MacBook Pro 2020 13" USER Reviews

[hungryghosty]

I received the new machine one day ago. So no long-term experience yet.
However, right from the beginning, I noticed the different fan noise. So I ran Cinebench for direct comparison and got the above results.

As in you mean it's noisier when using it for day to day tasks?

It's odd really as the 10th Pro has a dual fan setup and appears to have better ventilation so you'd assume better ventilation and two slower spinning fans would make it quieter than the single fan on the 8th gen even if the chips are potentially generating more heat? I've heard the higher spec previous gen Macbook Pro 13's had a dual fan setup though so perhaps that's no entirely new?

 

[Mdv2]

As in you mean it's noisier when using it for day to day tasks?

It's odd really as the 10th Pro has a dual fan setup and appears to have better ventilation so you'd assume better ventilation and two slower spinning fans would make it quieter than the single fan on the 8th gen even if the chips are potentially generating more heat? I've heard the higher spec previous gen Macbook Pro 13's had a dual fan setup though so perhaps that's no entirely new?

if the 8th gen is quieter, I will definitely get the base model, but is there any evidence?

 

[FastLaneJB]

I seriously doubt that 10 hour figure. In mixed usage I'm seeing about 5 hours, maybe I could make it to 6 if I really dim the screen and not use handoff but that's not how people normally use their laptops. Even worse if you're hammering the CPU watching 4K videos or running a virtual machine.

It depends how you use it much more on the faster machines so the battery life can vary more. These examples aren't accurate as not looking up the exact details but should get my point over...

If you've a CPU which can go from say 5W to 10W then it might be that's not hugely fast at 10W but you at least cannot get it to drain the battery at fast speeds. At most the CPU in this example can only draw 2x the power than when it's running at its slowest speed.

Then you have a laptop which has a 5W to 30W type chip. You've now a variance of 6x from base clock to fastest. If your doing a low effort workload like just writing some document it might be drawing a similar draw as the slower chip and if batteries were equal along with other components hit the same battery life. However if you hit it hard it's going to be faster but also draw a lot more power so last less time as well.

The variance in the faster laptop is greater than in the slower laptop. The 16in MacBook Pro takes this problem to a level beyond the 13 as well because it's CPU goes up to 62W I believe plus it has the dGPU. So the battery range on that will vary far more again.

You can see something similar in cars. If you get a bigger engine but going at just a solid 70mph it might use similar fuel to a smaller engine because it's achieving that 70mph at a lower rpm because it's less stressed. However put your foot down, the bigger engine will be faster but it'll drink more juice
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I picked up the 10th gen 2.3/32GB/2TB 2020 13" today (they keep this model stocked at Apple Stores).

I am one of those complaining about the 16" when connected to external displays.

I have to say the 13" is VERY impressive. I have 2x 4k displays connected via TS3+ Caldigit. I run at scaled mode (looks like 2560x1440 / 5k scaled) which is a little more GPU intensive. And I have to say it handles it great.
I don't game. And only occasionally edit my GoPro/iPhone footage in 4k60p. I tried it out on the 13" and it handles it fine. The 16" is better for this.
But for every day use, the 13" kills it with external displays. Completely silent. Whereas the 16" dedicated dGPU (can't be disabled when you connect external displays) draws 20w constantly and gets hot/gets loud when watching a simple video on YouTube.

My only complaint is going from 8 cores to quad. If only there was a hex-core i7 10th gen available for this form-factor. This machine would be perfect.

That is music to my ears. I've only got 2 x 1080p external displays at the moment but my plan with my new MacBook Pro is to move up to 2 x 4k screens. Maybe I'll add in an eGPU at some point and go 3 screens but I'll start with 2. I know the laptop can run them but was concerned it might be slow / laggy with 2 x 4k scaled resolutions. Glad to hear it's not.

It kind of makes sense, I see the 16in dGPU benchmarks come in around 2.5x the performance of the 13in iGPU. That can handle 4 x 4k screens but it's a bit over 2x performance. So seems logical the iGPU in the 13in 10th gen should then be able to do 2 x 4k screens without too much issue.

The lack of fans I think for the most part seemed logically but just nice to hear it. It's got to run the iGPU at all times anyway and while it might need a bit more watts to run more screens, it cannot go that high vs a dGPU.

Good news

 

[KPOM]

TLDR: I'm disappointed from fan noise and temperatures

Old: MBP2018, i5 2.3GHz, 16GB RAM (bought in August 2018)
New: MBP2020, i5 2.0GHz, 16GB RAM

Plus-side: The keyboard is great.
Neutral: Performance gains are negligible.
Down-side: The cooling system runs hotter & louder. It also sounds way more intrusive than the 2018 model.

Example: Cinebench R20
Shortly after starting the benchmark the fans kicked in and went to max. on the 2020 model.
The 2018 model was rather cool. Fans kicked in later and did not reach the max. RPM.

Here are some screenshots of IntelPowerGadget & Cinebench R20:

MBP 2018:
View attachment 915240

MBP 2020:
View attachment 915241

Remember that it takes a day or so for the Mac to finish indexing your files and photos. See if the fan noise goes away. I have the same model and don’t notice the fans in everyday usage.
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That's disappointing to hear and quite surprising given it's not what many reviews have said? Clearly that's what the benchmarks and stats you've provided show though and like you say there's very little performance improvement from the new 10th gen in that benchmark!

The 10nm Ice Lake chips have much faster graphics but the CPU gains are marginal. That’s why Intel also has the 14nm Comet Lake which has faster CPUs, but slower graphics. The “10th generation” is about compromises.

 

[Zapp21]

As in you mean it's noisier when using it for day to day tasks?

It's odd really as the 10th Pro has a dual fan setup and appears to have better ventilation so you'd assume better ventilation and two slower spinning fans would make it quieter than the single fan on the 8th gen even if the chips are potentially generating more heat? I've heard the higher spec previous gen Macbook Pro 13's had a dual fan setup though so perhaps that's no entirely new?

My 2018 model also has twin fans. But the sound of the 2020 model is different: It sounds harsher. Reminds me of the pre-2016 MacBook Pros.

I can't make any statements about day-to-day use yet. Time will tell.

Remember that it takes a day or so for the Mac to finish indexing your files and photos. See if the fan noise goes away. I have the same model and don’t notice the fans in everyday usage.

Yes, that was done. Both Macs were idling when I started the benchmark.

 

[socksfelloff]

Well I thought I'd add some impressions here. I got my 13" 10th gen i5/16gb/512gb yesterday and it's my first Mac since 2011 so I'm coming at this thing with a fresh set of eyes.

First off I'm a PC/Android guy. I use windows for games and Linux for everything else so I've always loved OSX as I felt it was a happy marriage of the two. The last iPhone I owned was a 6s and I returned it because the battery life was so poor so I don't have any attachment to the ecosystem and I don't use any Apple services.

I wont be using it as a desktop replacement
I wont be gaming on it outside of development
I won't be rendering or transcoding on it.

With that out of the way I want to say first off that the MBP looks and feels premium. I have a 13" Dell XPS and while it's a great laptop and the new ones are a better value it's just missing that " Apple touch". This 13" MBP is just a joy to use especially with the new keyboard.

OSX feels very fast and I was able to just jump right back into using it for the first time in ~8 years. I mainly use a laptop for coding, EE work and general web use. The fan kicked in while installing Visual Studio but kicked off right after and I never heard it again. I don't think I'd even notice it if I had some lite audio playing.

The screen is fantastic, the speakers are good and day 1 battery life seems great as well. The trackpad is also on another level compared to anything else I've used. I LOVE it! The area below the keyboard is longer then my XPS and as a result it feels much better to rest my wrists on and type on that wonderful keyboard.

The touch bar though seems absolutely useless. Am I missing something or do I just need to actively use it so it becomes part of my workflow ? I really can't figure out any purpose for it.

Overall I'm very happy with the purchase!

 

[hungryghosty]

Overall I'm very happy with the purchase!

Cheers, appreciate the feedback and your thoughts. Like yourself I've looked at several Widows laptops but none are really close to Apple in terms of fit, finish and general build quality. As you say it's amazing just how good the Apple trackpad is compared to other devices and it really provides a fantastic experience. I actually find it more convenient than a touchscreen or a mouse in most situations. I'm glad the 2020 devices now have keyboards that are on par with that trackpad.

Have you tried connecting the Macbook to an external display/monitor? Does that cause the fans to spin up noticeably?

 

[naturalstar]

This YT video shows a comparison of the 2020 13” 10th gen i5/16GB MBP against the 16” MBP i7/16GB. What’s good about this video is that the reviewer shows how the 13” handles tools for development, video editing, music editing, EXCEL, Windows in Bootcamp, eGPU, battery, and an external display. Far more useful than Geekbench scores.

Thought I’d drop it here instead of starting a new thread. 30 minutes long, but he marks where each topic begins in the description.

 

[roncron]

I see. Would you still recommened buying it 13“ MBP?

My last MBP was the early 2015 model, the last MBP that didn't have a touch bar. In the first week, battery life was horrible, 5 hours at best. I took it to the Genius Bar and complained, hoping for a replacement or some kind of assistance. They did some diagnostics and said nothing was wrong, and sent me home. But soon after that, I started getting more like 7-8 hours of battery life, and that continued until I sold it in 2018.

I don't know whether it took time to settle in (extremely prolonged indexing? Doesn't seem plausible, but who knows). Or maybe I adjusted my habits, or found some background processes to kill, or started using the display at 70% brightness instead of 100% brightness.

I am hoping for the same experience with my new MBP, but at this point I just can't say.

As for your choice, only you know what qualities matter most to you. The 2020 MBA has a lot to recommend it, and it's getting great reviews from professional reviews and owners. I worry a little that the MBA running so hot will reduce its lifespan a bit - but I have no objective information to support that concern, it might be irrational on my part. I don't like hearing the fan so much, so I disabled Turbo Boost (using a 3rd party app) and that helped with temps & fan noise.

I still like the MBA a lot, but for me, the MBP is the better pick for the reasons I explained in this and my previous post. But the MBA might be the better pick for you depending on your preferences and needs. Good luck, and let us know what you end up getting, and how you like it!

 

[socksfelloff]

Cheers, appreciate the feedback and your thoughts. Like yourself I've looked at several Widows laptops but none are really close to Apple in terms of fit, finish and general build quality. As you say it's amazing just how good the Apple trackpad is compared to other devices and it really provides a fantastic experience. I actually find it more convenient than a touchscreen or a mouse in most situations. I'm glad the 2020 devices now have keyboards that are on par with that trackpad.

Have you tried connecting the Macbook to an external display/monitor? Does that cause the fans to spin up noticeably?

I didn't try it and I don't actually have a way to do it at the moment. Maybe down the line I'll grab a USB c- display port adapter. My main display is 3440x1440@120hz so I imagine it would put quite the load on the poor Igpu

 

[roncron]

Do you buy the 8th gen Macbook Pro 13" with 16Gb/256Gb for $1400
OR
Do you buy the 10th gen Macbook Pro 13" with 16Gb/512Gb for $1800

Basically.......Is the 10th gen chipset and an extra 256Gb of storage worth an extra $400 🤔

To someone who needs the extra storage, the price difference is just $200.

Is it worth spending $200 for two extra Thunderbolt 3 ports, better speakers, better performance, and better graphics performance? And probably a better resale value later? For me, that's the relevant question.
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This YT video shows a comparison of the 2020 13” 10th gen i5/16GB MBP against the 16” MBP i7/16GB. What’s good about this video is that the reviewer shows how the 13” handles tools for development, video editing, music editing, EXCEL, Windows in Bootcamp, eGPU, battery, and an external display. Far more useful than Geekbench scores.

Thought I’d drop it here instead of starting a new thread. 30 minutes long, but he marks where each topic begins in the description.

Thanks. That was one of the most useful videos I've seen on the new 13" MBP.

 

[hungryghosty]

To someone who needs the extra storage, the price difference is just $200.

Is it worth spending $200 for two extra Thunderbolt 3 ports, better speakers, better performance, and better graphics performance? And probably a better resale value later? For me, that's the relevant question.

I agree, if you need more than 256Gb of storage then it's an easy call to go for the 10th gen $1800 model. I intend on doing exactly that.

 

[KPOM]

That's what it comes down to for most people as far as I can see.

Do you buy the 8th gen Macbook Pro 13" with 16Gb/256Gb for $1400

OR

Do you buy the 10th gen Macbook Pro 13" with 16Gb/512Gb for $1800


Basically.......


Is the 10th gen chipset and an extra 256Gb of storage worth an extra $400

🤔

It depends on what you need it for. The CPU in the 8th gen isn’t much slower than the 10th gen, but the GPU is not as powerful. For me, I wanted the extra storage anyway, so for $200 more, the extra 2 ports (which make it easy to charge from either side), extra bit of CPU, etc. were worth it.

 

[citivolus]

Well I finally got to join the party and took delivery of my 8th gen/16GB model today. Set up everything and the fan has yet to go off once. Keyboard is so responsive and quiet, much better than the loud clicking sound of my MacBook 2017. Still trying to make some use of the Touch Bar. Not crazy about that but will deal with it. Compared the web camera side by side to my 2020 MacBook Air and it is noticeably better. Overall very happy!

 

[llllllllll]

Still trying to make some use of the Touch Bar.

Not completely sure whether I read that on some tech blog or if I just dreamt it, but I think if you hold W-A-S-D during boot you can play Wolfenstein on that touch bar.
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This YT video

Love that guy.

 

[Mattyman]

Has anyone tried a 4K YouTube video via chrome? At 30fps it seems ok averaging around 70 degrees. At 60fps it’s still plays fine but the fan kicks in a little with temps mid 80s sometimes a little more. Is that normal?

 

[KPOM]

Has anyone tried a 4K YouTube video via chrome? At 30fps it seems ok averaging around 70 degrees. At 60fps it’s still plays fine but the fan kicks in a little with temps mid 80s sometimes a little more. Is that normal?

Yes. 4K YouTube content taxes the CPU since Apple doesn’t support the codec that makes it use Intel’s built-in hardware acceleration.

 

[Mattyman]

Was aware of the codec non-support but wondered if anyone is seeing similar stats to me. That’s all.

 

[unoporfavor]

Has anyone tried a 4K YouTube video via chrome? At 30fps it seems ok averaging around 70 degrees. At 60fps it’s still plays fine but the fan kicks in a little with temps mid 80s sometimes a little more. Is that normal?

Why do so many people use Chrome? It's horrendous in terms of privacy and tracking, and that's before the memory and processor issues on a Mac. I understand there is some sites and applications that only work with Chrome (SAP for example), but youTube is not one of those sites
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Well I finally got to join the party and took delivery of my 8th gen/16GB model today. Set up everything and the fan has yet to go off once. Keyboard is so responsive and quiet, much better than the loud clicking sound of my MacBook 2017. Still trying to make some use of the Touch Bar. Not crazy about that but will deal with it. Compared the web camera side by side to my 2020 MacBook Air and it is noticeably better. Overall very happy!

Nice one mate! Sounds a lovely laptop 👍 Incidentally that is probably the spec I will go for so thank you for clarifying the fan is rarely is on/ noticeable! That would be my number one concern in terms of upgrade choice - quietness (yes after cost). Did you go with 256 or 512 for storage out of interest? Cheers!

 

[hungryghosty]

How are folks finding the fan noise in the 10th gen 2020 model? I'd like to know how it compares to the 8th gen or previous 13" MacBook Pro's so would appreciate any opinions!

Has anyone tried using their 10th gen 13" Pro with an external monitor yet? Does it impact performance and fan noise as I know this is a problem on some models of laptop?

 

[UBS28]

After a few reports of people saying that the battery life is not good, I might wait for the 14" version then.

 

[unoporfavor]

How are folks finding the fan noise in the 10th gen 2020 model? I'd like to know how it compares to the 8th gen or previous 13" MacBook Pro's so would appreciate any opinions!

Has anyone tried using their 10th gen 13" Pro with an external monitor yet? Does it impact performance and fan noise as I know this is a problem on some models of laptop?

Hey there is a guy who posted his experience on that. There's also a video on YouTube about it. It seems to run fan at low rpm when an external display is connected.
Hope you find reviews!
👍✌

 

[hungryghosty]

After a few reports of people saying that the battery life is not good, I might wait for the 14" version then.

I'd like to but I need a new laptop just now as my current one failed on me so can't wait that long unfortunately!

 

[Zapp21]

How are folks finding the fan noise in the 10th gen 2020 model? I'd like to know how it compares to the 8th gen or previous 13" MacBook Pro's so would appreciate any opinions!

Has anyone tried using their 10th gen 13" Pro with an external monitor yet? Does it impact performance and fan noise as I know this is a problem on some models of laptop?

Yes, 4K monitor here. As long as you're just doing web browsing, Word etc. the fans are not noticeable.
They are either turned off or run at minimum speed.

 

[satchmo]

Curious...why the 10th gen is still just 4-core.
Is there even such a thing as a 6-core or is it just 4 and 8-core (as found on the 16"MBP)