unobtainium
macrumors 68030
The benchmark numbers in the article are inaccurate. Last year's entry-level MBP got much lower scores than this year's. Is anyone going to correct the article?
New MacBook Pro and Air Benchmarks Comparable to Mid-2014 Models
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I am looking into replacing a 15" 2008 MBP with a 13" 2015 MBA. Is it worthwhile to get an i7 processor? Does the MBA get really hot on the bottom (really dislike this aspect of my MBP)? I have been waiting for the Broadwell refresh since I figure it will run cooler and be more energy efficient.
sledgehammer89
macrumors 6502
But now you can connect 4K displays in 60hz even with 13" MacBook Pro Retina. Retina everywhere 
reallynotnick
macrumors 65816
You are looking at the 32bit not 64bit benchmarks, the article is correct
barefeats
macrumors 65816
GPU testing of newest laptops
I think some OpenGL GPUtest FurMark and TessMark results would be useful to see how the Intel 6000 and 6100 integrated GPU compares to previous Intel integrated GPUs. Ditto for LuxMark OpenCL Sala scene rendering. Both are free benchmarks.
Meanwhile, I'll check on some PC websites for their test results on the Intel 6000/6100 and post what I find here.
I think some OpenGL GPUtest FurMark and TessMark results would be useful to see how the Intel 6000 and 6100 integrated GPU compares to previous Intel integrated GPUs. Ditto for LuxMark OpenCL Sala scene rendering. Both are free benchmarks.
Meanwhile, I'll check on some PC websites for their test results on the Intel 6000/6100 and post what I find here.
barefeats
macrumors 65816
GPU benchmark links
This site does a good job of collecting laptop GPU bencharks.
Here's a page showing test results for the Intel HD Graphics 5300 used in the new 12" MacBook:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-5300.125576.0.html
The latest MacBook Air uses the Intel HD Graphics 6000. No benchmark data for it yet but when they have it it will appear here:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-6000.125588.0.html
The latest MacBook Pro 13" uses the Intel HD Graphics 6100. The data will appear on this page once they have it:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Iris-Graphics-6100.125591.0.html
This site does a good job of collecting laptop GPU bencharks.
Here's a page showing test results for the Intel HD Graphics 5300 used in the new 12" MacBook:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-5300.125576.0.html
The latest MacBook Air uses the Intel HD Graphics 6000. No benchmark data for it yet but when they have it it will appear here:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-6000.125588.0.html
The latest MacBook Pro 13" uses the Intel HD Graphics 6100. The data will appear on this page once they have it:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Iris-Graphics-6100.125591.0.html
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sseaton1971
macrumors 6502
Hasn't the MacBook Air always performed better than a MacBook? Prior to yesterday's announcement of the new MacBook, the previous MacBook was discontinued in February 2012 and had a Core 2 Duo processor.
1. Negligible performance improvement...
2. OS X quality drops without options to downgrade...
3. Price increased exorbitantly (from where I am)...
I'll be keeping my soon-to-be 5-year old MBP for another year I guess...
Migrated from Windows in 2010 and Yosemite aka "Vista" makes me consider going back. Let's see whether Apple gets Wifi under control.
Will not buy a new MBP before Q1 2016.
sseaton1971
macrumors 6502
The new Air's CPU performs about the same, and everything else is better. Seems like a major performance improvement to me. What has been removed from the new Air that was present in the last model?
It's different this time as stupid Broadwell is a year late. Last year was supposed to be Broadwell's time and now the OEM's are clamoring for Intel to just release Skylake already...
This CPU 'upgrade' is hardly worth a footnote considering that at battery life improvements are nowhere near what we got when going from Ivy Bridge to Haswell.
What substantial improvements? The 2013/2014 MBA was rated for 9/12 hours for the 11/13 respectively. rMBP 13 only gained a measly hour, that's not substantial. The Ivy Bridge to Haswell transition gave a much more battery life upgrade.
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Artimus12
macrumors 6502a
That's debatable! one port is in no way better than two or three - what that 1 port can do, doesn't matter. The loss of MagSafe is also a retrograde step IMO.
icymountain
macrumors 6502a
Yesterday's Air (circa 2008) was missing many ports that the MacBook had. Look were we are at now : an Air with a profusion of ports (Magsafe + 2 USB + 1 TB !), and a pretty stripped down MacBook (1 USB-c!). This is ironic, no ?
You realize that you're talking about the Macbook, NOT the Macbook Air that's referenced in this article...
The Macbook Air gained a CPU with ~20% more GPU power (depending on what article / benchmark you read), faster (uni-directional) thunderbolt via thunderbolt 2 ,and faster storage.
There's no loss of ports or anything else
But now you can connect 4K displays in 60hz even with 13" MacBook Pro Retina. Retina everywhere
Is there any actual proof of this? I'm ready to get the new 13" rMPB but I can't figure out if it can drive my Samsung UD970 in 4K at 60Hz over DP.
The Apple store only mentions the HDMI output resolutions, and HDMI won't go above 30Hz at 4K anyway..
I don't know much about 5300 (is 4400 better than 5300? why even use numbers then?), but Core M Broadwell has to be a lot better than previous Ys. My only question is how it compares to Haswell Us, etc.
Tom's Guide comparison to i5-4302Y:
Ubele
macrumors 6502a
I, too, have been wanting to replace my 15" 2008 MBP with a newer laptop. (I bought a 2012 i7 Mac mini two years ago tide me over, but I do want another laptop.) As always, I did a ton of research, and, as always, I've been putting off my purchase until the last possible moment. I mainly was waiting to see what the rumored 12" Retina MBA would turn out to be.
Anyway, to summarize what I remember from my research (Anandtech, other review sites, and forum posts), the upgrade cost from a dual-core i5 to a dual-core i7 13" MBA or rMBP isn't worth it for most people, in terms of noticeable user experience. If an i5 isn't fast enough for your needs, then you really should get a quad-core i7 15" rMBP.
I've never heard of heat being an issue with any recent MBA. My 2008 15" MBP is nice on cold winter days, though.
Have you considered a refurbished 2013 or 2014 model? They're great deals at the moment. In my opinion, the late-2013 13" i5 rMBP currently offers the best laptop bang for the buck. I'm curious to find out how much faster the 2015 GPUs are in day-to-day experience for the kinds of things I do, but I'm leaning toward a refurbished 2013 i5 8/512 13" rMBP. If that's not fast enough for me, then I'll get a 27" Retina iMac in a couple years, but the laptop will still be useful for the portability.
Artimus12
macrumors 6502a
You're right, my bad! As you were.
QCassidy352
macrumors G5
To me, it is the new macbook that has no clear place in the lineup. The air is slightly heavier but far more powerful with far more ports. All you really give up is the retina screen. Regardless of which one you'd dump, I do think they need to differentiate the lines more.
Not to nitpick, but it's easy to downgrade if you have a backup, which you really have no excuse for not having, given how easy time machine is. I agree that Apple should provide an officially supported downgrade path, but I went back to Mavericks with no issues at all (and intend to remain there!).
Jeff R
macrumors 6502
Keynote... 10 hours.
mafaky
macrumors regular
No sir; you certainly haven't !...
There's a 1 hr. improvement in 13" rMBP. Almost no improvement in the 11" & 13" MBA!...
Elementary calculations yielded at least a 1 hr. improvement in the MBAs but somehow this did not materialise despite they used the same battery packs as with the 2014 MBAs.
can someone give a more technical explanation, for reasons why not???
Northgrove
macrumors 65816
Not too surprised about the neglible CPU performance improvement as I had heard before that Intel would be focusing on energy usage this time around, some articles even told it could be a game changer. So the low battery life imrpovement, barely any at all for the Air, is more surprising imho.