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Mid-Range 1.2 GHz Retina MacBook CPU Shows Nice Speed Boost Over Low-End Model

Aetles said:
I still do not understand why this echo of 2008 is coming back again. Learned nothing, have we?
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I bought it then and I'm buying this new one now.

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Derived said:
If you're still whining about this laptop, please just stop. You're not going to buy one, you were never going to buy one, you're not the target market, and you're only embarrassing yourself by complaining about a product that is clearly aimed at someone else, and that is clearly selling.

Unbelievable.
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I couldn't agree more. People who are whining are embarrassing themselves: They are so shortsighted, unable to see beyond their own needs.

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QCassidy352 said:
Did, and don't. It's pretty, yes (except the gold, which is gaudy to an extent I'd never have believed possible from Apple), but I didn't care for the keyboard and wasn't impressed with its weight as compared to the air.
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Most people don't find the gold color gaudy at all. It's what I'm getting.
 
I had to do a double take at those numbers... those benchmarks are roughly the same as my 2012 13" rMBP that I use at work in a machine roughly half the size. Now I'm impressed.
 
QCassidy352 said:
Gotta love how the air is suddenly a brick because there's a new kid on the block that weighs a couple of ounces less. The difference between them is .35 lbs. That's hardly noticeable. Let's get a grip here people.
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You sure have a hard time with other people's viewpoints.

It sounds quite noticeable to other people.
 
ssmoot said:
You are very value/cost sensitive. Lots of people aren't. I'm a Web Developer. I don't mind spending an extra 20% or whatever for the right laptop.

The 11in Air (which I've owned and loved) has a sub-optimal aspect-ratio for development. The rMB weighs a whole pound less than the 13in and has a significantly smaller form factor.

I can wait an extra 30 seconds for my code to compile. Would I like it to be faster? Definitely. But going from 60 seconds to 90 seconds a few times an hour isn't going to kill me.

For that trade I basically get an 11" MBA with a bigger screen, higher effective resolution, better aspect ratio, and a bit lighter (ports are a non-issue. Other than a Cinema-Display, I never plug anything into my laptops aside from a Projector, and I've always had to carry dongles for that in the past anyways).

What's not to love? Price? This is something I'm going to use most of the day for the next year or so. Compromising over saving a couple hundred dollars would be a mistake (for me).

Plus since I bought the 1st gen 11" MBA, and the original MBA, the 1.2GHz rMB is probably the cheapest laptop I've bought in years anyways by a few bucks.
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Great points. I am in the same boat. But the inability to plug in an apple Thunderbolt Display is just insane. I can plug in my mba 11, but have to buy a Third party monitor for my Mac. Seriously?
 
DenisAus said:
Yeah, with a lean SoC, and interfaces hanging off the USB-C port. Like Martin said, it's "even faster than the iPad Air 2" - this time round. But two years from now? No doubt the Axx compilation of OSx is already written, shadowing every final point release. Apple are past masters at this stuff.
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No more Windows compatibility and I will have to leave Apple.
 
epirali said:
Great points. I am in the same boat. But the inability to plug in an apple Thunderbolt Display is just insane. I can plug in my mba 11, but have to buy a Third party monitor for my Mac. Seriously?
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Cool your jets, Ace. Wait a bit.

USB-C, among other things, supports displayPort out; wait for the right cable to arrive.

Or check around to see what third-party vendors, like Belkin have announced recently.

A bit cheaper than a monitor.
 
These figures are absolute rubbish. A 9% increase on slow is still slow, just a teensy bit not so slow.
Imagine if you took the speed of a snail and gave it a 9% increase, would that make it fast, no.
1.1 to 1.2 ghz would virtually have no effect.
 
sehix said:
Cool your jets, Ace. Wait a bit.

USB-C, among other things, supports displayPort out; wait for the right cable to arrive.

Or check around to see what third-party vendors, like Belkin have announced recently.

A bit cheaper than a monitor.
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The complaint is having to go 3rd-party.

Which I agree with. I have a 27" Asus on my Mac Mini. Garbage. Takes what feels like 10 seconds to wait from sleep. Can't control audio volume without 3rd party software or different speakers. (probably Apple's fault but doesn't fix the issue)

Doesn't provide the hub/power/display functionality you'd expect of an Apple version. So yeah. Pretty lame.
 
oneMadRssn said:
Such a nice portable device must be perfect for travel. If only it could charge an iPhone...
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Wow I have great news for you then!! Apple has thought of everything! They have an adapter available for only $19 that will allow you to charge your iPhone just like you wish. And it's smaller and lighter than your current iPhone charger.

It just keeps getting better and better!! As you say, perfect for travel.
 
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Mac.User said:
I still do not understand the selling point of this device.

It is more pricey than an Air and slower. Sure but has a nice screen but if there is an Air revision then it's expected to have the ForceTouch and also a Retina display.

The 256GB 11in Air + 8GB RAM is $100 less and much faster, and if you want a bigger screen then the 256GB 13in Air + 8GB is the same price. Both giving you more ports, performance, and the same battery life(11in Air) or more (13in).

I know I'm probably going to be based but unless you REALLY need USB-C or REQUIRE Retina on a sub 13in device I do not get why you would buy the MacBook.
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The Air is more likely to get a price drop than a retina screen at this point. In case you missed it, they just updated the Air. Clearly a redesign isn't one of their top priorities. It's the new plastic Macbook, a cheap laptop that they'll keep around until it stops selling, at which point, they'll discontinue it.

If you want retina, you have two options: the Macbook or the Macbook Pro. It's not coming to the Air. That should have been clear with this launch.

I'm all ears as to why ANYONE thinks this is the perfect device for them over the Air, but I have not seen a single person make that statement.
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How hard is it to understand that some people might find a 12" laptop in a frame smaller and lighter than the 11" MBA, while having just as many or more (depending on scaling) usable pixels than the 13" MBA to be a very appealing option?
 
RockSpider said:
These figures are absolute rubbish. A 9% increase on slow is still slow, just a teensy bit not so slow.
Imagine if you took the speed of a snail and gave it a 9% increase, would that make it fast, no.
1.1 to 1.2 ghz would virtually have no effect.
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Comparing entry level 64-bit single core MBA 11" scores from http://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks

2012 -> 2013 = 2410 -> 2588 = 7%
2013 -> 2014 = 2588 -> 2667 = 3%
2014 -> 2015 = 2667 -> 2866 = 7%

So a 9% speed bump is more than the typical yearly update for the MBA.
 
gavroche said:
No, i think there are many people that use them for productive work. I just do not equate "productive work" with "must have more than one USB port."
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All I'm doing is debating your percentages. You imply that 90 % of the target audience doesn't need extra ports. I just don't think your percentages reflect reality. To put it bluntly this machine would have been beautiful for me with at least one more port, that is all it really needed to make an ice laptop for field work.
Not sure how that prevents you from doing productive work.
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The issue with productive work is the machines capability to be used by somebody that regularly has many processes running at the same time. It is an interesting question because the machine has lots of RAM and a fast secondary store, however there is a question of sustained performance from the CPU. I just don't think the facts are in with respect to performance.
 
RaveHole said:
Comparing entry level 64-bit single core MBA 11" scores from http://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks

2012 -> 2013 = 2410 -> 2588 = 7%
2013 -> 2014 = 2588 -> 2667 = 3%
2014 -> 2015 = 2667 -> 2866 = 7%

So a 9% speed bump is more than the typical yearly update for the MBA.
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Okay so I forgot we were talking about Apple here, a 3% increase for Apple is a monumental leap, any other manufacturer a 100% is nothing.

Speed is one reason why I don't buy a lot of Apple products, or speed and software.
 
paradox00 said:
The Air is more likely to get a price drop than a retina screen at this point. In case you missed it, they just updated the Air. Clearly a redesign isn't one of their top priorities. It's the new plastic Macbook, a cheap laptop that they'll keep around until it stops selling, at which point, they'll discontinue it.

If you want retina, you have two options: the Macbook or the Macbook Pro. It's not coming to the Air. That should have been clear with this launch.
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Agree. Those who just wanted the current Air but with retina dropped in don't understand the power budget... It would have cut the battery life from 10 to maybe 6 hours. Not acceptable to Apple, hence the new MacBook.
 
RockSpider said:
Okay so I forgot we were talking about Apple here, a 3% increase for Apple is a monumental leap, any other manufacturer a 100% is nothing.

Speed is one reason why I don't buy a lot of Apple products, or speed and software.
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So blame Intel.

Do you have any idea why you're so emotionally invested in being anti-Apple? You do know the opposite of love isn't hate, it's indifference. You clearly are not indifferent, and you seem to spend an inordinate amount of time on a Mac fan site. Why so angry? Are you not able to afford Apple gear?
 
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