Which new MBP to upgrade to?

[Trey M]

Hi everyone, I currently have a 12-inch rMB and a 2012 15'' rMBP. I use the MBP exclusively at work, and the rMB at home for leisure. I work on a computer all day for a living so mostly at home I'm just surfing the web in my free time. I think it's a killer combination, however Apple's new MBP form factor & the TouchBar have made me look over the fence a bit...

I'm really conflicted with which MBP I should upgrade to, 13 or 15...I'm leaning towards selling my rMB and picking up the 13'' Pro as my new at home/travel device, however the 15-inch clearly offers a better bang for your buck. I require 16GB/512GB so the price difference isn't quite so significant. I would sell my MBP if I were to try and pick up the new 15-inch.

My main reason for wanting to upgrade is the TouchBar. Some may call it a gimmick but I see incredible potential for the TouchBar, especially once devs catch up to the technology in the next couple of years. Apple's parallel software/hardware integration allow it to be a feature that really only Apple could make genuinely useful, and not a gimmick. Microsoft could create something similar, theoretically, in its Surface line but I wouldn't bet on developers jumping on the bandwagon, nor would I bet on Microsoft providing the level of integration which Apple has with its TouchBar. The TouchBar is really only as useful as the software allows it to be.

I'm leaning towards the 13'' because I feel I'll actually use the TouchBar more frequently than if I were to pick up the 15''. I have a stand, keyboard, mouse and external display for my MBP at work, so I feel it would sort of defeat the purpose of getting a TouchBar-model if I were to have an external keyboard to use while the MBP would be on a stand. I also am pretty confident that my 2012 machine will keep chugging alone for at least a couple more years; it's still really quick for my needs. I love the form factor of the rMB but I think I can live with the extra pound the new 13''...What're your thoughts? I will keep this new device for a while so just trying to make the best decision for my $2000+ investment. I'd appreciate any feedback that might sway me one way or the other

 

[Ma2k5]

For me, the major fear is the 49 kwh battery capacity on the touch 13", otherwise it is such an insta-buy. Had they kept the original 75 kwh, or at least 60 kwh, I think I would feel much more confident.

 

[Trey M]

For me, the major fear is the 49 kwh battery capacity on the touch 13", otherwise it is such an insta-buy. Had they kept the original 75 kwh, or at least 60 kwh, I think I would feel much more confident.

Yeah, battery life is a pretty big factor as well. It's another reason I'm considering selling my 12'' rMB, because I have been pretty unsatisfied with the battery life. I expected a lot more. I think part of it is that the m7 model likely gets significantly worse battery life than the m3, but still it's one of the reasons I'm not totally in love with the device.

The new Pros do have the more energy efficient screens though, which is a big deal, so I'll guess we'll have to wait to see the reviews and battery-benchmarks.

 

[Ma2k5]

Yeah, battery life is a pretty big factor as well. It's another reason I'm considering selling my 12'' rMB, because I have been pretty unsatisfied with the battery life. I expected a lot more. I think part of it is that the m7 model likely gets significantly worse battery life than the m3, but still it's one of the reasons I'm not totally in love with the device.

The new Pros do have the more energy efficient screens though, which is a big deal, so I'll guess we'll have to wait to see the reviews and battery-benchmarks.

My fear is, CPU intensive tasks will eat through the battery just as fast as before, or almost as fast given a few % efficiencies, which won't care about the fact that the display may now use 2.1 kWh instead of 3kWh. Comparison wise, the previous 13" had 50%, that's right, 50% more capacity. That number is scary.

 

[onVacation]

For me, the major fear is the 49 kwh battery capacity on the touch 13", otherwise it is such an insta-buy. Had they kept the original 75 kwh, or at least 60 kwh, I think I would feel much more confident.

Damn. 49 kwh battery would be great. That thing would last weeks on one charge.

 

[tivoboy]

With deliveries beginning next week, shouldn't we be seeing tech reporter reviews by now?

 

[Fireball Dragon]

Inking to see your situation is very similar to mine. I have a 2012 13" rMBP I use (and keep) at work. I also have a 12" MacBook. I was going to go for the 13" MBP, but here's what I am doing now.

I will keep the 2012 rMBP at work. Resale value won't be much and it works fine.

I'm now going for a 15" MBP for use at home mostly, as much better value for money and much more power.

And keep my lovely 12" MacBook for simple tasks when I am out, as I don't need the extra computing power on the move.

May be overkill to have 3 MacBooks, but each serves a purpose and resale values are not much.

 

[Trey M]

Inking to see your situation is very similar to mine. I have a 2012 13" rMBP I use (and keep) at work. I also have a 12" MacBook. I was going to go for the 13" MBP, but here's what I am doing now.

I will keep the 2012 rMBP at work. Resale value won't be much and it works fine.

I'm now going for a 15" MBP for use at home mostly, as much better value for money and much more power.

And keep my lovely 12" MacBook for simple tasks when I am out, as I don't need the extra computing power on the move.

May be overkill to have 3 MacBooks, but each serves a purpose and resale values are not much.

I have 3 MacBooks now (I have an Air as well), however I can't see the need for me personally for a 3rd laptop. I never turn my Air on, it's been collecting dust since I picked up my rMB earlier this year. I will be selling the Air no matter what.

I personally don't enjoy keeping things in sync between computers; while I use Dropbox and the Sierra cloud-sync features, it's still not ideal to maintain so many systems simultaneously. While I can deal with keeping 2 laptops up-to-date and in sync all the time, 3 is overkill for my tastes. All the software updates, etc. that come along with maintaining 3 systems...it gets old.

Also, not sure if you have a 2015 or 2016 Macbook, but I can say that I am projecting >$1200 from my m7 rMB, so I wouldn't say resale values aren't significant.

 

[ScottNWDW]

I made the jump and upgraded from my early 2011 13" MBP to the new entry level 13" MBP without the touch bar. I got my new MacBook yesterday. The toucher to me was intriguing and I thought I would wait to see it when it finally appeared in stores. I may regret not waiting for the toucher but after a lot f thought and consideration, the extra $300 in price just didn't justify it in my opinion. I could be wrong and after developers have the chance to show us what the toucher can be used for, I may change my mind.

My new MacBook Pro is working great and although many may think it is not an upgrade I feel it is a huge upgrade when compared to my early 2011 MBP. aside from the Mag Safe power port and occasionally a USB port I never used any of the other ports so the lack of ports on the new model is not issue to me, The loss of the Mag Safe though is one of the things I loved the older MacBook Pro for and will be missed on this model. The new keyboard is awesome and responsive and I love the larger trackpad. The speed at which it starts up both the machine and the apps is fantastic. Will I miss the optical drive, no. Software does not come on discs anymore and most movies have digital copies I can download when needed. The difference in the weight is something I will appreciate as will my shoulders.

Although I am going from a 320GB Hard Drive to a 256GB SSD I don't feel that I am losing any storage space since I rarely filled up more than half of the hard drive after moving everything to either iCloud or SkyDrive.

I am happy that I waited for the MacBook Pro rather than going with the MacBook I was thinking of getting,. Although I was planning on getting the higher m5 model of the MacBook I feel the better processor on the MacBook Pro is a better choice and despite the lower storage capacity a better buy at $100 less than the MacBook which was $1599.

Since my iPhone, iPad Pro 9.7, iPad mini and Apple Watch are all Space Grey, I was happy to also get the MacBook Pro in Space Grey as well.

 

[Fireball Dragon]

I have 3 MacBooks now (I have an Air as well), however I can't see the need for me personally for a 3rd laptop. I never turn my Air on, it's been collecting dust since I picked up my rMB earlier this year. I will be selling the Air no matter what.

I personally don't enjoy keeping things in sync between computers; while I use Dropbox and the Sierra cloud-sync features, it's still not ideal to maintain so many systems simultaneously. While I can deal with keeping 2 laptops up-to-date and in sync all the time, 3 is overkill for my tastes. All the software updates, etc. that come along with maintaining 3 systems...it gets old.

Also, not sure if you have a 2015 or 2016 Macbook, but I can say that I am projecting >$1200 from my m7 rMB, so I wouldn't say resale values aren't significant.

I totally agree. In an ideal world, I wouldn't have 3 Macs. But just how things turned out. Keeping them all in sync is a pain! I keep all my files and documents in iCloud (and backed up, of course), so they are fine.

The 13" Macbook I keep at work is a pure work only machine. Still on El Capitan so not updated.