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For $1200, which 13" Retina MacBook Pro is better?

For $1200, which 13" Retina MacBook Pro is better?

  • 2013 (early) rMBP 13" ME662LL/A (8 GB RAM/256 GB SSD/HD4000/7-hours)

    Votes: 29 49.2%

  • 2013 (late) rMBP 13" ME864LL/A (4 GB RAM/128 GB SSD/HD5100/9-hours)

    Votes: 30 50.8%
  • Total voters
    59
dmk1974

dmk1974

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Sep 16, 2008
2,491
540
Thanks to an educational discount I can leverage from my brother along with an open-box deal at my local Best Buy (like new, has 2 cycles on it), which 13" Retina MacBook Pro is the better buy? Each one is about $1200.

2013 (early) rMBP 13" ME662LL/A
  • $1214.99 Best Buy (Open Box)
  • i5 2.6 GHz Ivy Bridge
  • Intel HD 4000 Graphics
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 256 GB SSD
  • 7-hour battery (per Apple)

2013 (late) rMBP 13" ME864LL/A
  • $1199.00 Apple (w/education discount)
  • i5 2.4 GHz Haswell
  • Intel HD 5100 Iris Graphics
  • 4 GB RAM
  • 128 GB SSD
  • 9-hour battery (per Apple)

Basically, it's a trade-off of the older model with 2x RAM and 2x SSD storage vs the newer model with newer chipset, graphics, and a longer lasting battery.

Of these 2, which do you think is the better buy? Thanks!
 
its been pretty much universally agreed that the ivy bridge rmbp 13 is not a good buy due to the hd4000 in it. it can barely keep up with simple tasks and there is lots of framerate droppage doing simple tasks such as scrolling.

get the haswell
 
dmk1974 said:
Thanks to an educational discount I can leverage from my brother along with an open-box deal at my local Best Buy (like new, has 2 cycles on it), which 13" Retina MacBook Pro is the better buy? Each one is about $1200.

2013 (early) rMBP 13" ME662LL/A
  • $1214.99 Best Buy (Open Box)
  • i5 2.6 GHz Ivy Bridge
  • Intel HD 4000 Graphics
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 256 GB SSD
  • 7-hour battery (per Apple)

2013 (late) rMBP 13" ME864LL/A
  • $1199.00 Apple (w/education discount)
  • i5 2.4 GHz Haswell
  • Intel HD 5100 Iris Graphics
  • 4 GB RAM
  • 128 GB SSD
  • 9-hour battery (per Apple)

Basically, it's a trade-off of the older model with 2x RAM and 2x SSD storage vs the newer model with newer chipset, graphics, and a longer lasting battery.

Of these 2, which do you think is the better buy? Thanks!
Click to expand...

Of those two I'd choose last year's model. The lack of RAM justifies it, specially on a Retina Display.

However, if you want to consider the 8GB RAM option, it's a totally different story. Being a brand-new product, with much improved graphics and battery life, all things considered I'd go for it.
If you're looking for some savings you can also get a tax-free option at http://www.bhphotovideo.com
 
PedroCst said:
Of those two I'd choose last year's model. The lack of RAM justifies it, specially on a Retina Display.

However, if you want to consider the 8GB RAM option, it's a totally different story. Being a brand-new product, with much improved graphics and battery life, all things considered I'd go for it.
If you're looking for some savings you can also get a tax-free option at http://www.bhphotovideo.com
Click to expand...

The RAM is part of the dilemma. I think I can get by with 4GB in most cases, but more is always better. For my use, 128 GB storage is fine and I think benchmarks on the older 256 GB drive write faster than the newer 128 GB SSD.
 
Keep in mind you can use the education discount by ordering online. I'd go with 8GB RAM in the Haswell model.
 
dmk1974 said:
The RAM is part of the dilemma. I think I can get by with 4GB in most cases, but more is always better. For my use, 128 GB storage is fine and I think benchmarks on the older 256 GB drive write faster than the newer 128 GB SSD.
Click to expand...

Probably not, since the newer model is PCIe
And, just don't underestimate the importance of RAM, specially in a Retina. 4GB is close to nothing.
 
PedroCst said:
Probably not, since the newer model is PCIe
And, just don't underestimate the importance of RAM, specially in a Retina. 4GB is close to nothing.
Click to expand...

From some BlackMagic benchmarks I had seen (listed as WRITE first then READ, both in MB/s):

2012 rMBP 128 GB SD128E: 330/465
2012 rMBP 256 GB SD256E: 412/481
2013 MBA 128 GB SD0128F: 310/720

Read definitely faster in the 2013's, but write faster in some of the 2012's. I believe a 256 is always faster than a 128.
 
gothamm said:
its been pretty much universally agreed that the ivy bridge rmbp 13 is not a good buy due to the hd4000 in it. it can barely keep up with simple tasks and there is lots of framerate droppage doing simple tasks such as scrolling.

get the haswell
Click to expand...

I have like a ka-jillion tabs open on my 15" rMBP with HD4000 graphics on right now. Seriously I have to scroll across firefox to cross into my next section of like 10 tabs and I have no issues. The 15" has 512MB vRAM while the 13" has 768MB vRAM for the HD4000. Not saying the HD4000 is good for the retina but its certainly not terrible. That said I do like a dGPU :D
 
Since they are both 13'', both are dual core, I'd pick the late 2013 for a couple of reasons:

1. 9 hour battery life. That is sooo much better than the 7! This is critical.
2. Iris Graphics - This is a major upgrade over the Intel HD4000 graphics.
3. PCIe - The 256GB SSD in the 2013 (early) is based on an outdated interface as Apple has moved to Intel's latest flash standard, PCIe. As others mention, the read and write speeds a so much faster! And it only gets faster if you upgrade to a higher storage capacity in the future. (the 1TB has been benchmarked to have over 1000MB/s write speed.)

Despite the lower 128 storage capacity, you can buy or use a cheap external hard drive for your files, and most importantly you can upgrade to a higher capacity in the future instead of relying on the outdated PCI standard in the 2013 (early). The late 13'' 2013 will have much better long term prospects (unless Intel decides to release an even faster standard than PCIe in the future, but why worry about anything unknown?)

I am sure you won't regret the 2013 (late). Especially with Mavericks with RAM compression that gives you 6GB instead of 8GB of ram. (that is only 2 GB away), your better integrated graphics card will help you if you do anything 3D moreso than a system that comes with 8GB or RAM. Even if you were still worried about the RAM, all of the good things about the late 2013 have a much greater impact. Don't forget the thickness of the 13'' is thinner too!
 
gothamm said:
its been pretty much universally agreed that the ivy bridge rmbp 13 is not a good buy due to the hd4000 in it. it can barely keep up with simple tasks and there is lots of framerate droppage doing simple tasks such as scrolling.

get the haswell
Click to expand...

having owned the '12 13" rmbp for 9 months i have never seen this "frame rate drop".
 
The new base model is a pretty terrible value. The limited RAM and storage are crippling, so I voted for the earlier one.
 
In that price range, I'd consider getting the Haswell 13" Macbook air with 8gb RAM. The processor clock isn't as high, but trust me when I say it's still *very* fast and the integrated graphics are much better than the hd 4000 from the prior, while having enough RAM to suit your needs when compared to the 13" pro. Also, battery life is significantly better and it weights a lot less. It's $1139 through the education discount from Apple.
 
zeale said:
In that price range, I'd consider getting the Haswell 13" Macbook air with 8gb RAM. The processor clock isn't as high, but trust me when I say it's still *very* fast and the integrated graphics are much better than the hd 4000 from the prior, while having enough RAM to suit your needs when compared to the 13" pro. Also, battery life is significantly better and it weights a lot less. It's $1139 through the education discount from Apple.
Click to expand...

I currently have the 4 GB version of the 2013 13" Haswell MacBook Air. No issues noticed with only 4 GB RAM (so far), but more is probably better for the future. However, with Mavericks' RAM compression, perhaps 4 GB will suffice?
 
I can't recommend a non-upgradeable $1200 power oriented machine with only 4gb of ram in it. I just can't. Maybe an air, because you don't buy an air to do AutoCAD on it.

I remember several months ago when I was preparing to send off my cMBP to be repaired, I put the stock 4gb of ram in and it was miserable. Never again. Mavericks may be good, but I wouldn't base a $1200 invest purely on future software.

The base 13" rMBP was clearly just a cut in base specs to reach a price point.

If it wasn't for the RAM, the 2013 rMBP would be a no-brainer.
 
TechZeke said:
I can't recommend a non-upgradeable $1200 power oriented machine with only 4gb of ram in it. I just can't. Maybe an air, because you don't buy an air to do AutoCAD on it.

I remember several months ago when I was preparing to send off my cMBP to be repaired I put the stock 4gb of ram and it was miserable. Never again. Mavericks may be good, but I would put $1200 invest purely on future software.
Click to expand...

Exactly. 8GB RAM is really the minimum these days. If someone is on a budget here, they are going to be really disappointed. Spend the extra $100-200 for more RAM.
 
gothamm said:
its been pretty much universally agreed that the ivy bridge rmbp 13 is not a good buy due to the hd4000 in it. it can barely keep up with simple tasks and there is lots of framerate droppage doing simple tasks such as scrolling.

get the haswell
Click to expand...

I'm not sure if you own the Ivy Bridge 13" rMBP, but none of the units I've used have issues with lag or frame rate dropping.

In fact I have one here that's a daily photography workhorse and it's never skipped a beat.
 
Not sure if the 2012 8/256 model uses exactly the same power, but here's some battery performance numbers I recorded using the 2012 8/128 version as well as the late 2013 4/128 model. These are my actual use test results, both using Mavericks, and the conditions described below.

Settings:
Battery Health App
Chrome: AdBlock, FlashBlock, Lastpass
Chrome, Mail, iMessage, Dropbox
12/2 dots screen/kb brightness, BT off

2012 rMBP 13" (Mavericks 10.9)

1440x900 retina resolution (same lag noticed vs 2013 rMBP)
40min/13.4% used 4:58 pace
1680x1050 retina resolution (much more lag noticed vs 2013 rMBP)
104min/37.5% used 4:37 pace
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1440x900 non-retina resolution (using QuickRes)
31min/8.1% used 6:22 pace
1680x1050 non-retina resolution (using QuickRes)
94min/25.1% used 6:14 pace

*********************************

2013 rMBP 13" (Mavericks 10.9)

1440x900 retina resolution
228min/55.3% used 6:52 pace
1680x1050 retina resolution
322min/82.7% used 6:29 pace
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1440x900 non-retina resolution (using QuickRes)
144min/29.1% used 8:14 pace
1680x1050 non-retina resolution (using QuickRes)
34min/6.3% used 8:59 pace
1920x1200 non-retina resolution (using QuickRes)
237min/45.6% used 8:39 pace
 
there's also the weight/form factor to consider. The late 2013 mbpr 13" has smaller dimensions than the model before it.
 
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