MacBook vs MacBook Pro battery

[pookitoo]

hello everyone, I've a 2017 iMac and for companion a 2016 MacBook Pro touchbar (I had a good deal on it, a refurbished, 10% less the price of the Apple Store refurbished so basically 1570 €)

But this computer disappointed me a bit about the autonomie and sometimes about the fan, i don't do Final Cut pro on it, but I've slack / maybe 10 page in safari / Mail and little app like that open, use Sketch App or Affinity designer and I ve between 4 hours and 6 hours (very rare) of battery ;(

And the fan spin too often for me (not all the time but often)

A friend bought the 13 without touchbar 2016 and my wife have the 12 macbook 2016 and they have a lot of battery compare to me.

(I need 512 SSD and I've the student price) So I asking myself if it will be a good move to send back the MacBook Pro Touchbar 2016 ( 1570 €) and take the MacBook Pro without touchbar 2017 (1800 €) or the 12 macbook full option (1996 €) ?

 

[Eldar Gezalov]

Hello,

I have used 13-inch touchbar MacBook Pro for a few months. Prior to MacBook Pro, I have used a lot of MacBooks, but my favorite was the 12-inch MacBook, due to its unbelievable portability. The reason why I have switched to MacBook Pro was the performance.

The specs for my MacBook Pro are: 2.9Ghz i5 processor, 512GB SSD, 16GB of RAM.

Now, I have just purchased the maxed out 2017 MacBook 12-inch, which has 1.4Ghz i7 (m7) processor, 512GB SSD and 16GB of RAM, and I just love this machine.

These are the pros and cons of both models:

13-inch Touchbar MacBook Pro has
- Geekbench score of about 4100 / 8000
- brighter screen (although I rarely use it outside, so the brightness of the screen is always at 60~70%)
- bigger screen (is definitely an advantage)
- slightly better speakers
- it has much faster ports, FOUR of them, instead of 1 on 12-inch.
- better performance for heavy tasks (video editing, not sure about your user case)

12-inch MacBook has
- Geekbench score of about 4400 / 8000
- much better portability
- perfect balance between screen size and weight (it is just 1 inch less than MacBook Pro, but it is much much lighter)
- better performance for regular tasks (mail, simple web browsing, etc) Yes, I can't believe my eyes as well.
- better battery life. I always get 8~9 hours compared to 5~6 hours on MacBook Pro with a similar workflow.

Now, if you are considering the non-touchbar MacBook, it is a different story, because I am sure it is better than touchbar model I have here from 2016, especially when it comes to battery life. I love the 12-inch MacBook, and if you have iMac at home, then maybe it will be the best choice for you as well, but if you take into account the non-touchbar MacBook Pro from 2017, I think it will be a better choice overall.

Hope that helps to make your decision. If you have any requests on comparing the two machines I have, let me know.

Cheers,
Eldar

 

[pookitoo]

Perfect and very good review !!!! Thanks a lot ! SO the geek bench score are almost the same ! And I try sometimes the 12 macbook of my wife and definitely the less screen size is a bit confusing, you are right. But the battery life and performances are very promising !

And I've read a review in an other post : the possibility to have with you all the time is a big pros ! (like the iPhone from a photographer point of view : the best camera for photo is the one you have all the time with you ! and I think it's the same with the macbook

But about the over heating , sometimes your macbook doesn't say : too hot ! please close this app, and performances drop a lot ?

 

[Eldar Gezalov]

Perfect and very good review !!!! Thanks a lot ! SO the geek bench score are almost the same ! And I try sometimes the 12 macbook of my wife and definitely the less screen size is a bit confusing, you are right. But the battery life and performances are very promising !

And I've read a review in an other post : the possibility to have with you all the time is a big pros ! (like the iPhone from a photographer point of view : the best camera for photo is the one you have all the time with you ! and I think it's the same with the macbook

But about the over heating , sometimes your macbook doesn't say : too hot ! please close this app, and performances drop a lot ?

I completely agree on the iPhone comparison! It's a huge advantage to be so portable.

The only times I get the 'Too hot' message are when I render the 4K videos in Final Cut Pro for a long period of time. I didn't try 1080p, so anything else. If you are going to do video editing or some super complex photo editing of multiple photos, I am sure MacBook Pro w/o Touchbar will be a better choice for you.

 

[pookitoo]

Thank again for your reply ! I've place an order for the full macbook (i7 and 16 gb (I don' want to hear fan and to have it always with me is the big pros !!) I'm little bit afraid about the screen size because I do a lot of web design and in a small screen it'll be different but I 'll try to mange that with full screen app and multiple virtual desktop

 

[pookitoo]

I've just receive my 2017 macbook with full option, and it's a Wonderful computer ! so happy to have an excellent companion like that to my iMac !! very powerful desktop and very light and capable little computer ! I've just finish to install all my apps and everything is so smooth ! better than my wife's 2016 macbook

Thanks again for your advice ! an happy consumer lol

 

[Eldar Gezalov]

I've just receive my 2017 macbook with full option, and it's a Wonderful computer ! so happy to have an excellent companion like that to my iMac !! very powerful desktop and very light and capable little computer ! I've just finish to install all my apps and everything is so smooth ! better than my wife's 2016 macbook

Thanks again for your advice ! an happy consumer lol

I'm glad you like your new machine! I agree it's a great device, especially as a companion alongside the iMac, which might come handy when you have to work on demanding tasks.

 

[rillrill]

Gotta follow this thread.

I just bought my first MacBook Pro in two years. I was previously using just an iPad for my work. I picked up the 13" 2017 MacBook Pro with touchbar, and while it has some good things about it, like the touchbar/ Touch ID (that should be on every computer), the screen, and build quality, there are some negatives. It may still be setting up, but it gets really hot. The fan kicks on with only a few apps open like iTunes and safari. The weight is a little bit much as well....again I had an air 2 for two years...

I'm going to give it a chance...but I might exchange it for a MacBook base model, save a few bucks, and save my shoulder from some aches carrying it around.

 

[pookitoo]

I was very enthusiastic about the touchbar, but finally , I had never use them. Very pretty to see the touchbar with dynamic button, but not easy to use it. The Touch ID was sometimes very useful ! (I've an apple watch, so the Mac open automatically) but again, except to install software, I wasn't use it very often.

The fan kicks too often in my opinion on the 13 MacBook Pro with touchbar.
And Before the MacBook Pro I had a MacBook Air and after the 2015 MacBook Pro 13, the autonomy was an other story !

But 2 problem with 12 inch macbook :
- The screen size : for me it's a companion for my iMac, but for a main computer without external display it maybe small compare to the 13 inch. And if you want to plug an external screen, you need to know that on every laptop, plug an external screen drop the overall performances 20 % lower !

- The second problem can be the performances, because if you try to do some video editing and maybe big photo editing, you may feel quickly the limits of the computer. But you can do some little movie, or use proxy media in final cut, he can do the job.

(maybe the lack of port but for me it's not an issue at all, I never connect anything to my computer or very occasionally and the price, me I've a little company so I don't pay taxes )

If you know very well this "problems" and it's depend a lot about your use case, go for it !! So wonderful computer, so light ! Quiet ! Snappy ! Good autonomy ! All the time with you (that part is very important for me, I'll never ask to myself if I take my computer !)

 

[rillrill]

You know, I'm not sure if the MacBook Pro has the same design flaw that the Chromebook Pixel had when I briefly owned that computer. You put both of these laptops on my lap and they get too hot - maybe because vents are blocked by my pants or something. I did not have this problem with my 2013 MacBook Pro though. Either way if it continues its definitely going back, despite my new love for the touchbar.