13" Macbook Pro or Razorblade Stealth?

[Queen6]

This is not true like it was in 2008. Look at all the problems people are having with the newest MBP. I have a 2011 17" that I hold like a baby so it doesn't break. I am also in the market for a new laptop... I am also looking at Lenovo Thinkpads.

There are going to be problems with all electronics. I am done paying a premium for a device that is intentionally crippled with inferior hardware billed as the "best, most revolutionary, super duper, incredible awesomest EVER!" When the truth is most of the other manufactures are making better spec'ed machines at prices where you don't have to wait 6 years to change your computer. AKA - The total cost of ownership is much lower with HP, Dell, Lenovo. If you were to break it down to price per month or day the OBJECTIVE value proposition is a no brainer.

Buy a $3000 dollar MBP and then shell out some more for dongles... "Oh, macOS and iOS are so seamlessly integrated!" BS! One has USB-C while the other has lightening. Here let me get my bag-o-dongles to hook basic stuff to this computer. SO DUMB! I used to be a major Apple evangelist... not anymore.

Same here, once I would have unreservedly recommended the Mac, today I pretty much discount it. Apple is simply producing lifestyle products designed to impress the "Kool Kids" hardly surprising why so few professionals remain on the platform...

Q-6

 

[leman]

Lenovo obviously purchases in bulk with significant discount.

The $378 is already a bulk-discounted price.

The Yoga 720 is an excellent productivity orientated note, nor does Apple have much to shout about with the 15" MBP with the majority of model's over years being significantly flawed, thanks to cutting corners and poor design decisions, indeed food for thought...

Significantly flawed how? Are you referring to keyboard issues?

Anyway, I am not trying to downplay the merits of the Yoga 720, simply pointing out that its very difficult to offer a quality product with these components at this price range. Which is the reason why good quality business laptops are usually priced significantly higher. The only reason why Lenovo can offer this computer at that price is because they are saving on other components. And you might disagree with some of Apple's design choices or argue that some of their designs are flawed, I don't really think one can deny that Apple consistently uses more expensive components in their laptops — display, keyboard, TB3 controllers/wiring, power circuitry, WiFi chips etc.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I'm really struggling here guys. I'm in the market for a new laptop. My late 2008 macbook is getting pretty old. Even my 2012 mac mini, which I edit 4K video on, is getting a little old. I really don't want to spend $3000 on a 15" Macbook Pro with a dedicated GPU. I've found a lot of MSI and ASUS machines out there in the price range I want to spend ($1000-$1600) that have nVidia 1050ti or 1060 GPUs with 4GB graphics memory. It's $2800 minimum to get into a Macbook Pro with 4GB of GPU memory.

Then I found the Razorblade Stealth for $1600. It seems to have everything I want except the dedicated GPU, but they offer that externally. Then I remember hearing that Apple will soon support external GPUs as well and I'm wondering if that applies to the current 13" Macbook Pro and how soon we can expect that.

Now I'm torn. In many ways I would like to stick with Mac, but in many ways I'm really turned off by Apple lately with nothing being user upgradable like my old 2008 model. Plus it's $2200 for a 13" Macbook Pro vs $1600 for the Razorblade Stealth with similar specs. And the RBS offers the external GPU option right now.

Things have moved on. Other OEM's have caught up with apple in some ways (not in others in my opinion but that is my opinion) buy what you like if you are spending $1500 on a laptop it will be a decent laptop its that simple.

Work out what you need from a laptop, (battery life, performance, graphics, portability, I/O, OS, design etc) prioritise those needs and set your budget. Then buy the machine that most closely fits those needs in order of priority. Its not rocket science its simple buying based on need which is how all tools should be bought.

 

[Queen6]

The $378 is already a bulk-discounted price.



Significantly flawed how? Are you referring to keyboard issues?

Anyway, I am not trying to downplay the merits of the Yoga 720, simply pointing out that its very difficult to offer a quality product with these components at this price range. Which is the reason why good quality business laptops are usually priced significantly higher. The only reason why Lenovo can offer this computer at that price is because they are saving on other components. And you might disagree with some of Apple's design choices or argue that some of their designs are flawed, I don't really think one can deny that Apple consistently uses more expensive components in their laptops — display, keyboard, TB3 controllers/wiring, power circuitry, WiFi chips etc.

I don't necessarily agree, nor disagree, maybe better put as Apple does things it's own way which indeed can result in positives or negatives. Apple's pricing is also unique in the electronics sector, as in many respects Apple is selling a brand as much as it hardware. The likes of Lenovo would like to up sell their branding, however predominately they are a provider of solely hardware.

I believe the likes of Lenovo (Windows OEM's) is willing to produce certain models at a price point that offers very little margin, designed more to be Halo products to help enhance the brand. This is also why we often observed inconsistent design & quality from the OEM's. Apple most clearly has a very different approach, rarely passing down the cost reduction of technology advancements, equally a clear leader in fit, finish & aesthetic design.

Flawed yes, there's enough anecdotal evidence (IMO) with the new keyboard and all I have personally tried have had a level of inconsistency. The rest is history with numerous extended warranties/repair schemes. As often stated much is related to the design of the MBP over the years. Ultimately the Windows OEM's design their similar hardware significantly different, nor is it likely related to a lack of skill or imagination, more a differing design criteria, with function overriding form.

For my side I would just like to see a more usage focused MBP, that said I don't blame Apple for serving the larger audience, albeit an annoyance....

Q-6

 

[roxics]

Well I ended up with a 2017 15" Macbook Pro. The model with the 4GB GPU, 16GB Ram, and 512 SSD. Way more than I was looking to pay but I bought it open box for $250 off. So far so good, but this is my first day with it. I migrated everything from my old macbook with the migration assistant, which is one of the nice things about a mac.

A few things pushed me in this direction:
1. Even though it's a lot more money than the competition and way more than I was looking to spend, 3-5 years from now, long after that money has been spent and doesn't matter anymore, I'll be stuck with whatever machine I decided on. At which point it's not going to matter that I saved $1000 3-5 years ago by getting the Dell XPS 15 if that machine is nothing but trouble for me.

2. I use my laptop every day for 6-10 hours a day. My philosophy is that I'm willing to spend more on things I use all the time. But sometime I forget that philosophy.

3. I realized that money really was the only factor in the end that mattered the most to me. If the 15" Macbook Pro with dedicated GPU had been the exact same price as the Dell XPS 15 it would have been a no-brainer for me. Sure it would be nice to have upgradable components, but that really only mattered to me if I was buying an underspec'd machine to begin with. Save money now only to spend it on the upgrades later. If I buy the machine now that has the specs I believe will be good enough for me for the next five years, the ability to upgrade isn't so much a requirement as it is a luxury that would be nice to have. That said, I still believe it's something Apple should offer considering the cost of their machines.

4. I'm already all-mac for my personal machines and so are all my external hard drives. Trying to get the rest of my existing stuff to work flawlessly with a new windows laptop would be a bit of a pain. Plus I still prefer Mac OS, despite the fact I think it's gotten more buggy the last couple of releases. Worse case scenario I can always run Windows 10 on it.

5. I know that if I have issues I can walk into either of the two local Apple stores and get help. I'm not sure what I would have done with the Dell or any other Windows machine. I hate shipping things off. The one time I had a problem with my macbook, I walked into an Apple store, gave it to them and came back two days later to pick it up. It was fixed, cleaned up as if it were brand new and as a bonus they even put a new battery in it. I've had it for five years since with no issues.

You could say I'm rationalizing my purchase and I am, but it's the conclusion I came to.

 

[Abaganov]

Well I ended up with a 2017 15" Macbook Pro. The model with the 4GB GPU, 16GB Ram, and 512 SSD. Way more than I was looking to pay but I bought it open box for $250 off. So far so good, but this is my first day with it. I migrated everything from my old macbook with the migration assistant, which is one of the nice things about a mac.

A few things pushed me in this direction:
1. Even though it's a lot more money than the competition and way more than I was looking to spend, 3-5 years from now, long after that money has been spent and doesn't matter anymore, I'll be stuck with whatever machine I decided on. At which point it's not going to matter that I saved $1000 3-5 years ago by getting the Dell XPS 15 if that machine is nothing but trouble for me.

2. I use my laptop every day for 6-10 hours a day. My philosophy is that I'm willing to spend more on things I use all the time. But sometime I forget that philosophy.

3. I realized that money really was the only factor in the end that mattered the most to me. If the 15" Macbook Pro with dedicated GPU had been the exact same price as the Dell XPS 15 it would have been a no-brainer for me. Sure it would be nice to have upgradable components, but that really only mattered to me if I was buying an underspec'd machine to begin with. Save money now only to spend it on the upgrades later. If I buy the machine now that has the specs I believe will be good enough for me for the next five years, the ability to upgrade isn't so much a requirement as it is a luxury that would be nice to have. That said, I still believe it's something Apple should offer considering the cost of their machines.

4. I'm already all-mac for my personal machines and so are all my external hard drives. Trying to get the rest of my existing stuff to work flawlessly with a new windows laptop would be a bit of a pain. Plus I still prefer Mac OS, despite the fact I think it's gotten more buggy the last couple of releases. Worse case scenario I can always run Windows 10 on it.

5. I know that if I have issues I can walk into either of the two local Apple stores and get help. I'm not sure what I would have done with the Dell or any other Windows machine. I hate shipping things off. The one time I had a problem with my macbook, I walked into an Apple store, gave it to them and came back two days later to pick it up. It was fixed, cleaned up as if it were brand new and as a bonus they even put a new battery in it. I've had it for five years since with no issues.

You could say I'm rationalizing my purchase and I am, but it's the conclusion I came to.

totally agree with all your points ,
just bought the exact same model for the exact same reasons