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The No Touch Bar 13 Macbook Version
- Thread starter Abaganov
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If it's anything like the MBA, it is cooled through the keyboard. I had a 2013 13" MBA and upgraded to a 2015 13" MBP in June. On the MBP (and on the 2016 MBP TB models), the sound comes through the speaker grills and the vent, but the TB models sound worse/thinner than the nTB model in YouTube clips I have heard.
I also miss not having vents on the bottom. I find that with the 2015 MBP on my lap, I feel like I have to be extra careful with not blocking the vents. With the MBA I had, I didn't worry about it and it ran cooler--still miss that laptop.
If I were to buy a MBP today, I would get a maxed out nTB. I am a coder and a sys admin, and as a result I spend most of my time in terminal windows, occasionally IDEs, and local Linux VMs. On the MBA with 8 Gb of ram (with an i7 15w processor, same TDP as the nMB), I would run 2-3 VMs and it wouldn't break a sweat. The MBP does this as well, but it runs a bit warmer when I push it (but also quite a bit faster than the MBA). I could also run CS 6 (mostly PS, Illustrator and InDesign) smoothly on the MBA, so I have no doubt the nTB version could as well. The only areas it might fall short compared to the TB versions is video work and gaming, neither of which I do on my Macs.
I just ordered (2 - silver for me, space grey for wife) 2.0 16GB 512GB from B&H for $10 less each than Apple education price (not counting tax which I'd pay from Apple on top of it).
Now its all about finding the right adapters. The problem is some classrooms are HDMI and some are VGA. It hurts to be working generations behind (several generations at once on one campus).
Now its all about finding the right adapters. The problem is some classrooms are HDMI and some are VGA. It hurts to be working generations behind (several generations at once on one campus).
I'm currently gathering the #courage to cancel my 13in TB order (3.1/16/512) and to pull the trigger on a non-tb i5/16/512. I know that 8gb is enough for most of my needs, but I plan to use SolidWorks through Parallels once in a while. That's the reason I'm leaning towards 16gb.
Does anyone know if I need the 16gb to run SolidWorks? Can the i5 even handle SolidWorks?
Another question: does the difference in wifi between the two 13in models have any impact on real-life usage?
Any advice would be extremely appreciated, as I'm currently frozen by indecision.
Does anyone know if I need the 16gb to run SolidWorks? Can the i5 even handle SolidWorks?
Another question: does the difference in wifi between the two 13in models have any impact on real-life usage?
Any advice would be extremely appreciated, as I'm currently frozen by indecision.
Could you please enlighten me on what exactly the difference is? I wasn't aware there was a difference between internet connectivity between the two models..
While I don't know anything specific about SolidWorks, I'm going to presume it'll run much better with a full 8GB of RAM. If you're going to be running Windows frequently, you may want the 16GB depending on how you're going to be running it.
If you're doing it via BootCamp, then you might be ok with the 8GB since all 8GB is dedicated to Windows. If you're running it via Parallels, then you may want the 16GB since MacOS (and possibly other apps) will be running at the same time.
I have an 8GB machine and I run Windows via Parallels without problems, but I've assigned only 4GB to the Windows virtual machine. That's plenty for my occasional Windows usage (a couple specific apps I need for work).
If I were to assign more RAM to the virtual machine and happened to have any other open Mac apps at the same time, I could easily use up all the physical RAM. Although virtual memory page out/in on this machine with the ultrafast SSD makes this much more tolerable if/when it happens.
Oh wow, interesting! Not sure I'd call it lucky, but since Australia's internet is abysmal, I don't have much to worry about! Thanks for clearing that up though. Haven't heard it said anywhere! I never quite understand why companies backtrack on technology? It can't honestly be a pricing issue as these products are waaaay overpriced.
that's almost double the speed..has anyone actually noticed a difference with this?
[doublepost=1479791356][/doublepost]So I'm also trying to decide between 16gb or 8gb. My previous 2013 rMBP had 16gb of ram, but at that time I upgraded because everyone was saying to "futureproof". Now I face the same dilemma. I'll probably keep the computer for 3-4 years and then pass it down to my mom.
Right now my uses are safari with 10-15 tabs open, word, monitor setup through hdmi or usb-c, 3D anatomy apps, and the usual netflix and youtube. What do you guys think, im leaning towards 16gb, but the extra 200$ could be put towards buying an ipad pro.
My current laptop has only 4gb of ram, so I have no idea what my usage would be with either 8gb or 16gb. How often did you go over 8gb on your previous MBP?
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As others have said in the previous pages, its not about going over 8gb. Your laptop will utilize all of its RAM regardless. Spare ram is useless RAM, thus the computer makes do of whatever it has. The thing to keep an eye on is the memory pressure, making sure it stays green. Now I can't remember if mine was always green, i never bothered to look. I used to look at how much RAM was being used and now I learned that isnt the best gauge.
Interesting. I have read this, although I don't quite know what it means. How exactly does macOS utilize the extra RAM?
I'm starting to think if I upgraded my late 2013 2.6/8/256 rMBP then I would get the 13" no touch bar late 2016 model.
I would consider upgrading the processor speed.
I would consider upgrading the processor speed.
I can't give you a good explanation, as I am not too sure myself. Try looking through this thread, or maybe someone else will chime in.
Thanks guys :
I'm getting a $200 student discount off the total cost, but it would still be a $430 upgrade. For a 2.4 / 16 / 256, the typical consumer would be paying $AU 2999 as opposed to me $AU 2797.30. So y'all won't think it'll be worth it? Really all I'll be using it for is word processing, occasional video creation for a school project or whatever. On top of the stereotypical teenager thing to do; Netflix, YouTube, FaceBook, etc. I'm thinking the majority of the use will be browser wise as I'm pretty sure Google Docs is encouraged at the school I'll be attending.
I do have Mac Mini (2014) that was issued as a replacement for a 2012 model. It's only dual core as opposed to the quad core it replaced. It's a 3GHz i7, but I notice it doesn't perform nearly as well as my 2012 MacBook Pro with a quad core 2.3GHz i7. The Pro has a SSD installed, but the Mini a fusion-drive. Would the hard drive have anything to do with the performance of the processor? Not very familiar with all this stuff!
Cheers
You'll be fine with the base version and will save 430 dollar. No need in overspending for something you probably will never need.
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And you'll also be fine with the base model (but choose your storage), especially if that is all you need from a laptop. At the moment I have a weak ultrabook, 1.7ghz processor, 4gb of ram and I have 60 tabs open in chrome, play music from itunes, do document editing pdf viewing, photoshop and illustrator and it's all manageable. But it's a bit too little so 8gb will do for me. It will surely do for you.
Also be sure you really need 1tb of storage, that's a big chunk of money. I was first debating whether to get 512gb. But with that kind of money I saved, I can buy a NAS of 4tb and have all my files available and backed up in the cloud. That's more valuable to me.
We're talking about wifi speeds of 108mb/s vs 160mb/s. To me that difference is not important, basically because my internet speed is 2mb/s. Maybe if you often want to send a lot of big files with airdrop.
And you will not benefit from 16gb, it will be 200$ wasted for the pleasure of having a bigger number. 8gb will be more than plenty for your use case, and you'll save a lot of money.
I'm probably going to go with 256gb, and get a usc-c external hard drive when they become more affordable, until then the kingston duo usb 3.0/usb c 64gb drive will do. Would the RAM be helpful when running 3D like apps on a monitor through HDMI? or is that more processor speed?
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I guess i'll go with the 8gb and save 200$ then!
3D apps will mostly benefit from the intel iris 540 GPU, which is quite good for a 13inch laptop. Way better than last year's model, practically the same as the touch bar version.
You'll be happy to have saved 200$
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3D apps will mostly benefit from the intel iris 540 GPU, which is quite good for a 13inch laptop. Way better than last year's model, practicality the same as the touch bar version.
You'll be happy to have saved 200$
Thanks for that. Now to put that money towards a sweet monitor and a hub.
Thanks heaps man. Leaving the processor at the base 2.0 i5. Was also gonna get 16 GB of RAM too but with the advice you gave vishavg (workload pretty similar) I'm going to leave it at 8 GB. Saving me some serious dollars!
Cheers!
I just got my base 13" nTB, I was massively against buying first of all but I compared every alternative and I came back to Apple.
It is overpriced but the build quality is fantastic, it does everything I need it to do and looks amazing.
I'm an analyser when it comes to quality and it's near faultless, if I'm picky the screen is slightly non uniform but every Apple product I've had or seen seems to be, down to the screen technology I guess.
Anyway, anyone on the fence go for it, I really don't think you will be disappointed
It is overpriced but the build quality is fantastic, it does everything I need it to do and looks amazing.
I'm an analyser when it comes to quality and it's near faultless, if I'm picky the screen is slightly non uniform but every Apple product I've had or seen seems to be, down to the screen technology I guess.
Anyway, anyone on the fence go for it, I really don't think you will be disappointed