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My opinions on the Sandy Bridge upgrades. (Fanboyism and hate not welcome)

S

Sarngate

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 15, 2010
220
61
I'll do a summary of each model first:

13''

+ Significantly better CPU's, they really hit it out of the park in this respect, i never expected an i7.
- Weaker GPU
- Same or worse battery life.
- No 1440*900 option like the 13'' MBA (the biggest WTF)
- No fairly priced SSD options.
- No design change or major innovations

15 and 17''

+ Fantastic CPU upgrades
+ Decent GPU's, good upgrade on the 17''
+ Good battery life
- No design change or major innovations

It really is as if Apple just don't care about 13'' buyers, and they're attempting to shoe horn them into either the 15'' MBP or the 13'' MBA. That's all well and good, but the leap in performance between a 1.8Ghz C2D and a Quad Core Sandy Bridge processor is ludicrous.

I sold my 2010 13'' model in anticipation of some decent improvements, particularly in regards to battery life. I assumed that because Apple were relying on the Intel 3000 chip with regards to graphics that battery life would be improved, i'm now at a loss as to why it isn't significantly better.

The 15'' and 17'' models are really exciting, particularly with regards to the new CPU upgrades, if i was a 15'' or 17'' buyer i would be extremely pleased right now. I just feel as if people looking forward to the 13'' MBP have been totally and utterly shafted, and i am now at a loss as to what to do. The MBA 13'' is a nice computer but it's 1.8Ghz C2D is underwhelming and is already very outdated, i imagine Apple will refresh the MBA's this year with some Sandy Bridge love, at which point the current models will nose dive in value.

I get the feeling that a lot of people on this forum feel really disappointed with the newest 13'' model, and i can't say i blame them. :(
 
I'm not sure that the battery life is worse. They just use a more realistic test, which results in a lower number. I don't think I've ever actually gotten 10 hours of normal use on my 13" MBP.

The design of the MBP is already by far the best of any notebook computer, so I'm not too bummed out that they didn't redesign it though. However, I would have liked to see more significant changes like removing the optical disc drive.

Thunderbolt is a great addition, though. Thats a pretty big innovation if you ask me. Hopefully peripheral makers will catch on quickly.

I'm considering buying a new 15" just because I'd like to get a little more power than what my 13" offers at the moment. I figure that in a year or two, SSDs will be cheaper, faster, and they'll have a significant redesign where they remove the dvd drive and make it lighter (possible liquidmetal), thinner, and more room for the battery.
 
I'm agreeing with you on the 13" issue. My sister was looking for a portable laptop for uni next year, and the family are liking the macs (they're moving over home and office). I advised that they wait until the refresh, mainly because, with all the rumours, it'd have been daft to buy then, when it wasn't required at the time.

Having looked at the new options, my conclusion is that they have decided to sacrifice portability for power. The i-series in the 13" is powerful, and all, but it's taken a serious hit to the battery life, which is one of the things I do use on my 13" 2010 MBP on a regular basis.

I'll wait for the reviews to trickle in, but my recommendation at present is to hit the refurbs and get the last gen MBP, if you're looking for a portable laptop.
 
My very, very, very same feelings indeed. For me, as someone who was ready for the new 13" MPB credit card in hand, it's been a serious WTF day :(

Now I am at a loss: for me it's either MBA despite the C2D or it's back to the PC (damn it!), but I can't possibly justify spending between $1200 and $1500 on a laptop with a gimp GPU, a 1280x800 res and a 5400 rpm hard drive... My common sense just tells me that I cant justify the purchase.
 
Bibblejw said:
I'm agreeing with you on the 13" issue. My sister was looking for a portable laptop for uni next year, and the family are liking the macs (they're moving over home and office). I advised that they wait until the refresh, mainly because, with all the rumours, it'd have been daft to buy then, when it wasn't required at the time.

Having looked at the new options, my conclusion is that they have decided to sacrifice portability for power. The i-series in the 13" is powerful, and all, but it's taken a serious hit to the battery life, which is one of the things I do use on my 13" 2010 MBP on a regular basis.

I'll wait for the reviews to trickle in, but my recommendation at present is to hit the refurbs and get the last gen MBP, if you're looking for a portable laptop.
Click to expand...

When the MBA was released, during the Keynote, SJ specifically said they changed there battery testing across the board to offer more accurate and realistic numbers.
 
It will be interesting to see what the battery life is. The Arrandale 13 inch was rated at 10 hours and 8-9 hours on the 15 and 17. According to Apple, they are using a more stringent test for their batteries.
Screen shot 2011-02-24 at 10.49.53 AM.png

If they really do get 7 hours in "real life" id consider that a success.
 
The battery life will be the same !

Apple specifies that these results are part of their new more rigorous and realistic tests. If you now compare the battery life specs of the white macbook it is also 7 hours. So essentially you'll be getting the same battery life for much faster processor.

SSD's can always be added..

The most disappointing of course is the screen res and glossy only. :(
 
ECUpirate44 said:
It will be interesting to see what the battery life is. The Arrandale 13 inch was rated at 10 hours and 8-9 hours on the 15 and 17. According to Apple, they are using a more stringent test for their batteries.
View attachment 272663

If they really do get 7 hours in "real life" id consider that a success.
Click to expand...

There was never an Arrandale 13" MBP. They stuck with Core 2 Duo, that's why they were able to put in an NVidia integrated graphics chip in it.
 
ECUpirate44 said:
It will be interesting to see what the battery life is. The Arrandale 13 inch was rated at 10 hours and 8-9 hours on the 15 and 17. According to Apple, they are using a more stringent test for their batteries.
View attachment 272663

If they really do get 7 hours in "real life" id consider that a success.
Click to expand...

i heard the internal name for the new test is the "hipster test." lol why base battery life on something you do at a coffee shop?
 
LoganT said:
There was never an Arrandale 13" MBP. They stuck with Core 2 Duo, that's why they were able to put in an NVidia integrated graphics chip in it.
Click to expand...

Opps! I forgot they never updated the 13 inch with Arrandales. I should have just said the 2010 mbp in general.
 
The lack of a 1440*900 option is a total joke. The MBA can have it, why can't the supposedly 'Pro' machine with the same screen size ? If it had been given that as a BTO option i probably could have gotten over the issues, but it's the straw that broke the camels back.

The thing is, the 15'' is a fantastic machine, i'm just angry because i feel like Apple is trying to force me to buy one.
 
macdud said:
The battery life will be the same !

Apple specifies that these results are part of their new more rigorous and realistic tests. If you now compare the battery life specs of the white macbook it is also 7 hours. So essentially you'll be getting the same battery life for much faster processor.

SSD's can always be added..

The most disappointing of course is the screen res and glossy only. :(
Click to expand...

Agreed. Really don't know what the Cupertino kids were thinking with the 1280 by 800 on the 13 inch.
 
Just pulled the trigger on the low end 13" MBP, I was really hoping for a bit of a redesign or at least the SSD/HD hybrid on the 15" and 17" - that would have definitely made me step up.

The 13" will be much more portable so thats sort of a plus, a bit of a let down on the screen resolution though. However, most of my heavy work will still be done on the iMac so thats not really an issue I suppose. I don't need a dedicated GPU as most of my work is in Dreamweaver/Photoshop and I have an Xbox 360/135in projector setup for gaming.

I debated for a bit on whether to instead get the high end MBA but that C2D would have bothered me forever!

Overall, I saved some money and I am sure I will be happy with the unit. I also finally picked up the extended AppleCare for my iMac as I just realized I only have until March 15 until it expires, phew!!

Today was a good day. :)
 
Sarngate said:
- No design change or major innovations
Click to expand...

Change for the sake of change is idiotic. The current chassis is as close to perfection as I've ever seen in a notebook chassis. What exactly do you want to change about it??

Also, how is a 10 Gb/s Light Peak bus not a "major innovation?" :confused:
 
They always give the low end the short end of the stick somehow. It's an effective way to make people pay 300 more for an "upgraded" model.
 
45W CPU (Quad Core) instead of 35W (Dual Core) might contribute to lower battery life

I was concerned that using a quad-core CPU in the new MBP might reduce the battery life.

For me, the tradeoff is worth it. 10W for double the horsepower. However, I don't think the new 7hr numbers are purely due to more realistic testing.
 
dime21 said:
Change for the sake of change is idiotic. The current chassis is as close to perfection as I've ever seen in a notebook chassis. What exactly do you want to change about it??

Also, how is a 10 Gb/s Light Peak bus not a "major innovation?" :confused:
Click to expand...

I think the t-bolt option is a killer upgrade. beyond major innovation
 
For those of you who are scratching your heads about the MBP 13" release specs, you have to look at the laptops that Apple offers as a whole. They now offer four 13" models between the MBA and MBP line. The prices range from $1,199 to $1,599. Apple had to make sure that the new MBP's didn't cannabilize their MBA sales. So, depending on what spec(s) is important to you, you can certainly find a 13" Mac that fits your needs.
 
jtap said:
Just pulled the trigger on the low end 13" MBP, I was really hoping for a bit of a redesign or at least the SSD/HD hybrid on the 15" and 17" - that would have definitely made me step up.

The 13" will be much more portable so thats sort of a plus, a bit of a let down on the screen resolution though. However, most of my heavy work will still be done on the iMac so thats not really an issue I suppose. I don't need a dedicated GPU as most of my work is in Dreamweaver/Photoshop and I have an Xbox 360/135in projector setup for gaming.

I debated for a bit on whether to instead get the high end MBA but that C2D would have bothered me forever!

Overall, I saved some money and I am sure I will be happy with the unit. I also finally picked up the extended AppleCare for my iMac as I just realized I only have until March 15 until it expires, phew!!

Today was a good day. :)
Click to expand...

Congrats! Be sure and look out for an OWC DIY kit (probably being released in the not-so-distant future) that can give you that SSD/HDD hybrid setup. I threw one in my 2009 MBP and it's blazing fast!
 
OptyCT said:
Congrats! Be sure and look out for an OWC DIY kit (probably being released in the not-so-distant future) that can give you that SSD/HDD hybrid setup. I threw one in my 2009 MBP and it's blazing fast!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip! I'll definitely have to look into that.
 
15" mbp, very pleased. Quad core i7 standard, 1gig GPU memory!!! Very pleased.

But sadly, the whole hype on "macbook air, next generation of macbooks" did not fully come to life, if at all today. Perhaps, todays update was the last refresh for the current styles. I think the upgrade today is a buffer one in-between last generations disappointing version and 2012 "next gen" Very glad that 3 steps came with quad SB, a gpu on par with imac and high end performance, and new data speed. But the same shell, drives, screen res etc. Once Lion is out, SB faultiness is given time, Ivy Bridge will be the mounting point. Flash storage prices fall and more readily available. 2008-2012 would be 4 years, a configured chassis design to be thinner and lighter would make perfect sense, Media event perhaps. Would I buy a high end 15" today if i could from my 08 unibody, perhaps. Do I believe 2012 , as rumors already out, fit with what has occurred and time frames to bring a new generation. Yes

Do you?
 
Its a very lame update. All credits really should go to Intel (and AMD). Apple did not do anything. They just swapped CPU and GPU and called it a new laptop. The very least they could do was to add USB 3.0. Some would appreciate quad core option as well.
 
You missed the entire reason to upgrade ... THUNDERBOLT !

That alone has got to make a 15" laptop worth $1800 .... THUNDERBOLT !
 
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