There is a lot of negativity here about this update, but 2 things to keep in mind:
1) As Intel announced, these chips aren't available for another 6-8 weeks. The first PCs shipping with them will be in August. Apple couldn't wait that long, they needed to upgrade to the new Force Touch trackpad.
2) Broadwell is an insignificant upgrade. Benchmarks show a 10-15% increase in actual speed, and the Iris Pro 6200 is about 10% faster.
I am willing to bet Apple tested Broadwell and Skylake, and decided to skip Broadwell for now in lieu of launching Skylake end of this year or early 2016.
I personally think this was a smart decision on their part, and I purchased the maxed out 15" a week ago. I'm happy with it, it's a nice upgrade in every regard. Screaming fast SSD, a quad core Haswell I haven't been able to bog down even with video editing, and a new dGPU that makes me proud of AMD (I've been an Nvidia fan for most of my life, but this thing is solid).
Am I disappointed Broadwell is out in 6 weeks and I bought a Haswell? Not at all. In 8 months or so when Apple refreshes again, I'll sell this one and get Skylake.
Really there's no reason for anyone to be upset, especially if you own the dGPU model.
a 10% bump on paper is a 0% difference in reality.
Just out of curiosity.
Why are some assuming that the next refresh will include a GPU upgrade?
Are you refering to next generation integrated GPUs or discrete GPUs?
Integrated I understand but I have a hard time imagining that the M370X will only be with us for one cycle.
I don't think anyone is doubting the chops of the 15" rMBP, the thing that is slightly chaffing is paying tomorrow's price for yesterday's goods.
Apple will truly upgrade this machine in ~1year with Broadwell or Skylake, a new dGPU plus USB-C and TB3 which will officially support eGPU plugins. I'll use my Thinkpad/iPad until then.![]()
Where did you read that TB3 would officially support eGPU?
Last month's refresh of the 15" MBP is the freshest Apple could make it for the back-to-school shopping season without risk of supply-related delays. In October, Apple will be able to release a Broadwell 15" MBP in time for the Xmas/Hanukah/Kwanza/Festivus shopping season, again without risk of supply-related delays. Then Apple can release Skylake MBPs after the Chinese New Year shopping season.Its not like Apple was caught off guard to this. Intel tells all their customers when to expect the chipset.
Given how late in the year this was rolled out, why should apple embrace Broadwell when Skylake is literally around the corner.
Its less about playing its customers for fools but rather laying the groundwork imo for a bigger update in the fall.
That could mean that Apple is going to be updating both the Macbook Pro and the Mac Pro later this year, along with a 5k TB3 display for pro users.
These are basically drop in chip replacements for the current Haswells. I bet you see Apple silently use them in the coming weeks with no press release.
Its not like Apple was caught off guard to this. Intel tells all their customers when to expect the chipset.
Given how late in the year this was rolled out, why should apple embrace Broadwell when Skylake is literally around the corner.
Its less about playing its customers for fools but rather laying the groundwork imo for a bigger update in the fall.
This will not happen.
Not picking on you, but I LOVE the folks who see delay after delay after delay with Intel, yet think Skylake is going to be released on time. Somehow they think a slew of Broadwell chips are going to be released, an then the next week, their Skylake replacements are going to hit the shelves as well.Couldn't this also mean that Skylake is delayed? So Intel now offering an upgrade path for manufacturers for the next 6 - 8 months and Skylake mobile only appearing Q1/Q2 of 2016?
Unfortunately, I'm guessing Apple either got some sort of deal on these Haswell chips, or they had a bunch of inventory already. Apple isn't stupid. They know people that dropped $2000+ on the latest 15" MPB will be ticked when a better processor is announced 2 weeks later, so they're obviously benefiting in some other way (a way they feel will more than offset any damage inflicted by an angry customer base).
You people realize that they announced only desktop CPUs right?? LOL