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I think it's hilarious how so many people defend the rMB performance by saying it's not going to compare to an MBPro. Fine, yes, totally right. But when I point out that I returned my rMB for feeling slower than my 2012 13" 1.8GHz MBA, nobody comments. 2012!!!! Do we really need to go back in time by 3+ years in CPU performance to get this kind of portability

I think its hilarious how you mention going back in time in regards to CPU performance but you are still rocking a horrible TFT display they've used since 2009 :p
 
I think it's hilarious how so many people defend the rMB performance by saying it's not going to compare to an MBPro. Fine, yes, totally right. But when I point out that I returned my rMB for feeling slower than my 2012 13" 1.8GHz MBA, nobody comments. 2012!!!! Do we really need to go back in time by 3+ years in CPU performance to get this kind of portability?

Sorry, but for $1700, I'm waiting for Skylake at least.

Not defending a purchase or the product. Just pointing out that many of us have switched from more modern machines and have not had issues with "snappy-ness".

This is who I think the product is for (and I apologize for the over-general-ization in advance)

Someone who wants the gorgeous screen of a RMBP
Someone who wants the portability of the MBA
Someone who wants 25-50% more productivity of an iPad plus keyboard
 

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I think it's hilarious how so many people defend the rMB performance by saying it's not going to compare to an MBPro. Fine, yes, totally right. But when I point out that I returned my rMB for feeling slower than my 2012 13" 1.8GHz MBA, nobody comments. 2012!!!! Do we really need to go back in time by 3+ years in CPU performance to get this kind of portability?

Sorry, but for $1700, I'm waiting for Skylake at least.

I have a 1.1Ghz Gold rMB, just got it on Monday. It's my first Mac, and it certainly doesn't feel slow or laggy to me. I have noticed a few stutter animations in Yosimitee, but from what I've read these occur in even the 13" pro's as Yosimitee can be a but unoptimized.

But just doing general work like web browsing, typing documents, youtube, etc., I notice no slow down. And those tasks are exactly what I bought this machine for.

Now, before anybody jumps on me for saying the reason I don't notice the slowness is this is my first Mac, consider this. I have a very good desktop I build myself that runs Windows for gaming, with an overclocked quad core i5, 8GB RAM, SSD, GTX 680. I have a 120z monitor and love playing games at closer to 120fps rather than 60fps, so I do have a fast machine and am very capable of noticing frame drops and effects of a bogged down machine. But I don't see any major problems with my rMB. Now, I don't have file vault enabled, maybe that has something to do with it.

Also, where are you getting $1700 from? It starts at $1299...
 
I have a 1.1Ghz Gold rMB, just got it on Monday. It's my first Mac, and it certainly doesn't feel slow or laggy to me. I have noticed a few stutter animations in Yosimitee, but from what I've read these occur in even the 13" pro's as Yosimitee can be a but unoptimized.

But just doing general work like web browsing, typing documents, youtube, etc., I notice no slow down. And those tasks are exactly what I bought this machine for.

Now, before anybody jumps on me for saying the reason I don't notice the slowness is this is my first Mac, consider this. I have a very good desktop I build myself that runs Windows for gaming, with an overclocked quad core i5, 8GB RAM, SSD, GTX 680. I have a 120z monitor and love playing games at closer to 120fps rather than 60fps, so I do have a fast machine and am very capable of noticing frame drops and effects of a bogged down machine. But I don't see any major problems with my rMB. Now, I don't have file vault enabled, maybe that has something to do with it.

Also, where are you getting $1700 from? It starts at $1299...

The dongle is an automatic add on for most people OR you'd have to purchase new externals all together which is more than the price of dongles.
 
The dongle is an automatic add on for most people OR you'd have to purchase new externals all together which is more than the price of dongles.

Okay, but the base price is still $1299 and even if you went with Apple's $80 adapter that's $1380. I still don't understand where the figure of $1700 is coming from.
 
I think its hilarious how you mention going back in time in regards to CPU performance but you are still rocking a horrible TFT display they've used since 2009 :p

Finally, a worthy reply to my point. Thanks for that. Glad you didn't point out the MB Pro is what I need, lol.

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Okay, but the base price is still $1299 and even if you went with Apple's $80 adapter that's $1380. I still don't understand where the figure of $1700 is coming from.

1.2 GHz & AppleCare.
 
Just got my base model. The thing is snappy for me. Re-sizing windows is laggy but I don't care about that at all. Im going to try some scaled resolutions higher than 1440x900 and see how that works.

Edit: The lag goes away when using switch res X 1920x1200. Actually with more testing it stays. Odd it went away for a little while. I am surprised that at 1920x1200 it is actually usable although quite small. I suppose 1280x800 for everyday use and then when more space is needed 1920x1200 will work in a squeeze. Great machine I'm loving it so far.
 
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Just got my base model. The thing is snappy for me. Re-sizing windows is laggy but I don't care about that at all. Im going to try some scaled resolutions higher than 1440x900 and see how that works.

Edit: The lag goes away when using switch res X 1920x1200. Actually with more testing it stays. Odd it went away for a little while. I am surprised that at 1920x1200 it is actually usable although quite small. I suppose 1280x800 for everyday use and then when more space is needed 1920x1200 will work in a squeeze. Great machine I'm loving it so far.

Maybe it cooled down, so it could turbo, and then got too hot and throttled??
 
I doubt it. The lag does not seem to correspond to CPU usage. The cpu is hardly being used. The only lag I'm getting is in re-sizing windows everything else has been smooth so far (just web browsing and downloading programs).
 
I doubt it. The lag does not seem to correspond to CPU usage. The cpu is hardly being used. The only lag I'm getting is in re-sizing windows everything else has been smooth so far (just web browsing and downloading programs).

Yeah, but does it correspond to GPU usage? On my rMBP the GPU frequency increases when scrolling and resizing windows. This makes the entire Processor package temp increase and so in the case of a Core-M since there is no fan, it will throttle the frequencies down to bring the temp to a plateau/lower it etc
 
Okay, but the base price is still $1299 and even if you went with Apple's $80 adapter that's $1380. I still don't understand where the figure of $1700 is coming from.

For only 7% more you can get a brand new mid-range MBPr.

If you go refurbished, you can get one for less than the price of a new MB.

And yeah idk where 1700 is coming from maybe the for the 512GB SSD model?

http://store.apple.com/us/buy-mac/macbook-pro

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Not defending a purchase or the product. Just pointing out that many of us have switched from more modern machines and have not had issues with "snappy-ness".

This is who I think the product is for (and I apologize for the over-general-ization in advance)

Someone who wants the gorgeous screen of a RMBP
Someone who wants the portability of the MBA
Someone who wants 25-50% more productivity of an iPad plus keyboard

Nice picture. I think it pretty much sums it up.

It's an iPad in terms of usage, a Macbook air in terms of portability, and a MBPr in terms of features.

Hybrid model.
 
Yeah, but does it correspond to GPU usage? On my rMBP the GPU frequency increases when scrolling and resizing windows. This makes the entire Processor package temp increase and so in the case of a Core-M since there is no fan, it will throttle the frequencies down to bring the temp to a plateau/lower it etc

I have zero lag scrolling and that was while installing office at the same time. I don't have a way to check the gpu, I can't imagine that just resizing a window for a split second causes throttling, you really think that?
 
For only 7% more you can get a brand new mid-range MBPr.

If you go refurbished, you can get one for less than the price of a new MB.

And yeah idk where 1700 is coming from maybe the for the 512GB SSD model?

And you can get a Windows laptop for half the price of any Apple laptop made, so whats your point?
 
And you can get a Windows laptop for half the price of any Apple laptop made, so whats your point?

My point is that the new MB is overpriced since for only 7% more you can get a SUPERIOR computer from the exact same manufacturer, Apple.
 
My point is that the new MB is overpriced since for only 7% more you can get a SUPERIOR computer from the exact same manufacturer, Apple.

It's not overpriced at all. It's America. Free market. The MacBook is priced at what Apple thinks the market will bear. And based on pre-orders and sales so far, I think they hit the nail on the head.

It's a given that successive generations will get more powerful for the same price, maintain consistent performance for a lower price, or both. This is the way of computer tech since the dawn of computer tech.

What constitutes superior is entirely subjective. Some want a powerful laptop as a primary workhorse computer: Mac Pro for you. Powerful laptop with a hi-res display: MacBook Pro retina for you. Some want thin, light, and less expensive with enough ports to be a primary computer. MacBook Air for them. Some want the thinnest, lightest possible mobile computing device and don't need to do any heavy data entry. iPad Air 2 for them. Some want the thinnest, lightest computer with a proper keyboard they can get to serve as a mobile computing option for writing, or working with spreadsheets or presentations while their powerful workhorse sits on their desk. MacBook for them! (That's me. And to get what I want I don't care all that much about price.)
 
It's competitively priced with windows machines that have similar hardware. Thing is this looks way better. And it has OS X.
 
So best buy had sent me two macbook. I tried to cancel one, but they both ended up shipping. It took me only about 24 hours to realize I was returning the rMB. Then this second one comes. It is running great. Everything is smooth, and what UI lag there is, is identical to my rMBP.

I seriously wonder if some of these are just flat out running differently. It would help explain the widely different reviews. I am going to sell my rMBP and keep the rMB. The first one I had was seriously awful. It has horrific UI lag, and I saw a ton of beachballs. Both were running 10.10.3. It feels like this is the device I should have received right from the get go. They were both base 1.1/256 variants.
 
My point is that the new MB is overpriced since for only 7% more you can get a SUPERIOR computer from the exact same manufacturer, Apple.

I have the rMBP 13". It's a great machine. However, it's not superior if you care about size and weight.

Why do people feel there is some need for price to equate to CPU and frequency? For most tasks anyone does there is a point where faster doesn't really matter. That's the target for a machine like the rMB. For most users and most tasks the performance difference between it and a loaded 15" rMBP isn't significant enough for the weight and size difference.
 
What strikes me with the new line of MacBook is that it is trying to drive increasingly insane resolutions with what are quite underpowered GPUs. I think what you are experiencing is an underpowered GPU moving around 4 million pixels - they will no doubt optimise it over time. As far as CPU and the rest of the hardware goes, it's pretty darned good considering the form factor.

1000
 
So best buy had sent me two macbook. I tried to cancel one, but they both ended up shipping. It took me only about 24 hours to realize I was returning the rMB. Then this second one comes. It is running great. Everything is smooth, and what UI lag there is, is identical to my rMBP.

I seriously wonder if some of these are just flat out running differently. It would help explain the widely different reviews. I am going to sell my rMBP and keep the rMB. The first one I had was seriously awful. It has horrific UI lag, and I saw a ton of beachballs. Both were running 10.10.3. It feels like this is the device I should have received right from the get go. They were both base 1.1/256 variants.

Was there any difference in how you set them up? Were they both running the same version of OS X (10.10.2 vs. 10.10.3)?
 
Was there any difference in how you set them up? Were they both running the same version of OS X (10.10.2 vs. 10.10.3)?

I set everything up the exact same. I even reformatted the first one and started completely over. The UI made it unbearable. It looked a lot like a few videos I have seen people post.
 
It's not overpriced at all. It's America. Free market. The MacBook is priced at what Apple thinks the market will bear. And based on pre-orders and sales so far, I think they hit the nail on the head.

It's a given that successive generations will get more powerful for the same price, maintain consistent performance for a lower price, or both. This is the way of computer tech since the dawn of computer tech.

What constitutes superior is entirely subjective. Some want a powerful laptop as a primary workhorse computer: Mac Pro for you. Powerful laptop with a hi-res display: MacBook Pro retina for you. Some want thin, light, and less expensive with enough ports to be a primary computer. MacBook Air for them. Some want the thinnest, lightest possible mobile computing device and don't need to do any heavy data entry. iPad Air 2 for them. Some want the thinnest, lightest computer with a proper keyboard they can get to serve as a mobile computing option for writing, or working with spreadsheets or presentations while their powerful workhorse sits on their desk. MacBook for them! (That's me. And to get what I want I don't care all that much about price.)

No superior is not subjective. Is an F on a math test superior to an A on the same math test?

Same thing. An i5 processor is superior to a mobile processor and it doesn't weigh that much more.

3.46lbs vs 2lbs and you're getting a superior laptop for only 7% more on the price.

If 1.46lbs makes something too heavy to carry then a gym membership needs to be a priority.

That's why it's overpriced. If it's all you need then it's great for your use but the price is too high given you can get a much better laptop for only a little bit more.

But if someone wants to pay it, I'm not saying they shouldn't. It's your money, your life. Free to buy whatever you want.
 
What strikes me with the new line of MacBook is that it is trying to drive increasingly insane resolutions with what are quite underpowered GPUs. I think what you are experiencing is an underpowered GPU moving around 4 million pixels - they will no doubt optimise it over time. As far as CPU and the rest of the hardware goes, it's pretty darned good considering the form factor.

1000

I agree, I think I've narrowed down all of my doubts about buying this notebook to the GPU, its really being pushed hard to drive that screen. Opening and closing of apps and various other things I have tried are not that much different from the rMBP and MBA but when I do graphical things I feel the machine warm up and the display stutter. I suppose it doesn't bother me too much, I think I'm going to buy now. But it is underpowered for the class of screen it has and the thermal headroom for its GPU to operate in.
 
Does anyone else feel like the MacBook is kind of slow and not very snappy?

superior is not subjective.

3.46lbs vs 2lbs and you're getting a superior laptop for only 7% more on the price.


You are assigning all the weight associated with your definition of "superior" to the processor. The comparison of weights that you provided demonstrates that the MBr is "superior" with regards to its lighter relative weight (if that is what a given user's specs dictate).
 
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Same thing. An i5 processor is superior to a mobile processor and it doesn't weigh that much more.

3.46lbs vs 2lbs and you're getting a superior laptop for only 7% more on the price.

Nope. Wrong. Logic doesn't work. An i5 processor is faster, but if that speed is not necessary in a particular use case, and size and weight are given a higher priority, then the rMB is clearly superior to a MBPr.

In fact, I have an MBPr and I use only a fraction of its capabilities because all I use it for is writing, surfing, email and running PowerPoints. The rMB can do all of that while being more conveniently portable. I don't need the i5 in the MBPr because I have a Mac Pro on my desk where I do all my heavy computing.

By your logic that Mac Pro is clearly superior to the MBPr with more than twice the capabilities for only twice the price, but that isn't true at all. They're used for two totally different purposes.

Then of course there's the aesthetic appeal. The rMB is better looking and comes in space grey and gold. The MBPr only comes in silver. Clearly the rMB is superior at any price if colour is your priority!
 
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