What Apple SHOULD do with the 13-inch MacBook Pro

[Yebubbleman]

There are a plethora of articles, videos, and forum posts all over the Internet that trash the 13-inch MacBook Pro for still existing, let alone with the design and form factor that it currently has.

For the record, I'm actually a fan of the current 13-inch MacBook Pro chassis and design (despite its successor design clearly already having arrived). I love the M1 variant that I have. And if they threw an M3 or M4 into it down the road with no other change, I'd probably still buy it. I love the Touch Bar now that the physical escape key is back and while I am sad to not get MagSafe 3 or a 1080p webcam, I'm otherwise more than okay with the rest of the machine.

That all being said, everyone is right in that this is the awkward middle child laptop that ought to not exist given its nebulous target market audience (compared to those of literally all of the other M2-family-based Mac notebook models available now) and it otherwise being the one current Mac model to use an outgoing design. Throwing my love of the current machine and design out of the way, here's what I think Apple ought to do with it:

They should discontinue it and replace it.

What with? A 14-inch MacBook Pro model! Albeit a tweaked one with some tradeoffs from the Mx Pro variants of 14-inch MacBook Pro.

Speaking purely in terms of the M2 (since M3 isn't out yet and since we do not know what specs it will bring or how it will scale to the Pro variants and beyond [so, figure this would scale or change accordingly with an M3 variant]), it ought to have a standard un-binned M2 (8 CPU Cores; 10 GPU cores) and a fan cooling them. I'm guessing that M2 still is I/O limited compared to M2 Pro in the same way that M1 was compared to M1 Pro. So, nix one of the three Thunderbolt ports and probably the cooling vents on the bottom of the chassis (which likely aren't needed on a standard M2 Mac anyway.

If cost needs to be cut so that the machine can meet the lower price-points, you can remove ProMotion/120Hz and mini-LED/XDR from the display; most of the folks that would gravitate toward this machine won't need or even miss those features anyway (and those that do can still buy the same higher-end variants that existed before).

Everything else from the current 14-inch MacBook Pro generation wouldn't have to change. MagSafe 3, HDMI, SDXC, no Touch Bar, etc.

The worst that would happen is that both 13-inch and 15-inch models of MacBook Air might see a little bit of cannibalization. Though, if cannibalization is a concern, then Apple ought to have discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro and replaced it with nothing when it otherwise released the 15-inch MacBook Air.

If Apple wants to keep a MacBook Pro at those price-points (and I'm guessing that, since the 15-inch MacBook Air's launch didn't trigger the discontinuation of the 13-inch MacBook Pro, it does), I think releasing a lower-end 14-inch MacBook Pro to replace the 13-inch MacBook Pro that brings that Mac into design parity with the rest of Apple's current Mac lineup is probably the way to go.

While the disparity between the 2-port and 4-port 13-inch MacBook Pros during the Intel era largely resulted in older or slower chips on the lower-end (due to being closer related to the 2010-17 MacBook Airs in terms of what kind of CPU and intended workloads those Macs had), the MacBook Pro line made a lot more sense with multiple options at that smaller size. Apple creating the degree of distance between the Apple Silicon successors to both Intel 13-inch MacBook Pro variants doesn't make as much sense, considering the 13-inch MacBook Pro, as it is, is too similar in specs to the MacBook Air, and not similar enough to the 14-inch MacBook Pro in terms of design and features.

Frankly, I don't see any other sensible path forward other than (a) what I've suggested here or (b) finally discontinuing the 13-inch MacBook Pro with no real replacement other than the 15-inch model.

What say you?

 

[TigeRick]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/upcoming-mbp13-with-m3-going-to-have-more-pro-features-with-higher-price.2396343/

Here is my speculation of upcoming MBP which featuring M3 SoC, I think it is safe to say Apple going to upsell MBP13 by the look of the features of M3, just how far Apple going to reach new price point....

 

[Yebubbleman]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/upcoming-mbp13-with-m3-going-to-have-more-pro-features-with-higher-price.2396343/

Here is my speculation of upcoming MBP which featuring M3 SoC, I think it is safe to say Apple going to upsell MBP13 by the look of the features of M3, just how far Apple going to reach new price point....

I think them doing all of that and otherwise adopting the MacBook Air's display size and specs would bring it too close to the Air. You'd only have a fan as the key difference between an M3 Air and an M3 13-inch Pro at that point. 14.2" model seems more likely, assuming they don't discontinue it. I'm not fully convinced that Apple isn't testing the waters with the 15-inch MacBook Air to see if it doesn't substantially cannibalize sales of the 13-inch MacBook Pro. You can tell that they want to discontinue it; they're just worried since it has that whole "second most popular laptop in the world" status.

 

[dmccloud]

The worst that would happen is that both 13-inch and 15-inch models of MacBook Air might see a little bit of cannibalization. Though, if cannibalization is a concern, then Apple ought to have discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro and replaced it with nothing when it otherwise released the 15-inch MacBook Air.

The part is bold is the most logical option. The 13" MBP now sits in a strange space. While it's the only laptop in the lineup with both a base Mx series SoC and fans, it really doesn't have anything to distinguish itself from the 13 and 15" Airs other than the touchbar.

 

[GMShadow]

The part is bold is the most logical option. The 13" MBP now sits in a strange space. While it's the only laptop in the lineup with both a base Mx series SoC and fans, it really doesn't have anything to distinguish itself from the 13 and 15" Airs other than the touchbar.

The Pro branding matters for a lot of people *and* businesses, even if it's not *that* much more 'Pro' than the Air.

 

[neo_cs193p]

Replace it with a slightly thinner & lighter 14" MBP with same footprint, same display, same ports (maybe w/o HDMI if they want to make the computer really thin), same 70wh battery, BUT with M3 and 1 fan (instead of M3pro/max with 2 fans). I'm thinking 1.45mm thin and 3.3 lbs, nothing crazy. It would have much better battery life than the current 14" and enough power for most regulars.

 

[Pakaku]

Compared to the Air, there's practically no difference besides a $200 touchbar. They could just add the touchbar as an option for the Pros (or even for the whole lineup,) but there would be no loss in just getting rid of it.

 

[maerz001]

Do a 2in1 ipados/macos hybrid. Now since all SW runs on apple silicon there is time for a new mobile system.

A display with a 360 hinge to convert it between ipad and laptop.

 

[GMShadow]

Do a 2in1 ipados/macos hybrid. Now since all SW runs on apple silicon there is time for a new mobile system.

A display with a 360 hinge to convert it between ipad and laptop.

Those are universally terrible.

 

[Falhófnir]

I think it still exists basically so they can offer a MacBook Pro at $1,299. Some people won't look past the name on the box, and it's still apparently their second best selling model bafflingly. With that said, a cheaper 14" seems the best next move for this model, as it was with the 2/4 thunderbolt variants of the 13" MacBook Pro. Same as the 14", except only one fan, M3 chip rather than Pro/Max, just 2 thunderbolt ports, headphone jack and MagSafe, regular LCD display, probably lower starting configuration (8/256 as now, although it's probably nearing the time for them to reconsider this now memory prices have started falling meaningfully again).

 

[whitby]

I believe that there is a market for a non M2 Pro/Max version of Apple Silicon with cooling allowing the full performance of the M series processors to be realized. Basically taking the MBA and putting it in a chassis with cooling, larger battery and added ports with an SD card slot would make sense.

I happen to like the older chassis for the MBPro and do not like the current chassis design at all. It is too generic and old fashioned to me, but I realize that this is personal and not one I would force on a public who prefer the current look. But unfortunately the older chassis design is out of step with the rest of the laptops in Apple's line up and will have to give way to the current somewhat, to me, generic and old fashioned look.

Choice of screen should be the existing MBA 13.6" although using the 14" MBPro screen would be nice, I think it would probably be too expensive. In summary an Mx based 13.6" MBPro with fan, larger battery, 3 or 4 USB C ports and SD card slot would be quite a good option in the line up and would fill a hole below the existing 14" MBPro which is overkill for some (display, CPU) and the MBA which has fewer ports and is restricted by the lack of fan all in the cause of keeping size and cost down. Pricing would be tricky since it would overlap with the MBA 15" but then it is a trade off between performance, battery life, ports and screen size.

 

[Jack Neill]

I think they should keep a 13" "Pro" model but base it off the M2 Air but give it 4TB ports and maybe the M2 pro from the mini with a cooling system. I would be interested in that. I always loved the 2016-present 13" form factor and design but its really getting long in the tooth with those bezels and Touch Bar. I don't mind the TB but I find it kind of pointless.

 

[Yebubbleman]

The Pro branding matters for a lot of people *and* businesses, even if it's not *that* much more 'Pro' than the Air.

I think the "Pro" branding means "not the crappy models" to people after a decade of Apple conditioning as such during the Intel era. For businesses, the form factor is so mature, it's practically bulletproof. That'd be my reasoning for wanting to buy a MacBook Pro (13-inch, M2, 2022) over either a MacBook Air (M2, 2022) or a MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021/23) for my company's fleet.

I think they should keep a 13" "Pro" model but base it off the M2 Air but give it 4TB ports and maybe the M2 pro from the mini with a cooling system. I would be interested in that. I always loved the 2016-present 13" form factor and design but its really getting long in the tooth with those bezels and Touch Bar. I don't mind the TB but I find it kind of pointless.

I'm not sure what anyone would get out of the 13.6" Air form factor over the 14.2" Pro form factor. The goal is to DISTINGUISH it from the MacBook Airs, not further add similarity to them.

 

[theluggage]

I think it still exists basically so they can offer a MacBook Pro at $1,299. Some people won't look past the name on the box, and it's still apparently their second best selling model bafflingly.

Yes - I don't think its there for any technical spec-related reason - it's Apple's "commodity" no-frills Mac model - which came to be called "MacBook Pro" rather than "MacBook" because reasons - and I suspect that its the basis for large contracts with business/government/education (such things rarely pay much attention to actual technical attributes). We can only speculate what sort of discounts are offered in those deals.

Why think that? Well, ever since 2012 there's been an unbroken progression of entry-level '13" MacBook Pro' models that seemed to occupy a very precarious niche in the price/specs range. First, we have the 2012 non-retina i5 MBP13 which got upgraded alongside the new Retina MBPs and stayed on the books until late 2016 followed by the '13" MBP without touchbar' in 2016 and then the '13" MBP with only 2 TB ports' - the need to describe them like that kinda reinforces that they were slight oddities. Then we got Apple Silicon and the first Macs to get it were MacBook Air (Most popular Mac, best showcase for low power consumption), the Mac Mini (slight surprise, but ideal for developers who's developer kits had just turned into pumpkins) and the 13" MacBook Pro (what?! at least the old base Intel 13" had a better processor than the Air...) - then, blow me down, the 13" MBP is also the equal-first machine to get the M2 (even before the Mini).

So yeah, either the 13" MBP knows what Tim Cook did last summer - or Apple just don't want to confuse a lot of Procurement Officers by changing the name of the default Mac used when negotiating supply contracts.

(Not saying that any of these machines were bad, or that you shouldn't have bought one if it met your needs, but they were all aimed at an apparently wafer-thin niche).

 

[Jack Neill]

I think the "Pro" branding means "not the crappy models" to people after a decade of Apple conditioning as such during the Intel era. For businesses, the form factor is so mature, it's practically bulletproof. That'd be my reasoning for wanting to buy a MacBook Pro (13-inch, M2, 2022) over either a MacBook Air (M2, 2022) or a MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021/23) for my company's fleet.


I'm not sure what anyone would get out of the 13.6" Air form factor over the 14.2" Pro form factor. The goal is to DISTINGUISH it from the MacBook Airs, not further add similarity to them.

Good point too, if you look at the the M1 Air vs the M1 Pro other than the fan and TB in the Pro, they are literally the same machine. I prefer the Air and my M1/16/1TB Air easily suits my needs and having that fan would mean very little to me and I don't care either way on the TB. I have a few Macs that have one and I'm indifferent to it.

 

[PNF2187]

Looking at the Mac mini's pricing structure, I'm a bit surprised it isn't also directly applied to the 14" MacBook Pro (although costs of the 13" Pro are probably the reason why). Right now we have for the SKUs:

• 8/256 with M2
  • mini at $599
  • 13" Pro at $1,299
• 8/512 with M2
  • mini at $799 (+$200)
  • 13" Pro at $1,499 (+$200)
• 16/512 with M2 Pro
  • mini at $1,299 (+$500)
  • 14" Pro at $1,999 (+$500)

It's the same pricing structure for both, but the chip upgrade for the MacBook Pro comes with way more upgrades than just the associated benefits (better display support, memory bandwidth, etc.) and the 2 extra USB-C port (they are Thunderbolt too, but the I/O is there). I feel like they'll trickle down the benefits of 14" Pro to the 13" Pro eventually (and then the 13" Pro becomes a cheaper 14" Pro). Probably won't happen until the M4 at the earliest though, if not later. The biggest difference between the mini and the 13"/14" Pro though is that the mini doesn't have anything that really slots below it since the iMac is kind of its own thing, whereas the laptops still have the Air slotted below them, but I don't think that's a huge deal here.

 

[dmccloud]

Do a 2in1 ipados/macos hybrid. Now since all SW runs on apple silicon there is time for a new mobile system.

A display with a 360 hinge to convert it between ipad and laptop.

Why would Apple make one of their laptops indistinguishable from over half the Windows boxes clogging the aisles at Best Buy?

 

[harold.ji]

I can see Apple's continuous efforts of persuading people that base Mx series chips NO LONGER need a cooling fan, especially considering the majority of use cases for such basic levels of performance, and those who will really benefit from sustained pro performance should just grab the 14"⧸16" MacBook Pro with Mx Pro chips, without a moment of hesitation. This strategy has been well implemented by the M1 Air (which was the first time that an Air's performance caught up with the Pro's), M2 Air (which narrowed the price gap with the 13" Pro and offered similar or even slightly better hardware specs), and now the 15" Air (with the same price but way better hardware specs). However, sales feedback seemed not that promising for Apple to finally discontinue the 13" Pro.

So among all voting choices, I think keep throwing in new M-series SoCs into the current 13-inch Pro chassis is just a smart way of discontinuing it, if not now. It is apparent that Apple is really not interested in introducing another entry-level MacBook Pro, otherwise they would have done it 2 years ago just as what they did in 2016. In fact, the current redesigned 13"⧸15" MacBook Air is already a perfectly traded-off version of 14"⧸16" MacBook Pro, and if the remaining difference with an entry-level MacBook Pro is just a cooling fan, why bother? At least the current 13" Pro still offers a different but beautiful compact design, as well as the futuristic Touch Bar, giving customers another choice if they still want a so-called "entry-level" MacBook "Pro". More importantly, Apple is now back to focus on performance and utility, and it is about time that Pros should be really powerful in all aspects, and Airs stay thin and light. The brand of MacBook Pro has already suffered from the 2016-2019 era when Pros deviated to pursue excessive thinness and lightness, and Apple finally made everything right.

 

[dmccloud]

Can we really call the Touchbar "futuristic" at this point? It has been around since 2016.

 

[maerz001]

Why would Apple make one of their laptops indistinguishable from over half the Windows boxes clogging the aisles at Best Buy?

Well same goes for their iphone and ipad line, no? What makes them different if not software?

For me it would be a logic step to melt ipad and mac one day together. Before it was not possible cos of CPU architecture.

The ipad 12,9“ with the keyboard attached is already in Air price, weight and size category.

So why not find an Apple way to do it better than microsoft or Dell?

 

[dmccloud]

Well same goes for their iphone and ipad line, no? What makes them different if not software?

For me it would be a logic step to melt ipad and mac one day together. Before it was not possible cos of CPU architecture.

The ipad 12,9“ with the keyboard attached is already in Air weight and size category.

So why not find an Apple way to do it better than microsoft or Dell?

Because Apple would also need to completely re-engineer the Mac OS UI to adapt to a touch-based interface. Also, Windows as a touchscreen OS is still trash, regardless of the device it's used on (yes, I'm even calling out the Surface on this one). Windows itself is a prime example of why grafting touch-based UI elements onto a keyboard/mouse based OS is a less than optimal solution.

From an engineering perspective, it would actually make more sense for Apple to incorporate aspects of Mac OS into iPad OS specifically targeted at the iPad Pro. That would also add an additional level of distinction between the iPad Pro and iPad Air product lines.

There is a clear understanding from the majority of customers that an iPhone, iPad, and Mac are used in different ways/for different purposes. The form factors and capabilities of those devices play a bigger role in how each product line is used than the OS on its own.

 

[maerz001]

Because Apple would also need to completely re-engineer the Mac OS UI to adapt to a touch-based interface. Also, Windows as a touchscreen OS is still trash, regardless of the device it's used on (yes, I'm even calling out the Surface on this one). Windows itself is a prime example of why grafting touch-based UI elements onto a keyboard/mouse based OS is a less than optimal solution.

From an engineering perspective, it would actually make more sense for Apple to incorporate aspects of Mac OS into iPad OS specifically targeted at the iPad Pro. That would also add an additional level of distinction between the iPad Pro and iPad Air product lines.

There is a clear understanding from the majority of customers that an iPhone, iPad, and Mac are used in different ways/for different purposes. The form factors and capabilities of those devices play a bigger role in how each product line is used than the OS on its own.

As already mentioned both ipadOs and macOs could run on the device. U could switch between them depending on the use case. And have the same file system.

 

[Yebubbleman]

As already mentioned both ipadOs and macOs could run on the device. U could switch between them depending on the use case. And have the same file system.

This is impractical in so many ways.

 

[dmccloud]

As already mentioned both ipadOs and macOs could run on the device. U could switch between them depending on the use case. And have the same file system.

Simply adding a touchscreen, 360 degree hinge, and a dual-OS, dual boot option wouldn't be the utopian scenario you envision. There are additional complexities at play which make the development process of such a device much longer and drawn out. Furthermore, if Apple wasn't satisfied they had found a better model than the Windows side of the industry was using, they wouldn't even think about bringing such a device to market.

Here's just three considerations that would have to be made by Apple to even start down the path you're endorsing here. Note that none of these even address the hardware side of the equation.

1. Given the issues many people had with just Boot Camp on Intel-based Macs, how would that scenario be any easier to grasp by the majority of the user base?

2. If you were to run dual OSes, then you would have multiple versions of apps on the Mac as well. While some iOS/iPad OS apps can also run on AS Macs, many either will not run on the Mac or the Mac and iPad versions are different codebases and/or feature sets. This would mean you would be using even more of the space to hold duplicate copies of those apps, which means the available storage would fill up even faster.

3. Unless the storage was divided into separate Mac OS and iPad OS partitions (which would cut the available storage available to both OSes), Apple would have to rewrite parts of both iPad OS and Mac OS to allow for multiple paths of access to data in the same storage space.

 

[macduke]

Kill it off. It isn't needed. Add an 11" MacBook Air for $899.