I recently purchased an updated 15" Macbook Pro (like 7 days ago.) I keep reading all these threads about why people are skipping this model and waiting again for what they hope will be the end all be all computer of their dreams. I get caught up in the mess also, thinking "maybe i should take mine back and wait...." but really? Why? I have the most up to date bad a$$ rMbp there is. Why should I look at these comments and wonder if i need to take a computer back just to get another with a slight modification in a couple months? The wait for skyline will be over and then what? Will we be happy?
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Waiting for Skylake, Why?
- Thread starter Fthree
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Never saw any happy ending on here with intel. As we all know technology moves so fast that we can't keep up. So buy it now or just keep waiting and waiting for the next big thing.
Processors have not had a huge jump in years, really since core duo to the core i series. So people keep waiting for something huge. But skylake is only going to be a 10% bump. This people will say "I'm waiting for canyonlake". It will never end. People are also speculating that with skylake apple will launch a MBP redesign witch I'm not looking forward to unless it's only switching out the thunderbolt 2 for 3. But that will probably mean no more USB 3 ports... The redesign worries me
Your logic is right on. And, the one I purchased was gorgeous both under the hood and visually. I returned it only because I knew I would feel cheated if Apple started to ship these with the Broadwell chips two months from now.
I know I won't be able to tell the difference between the two - especially since I'm coming from a decrepit, but useable MBP - but my buying behavior is partly driven by my perception of value. And, when I saw the news that Broadwell was released so soon after this "new" rMBP, I got a bad feeling.
I know you'll enjoy your new Mac. It's a great computer. I wish I could think with my head instead of my gut.
I know I won't be able to tell the difference between the two - especially since I'm coming from a decrepit, but useable MBP - but my buying behavior is partly driven by my perception of value. And, when I saw the news that Broadwell was released so soon after this "new" rMBP, I got a bad feeling.
I know you'll enjoy your new Mac. It's a great computer. I wish I could think with my head instead of my gut.
I wouldn't pay any attention to most of the bitching. Some of it is warranted: broadwell available soon, preferring NVIDIA to AMD, the AMD chip not being much of an improvement. But like you said, this is the most powerful 15" ever. And a redesign is likely to bring welcomed and unfavorable changes, so I say enjoy your Mac.
@aziatiklover is right. Unless you're within a week of an Apple event I would just buy when you need them. Processors are at a point now that a few percentages faster won't be noticed in day to day activities.
This is a very good point. I am sure that Apple will be messing with the port lineup for the next redesign. Though I seriously doubt they'd get rid of both USB-A ports, I could see them dropping one.
Most carmakers make incremental changes (if any) year over year, after a new model is released.
Most update to rMBP.. correct...
Updated spec available in the market.. NO WAY...
Processor is 2 yrs old, GPU is as old as processor..
I agree. I understand that the 15 is bigger than the 13 but to justify the screen it is necessary to have the drastic size difference. It is still a damn thin/light laptop.
True, there comes a point with these things when I wish I could just grab an updated Mac hide from macrumors under a rock somewhere and just enjoy the amazing machine for what it is.
GPU is based on 2012 technology? true... but is still new. It uses different processes and features so it isn't a 2012 product. We may as well say: "Broadwell is Haswell but smaller," then say: "well Haswell is Ivy Bridge but more efficient." BUT it's still the same type of tech!... the majority of computer technology is based on past architecture, it's the refining and improving on the past model that makes it "new" and better. So the AMD 370x IS NEW. "technically all Intel processors for the past 5-6 years are old too." Heck so are all computers, they all are based off of the first personal computer so they are all from the 1970's.
Note: processors are actually 2014, they were still Haswell but were bumped up to faster newer processors 2013 was the 4960HQ
and 2014 was the 4870HQ
Kal.
The point being that the 2015 MBP is basically the same as the 2013, but still full price.
If I'm going to pay thr Apple premium price, I'm going to buy when they release relevant and recent tech.
Probably because the rMBP released a few days ago is almost identical to the one they released in 2013. It uses the same CPU and has the same Graphics if you're buying the base model which probably most people buying it will do because it's cheapest.
And if you buy the one with the M370X you're buying a rebranded GPU from 2012 that is GCN 1.0 - AMD is about to release GCN 1.3 equipped chips in the Radeon Fury X and other chips derived from that architecture. Would you buy an Ivy Bridge CPU today if Intel called it Broadwell? I wouldn't.
It has the same maximum memory, same SSD sizes, although the newer one is faster it's not noticeable in real world usage as the old SSD was already pushing 1GB/s reads on the high end 1TB config and 750MB/s on the smaller sizes.
And we all know that Skylake is coming and with it comes a large change. First of all, it will include a 100% GPU performance improvement over Haswell, 50% over Broadwell. Secondly it has a 10-15% increase in CPU performance. It also supports DDR4 Memory that works at a lower voltage which means increased battery life.
We know that the Skylake equipped rMBP will have USB-C ports which are the future of the USB standard. If you're intending to keep this notebook for 3 years you'll want USB-C as the entire industry will switch to it over the next 24 months, you can expect the Skylake rMBP in 6-8 months from now, right in the middle of that transition.
Skylake will also bring with it Thunderbolt 3 which can power Apples rumored 5K desktop screen through a single cable.
So lets just recap. Skylake rMBP brings with it, improved CPU performance, doubled GPU performance, new ports that will become the industry standard, 5K single line output for compatibility with Apples 5K display, USB 3.1 (10Gb/s), faster and lower power memory, improved battery life.
The upgrade from 2013 to 2015 with the Haswell rMBP includes, the new force touch trackpad and a mildly faster GPU (check Arstechnica review for actual benchmarks, it's mildly faster than the 750m, 5-10%, not 70% like Apple claimed.) Skylake is just a much much larger upgrade and it's coming later this year, it's silly to buy a 2013 Notebook today when the new model with latest generation everything is right on-the-cuff of being released, unless of course you're a millionaire then get every model released of course.
That's not entirely accurate. The base model 15in in late 2013 started at 2Ghz as were 2014/15 started at 2.3. 2013 also had a max configuration with 2.6 as these have 2.8.
The SSD in the 2015 is also drastically faster than the 2013/2014. Plus force touch and longer battery life as well.
If you wanted a new machine the 15" rMBP's are absolutely insane. They'll suit your needs for years to come. I have a 2012 rMBP 15" and it still screams with a lot of untapped performance. I'm personally waiting for the skylake rMBP's for the possible redesign, force touch which is already in the 2015 rMBP's, and performance increase but to be completely honest i'm not using all the power I have now so more performance isn't that exciting for me. We are at a point where specs are becoming less and less relevant. Still important but not near as important as say 10 years ago. You'll get years of use out of your 2015 rMBP so don't think twice. There's always something better around the corner but if you don't even take advantage of your current machine than what's the point? Might even hold onto my rMBP 15 for a couple more years until I actually need a new machine. Doubt that'll be for quite a while.
The chips are the same, just 200MHz bumps. Almost nothing. And I already spoke in my post about the SSD speed increase and force touch. Apple claims an extra hour of battery life, I have no reason to doubt that but these are all minor bumps nothing like the sea change the redesigned Skylake rMBP will be.
I choose to believe both Ars Technica and Anandtech and both have said it's a Cape Verde chip, GCN 1.0
So let's say that the next 15" rMBP, whether it comes out in November or Next Spring, has the new keyboard, 1866MHx Ram, Broadwell/Skylake CPU and Thunderbolt 3...worth waiting for?
I think so. The one comment that stands out here for me personally is, if you're paying premium prices, you should expect cutting edge.
Again, purely personally, I want to hold on to my next Mac for another 6 years.
If I was happy to keep trading up every couple of years, I'd have jumped on the recent 15" already but one thing's for sure...I'm waiting until Monday just in case they announce a "Coming in the Fall (Autumn) upgrade
I think so. The one comment that stands out here for me personally is, if you're paying premium prices, you should expect cutting edge.
Again, purely personally, I want to hold on to my next Mac for another 6 years.
If I was happy to keep trading up every couple of years, I'd have jumped on the recent 15" already but one thing's for sure...I'm waiting until Monday just in case they announce a "Coming in the Fall (Autumn) upgrade
I knew I'd get a post about not being obsolete and that's due to my poor choice of words. You're 100% correct not obsolete in terms of functionality. Heck, I have a 2010 MBP for my kids that is still going strong.
It is obsolete insofar as the technology being used, or to put it another way which hopefully is a bit more clear. I'm spending 2,000 dollars. Do I want to wait a little while and put that money towards a computer that will use the latest chipset, or buy a new computer that was built around 2013 technology.
Radeon R7 240, GCN 1.0 = Supports OpenCL 2.0
Radeon R7 250, GCN 1.0 = Supports OpenCL 2.0
Radeon R7 250X, GCN 1.0 = Supports OpenCL 2.0
And that R7 250X is Cape Verde. GCN 1.0 and yes it supports OpenCL 2.0
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