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How realistic is to expect a 13" retina macbook pro, with an intel i7 , 16 gb of DDR4 RAM, 512 GB SSD ? ( no custom build)

Pretty realistic, that already exists now, minus the ddr4 part

Update: never mind I see you meant without customizing options.
 
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I know a lot of people don't lake comparisons , but dell has been using the i7 since early 2015 in their 13" XPS model, what's stopping apple?

Dell uses the 15W Chip in their XPS13 which was out a lot earlier. The maximum base frequency out of the 15w i7 chips is 2.6 and the maximum turbo boost is 3.4. There are 4 15w i7 chips and 2 of these only use intel hd graphics which is what dell were using back then. The other 2 have intel iris 540 graphics and I believe dell does now give these as an option.
Now historically apple has used 15w chips in the Air and 28w chips in their mbp13. There are rumors that due to size constraints they are going to move over to the 15w chips, but these are rumours that a lot of people are hoping to be false.
There is only one i7 28w chip it has a base frequency of 3.3 and turbo boost up to 3.6. It also uses iris 550 instead of iris 540. These chips were released much later then the 15w one and I believe the only machine using it at the moment is the vaio z flip. Someone correct me if I'm wrong?
Now in regards to apple offering the i7 only as a custom build there are a lot of people that would argue that the performance difference between the top i5 and the i7 at this level is very minor so the i7 is literally only a few percent faster and is a custom option for people who care about that few percent or literally just want to make sure they have the best of the best.
 
But it exists only as a custom and more expensive build :(

Ah I see.

But just curious what about the i7 model makes it important for you to upgrade from the i5?

Don't make fun of me, but I really think a 13" macbook is a LOT more portable than a 15" one ...

The 13" is more portable than the 15". Everyone has their right to prefer and purchase a certain size over an other.
 
Anyone played with a System76 laptop? Could be a nice alternative if the next gen MBP doesn't materialize soon or it's a total dog.
I have this one.
But it is the old laptop. Gazelle Pro 8.
It's good for linux users.
But I have not tried the next gen laptop by system76 yet because my old system76 laptop is working fine now. I have made a lot money with this machine and I want to upgrade it as the compensation for the many years it has helped me in hard work but it was no trouble in the hardware except the hard drive is quite slowly
.
Strongly recommend people try a system 76 laptop if they only want their laptop to be running linux(windows can be installed possible).
 
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Dell hasn't been using an i7 in their base model, and you can get an i7 in a 13inch MacBook Pro.

Also, don't quote me on this, but I think the MacBook Pro is generally clocking higher CPU speeds than the XPS.

More XPS clap-trap. Who cares? It's a low build quality, unintegrated machine full of bloatware that won't last the pace.

You can just about write an Android app on a Dell. You can also do web stuff (no Safari testing though).

With Apple, I can do iPhone apps, Android apps and web apps (Chrome, Firefox, Safari) on one enterprise class platform. I need a Windows VM sure, but it's all on one machine and all supported. And portable and looks/feels great. Connecting a 4k/5k display will be even more seamless with USB-C. I don't need to chop and change.

Apple will be using the latest i5/i7 chips available from Intel. They'll probably be Skylake (not the 1st gen ones used by Dell in 2015). Fantastic if 1st gen. Kabylake, but probably unrealistic.
 
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Tbh I just hope that Apple improves the OSX experience more, a rebranding to macOS and deeper integration with existing Apple services would make it a more enjoyable experience for me. I hope that WWDC holds massive updates across the ecosystem especially in terms of AI and Siri, I think Viv is what Siri should have been and would love to see it come to macOS.

That's pretty much my biggest selling point, Siri/Viv on macOS. And ideally something that's a lot more seamless than how voice assistants work now days. You can't really do anything simultaneously while using Siri but it sure would be cool to be working on an email or ppt and without leaving the current screen press a shortcut ' activate by voice, ask a quick question or schedule a meeting and have it confirm by voice. You could get additional confirmation by having a confirmation notification pop up on Apple Watch or iPhone.

The hardware bump is obviously coming and most likely with a dGPU, I don't think iGPUs are good enough just yet, so I think the real innovation needs to come from the experience. The last couple of OS X updates were unnoticeable at best imo.
 
Kabylake at WWDC release possible? I would definitely say no.

I wouldn't rule it out entirely. But yeah, unlikely from my point of view.

Apple have huge clout. Intel would love to position themselves alongside Apple.

Also, the Kabylake features look perfect for Apple's target market (video editing, high-speed/low latency peripherals - i.e. USB-C, etc.) Then again, the Skylake is a very good chip. 2nd gen MBP next year will still benefit. It's all designed in for the next four years.
 
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If there are Kabylake MBP's at WWDC, Apple would be back at the top I guess and I would be satisfied :D

While Intel chips are amazing, the added value from buying an Apple comes from a lot more than just the chips. Though having said this, a lot of the low power leadership from Apple's OSX relies on Intel chips doing their thing.

I think the power advancements of Kabylake will be even more amazing than what we currently have!
 
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Sure if you don't mind paying full price for 3 year old technology.
Really good 3 year old technology, especially considering they apparently waited several years after they made it to release it.
[doublepost=1463484192][/doublepost]
I don't know what I'm going to do when it's all over. This is my default bathroom read. I guess I'll just go straight to the Waiting for [whatever] thread and keep on waiting.
Looking forward to the "Waiting for quantum macbook pro merged thread"
 
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Really good 3 year old technology, especially considering they apparently waited several years after they made it to release it.

The technology Apple "waited several years after they made it to release it" is not the thing people complains about, but the CPU architecture inside. If you are willing to pay full tag for a MBP now, do it, but don't blame others for not wanting to spend 2K on a computer with 3yo CPU inside, despite having great technology (haptic trackpad, insane fast SSDs, etc).

And who said Apple will only update to Skylake and give us new color options? They might put DDR4, USB C + TB3, improved display colors, maybe even faster SSDs, etc. So yes, despite having great technology now, 1-2 months are worth the wait.
 
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The technology Apple "waited several years after they made it to release it" is not the thing people complains about, but the CPU architecture inside. If you are willing to pay full tag for a MBP now, do it, but don't blame others for not wanting to spend 2K on a computer with 3yo CPU inside, despite having great technology (haptic trackpad, insane fast SSDs, etc).

Do not forget the "amazing" new dGPU, based on the 2012 Cape Verde chip...
 
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Tbh I just hope that Apple improves the OSX experience more, a rebranding to macOS and deeper integration with existing Apple services would make it a more enjoyable experience for me. I hope that WWDC holds massive updates across the ecosystem especially in terms of AI and Siri, I think Viv is what Siri should have been and would love to see it come to macOS.

That's pretty much my biggest selling point, Siri/Viv on macOS. And ideally something that's a lot more seamless than how voice assistants work now days. You can't really do anything simultaneously while using Siri but it sure would be cool to be working on an email or ppt and without leaving the current screen press a shortcut ' activate by voice, ask a quick question or schedule a meeting and have it confirm by voice. You could get additional confirmation by having a confirmation notification pop up on Apple Watch or iPhone.

The hardware bump is obviously coming and most likely with a dGPU, I don't think iGPUs are good enough just yet, so I think the real innovation needs to come from the experience. The last couple of OS X updates were unnoticeable at best imo.

I actually want the opposite. The more integrated Siri/Viv become in your OS, the more intrusive it becomes collecting data on you 24/7. It also becomes a total security vulnerability because everything has to be processed on the large server farms at Apple. Don't kid yourself when you think these machine learning algorithms are supposed to make your life easier...its quite the opposite as you will find yourself connected 24/7 and acting like a crack junkie looking for a high-speed connection when you're not.

Remember to get a "improved OSX experience" requires more horsepower that eats into the battery and hardware (read space) margin.
 
I remember last year when someone said it'd be 4 weeks until Broadwell and not only did they refresh the MBP before but WWDC but they kept haswell!!!! lol. Broadwell refresh incoming.
ahaha you just made me think.. what if they update the 15" at wwdc. with broadwell.
ROFL that'd be hilarious.

(i'm just kidding kids, it won't happen, don't worry, it's all fine)
 
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I think you have me confused with someone who plays games or wants to watch youtube videos on my system, which I don't mind doing at times. However, I prefer a portable workstation for the line of work that I do. IMO, the MBPs have become more of a hipster status symbol, and I sadly am losing faith in their professional products.

ETA - to directly answer your question, quad core processor, with crazy large amounts of ram, dGPU and very large storage space configuration. Not to mention, it's also running Ubuntu and not windows or any bastardized version of Windows/Linux.

Might as well lug around a Mac Pro with a monitor and generator /s

In all seriousness, the System76 machines are a different class of machine. Ones where portability is sacrificed for power/cost.
 
I actually want the opposite. The more integrated Siri/Viv become in your OS, the more intrusive it becomes collecting data on you 24/7. It also becomes a total security vulnerability because everything has to be processed on the large server farms at Apple. Don't kid yourself when you think these machine learning algorithms are supposed to make your life easier...its quite the opposite as you will find yourself connected 24/7 and acting like a crack junkie looking for a high-speed connection when you're not.

Remember to get a "improved OSX experience" requires more horsepower that eats into the battery and hardware (read space) margin.

Fine. All valid points. Go and use FreeBSD.

The iGPU will allow the "OSX experience" to perform at improved performance levels using far less power.

The iGPU will also exceed current GPU performance on a single piece of silicon (as opposed to two) and support high res monitors over USB-C.

And yes, details matter. Including graphic details and UI gloss, etc.
 
Might as well lug around a Mac Pro with a monitor and generator /s

In all seriousness, the System76 machines are a different class of machine. Ones where portability is sacrificed for power/cost.

/lugging the mac pro around. LOL

That would be a good idea if it was already 3 years old with Dated tech as well.
 
Might as well lug around a Mac Pro with a monitor and generator /s

In all seriousness, the System76 machines are a different class of machine. Ones where portability is sacrificed for power/cost.

Haha, this got me thinking. I need my machine to be portable, but when I'm porting it around I'm also generally carrying 30-50+ pounds of camera/lighting/support gear. So, portable is important, but I'm okay with something that isn't the most portable in it's class.

It would be really nice if Apple would make a niche 'Pro' machine that was a little less portable, had really good heat dissipation, powerful CPU and GPU (with 4GB+ vRAM), user upgradable RAM and storage, Apple build quality that we know and love. I bet they would sell the heck out of them. There is a lot of territory between "18mm thin" and Mac Pro. When pigs fly, I know...
 
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