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Fomalhaut

macrumors 68000
Oct 6, 2020
1,993
1,724
Just got my 14" today from Bestbuy. I wanted to test drive the cheapest configuration ($1999) and see how it performs next to my 2019 16" 2.3GHz, 32GB, 1TB, 5500M 8GB


View attachment 1912995 View attachment 1912996

I've only had it for a few hours and I'm absolutely in love with it.
It is way more comfortable to use on my lap. I'm on the sofa right now but I also used it on my bed earlier. Typing is easier than on my 16". The keys feel tight and not as mushy. I've always had issues with the ridiculously sized trackpad on the 16", sometimes it would mistake my wrist as if I'm trying to move the cursor and it would mess up my typing.

Took me a second to get used to not having the Touch Bar. I'm so used to opening the lid of my MacBook open and seeing the Touch Bar point to the Touch ID sensor asking me to unlock my device. I'm so glad we got the function keys back.

I immediately downloaded Lightroom CC and see how the M1 Pro handles it. I was quickly reminded of the hideous notch when I was looking at one of my photos in fullscreen.

View attachment 1913010



I saw some folks were having issues with the SD card slot. So far so good although for some reason I'm getting faster read/write speeds off my external SD card reader.

Speeds with build in SD card slot:

View attachment 1913028

Speeds with my usb-c SD card reader

View attachment 1913029

That does concern me...I thought this was a USHii card reader but its clearly not. It's better than not having one at all but still I am a bit disappointed considering that this machine starts at $2k.
Aww crap....it looks similar to the poor USB external drive speeds on the Apple Silicon Macs compared to Intel machines. What did Apple put in there? A $10 SD-card reader from Alibaba?
 

ascender

macrumors 603
Dec 8, 2005
5,022
2,897
Aww crap....it looks similar to the poor USB external drive speeds on the Apple Silicon Macs compared to Intel machines. What did Apple put in there? A $10 SD-card reader from Alibaba?
I'm not sure why they did this and also why its not an HMDI 2.1 port.
 
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nquinn

macrumors 6502a
Jun 25, 2020
829
621
Just got my 14" today from Bestbuy. I wanted to test drive the cheapest configuration ($1999) and see how it performs next to my 2019 16" 2.3GHz, 32GB, 1TB, 5500M 8GB
I'm also coming from a work 2019 16". In general are you finding the 14" screen to be too cramped? Think you'll keep it? Or swap it for the 2021 16" M1 Pro/Max?
 

wilberforce

macrumors 68030
Aug 15, 2020
2,932
3,210
SF Bay Area
I saw some folks were having issues with the SD card slot. So far so good although for some reason I'm getting faster read/write speeds off my external SD card reader.

That does concern me...I thought this was a USHii card reader but its clearly not. It's better than not having one at all but still I am a bit disappointed considering that this machine starts at $2k.
It definitely is a UHS-II reader. The issue is that for some cards it works perfectly, some cards it works slow, and some cards it does not work at all. There is no pattern to which cards work and which don't. See the thread on SD card problems for more detail. It is not certain it is a software issue, might be hardware. There are even claims of the SD slot possibly damaging the functionality of the SD cards.
Here is speed on one of my SD UHS-II cards that happens to work well in the SD slot, 250MB/s read speed:

Screen Shot 2021-11-17 at 10.49.06 PM.png


Other of my cards read only at ~10MB/s or even 0.0 MB/s in the SD slot. All work perfectly via a dongle.

Don't throw away your dongles.
 
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jmoore5196

macrumors 6502a
May 19, 2009
844
345
Russellville AR
I have to say I'm quite pleased with my 16". I'd had the Intel version as well. I took the M variant on a business trip the day after I received it, and I thought it performed well. Like many others who have posted to this thread, I'd ordered the 14" and then switched. I have an M1 MBA when the weight or size of the 16" will be an issue, but thus far, the new 16" has thrown me no hiccups and has handled everything I've asked it to do. That's a nice change from the beach balling MBA and some of the MBP predecessors.
 

BlueMacawBird

macrumors regular
Jun 28, 2019
106
23
Washington, D.C. USA
I spent all my time studying up on the 14" MBP before going to the store to buy it. Once at the store I checked out the 16" machine to be sure, and wound up buying the larger machine. Yes it is big, but not at all unmanageable. I had a 17" unibody machine years ago and that was BIG. I find the 16" screen to be a good size for me and have not regretted the choice.
 

Jl006p

macrumors regular
Dec 15, 2019
122
148
I'm also coming from a work 2019 16". In general are you finding the 14" screen to be too cramped? Think you'll keep it? Or swap it for the 2021 16" M1 Pro/Max?
I'm still getting adjusted but everything about it feels nice and tight. The 16" is just too damn big. The typing experience on this 14" is the bees knees.

My discount resets on the 21st of this month so I do plan on ordering myself a custom 14". Lightroom/affinity photo use a f*ck ton of RAM so I'm going to go for 32gb and 2TB of SSD for some more headroom. What I'm still on the fence about is going M1 Max or M1 Pro.
 
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wilberforce

macrumors 68030
Aug 15, 2020
2,932
3,210
SF Bay Area
Ha! I literally just finished watching it. Really surprised with his decision but I can definitely resonate with his reasoning.

Bigger might be better but at the end of the day if you value portability while still having power this 14" is the way to go.
Yes, Maxtech articulates it quite well, and it is a surprisingly different viewpoint than their usual analytical approach.
Having gone through all sizes of laptops from 12" to 17", the smaller ones just feel better to me, and just what I enjoy using more. Sometimes you just need to go with what feels emotionally right, than logically right.
(Which for others may be the larger ones.)
 
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throAU

macrumors G3
Feb 13, 2012
9,205
7,358
Perth, Western Australia
The choice depends on whether or not you primarily use the machine as an actual laptop or more of a portable desktop.

Laptop (especially if you use whilst in transit, on planes, etc.): 14"
Machine you transport from desk to desk: 16"
 
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3Rock

macrumors 6502a
Aug 25, 2021
733
799
Get the size that you and you only are comfortable with. If possible check them out at the Apple store. No one here can tell you which one is best because one poster would think the 14 would be better and then another poster will say the 16 is better. Where would that leave you now? Back to square one again ?
 

UltimateSyn

macrumors 601
Mar 3, 2008
4,970
9,206
Massachusetts
Sometimes you just need to go with what feels emotionally right, than logically right.
(Which for others may be the larger ones.)
Yup - this hit home for me. I had a ton of difficulty making my decision until realizing that I was really trying to convince myself that the 16" was better due to its increased screen size and better speakers. My heart (awww) was telling me the whole time that the 14" was the way to go with the lighter and more compact form factor. It just felt right, and I was drawn to it. Really happy with my choice thus far, though there are certainly times where having the more immersive screen would be cool.
 

teerexx52

macrumors 68020
May 1, 2005
2,072
173
Florida West Coast
I initially got a 14" base model about two weeks ago. Really enjoyed it. I started having a problem with it charging so I returned it to the Apple Store. While I was there I spent time on the 16" and decided to give it a go. I am retired and basically use it at home and at the various coffee shops. I have to say in all my years of owning Apple computers from Power Books on up this is by far the best computer I have ever used. The screen is so easy for me to see and read text and I am having no problems toting it around.
 

TinyMito

macrumors 6502a
Nov 1, 2021
862
1,225
It definitely is a UHS-II reader. The issue is that for some cards it works perfectly, some cards it works slow, and some cards it does not work at all. There is no pattern to which cards work and which don't. See the thread on SD card problems for more detail. It is not certain it is a software issue, might be hardware. There are even claims of the SD slot possibly damaging the functionality of the SD cards.
Here is speed on one of my SD UHS-II cards that happens to work well in the SD slot, 250MB/s read speed:

View attachment 1913697

Other of my cards read only at ~10MB/s or even 0.0 MB/s in the SD slot. All work perfectly via a dongle.

Don't throw away your dongles.
Which sd card did you test that on?
 

archi penko

macrumors regular
Nov 6, 2007
174
210
I initially got a 14" base model about two weeks ago. Really enjoyed it. I started having a problem with it charging so I returned it to the Apple Store. While I was there I spent time on the 16" and decided to give it a go. I am retired and basically use it at home and at the various coffee shops. I have to say in all my years of owning Apple computers from Power Books on up this is by far the best computer I have ever used. The screen is so easy for me to see and read text and I am having no problems toting it around.
I feel like a 16” MacBook Air would hit the nail on the head for a bunch of people
 

Jl006p

macrumors regular
Dec 15, 2019
122
148
Today I placed an order on a souped up 16". I still have my base 14" that I've been enjoying but the battery life and thermals haven't been ideal.

You wanna know something crazy? The 14" ranks dead last in battery life out of the entire lineup right now
  1. 16 MacBook Pro - 21 hours
  2. 13 MacBook Pro - 20 hours
  3. 13 MacBook Air - 18 hours
  4. 14 MacBook Pro - 17 hours
Obviously apple put the disclosure Battery life varies by use and configuration but this is off their own website.

I maybe did an hour of editing in Lightroom while on a FaceTime audio call and my battery life was wrecked. I had the 14 on my lap the entire time and I had to move to a desk b/c it was getting a bit too hot for my liking.

What I can say is the basic 8 core M1 Pro is outperforming my 2019 16" MBP (i9 2.3GHz, 32GB, 1TB, 5500M 8GB) in export times. I'm shaving a few seconds (sometimes minutes) on my projects, all in a smaller, quieter form factor. That alone should be considered a victory.

My question is how much better will the $3499 16" be vs $1999 14"? I won't be getting it delivered until Mid December but knowing apple they love to undersell and overdeliver so maybe I'll get it a few day sooner.

I'm really torn right now. I love how tight the typing experience is on the 14" body & portability but the way I push my machines I think the 16" will be able to handle battery life and thermals better. We shall see how it goes.
 

vow

macrumors member
Jun 29, 2010
72
8
I had the 14 pro 10/16/16/1 for a few days, returned it and have had the 16 max 10/32/32/1 for the same amount of time.

I'm sticking with the 16" max because
  • I will not have this hooked up to an external monitor that often
    • I might have to go down a minimalist route soon due to relocating. If I only had one device w/o any external monitors, definitely the 16"
  • 32gb will help me more with virtualization and light gaming
    • The 16gb was fine for photo and video editing
    • 16gb is probably fine for what I do with programming also
  • The extra screen real estate is very noticeable
    • I currently have 5 desktops on the 16" and I have so much more flexibility in terms of how I can organize my windows, especially when using Rectangle
    • I was struggling on the 14" to find a good balance between # of desktops and the amount of applications I wanted to leave open all the time
    • On the 14", it was difficult to have apps in 2 or 3 column layouts. I felt like I wanted apps in full screen, which would've resulted in more desktops
    • On the 16", 2 or 3 column layouts is so much easier to work with
  • Don't want to wait for a BTO 16" pro 10/16/32/* to arrive. This probably would've been my ideal configuration but Best Buy had this in stock
  • I was able to get up to ~11 hours on the 14" pro and ~10 hours on the 16" max, both on low power mode when on battery
    • I put both machines through similar, abnormal workflows for my own testing. I don't plan on compiling webkit in debug, editing photos/videos all the time, or always have video streaming. Everything I do will come and go in spurts and the battery life I got from both machines are perfectly fine for me
  • For my current EDC, I carry a 100W USB-C PD 26800mAh battery pack that was able to take my MBP from 10% to 75% in ~45 minutes. That combined with the 10 hours of battery life is more than I need for all day computing
I really enjoyed the 14" for the weight and portability, but my workflow leans more towards wanting/needing more screen real estate.
 

skaro

macrumors member
Oct 7, 2004
45
34
Get the size that you and you only are comfortable with. If possible check them out at the Apple store. No one here can tell you which one is best because one poster would think the 14 would be better and then another poster will say the 16 is better. Where would that leave you now? Back to square one again ?
This sums it up for me - it's all about personal choice! I was bouncing between the 14" and 16" and watching YouTube videos and reading this forum hoping someone would make the decision for me! ? I tried the 14" M1 Pro and it was good but decided I wanted an M1 Max.

Saw a 16" M1 Max/32GB/1TB in stock so went for it, slightly concerned though that when it arrived it would be comically big and heavy - it is in fact neither! It's obviously bigger and heavier than the 14" but the screen is so immersive and the space makes a big difference. Also, it fits into laptop section of my Tucano rucksack fine and the weight increase wasn't noticeable on my walk to the train station today. I do think some of the concerns about weight and size are a bit overblown, but it's all a very subjective view.

It also fit on my train table with a coffee and a phone next to it too...and no-one laughed at my huge laptop so all good! ?
 
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