbp wont have IR anymore
Click to expand...

I had a 15" rMBP with an LG screen with absolutely no issues. I only returned it because it was a base model and I decided I wanted 16GB ram, so I had to do a BTO :\
 
Orlandoech.com said:
I had a 15" rMBP with an LG screen with absolutely no issues. I only returned it because it was a base model and I decided I wanted 16GB ram, so I had to do a BTO :\
Click to expand...

And I would bet you can't use six GB of RAM.

Big mistake there.
 
lockerc18 said:
My significant other got a 2012 MBA with a 13 inch screen. I really, really like everything about that system. I haven't found the screen to be space challenged at all, which is really a matter of individual preference, I suppose. But I've had a 15 inch screen on my laptops for years now, and I do like the extra screen real estate. I've just had a hard time coming to grips with the pricing for the new rMBP. I think a 13 inch Retina Pro would be a VERY interesting system to consider if the pricing is where it's rumored to be.
Click to expand...

Technically, the 15" rMBP has the same resolution as the 13" Air (effective resolution of 1440x900), so while both displays can show the same exact amount of information, the 15" makes it bigger.

And to me that's important, because if a laptop is going to be your only computer then you don't want to strain your eyes if you are going to spend hours on it. I use mine for business, and I easily spend 6+ hours a day on it.

If the computer was a leisure item where I spent maybe 2-3 hours a day a couple times a week then the 13" would've been fine (and that's why I was happy with my 13" Air when I had my iMac for most of my tasks, but less so when it became my ONLY system.)

I know I can return mine, and if for some reason a 13" Retina is confirmed before my 14 day return window has elapsed, but I'm finally getting used to the size, but I'd rather have $400 bucks.
Click to expand...

You're a strange person. I guess I just have more concrete feelings on whether or not I am comfortable using something or not. And while money plays a factor in the impact on your wallet, a cheaper price won't make you like using one system more than another.

My advice, since obviously you can afford the 15 since you made the purchase, is pick the size you're comfortable with using on a daily (or whatever interval) basis rather than look at the price.
 
You can run the retina in 1440x900, 1680x1050, 1920x1200 natively without any resolution app. You can also run it in the full 2880x1800 with a 3rd party app or terminal cmd.
 
Gregintosh said:
You're a strange person. I guess I just have more concrete feelings on whether or not I am comfortable using something or not. And while money plays a factor in the impact on your wallet, a cheaper price won't make you like using one system more than another.

My advice, since obviously you can afford the 15 since you made the purchase, is pick the size you're comfortable with using on a daily (or whatever interval) basis rather than look at the price.
Click to expand...

Not quite sure why I'm a "strange person" because I'm picky about hardware and have trouble making electronic purchases that completely satisfy me. 9 times out of 10, I go with the best item I can afford and adapt to the form factor, which is ultimately why I decided to go with the 15" Retina instead of getting a 13" last week. I didn't want to think "what if" and have some buyers remorse. The only remorse I have at the moment is spending 2200 on a laptop...haha. It's really my last splurge before my wife and I have to start paying for daycare, so I figured if there was any time to do it...it was now.

Okay, maybe I am strange. I can accept that.
 
They'll probably keep it this way for at least a year but don't know if eventually it makes sense to have a 13" macbook pro retina and 13" air

Assuming they do it the same way as the 15", the machine will be thinner, use SSD, and not have a disc drive. There wasn't already a 15" air so it makes a bit more sense for that model.
 
It will be interesting to see if they put in a discrete gpu or not.

A weaker gpu like the 630m or smth doesn't make sense, because the hd4k has almost the same performance and a more powerfull gpu will need be too hot/need too much battery.

My guess is internal only.

This would also mean, that apple is certain that the small UI issues are software related (what I think as well).
 
iDerp said:
It will be interesting to see if they put in a discrete gpu or not.

A weaker gpu like the 630m or smth doesn't make sense, because the hd4k has almost the same performance and a more powerfull gpu will need be too hot/need too much battery.

My guess is internal only.

This would also mean, that apple is certain that the small UI issues are software related (what I think as well).
Click to expand...

It could be the 640m LE (note: "LE") which is the one suggested for the hypothetical mac mini 2012. It makes sense both performance wise (it's about 30/35% slower than stock 650m) and power consumption (20w versus 45w stock 650m). I bet nothing less or they won't manage that resolution.

But Apple still managed to put inside 15'' rMBP an overclocked 650m, which probably consumes more than stock 45w. If they go for the Dual-Core route cpu side (instead of the Quad-Core like the current rMBP), they could still have something as powerful as a 650m in a 13.3'' form factor.

Keep in mind they are using this cpu: i7-3615qm - 45w tdp. There are 17w and 25w tdp dual core cpus (see Macbook Air 2012), so they can still manage to afford a 650m (at least I hope it).

My 0.02$.
 
The 13" rMBP will not have a dedicated GPU. Intel HD 4000 only.
And a quad core CPU is out of the question.
Best bet will be to wait until Haswell even if we see a Fall release.
Otherwise go with the MacBook Air or 15" rMBP in the interim if you can't wait.
 
1st of april 2013 for just 200$ i think cause apple loves his customers and only wants to give some of their earnings back:apple:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back