There's a New 13-Inch MacBook Pro Coming, Here's What We Know

[Zdigital2015]

Why would someone buy a MBP without HDMI…

I have used the HDMI port on my 2015 15” MBP exactly three times to connect it to a projector. I could care less about HDMI on a MBP. Besides Apple put HDMI 2.0 on the new MBPs and all the spec whores on this site can do is complain that they didn’t get HDMI 2.1 despite the standard now being a complete CF à la USB-C, 3, 3.2, 3.2 2x2, USB4, et al. Better Apple leave it off and you can all deal with a dongle s God intended instead of endless whining about not getting 2.1, none of which anyone NEEDS at this point and I’m not even sure the LSPCON was ready to go in time for Apple to incorporate it or not, but all the arm chair engineers here think they know better.

 

[Biro]

So far, it sounds like there isn't enough difference between the next MBA and 13-inch MBP - at least as described. Perhaps merge the two into something called the MacBook. Or put the M2 chip in the MBA and an M1 Pro chip into the 13-inch MBP. The M2 Pro and Max chips would go into the 16-inch MBPs.

 

[adib]

Hopefully these will have four Thunderbolt ports and support for at least two external displays. That'll bring it on-par with the 2020 Intel 13" in terms of connectivity.

 

[AmazeSE]

Releasing a 13" MacBook Pro would have significant work and internal changes beyond the existing Apple Silicon notebooks, as the Touch Bar is currently implemented running on a separate T2 chip running BridgeOS.

I doubt they will be willing to do that sort of extra effort just to keep TouchBar alive.

Apple sells a M1 MacBook Pro with the TouchBar. So Apple has already figured that part out.

 

[madebybela]

Hopefully these will have four Thunderbolt ports and support for at least two external displays. That'll bring it on-par with the 2020 Intel 13" in terms of connectivity.

basically this. I would actually consider it a pretty damn good deal at that point.
4 TB especially is a must to make it stand out from the MacBook Air

 

[fooobar]

really hope this rumor is true - would love to get an updated version of the 13" MBP w/ touchbar & NO notch!

even though Apple made some great improvements with the new 14"/16" MBP's, they're still not ideal for everyone - these are the main things that i personally care about which make the 13" MBP a better choice for me (of course, others may disagree):

1. notch is a dealbreaker for many (one of the worst design decisions of all time.)

2. missing touchbar - despite many being very vocally negative about this feature, it's obvious there are many fans of the touchbar as well (for those of you who don't like it, maybe look into some TB add-ons such as GoldenChaos or AquaTouch to make it more useful?)

3. M1 Pro/Max chips are a bit more power hungry than vanilla M1, and are overkill for many users especially since single core performance is actually the same (13" M1 MBP has superior runtime despite having significantly less battery capacity than the 14"/16" MBP's)

4. price - starting at 2k makes it harder to justify for many who would be served just as well with 13" M1 MBA/MBP models


that having been said, there's a lot of things that Apple got right that i wish would be included in a 13" MBP refresh (but highly doubt will actually happen) - magsafe, hdmi, sd slot, >16GB ram, improved speakers, smaller bezels (except for the stupid notch, they should've just kept whatever bezel is necessary to keep the top of the screen a straight uninterrupted edge), etc. in fact, the only other omission i would want is USB-A since it's actually still used by tons of peripherals & devices (external drives, scanners, iPhones, etc.) - this is a guaranteed dongle i'll need to have for a long time still...

 

[madebybela]

also never understood the HDMI complaints because I bought one of these for like $10 for my monitor/projector needs. didn't even need to buy a dongle!

 

[segfaultdotorg]

I'm not believing this. The 13.3" MBP was made obsolete with the introduction of the 14". Apple is beating a dead horse if they continue the 13.3" MBP lineage.

 

[nph]

I love my Touch Bar and just upgraded to a 16Gig 512 from base since I expect the might not keep the Touch Bar.
if they release an upgraded MBP with M2 and other improvements I might upgrade again otherwise I am planning to keep this one for many years. To me this is the perfect size and battery life is fantastic! Best laptop I have ever owned. (Macbook 12 is a second best)

 

[Johnny907]

Sorry but there is no way they release anything new with a TB. That thing is dead as a doornail.
If this is true it’s making me think the rumors of a pastel bodied MBA nightmare are true, and a stopgap 13” MBP with an update M2 chip and the keyboard from the 2021 MBA is how Apple plans on appeasing professionals who don’t need the power (or expensive of the 14/16” MBP but would rather not whip out a fisher price toy in the office.

 

[hagjohn]

Why would someone buy a MBP without HDMI…

You do know you can use a Thunderbolt port for that, right? And if they replace the HDMI for another Thunderbolt port, you will have an extra thunderbolt port that you can use for many other things but an HDMI can only be used for HDMI.

 

[Klapper.cz]

I'm not believing this. The 13.3" MBP was made obsolete with the introduction of the 14". Apple is beating a dead horse if they continue the 13.3" MBP lineage.

The 13.3" MBP was temporarily made obsolete by the "too good" M1 Air - same non-Pro power (well almost) at the same time, same format, and $300 price difference with TB most people somehow actively reject.
But given the option to have faster comparably M1 Pro in an Air sized body with some lower spec than 14", without TB, but with more thunderbolt ports/displays and price up to $1500, the horse will reincarnate in no time

 

[Fomalhaut]

also never understood the HDMI complaints because I bought one of these for like $10 for my monitor/projector needs. didn't even need to buy a dongle!

The use case for the HDMI socket on the computer is when you are presented with a fixed HDMI cable connected to a projector or TV that you can’t replace with your own cable. This is extremely common in meeting rooms. You could carry a female HDMI to USB-C adapter for this case I suppose. Also, if you lose or forget your display cable for an external monitor, you’re much more likely to find an HDMI TV cable in a supermarke etc rather than a USB-C to HDMI cable or an adapter.

 

[Menneisyys2]

I think Apple just needs to drop the “Pro” moniker from this machine and bring back the MacBook line. Seems like it would fit nicely between a colorful, iMac-inspired MacBook Air and the current beefed up MacBook Pro with Pro/Max chips.

Definitely. There are massive differences between the 13" and the better models WRT performance etc.

 

[segfaultdotorg]

The 13.3" MBP was temporarily made obsolete by the "too good" M1 Air - same non-Pro power (well almost) at the same time, same format, and $300 price difference with TB most people somehow actively reject.
But given the option to have faster comparably M1 Pro in an Air sized body with some lower spec than 14", without TB, but with more thunderbolt ports/displays and price up to $1500, the horse will reincarnate in no time

IDK most of what you said there, but I still don't understand why Apple decided to include TuBerculosis as a standard feature on some of their laptops, especially with a pandemic going on.

 

[Menneisyys2]

the 13" MacBook Air is a far better buy that the 13" Pro anyway.

This. The 13" ATM is pretty bad a deal. The Air is so much better value - just a little bit less performant (with loooong tasks only) and significantly cheaper / lighter etc... and yes, no trash Touchbar

 

[loby]

Plenty of people have no use for it. I still use a 2014 15" MBP, I do not get why people would need something better than this, probably 1% does. The rest is just ego.

It’s all about the doggie and not needing to carry it around etc. For “Pro” video users it is a plus not to have the doggie when going from shoot site to shoot site or quick types of work.

The 13” MacBook Pro is a good option for those who use the HDMI port on occasion and can just use a doggie if needed. Plus…the 13” is thinner and lighter to carry around then the thicker 14” (as I have heard).

I have. 15” MacBook Pro 2018 and a 16” MacBook Pro M1 and I still use both for work. I get the best of both worlds. I like and use the touchbar for audio work (comes in handy for punch-in and silent recording etc.). Also…a big plus is Intel with bootcamp if needed (though Parrallels on the M1 does decent for most non-hardware accessory needs).

There is a market for the thinner 13” MacBook Pro… but not sure of the demand Is high for it. I guess Apple will find out if there is a need between the Air and 14”. We will see…

 

[Klapper.cz]

This. The 13" ATM is pretty bad a deal. The Air is so much better value - just a little bit less performant (with loooong tasks only) and significantly cheaper / lighter etc... and yes, no trash Touchbar

The thermal pad mod will take care of those "loooong tasks" too

 

[profcutter]

It is very surprising to see the Touch Bar continue. I'm guessing it's the last machine we will ever see with it. Wouldn't it cost Apple less to make this same machine with a function row of keys instead?

I would guess that either there’s a warehouse with stacks of 13” MacBook Pro cases made years ago that they’re trying to get through, so it‘s easier to just swap out the innards and sell the cases, or maybe they have the tooling all set to make new cases, they don’t feel like retooling because they’re going to eventually phase out the 13, so as long as the dies are still usable, why not keep cranking out 13 inch machines that are identical to the ones they sold 5 years ago, keyboards aside. Maybe I’m wrong about all that, but that’s my guess. They’re keeping it all the same because it’s actually cheaper than building a whole new die for a 13 inch model without the touchbar.

 

[loby]

All rumours point to at least some iMacs being released later this year (June?). But otherwise I agree, just finish the M1/Pro/Max line in 2 events now and bring A16 + M2 after the summer.

I tend to agree..but…they did the less than 6 month upgrade with the redesigned MacBook Pro 2018 which got under my skin…I got hit when they did that..but couldn’t wait and had to buy due to needs.

Apple could release another updated MacBook Pro and not wait, knowing that Pros may dump their resent M1 MacBook Pro purchase for a M2 with more power and GPU, RAM etc. because the target market CAN and has the purchasing power to do it and write it off or make up the cost after the next project. Not me…but higher end Pros.

Apple is not strapped now with Intel’s schedule and Apple is all about the numbers now…so it is hard to find patterns for purchase to Dollar estimates anymore.

 

[smirking]

The use case for the HDMI socket on the computer is when you are presented with a fixed HDMI cable connected to a projector or TV that you can’t replace with your own cable.

I wouldn't want to assume that every projector is an HDMI projector. I still run into VGA and the occasional odd DVI projector. It doesn't matter to me that I have an HDMI port in my 16" MBP. I'm still carrying around multiple video adapters.

 

[Klapper.cz]

I tend to agree..but…they did the less than 6 month upgrade with the redesigned MacBook Pro 2018 which got under my skin…I got hit when they did that..but couldn’t wait and had to buy due to needs.

Apple could release another updated MacBook Pro and not wait, knowing that Pros may dump their resent M1 MacBook Pro purchase for a M2 with more power and GPU, RAM etc. because the target market CAN and has the purchasing power to do it and write it off or make up the cost after the next project. Not me…but higher end Pros.

Apple is not strapped now with Intel’s schedule and Apple is all about the numbers now…so it is hard to find patterns for purchase to Dollar estimates anymore.

Well once per decade change of architecture and supply chain is sort of aberration, I expect more reliable planning now.
Once they announce the new 13" as a true middle ground between Air and 14"+ Pro, it'll make more sense. But not with M2 that will come again in Air later and not solve the "sameness" problem, that's just not a Pro chip.

 

[MayaUser]

Releasing a 13" MacBook Pro would have significant work and internal changes beyond the existing Apple Silicon notebooks, as the Touch Bar is currently implemented running on a separate T2 chip running BridgeOS.

I doubt they will be willing to do that sort of extra effort just to keep TouchBar alive.

the current touchbar is runing on M1, so no more T2 chip ...so Apple already did the work and internal changes...what are you even talking about

 

[Pecka]

I currently have a 2017 13-inch entry level MBP without touchbar. Good machine but I would probably buy a 14-inch today. Not that the 13-inch is too small but something slightly bigger and more powerful would be nice.

 

[Mr.PT]

I very much expect the upcoming iMac to be based on M1 Pro/Max, and I can't dream up a scenario where they can release M1 based machines after or at the same time as the "next gen" product, even if it is the smaller "non-Pro" variant, and communicate that well to the customer. No matter what M2 will be based on (A15, A16, N5, N4) it will be faster in single core performance by some margin. Confirming M2 "exists" already would potentially make iMac customers wait for the M2 Pro / Max rather than buying obsolete hardware. And I cannot imagine they will debut the iMac on M2 Pro / Max half a year after they just introduced them for the MBP 14/16.

Well I couldn’t imagine I’d have to wait 5MONTHS!? and counting, to get a M1max MBP. Also think “just” M1Max on iMac Pro will not happen. Intel new release together with the production delays, may push Apple to go for M2max instead.It surely would look better on their presentation benchmarks…