Are the 2021 Pros just for pros?

[cardfan]

I’ve seen people spend 2k or more on an iPad Pro especially when you factor in accessories. One of these mbp is a better deal anytime. Obviously there will be those who buy these and do nothing more than consume apps and media. This is fine.

The real excitement is performance at low temps. Unfortunately it’s performance targeted at things I don’t do. Video editing. App creation. I don’t watch hdr on laptops. Sure there’s Rosetta until there isn’t. The iPad apps thing was disappointing.

I’ll stick with what I have til this transistion is complete, Rosetta is history and see where things stand. A m1 mba or mini is still the best way to hop into the m1 end of things. Especially the number of people I’ve seen on here with old mbps ready to upgrade. These are new chips. Not everything works like it did. There’s no boot camp. Might want to wade in the water at first on one of these.

Btw. I paid 620 for a m1 mini when they launched. I can trade in for 500 something right now.

 

[appleuserindc]

Sorry I’m confused - if you take away the CPU and GPU power, what do these new Pros have that the M1 Air doesn’t? Features that stop you from wanting an Air I mean. I’m honestly curious. Obviously they’ll need to refresh the Air for certain things like MagSafe.

Much more real estate on the display in a chassis about same size, mini-LED which provides HDR and Dolby Vision, ProMotion and Atmos audio. Also, 512GB and 16GB RAM standard, both of which are useful to me. I think I posted this someplace else, but if Apple sold the 2021 MBP with an M1, it would probably only be $200 cheaper.

 

[appleuserindc]

In my opinion these computers are not aimed at the average person.

They are pretty clearly optimized for heavy multi-core CPU and GPU workflows like video editing.

The M1 Pro/Max chips have almost the same single-core performance.

Instead of 4 efficiency cores, they have 2 efficiency cores.

So they are faster at multi-core operations and at the GPU, but that benefit comes with many downsides, such as heavier and thicker body.

And most importantly significantly lower battery life. The 13” M1 MBP can do 17h of web browsing, the M1 MBA can do 15h and the new 14” can only do 11h.

And that’s for very, very light usage where you just browse the web in safari.

If you add office apps, slack, Spotify, chrome, maybe development tools and the real life usage will be significantly lower.

For example, the MBA seems to get 8-10h instead of the advertised 15h.

So in real life scenarios the new MBP will likely only get 5.5-7h of battery.

So most people who are buying it now, are trading a significant chunk of battery for additional performance that most of them don’t actually need.

So yeah, I think the new MBP is quite clearly optimized for people who can benefit from the added performance and for whom the resulting compromises are less important.

That’s why I think they will soon release a redesigned MBA that will have many of the benefits of the MBP, but optimized for battery instead of performance.

That will be the perfect device for most people.

Yep, new Airs are apparently coming but more like at least 6-8 months from now, apparently with colors and white bezels and keyboards, which are not pro by any real definition. (I get that we're talking more about style than substance.)

 

[UBS28]

What is so pro about these laptops? If Apple cared about pro’s, they would not have killed 32-bit support in the first place.

Now my $2200 Access Virus TI doesn‘t work with Mac anymore, only with PC.

 

[UltimateSyn]

What is so pro about these laptops? If Apple cared about pro’s, they would not have killed 32-bit support in the first place.

Now my $2200 Access Virus TI doesn‘t work with Mac anymore, only with PC.

Have you done any research at all before posing this question?

 

[UBS28]

Have you done any research at all before posing this question?

Do you really think Apple is targetting pro’s when they are breaking compatibility with professional equipment on purpose, up to the point that they now have to use PC’s?

 

[cardfan]

Do you really think Apple is targetting pro’s when they are breaking compatibility with professional equipment on purpose, up to the point that they now have to use PC’s?

I saw the presentation for the chips and macs. It’s safe to say a pro in apples eye is video editing (high end), Xcode, or music mixing. If these don’t apply to you then you’re not really the target of these. I know I’m not.

These do sound like specific reasons to keep macs going. Keep selling fcp and Logic Pro. Keep iOS devs happy. It’s almost like a surgical focus. Anything else is an afterthought. The rest should be fine with m1 and 16gbs. Good enough. Now how do we sell more MacBook airs to these “nonpros?” Colors. White bezels. They’ll love it. Strangely enough apple will be proven right. We’ll have several threads about which color to get.

 

[marmiteturkey]

Do you really think Apple is targetting pro’s when they are breaking compatibility with professional equipment on purpose, up to the point that they now have to use PC’s?

That’s a 25 year old synth you’re talking about there.

 

[UBS28]

That’s a 25 year old synth you’re talking about there.

I guess you need to go back to school because math is not your strongest point.

But let’s assume you did your math correctly and it is 25 years old (which it is not), it is still one of the best synthesizers on the market.

 

[Lammers]

Yes, unfortunately they are just for pros. To be eligible for them you have to be a pro.

Or it could just be a marketing term for a high performance laptop and anybody that wants one and can afford one can buy them.

 

[smithdr]

Why all this emphasis on names. Who cares what they call it. It is just a damn computer.

Don

 

[marmiteturkey]

I guess you need to go back to school because math is not your strongest point.

But let’s assume you did your math correctly and it is 25 years old (which it is not), it is still one of the best synthesizers on the market.

It was released in 1997. What’s your problem with the maths?

Bonus point for not using ad hominems in your response.

 

[UBS28]

It was released in 1997. What’s your problem with the maths?

Bonus point for not using ad hominems in your response.

The Access Virus TI was released end of 2005 and they are still being sold in 2021.

Now calculate it again. It is a different number than 25 isn’t it?

But let’s assume that your number is correct (which it isn’t), what point are you trying to make?

 

[dingobiatch]

What is so pro about these laptops? If Apple cared about pro’s, they would not have killed 32-bit support in the first place.

Now my $2200 Access Virus TI doesn‘t work with Mac anymore, only with PC.

My friend just went through this same issue and said he found a developer that sells a 64 bit version of the software. Just a heads up.

 

[barkomatic]

I’m gonna watch Netflix and surf the Internet and I’m getting one. Clearly I need the highest spec version!

 

[UBS28]

My friend just went through this same issue and said he found a developer that sells a 64 bit version of the software. Just a heads up.

Thanks for the tip. I heard some people talk about it too. I will check it out.

 

[marmiteturkey]

The Access Virus TI was released end of 2005 and they are still being sold in 2021.

Now calculate it again. It is a different number than 25 isn’t it?

But let’s assume that your number is correct (which it isn’t), what point are you trying to make?

Admittedly I’m not an expert. However…

Access Virus - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

And if we accept that, my point is that it’s not entirely reasonable to say that apple’s pro laptops aren’t pro just because they don’t support 25-yo tech.
Ps I’m pretty drunk, not an expert and more interested in a conversation than fighting so have at it bro.

 

[satchmo]

YouTubers and poser pros count?

 

[dead flag blues]

Nope. Father-in-law was 82 when he bought his 17" MBP, and used it when he was into his early 90s. He wasn't a 'pro' as he retired in his 50s. He was damn good at editing movies tho.

 

[tdbrown75]

I’m gonna watch Netflix and surf the Internet and I’m getting one. Clearly I need the highest spec version!

If you want anything with a larger than 13" screen, you don't get a choice!

Tim

 

[mosh.jinton]

Ultimately, if next year, Apple releases an Air that's suitable enthusiasts (space gray, etc.), the MBP will have outstanding re-sale value.

Yes -- I've bought a base 14" Pro because my 2012 MBP needs replacing but if the new Airs have MagSafe, better display, etc. (and maybe trade ProMotion and power for better power efficiency) I can definitely see myself downgrading. Only thing I'd really miss is a larger screen -- fingers crossed for a 15 inch Air...

 

[AirThis]

To answer the OP's question, you don't necessarily need to be a pro. If you dabble in 3d on a Mac these new machines are really exciting. The last 4 Intel MBPs have been poor as far as thermal handling goes IMO. I was going to switch to a Windows gaming laptop before these new M1 MacBooks were announced.

As it was stated in a couple of different places, you'll know if you need the added CPU/GPU power of the M1 Max or M1 Pro. But that doesn't necessarily mean that you need to be a videographer, a Youtuber, a photographer, or a DJ. If you ask me, one of the main decision tools is Activity Monitor. Just open it and see what it says...

This is what the stats of my 2012 Mac looks like whilst running Blender and simply looking at the viewport with an iterative Cycles render. All 8 CPU cores are close to 100% usage, and the core temp of the processor is peaking at 101C. The fans are howling.

Yet despite the dramatic stats above, this is all I'm displaying in the Viewport with Cycles:

The great news for 3d Mac users is that Apple is now a Blender patron and there will be native Metal support in Cycles starting in Blender 3.1. That means that you'll probably be able to use every single one of those 32 GPU cores in that M1 Max.

With all of this having been said, I'll now go back to pondering whether I really need an M1 Max or if an M1 Pro would be more suited overall.

3.5K is a fair amount of money to spend for dabbling in 3D, but it's so much fun. And to put things into perspective the first Compaq 386 portable started at around $12,000 and you couldn't do much with it.