Is a 2014 rMBP worth the wait?

[gnrredphoenix]

Hi All,

I'm looking to try and pick up a rMPB in the next several months. It will be predominantly used for heavy video editing and some light After Effects/graphics work.

I'm currently on a late 2012 27" iMac and I'm looking to go back to a laptop so that being said, I'm in no real rush for a new machine since this one is still relatively new and runs beautifully.

My question is, since I'm not really in a huge rush, do you think it's worth it to hold out for a hypothetical 2014 laptop rather than get a 2013 model? I dont really want to get a 6 month old computer, but at the same time I dont know how significant the upgrade will be with a 2014 model because of the broadwell delays, or if it will be released this year at all.

Thanks!

 

[RubberShoes]

If you are serious about video work and can wait I absolutely would. Broadwell's die shrink will not only bring a tremendous amount of power efficiency but should hypothetically allow Apple to scale a much more powerful CPU inside. Right now the base model retina 15" is crap for graphics work and Broadwell should help with that, if not allow Apple to bring Nvidia back on board for the cheaper model (though this might be wishful thinking) OpenCL/CUDA alone is worth the extra cash on a discrete graphics card.

Unless Apple brings quad-core to the 13" rMBP I would ignore the entire line. I love my 13" Haswell but I can't get any serious work done without turning to my Hackintosh.

If you want to go the cheaper route have you considered buying the high end Haswell 15" when the new Broadwell's come out later this year?

 

[thekev]

If you are serious about video work and can wait I absolutely would. Broadwell's die shrink will not only bring a tremendous amount of power efficiency but should hypothetically allow Apple to scale a much more powerful CPU inside. Right now the base model retina 15" is crap for graphics work and Broadwell should help with that, if not allow Apple to bring Nvidia back on board for the cheaper model (though this might be wishful thinking) OpenCL/CUDA alone is worth the extra cash on a discrete graphics card.

I wouldn't buy a notebook for OpenCL/CUDA. Iris pro runs the OpenCL framework reasonably well compared to NVidia, but in terms of GPGPU on a notebook in general, the Apple chargers don't supply enough power. You will slowly drain your battery while waiting for things to render. I mention render because that is the predominant use of CUDA in After Effects. It drives a raytracer and a couple other features. It's also not guaranteed that Apple will continue to go with NVidia. If AMD is stronger overall one round, they'll go with AMD. In that sense they haven't made CUDA a priority in system design.

 

[mcarling]

Absolutely not. Broadwell will not come to the rMBP until 2015. The only possible 2014 rMBP would be exactly like the current rMBP except with a 100MHz speed bump, which is hardly noticeable, and there is no guarantee that will be released. Either buy now or wait another year for Broadwell.

 

[Hieveryone]

In my experience, it is always worth waiting for the latest and greatest Apple products because they are usually worth it. But of course, that is if you can wait. The current model is really good so no loss if you pull the trigger now

 

[TheIguana]

If you are serious about video work and can wait I absolutely would. Broadwell's die shrink will not only bring a tremendous amount of power efficiency but should hypothetically allow Apple to scale a much more powerful CPU inside. Right now the base model retina 15" is crap for graphics work and Broadwell should help with that, if not allow Apple to bring Nvidia back on board for the cheaper model (though this might be wishful thinking) OpenCL/CUDA alone is worth the extra cash on a discrete graphics card.

Ehh, I think that is very wishful thinking. Now that Intel has gotten integrated graphics decently right with the Iris Pro I can't see a case for why Apple would go back to dedicated graphics cards in the baseline models.

I suspect if Apple could they would go with integrated graphics on all their mobile Mac's - the trend is there and Apple has been the one pushing for it with Intel. A Mac sees significantly better battery life and in most cases more than enough oomph for day to day computing.

If you need more for heavy video/graphics work then Apple will likely keep a higher end model with dedicated graphics but I would be prepared to hand over the dollars for it.

 

[Mr. Retrofire]

...I'm looking to try and pick up a rMPB in the next several months. It will be predominantly used for heavy video editing and some light After Effects/graphics work.

I'm currently on a late 2012 27" iMac and I'm looking to go back to a laptop so that being said, I'm in no real rush for a new machine since this one is still relatively new and runs beautifully...

...Is a 2014 rMBP worth the wait?

Yes.

The Broadwell rMBP has/supports:
A 3rd generation integrated USB 3.0 controller/hub (1st generation was in Ivy Bridge)
2nd generation integrated voltage regulators (very likely also 14 nm)
A 2nd generation Broadcom 802.11ac chip (higher energy efficiency)
12-24 hours wireless web & office work with one charge (like some MBAs + Mavericks)
...and much more.

A Quad-Core i7 Broadwell rMBP is really an investment in the future (4+ years).

 

[Alvi]

I just ordered a high end 15" I thought about it a bit and I doubt Apple's updating anything just for NVidia's 800 series and Intel's CPU's are coming out only later this year. Haswell is great battery-wise and what not, things might get cheaper but they won't get much better.

I still don't understand why there's a 600$ bump for a graphics card, 256GB, and 8GB of ram, these things are worth at least half that, but I'd rather pay this for future-proofing than regret a non-upgradable motherboard.

 

[maflynn]

Since you're not in a rush and you have a 2012 iMac, I'd say its worth the wait. You'll not see a huge difference in performance between the 2012 iMac and the current laptop model.

 

[saturnotaku]

If you need more for heavy video/graphics work then Apple will likely keep a higher end model with dedicated graphics but I would be prepared to hand over the dollars for it.

The problem is that you'd be handing over a lot of money for very little benefit when it comes to professional work. CUDA support is being abandoned left and right, and NVIDIA has gimped their consumer-level GPUs' OpenCL capability in order to force professionals into the Quadro line. An Iris Pro MBP will actually do better in OpenCL applications than one using the 750M. Ideally, though, you will want to buy a true workstation notebook with a professional GPU that can be upgraded at will. If expandability is not a concern, a Dell Precision M3800 with its K1100 GPU will blow a Mac out of the water when it comes to full-on work.

 

[leman]

I will be waiting for a refresh for a single reason only — I am sure that it will include a Maxwell GPU which will make it a better gaming machine. For all other purposes, I doubt there will be a significant difference. Iris Pro is fast enough for computation tasks that many people won't nice any difference with a dGPU in practice.

 

[Naimfan]

Hi All,

do you think it's worth it to hold out for a hypothetical 2014 laptop rather than get a 2013 model?

Thanks!

No.

NO ONE here has any knowledge of when revised MBPs will come out, or what the revisions will even be.

All predictions here are nothing but (uninformed) guesses. If you're comfortable waiting on that basis, go for it.

If you're in the real world, buy what you need when you need it.

 

[mtneer]

....

I still don't understand why there's a 600$ bump for a graphics card, 256GB, and 8GB of ram, these things are worth at least half that, but I'd rather pay this for future-proofing than regret a non-upgradable motherboard.

Think of it as you funding the R&D needed by Apple to come up with all these advancements, paying tens of thousands of engineers top salaries in the heart of Silicon Valley (one of the most expensive locations to live).

If Apple tried to charge you par cost for these add-ons they would not have the cash flow to fund future ambitions.

 

[yjchua95]

Think of it as you funding the R&D needed by Apple to come up with all these advancements, paying tens of thousands of engineers top salaries in the heart of Silicon Valley (one of the most expensive locations to live).

If Apple tried to charge you par cost for these add-ons they would not have the cash flow to fund future ambitions.

The $600 bump isn't just for the GPU: you get a better processor, double the RAM and double the SSD from the base model.

If you configure both Iris-only and Iris+750M to 2.3/16/512, they're priced identically. So the 750M is a freebie.

 

[gnrredphoenix]

Thank you everyone for all the advice. Seems as a whole everyone is as split as I am regarding this. I probably wont be making a decision until the fall anyway, so if there is no sign of anything coming out by then I might just bite the bullet and get the 2013 model.

Thanks again!