MBP M1 13'' or MBP M1 14''

[OldschoolMBP]

Hi!

I am torn whether to buy the "old" 2020 M1 MBP 13'' or the newly released M1 MBP 14''. I've read the Buyer's Guide but felt that I want to hear from you other users too.

I spend most time doing MS Office work and hanging out on Chrome (watching sports, Youtube), meaning I don't do any gfx work or video/picture editing. I used to have the Intel i5 2020 13'' but its fans went all over the place and often got very hot, hence I sold it shortly after.

I feel a bit deluded and hyped up by Apple's new release of the M1 14'' seeing many of the old ports are back as well as the Touch Bar not being present (which I kind of like tbh), better CPU speeds etc.

My aim is to keep the Mac for some 5-10 years before upgrading to a new one. Should also add that I would be having 512GB SSD and not 256 on the M1 13'', so the margins shrink a bit more in relation to the 14'' I guess.

TL;DR: Is is worth the extra bucks getting the new 14'' or am I just over-exaggerating the new product in relation to what I really need? ?

 

[satcomer]

I would wait until the three months after the new child perform to user reviews and real world specs!

 

[Strider64]

I'm personally happy with my "old" MBP 13 M1 and even tax it a little with video editing from time to time. I remember a college course that I took that the instructor said if your video is taking a long time render just take a break while it is doing it. Now if you're a business then that would be a different story as they say "time is money". Don't buy into the hype that the M1 13 can't do what you want it to, it just might take a little longer to get to the finish line or there might be some minor compromises that you might need to make. Now, before anyone bashes me, I'm not saying not to buy the 14" as the 14 definitely has improvements over the 13. I would read/watch reviews on each, wait a little bit if you can to see how people like the 14 and then make a decision on that, plus what your gut tells you to do.

 

[Weaselboy]

I spend most time doing MS Office work and hanging out on Chrome (watching sports, Youtube), meaning I don't do any gfx work or video/picture editing.

I would say the 2020 would be more than adequate for your described usage as far as power goes.

 

[OldschoolMBP]

Thank you all for your advice. In terms of the M1 13'', would 8 GB RAM be sufficient?

 

[Saturn007]

Any reason, you’ve ruled out the 2021 M1 MacBook
Air?!

Given what you've described, you could save a big chunk of change and handle those tasks easily — and never have a fan come on because there isn't one!

Quiet, fast, incredible battery life (20 hours), and cool — both into the touch and in looks. The tapered front edge is better for typing, too!

 

[kyussmondo]

I'll second what Saturn007 said. I would say given your use case, then go with the MacBook Air. I am a software developer and the M1 MacBook Air stands toe to toe with my 16 inch Intel MacBook Pro and in some cases it is faster. For me, the Air also has the added benefit of not having a Touch Bar.

The speakers are slightly better on the MBP 13 and the screen is slightly brighter and it has fans for cooling, which will only start to have any affect after 20 mins or so of sustained load, even when the fans do kick in then they are barely audible. The Pro also has slightly better battery life, but the battery life on the Air is still insane compared to any previous Intel based MacBooks.

I have zero regrets with my Air for software development, and for Office and web browsing it will be great.

 

[OldschoolMBP]

Great advice! Thank you all.