The M1 13" Macbook Pro feels like an odd duck now

[ian87w]

With the 14" and 16" redefines the Macbook Pro lineup, the 13" M1 Macbook Pro feels like a really odd duck from the lineup. It's no longer feel "Pro" as it's missing the simplest things such as only 2 USB4 (not thunderbolt 4) ports, lack of more external display support, 8GB RAM base, and the so-called "Pro" connectivity (ie. the ports). And tests have shown that it's not performing that much more compared to the M1 Macbook Air.

I'd rather see Apple eliminating it altogether, and maybe make a more basic version of the 14" Pro. Eg. the same 14" form factor with the ports, use the base 8-core M1 Pro chip, same 16GB and 512GB base, but just the current regular 60Hz LCD display and 720p webcam. Price it maybe for $1599 or $1699.

But hey, that's me. Apple would want people to just spend more money and get the 14"... ?

 

[Dwalls90]

Apple knew they had everyone by the balls with the new MBP model. It seemed to be the most highly anticipated Mac release in years. That in combination with chip shortage meant they didn't need to have a lower priced model, so the 13" M1 MBP sticking around helped "close the gap" in the MBP range.

I think the 13" M1 MBP will stick around until either the MBA is refreshed, since the M1 MBA is essentially as powerful as the 13" M1 MBP. Or, until Apple inevitably releases the next gen of the M2 MBP variant without a Pro/Max chip, or uses economies of scale and the fact that the novelty of the M1 Pro/Max MBP brand has worn off to release a 1-2K 14" MBP.

Since the 13" M1 MBP doesn't make sense to buy anymore, and the 14" MBP starts at 2K, there certainly is a bizarre gap in the 1-2K Apple notebook line up at the moment. I'm disappointed they didn't release a 14" notebook with a new design, better camera and screen, but without all the ports, thickness and crazy power. Many folks used to buy a MBP, not because they're pros, but because they wanted a premium or larger laptop. You can't really do that at the moment without overpaying.

I'm thinking the Air will go away eventually and be replaced with just "Macbook" (akin to their iPhone line of just "iPhone 13" and "iPhone 13 Pro). The Macbook will adopt the same design language as the Pro, though with less ports, less weight/thickness, and less power, but will adopt a better screen (same size as 14" MBP), camera, and a non Pro/Max chip, to keep the price point reasonable.

 

[darngooddesign]

...And tests have shown that it's not performing that much more compared to the M1 Macbook Air.

I don't know, the 13 Pro doesn't thermally throttle when the 13 Air does so it is faster as far as how long it takes to complete a render or import/process/export a big batch of files from LR. That being said, I can see Apple creating a less expensive version of the 14", with a regular M2 when the others get M2-Pro/M2-Max and a regular LED screen, to eventually replace the 13" Pro.

 

[pshufd]

Yup. My daughter go the MacBook Air and loves it. The differences between the M1 MBA and MBP aren't great and I'd go with the Air if I wanted thin and light. It still holds that market under $2,000 though. I imagine that they will sell them as it probably meets the needs of most MacBook customers, even though I think that the MBA is a better choice.

 

[pshufd]

I don't know, the 13 Pro doesn't thermally throttle when the 13 Air does so it is faster as far as how long it takes to complete a render or export a big batch of files from LR. That being said, I can see Apple creating a less expensive version of the 14", with an M2 when the others get M2-Pro/M2-Max for example and a regular LED screen, to eventually replace the 13" Pro.

The person that needs to do a lot of LR stuff, though, would be better off with the M1 Pro. The impression I got from these forums is that a lot of people bought the MBA or MBP to hold them over to the M1 Pro or M1 Max.

 

[darngooddesign]

The person that needs to do a lot of LR stuff, though, would be better off with the M1 Pro. The impression I got from these forums is that a lot of people bought the MBA or MBP to hold them over to the M1 Pro or M1 Max.

Of course, but not everyone has two grand minimum to spend on a 14" laptop. the 13" Pro is cheaper while still being fast. Long term it will be replaced by a less expensive 14".

 

[ian87w]

Apple knew they had everyone by the balls with the new MBP model. It seemed to be the most highly anticipated Mac release in years. That in combination with chip shortage meant they didn't need to have a lower priced model, so the 13" M1 MBP sticking around helped "close the gap" in the MBP range.

I think the 13" M1 MBP will stick around until either the MBA is refreshed, since the M1 MBA is essentially as powerful as the 13" M1 MBP. Or, until Apple inevitably releases the next gen of the M2 MBP variant without a Pro/Max chip, or uses economies of scale and the fact that the novelty of the M1 Pro/Max MBP brand has worn off to release a 1-2K 14" MBP.

Since the 13" M1 MBP doesn't make sense to buy anymore, and the 14" MBP starts at 2K, there certainly is a bizarre gap in the 1-2K Apple notebook line up at the moment. I'm disappointed they didn't release a 14" notebook with a new design, better camera and screen, but without all the ports, thickness and crazy power. Many folks used to buy a MBP, not because they're pros, but because they wanted a premium or larger laptop. You can't really do that at the moment without overpaying.

I'm thinking the Air will go away eventually and be replaced with just "Macbook" (akin to their iPhone line of just "iPhone 13" and "iPhone 13 Pro). The Macbook will adopt the same design language as the Pro, though with less ports, less weight/thickness, and less power, but will adopt a better screen (same size as 14" MBP), camera, and a non Pro/Max chip, to keep the price point reasonable.

Or maybe with the redesigned Macbook Air, we will see basically the 14" and 16" Macbook Air, filling up the $1500 to $1900 price gap, eliminating the current 13" M1 MBP. Of course, this means a huge price increase for the Macbook Air.... ?

 

[pshufd]

Of course, but not everyone has two grand minimum to spend on a 14" laptop. the 13" Pro is cheaper while still being fast. Long term it will be replaced by a less expensive 14".

There may be some interesting binning options down the road too. If you're doing professional work, it would seem to me that the cost of the laptop is small relative to added productivity. Software engineers have loaded costs of $150K to $250K and the cost of a laptop to improve productivity is really tiny.

 

[pshufd]

Or maybe with the redesigned Macbook Air, we will see basically the 14" and 16" Macbook Air, filling up the $1500 to $1900 price gap, eliminating the current 13" M1 MBP. Of course, this means a huge price increase for the Macbook Air.... ?

I'd love to see the 13 inch MacBook Pro replaced with a 15 inch MacBook Air. Or even a 16 with notch.

 

[darthbane2k]

With the 14" and 16" redefines the Macbook Pro lineup, the 13" M1 Macbook Pro feels like a really odd duck from the lineup. It's no longer feel "Pro" as it's missing the simplest things such as only 2 USB4 (not thunderbolt 4) ports, lack of more external display support, 8GB RAM base, and the so-called "Pro" connectivity (ie. the ports). And tests have shown that it's not performing that much more compared to the M1 Macbook Air.

I'd rather see Apple eliminating it altogether, and maybe make a more basic version of the 14" Pro. Eg. the same 14" form factor with the ports, use the base 8-core M1 Pro chip, same 16GB and 512GB base, but just the current regular 60Hz LCD display and 720p webcam. Price it maybe for $1599 or $1699.

But hey, that's me. Apple would want people to just spend more money and get the 14"... 😂

So before the new Macs were announced, the M1 felt pro, but doesn't all of a sudden? Did its performance suddenly drop?

8GB Ram base - can be upgraded to 16GB, as I did with mine.

Old SD Card and HDMI ports do not make a laptop 'pro', go see any £200 HP for proof of that.

512GB again is an option with the M1 as I have with mine.

I'll give you the webcam , the 720p one has been unacceptable for ages.. however a webcam does not make a pro machine.

The M1 MacBook Pro came out a year ago - it paved the way for the new models and still performs better than most other laptops out there. There are differences with the air due to the cooling system which allows for faster performance. The screen is also better quality as are the speakers.

 

[darngooddesign]

There may be some interesting binning options down the road too. If you're doing professional work, it would seem to me that the cost of the laptop is small relative to added productivity. Software engineers have loaded costs of $150K to $250K and the cost of a laptop to improve productivity is really tiny.

Sure and those people will just expense the fast laptop. However; people who need a computer for regular tasks, maybe someone is a hobbiest photographer, would find a less expensive computer more appealing than a more expensive computer that has performance which might be wasted on them.

 

[BeatCrazy]

I think it's only an odd duck due to the Touch Bar. They still need something in that price range. They should probably to bump up the base storage to 512GB at the $1299 price, to give it some breathing room next to the Air.

 

[darthbane2k]

I think it's only an odd duck due to the Touch Bar. They still need something in that price range. They should probably to bump up the base storage to 512GB at the $1299 price, to give it some breathing room next to the Air.

The Touch Bar was always an odd decision for the MacBook Pro. It would have been better suited for the more 'fun' machines such as the air. However its a shame apple didn't at least keep a smaller touch strip to programme some soft shortcuts, those could have sat alongside the traditional function keys.

 

[BeatCrazy]

The Touch Bar was always an odd decision for the MacBook Pro. It would have been better suited for the more 'fun' machines such as the air. However its a shame apple didn't at least keep a smaller touch strip to programme some soft shortcuts, those could have sat alongside the traditional function keys.

I dunno. My wife inherited my 13" 2018 MBP with TouchBar. She uses it for work of course, but I don't think she gets any functionality out of it, at all. And she leans more towards a casual user. Apple always marketed it towards pros, i.e. with FCP, Logic, etc.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to see it go. But I don't think casual users have much love for it.

 

[pshufd]

So before the new Macs were announced, the M1 felt pro, but doesn't all of a sudden? Did its performance sudden drop?

8GB Ram base - can be upgraded to 16GB, as I did with mine.

Old SD Card and HDMI ports do not make a laptop 'pro', go see any £200 HP for proof of that.

512GB again is an option with the M1 as I have with mine.

I'll give you the webcam , the 720p one has been unacceptable for ages.. however a webcam does not make a pro machine.

The M1 MacBook Pro came out a year ago - it paved the way for the new models and still performs better than most other laptops out there. There are differences with the air due to the cooling system which allows for faster performance. The screen is also better quality as are the speakers.

You generally don't see a 70% improvement in performance from one year to the next. I'm very happy with my M1 mini but it doesn't replace my i7-10700 workstation. The M1 Pro/Max Mini would.

 

[leman]

At this point it would make sense for them to make a MacBook Air 13" and 15" and then Pro 14" and 16". That would give reasonably priced choices to all kinds of users.

 

[Spock]

I bet they will release a new 14 inch MacBook Air that starts at $1199 and they will discontinue the 13 inch MacBook Pro.

 

[boak]

My money is on M2 MBA 256/8 priced at $1299 replacing the M1 MBP. M1 MBA sticks around for the $999 price point.

 

[Steve686]

It's not an odd duck at all.

It's basically a student laptop compared to "Pro" laptops that are going to be used for much more intense tasks than taking notes and watching lectures.

 

[darthbane2k]

It's not an odd duck at all.

It's basically a student laptop compared to "Pro" laptops that are going to be used for much more intense tasks than taking notes and watching lectures.

This is hilarious. So we're now equating the M1 to a Chromebook??!

 

[Steve686]

This is hilarious. So we're now equating the M1 to a Chromebook??!

Equating how students in classes don't actually use anywhere near the full power of their machines. Not hard to extrapolate.

 

[AltecX]

Personal opinion is they should have killed the 13in and just had a cheaper entry level 14in, or replaced it with a "MacBook" and later revise the Air to be a 12in device.

 

[petvas]

Nobody seems to care about the battery life regression that the new MacBooks bring to the table. The 13" M1 MBP has 17 hours web browsing battery, while the 14" only 11 hours. This is a big difference. I have the M1 MBP since May and battery health is still on 100%. Battery life has been amazing. Since I am not a "Pro" (video, audio editor) I don't really need all the power of the new laptops. The only thing I want though is the new Promotion display with native 2x Retina scaling. This is the only reason for me to get the new MacBook Pro. If Apple put this display on the 13" I would get that instead.

 

[Steve686]

Nobody seems to care about the battery life regression that the new MacBooks bring to the table. The 13" M1 MBP has 17 hours web browsing battery, while the 14" only 11 hours. This is a big difference. I have the M1 MBP since May and battery health is still on 100%. Battery life has been amazing. Since I am not a "Pro" (video, audio editor) I don't really need all the power of the new laptops. The only thing I want though is the new Promotion display with native 2x Retina scaling. This is the only reason for me to get the new MacBook Pro. If Apple put this display on the 13" I would get that instead.

True.

But with USB-C/PD portable chargers available for great pricing and outlets everywhere, how important is battery life for most users nowadays?

 

[Dwalls90]

Nobody seems to care about the battery life regression that the new MacBooks bring to the table. The 13" M1 MBP has 17 hours web browsing battery, while the 14" only 11 hours. This is a big difference. I have the M1 MBP since May and battery health is still on 100%. Battery life has been amazing. Since I am not a "Pro" (video, audio editor) I don't really need all the power of the new laptops. The only thing I want though is the new Promotion display with native 2x Retina scaling. This is the only reason for me to get the new MacBook Pro. If Apple put this display on the 13" I would get that instead.

The M1 Pro/Max 14" MBP has 1 more hour of web browsing and 7 more hours of media playback compared to the non-M1 13" MBP from 2020 though. I see your point about the 14" MBP having worse battery life compared to the M1 model, but for a more powerful model replacing the Intel variant from only a year prior, it's still an improvement.

Same can be said about the new 16" model vs. outgoing 16" model.