Do you wish you had gotten a cMBP rather than rMBP?

[Bleak]

Although the price difference isn't the point of this thread their is a difference if you need the equivalent functionality of a cMBP:

2.6 Ghz retina ($2,799) + apple drive ($79) + USB ethernet ($29) + 750 GB HDD for a time machine backup ($90) = $2997

2.6 Ghz cMPB (2,199) + hi-res option ($100) + 512GB M4 SSD ($400) = 2,699

Also, these rMBP prices don't reflect potential lost-time from repair/replacements if you happen to be one of the unlucky few.

Let me fix that for you, since adding in a worse SSD to lower the price isn't really fair.
2.6 Ghz cMPB (2,199) + hi-res option ($100) + 512GB Samsung 830 ($540) = 2,839

Either way, don't forget that forums are all full of whiners, as people like to post when they are dissatisfied but rarely do so when they are satisfied (for an example go to any game forum in existence and see how ****** they are). New product line = new problems, it's like this for every apple launch regardless of which generation of product it is, you will always get crap like screen yellowing/separation or chips/scratches and all that.

 

[nontroppo]

My major regrets:

1. Can't use my IR remote 😡
2. I miss the pulsing sleep LED 🙁
3. Poorer wifi performance at 2.4Ghz 😱

These regrets pale into insignificance compared to the substantial advantages over the cMBP. I've never owned a cooler MBP in my 6 years or so since my switch. The screen, the screen, the screen, oh my! As a typography geek, being able to see fine details in glyphs is just spectacular. Text read smoothly, and editing pictures is the bomb. I don't really care about thin, and though I didn't think I would care about weight, it does really make a difference. The rMBP is the first laptop I've casually listened to music on... No problems with display issues, no lag.

The arguments against upgradability make no sense to me (and I souped up my previous cMBP to the max); the rMBP is so fast, the SSD is upgradable and I will upgrade my laptop by the time >16GB is needed. Now I didn't have to pay for my rMBP, but if my rMBP was destroyed and I needed to replace it out of my own pocket, I would get another rMBP, and I will never buy a low DPI device from now on (waits patiently for higher DPI monitors to become standard...).

 

[calderone]

Why can't people post a normal poll? Why does there always have to be some idiotic option?

 

[bogatyr]

Although the price difference isn't the point of this thread their is a difference if you need the equivalent functionality of a cMBP:

2.6 Ghz retina ($2,799) + apple drive ($79) + USB ethernet ($29) + 750 GB HDD for a time machine backup ($90) = $2997

2.6 Ghz cMPB (2,199) + hi-res option ($100) + 512GB M4 SSD ($400) = 2,699

For those of us who prefer no hassle - Apple support start to finish, it is not even close to the same ballpark for price. The Apple 512GB SSD is $900 in the cMBP.

I work all day in I.T., the last thing I care to deal with when I get home is another computer. If my personal laptop has an issue with hardware - I take it to the Apple Store. When I had a ThinkPad, I had onsite service. At home I relax and let other people fix things for me so I'm not going to play musical drives to take it into the store and drop it off.

----------

Let me fix that for you, since adding in a worse SSD to lower the price isn't really fair.
2.6 Ghz cMPB (2,199) + hi-res option ($100) + 512GB Samsung 830 ($540) = 2,839

I find the M4 to be a great and reliable drive. We use them in a lot of our ThinkPads at work.

 

[tillsbury]

I wasn't looking for a Mac, but the Retina did it for me in the specifications. The cMBP wouldn't even have got a look-in...

 

[alphaod]

Hell no.

Why can't people post a normal poll? Why does there always have to be some idiotic option?

Because a poll with three responses
1) Yes
2) No
3) No

…wouldn't really work 😛

 

[wethackrey]

Came from a 17" HRAG, which I loved, to the 15" retina. The screen is worth switching for alone and I've yet to hear the fan, if I so much as thought about playing a game or using a VM on the 17", the fans would go into aircraft takeoff mode. I can safely say that it's the best machine I've ever used.

I'm in exactly the same boat, having migrated from a series of 17" anti-glare MBPs. And my opinion after the move is the same as yours. I was a big fan of the 17" anti-glare... and you could not pay me to switch back. The retina is the best computer I've ever used. No contest.

 

[leekohler]

I'm in exactly the same boat, having migrated from a series of 17" anti-glare MBPs. And my opinion after the move is the same as yours. I was a big fan of the 17" anti-glare... and you could not pay me to switch back. The retina is the best computer I've ever used. No contest.

Yep. The things are amazing. I got mine today and am up late playing. Wow, just wow. This is Apple at it's best.

 

[lordjonny]

Um. What is that "expansion drive"?

See what a few people have written below for a detailed explanation of what I was inferring. But basically you said you'd need an enclosure for both the time machine backup for the rMBP and the internal drive from the cMBP but for $90 you can get a 1tb with enclosure. Also as said below you did choose a substandard SSD.

I wrestled with which one to get for a while and honestly couldn't see the point in getting a cMBP unless you got a refurb or mass discount, with my education discount it made very little sense.

Also you don't get more on the screen unless you use scaled, you only have to watch something like timescapes.org to see the beauty of the retina, its gorgeous.

 

[2499723]

I feel like there should maybe be a fourth poll offering for those who are kind of on the fence. After having my screen replaced, I am kind of hovering between being happy that everything is working but also a bit apprehensive about what the future might hold. If I have any more problems with the screen, I think I'll start really resenting the technology. However, generally speaking, I really enjoy the experience of using a retina screen and am pleased with the performance of the computer itself.

 

[FuNGi]

Hell no.

Because a poll with three responses
1) Yes
2) No
3) No

…wouldn't really work 😛

Plus there really are three diferrent responses - some buyers have no regrets and no problems, some have no regrets and problems. I guess calderone didn't like to wonder if people like him or not 🙄.

 

[73CortinaV8]

no problems, but I don't like the keyboard on the rmbp (vs. mbp) and I the case creaking annoys me to no end.

 

[platypus63]

Just ordered a 15inch hi-res cMBP w/ ssd for work.
Really wanted to get Retina, however tiny desk at work plus need for hardwired access means precious space would be taken up by dongles and whatnot. Oh well, next time around maybe I can get a bigger desk! Still should be a monster of a machine compared to my current nonunibody mbp

 

[FuNGi]

Just ordered a 15inch hi-res cMBP w/ ssd for work.
Really wanted to get Retina, however tiny desk at work plus need for hardwired access means precious space would be taken up by dongles and whatnot. Oh well, next time around maybe I can get a bigger desk! Still should be a monster of a machine compared to my current nonunibody mbp

Hope you didn't pay for Apple's SSD!

 

[doh123]

Just ordered a 15inch hi-res cMBP w/ ssd for work.
Really wanted to get Retina, however tiny desk at work plus need for hardwired access means precious space would be taken up by dongles and whatnot. Oh well, next time around maybe I can get a bigger desk! Still should be a monster of a machine compared to my current nonunibody mbp

space taken up by a dongle? You realize its just a little thing that your network cable plugs into? It takes up no extra noticeable space, just makes the cable a couple inches longer.

 

[JBat]

I just purchased a 13" MBA. I think I'll wait for the next iteration of the rMBP before looking at them again.

 

[calderone]

Plus there really are three diferrent responses - some buyers have no regrets and no problems, some have no regrets and problems. I guess calderone didn't like to wonder if people like him or not 🙄.

I am aware that they are different responses. Why the need to add something like "and people like me?" I truly do not get it.

 

[FuNGi]

I am aware that they are different responses. Why the need to add something like "and people like me?" I truly do not get it.

It was meant to simply inject a bit of humor. It is a take off from Stewart Smally skits on old Sat. Night Live. "I'm good enough, smart enough, and dog-on-it people like me".

 

[platypus63]

space taken up by a dongle? You realize its just a little thing that your network cable plugs into? It takes up no extra noticeable space, just makes the cable a couple inches longer.

dongle & whatnot. Whatnot includes an external superdrive... which I still need because clients still insist on CDs. My work desk is really small, and I do mostly non-computer tasks on here so need every inch. I do have a pretty sweet view of NYC at least.

 

[Ledgem]

All that for an even less price than a CMBP. Go to online apple store and try to Build your own CMBP with the retina specs, it'll be more expensive.

To be fair, the major advantage of a "cMBP" over a "rMBP" (and the reason I stuck with cMBP) is that you can upgrade it yourself. The price of RAM and SSDs will drop with time, so you can either wait it out and save or continually upgrade throughout your computer's life, extending its useful life and capabilities. Apple doesn't lower their prices on RAM or SSDs just because the rest of the market experiences a price drop, and with the rMBP, it will be the way that you bought it until it's replaced (unless you're into hard-core motherboard modifications).

So while it's true that the price is surprisingly close in the Apple store, the price gap widens by a fair bit once you start shopping for your own parts.

I'm still hopeful that Apple will bring the retina display to the "cMBP" form factor, but realistically speaking, I doubt that they will.

 

[CFoss]

The rMBP is probably one of my favourite machines to use. It just does everything I want it to do, it's light, and looks beautiful.

 

[rgr555]

hell no. the retina is a huge upgrade in every aspect.

 

[wethackrey]

Just ordered a 15inch hi-res cMBP w/ ssd for work.
Really wanted to get Retina, however tiny desk at work plus need for hardwired access means precious space would be taken up by dongles and whatnot. Oh well, next time around maybe I can get a bigger desk! Still should be a monster of a machine compared to my current nonunibody mbp

I'm the last one to fault your decision. You're the one using it and you should use the computer you like. But any notion that the "dongles and whatnot" take up precious desk space is stretching reality quite a bit. I often need to connect with ethernet and I currently have a FireWire 800 drive connected. They certainly don't take up any measurable amount of room on the desk that cables without the Thunderbolt adapters would not have taken up anyway. In fact, I find having USB ports on both sides actually saves me desk space.

Enjoy your new machine. I'm sure you'll like it. But I'm afraid you'll have to re-think your rationale.

 

[AirThis]

No issues here other than a slightly "warm" color profile by default. The LCP panel looks very slightly yellowish. It's a Samsung.

I was hesitating between cMBP and rMBP. No regrets. I really like this machine. My only worry is how I'm going to keep this machine clean and damage-free. If I had bought a cMBP I don't think I would be so stressed out about this.

 

[striker33]

I'd rather have no MacBook at all than have a retina at the moment. I just couldnt go back to that horrible chunky heavy design again. Couldnt care less about the screen.

I've sent back 6 rMBPs so far since they were released.

My first 2 had perfect uniformity in both screens, both samsung. The first had dead pixels, the 2nd had a bend hinge.

The 3 after all had yellow or pink tinting to either the top or sides of the screen, and the 6th one, which is still in my posession, has extremely bad light bleed, and pink tinting to the right, in addition to image retention (LG screen).

In all honesty, I'd have trouble reccommending this to anyone at the moment, much like the iPad 3rd gen.

Next year will be the time to invest, as the first gen issues will hopefully be sorted, as well as the improved haswell chips which will remove what little lag is left in mountain lion.