Let's assume you're confused between buying the "standard" $1199 Macbook Pro 13 and this "high end" $1499 Macbook Pro 13.I'd like to help in simplifying the decision making process.
This "High end" model is still not a good purchase (with regards to value) when compared to the "standard" Apple MacBook Pro MC700LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop
The ONLY differences between the two 2011 MBP 13's are minor and consist of a super small processor speed difference and hard drive space. The standard MBP 13 has a 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor + a 320 gb 5400 rpm hard drive while the high end MBP 13 has a 2.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 processor + a 500 gb hard drive.
For value conscious consumers, I've pasted Speedmark 6.5 and Geekbench results below. Speedmark is Macworld Lab's standard test tool for benchmarking Macs. It's used to test overall speed and efficiency of macs. Geekbench is the most recognized benchmarking software for Mac.
Speedmark 6.5 results:
2011 Macbook Pro 13
13" MacBook Pro 2.3GHz Core i5 dual-core Score = 140
13" MacBook Pro 2.7GHz Core i7 dual-core Score = 155
Only 15 points more. Not even a 15% difference.
Geekbench Benchmark results
13" MBP 2.3 GHz dual i5 2011: 5948
13" MBP 2.7 GHz dual i7 2011, 6796
A difference of 848 points which equals up to a 12% difference.
So you're paying $300 more (20% of the cost of the $1499 MBP 13 or 25% of the cost of the standard $1199 MBP 13) for a 12% difference, a 400 mhz processor speed difference (not at all major in any way as seen in the benchmarks) and a 180 gb hard drive space increase.
EVERYTHING else is is the same in both models, from the 1280 x 800 resolution 13 inch LED screen to the Intel HD 3000 integrated graphics to the Superdrive DVD burner to the Thunderbolt Port,FaceTime HD Camera, backlit keyboard, 4gb ram, two USB 2.0 ports, Wi-fi B/G/N, bluetooth 2.1 and Gigabit ethernet
The software included in both models is the same too, Mac OSX 10.7 "Lion" and the iLife suite of content creation tools. A 1 year warranty on parts and 90 day telephone technical support is also standard on both models
What if you chose to buy the standard MBP 13?
If you did that, you could then buy a 500 gb hard drive Western Digital Scorpio Blue 500 GB Bulk/OEM Hard Drive 2.5 Inch, 8 MB Cache, 5400 RPM SATA II WD5000BEVT for $ 55 and install it yourself in your standard MBP 13 which would then have a hard drive just as large as the higher end MBP 13.The installation instructions are included in the MBP 13 manual and it doesn't void the warranty. Installation videos are also available online.
And you'd still have $245 left to buy an AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac Laptops 13 Inches and Below (NEWEST VERSION) or a SquareTrade 3-Year Laptop/Tablet Warranty Plus Accident Protection (Laptop/Tablet $1000-1250) to protect your shiny new MBP 13 for 2 more years after the standard one year warranty is up.
Until Apple actually puts in a major differentiation feature or upgrade in the higher end MBP 13, I'd recommend you shop smart, save your money and opt for the standard Apple MacBook Pro MC700LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop. It's 99% identical to the more expensive MBP 13 and a much stronger product when it comes to the value for money factor. And use the rest of the money to buy a warranty and a hard drive upgrade if you feel like.
Hope this helps!
NOTE Fellow Amazon customer Diane (Her comment can be seen in the comments section of this review) has spoken to an Apple rep and she had this to say "Even the Apple Rep that I spoke with at the Apple store recommended the MBP 13 as is and said the differences were not worth the extra money. Said the average user would not notice any differences in the 2 units just cost." Another Amazon customer, Marcin (His comment can be seen in the comments section of this review) said an apple salesperson told him ""We have both on the shelf. But there is no reason to buy i7, you will not see the difference".
Something to think about. Thank you.
UPDATE Professional review site Notebookcheck.net did a review of both Machines. I've posted the links to the full reviews below as well as summary quotes.
Quote # 1 referring to the performance difference between the standard and high end MBP 13 ( link
"It's also interesting to take a look at how the model at hand measures up to the weaker MacBook Pro 13 version with a Core i5 processor. The less powerful model performs 91% as quickly as the Core i7 model, that is, only slightly slower."
Quote # 2 Referring to the battery life of the standard MBP 13 ( link
"The model we're reviewing here trumps the more powerful version of the MBP13 with an 11-16% longer battery life in all test scenarios (note: wifi test results not comparable)"
So the standard Apple MacBook Pro MC700LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop has better battery life by 11 to 16%, has 91% of this "higher end" MBP 13's performance ability AND costs 25% less.
Hope this helps!
This MBPro with the new i7 2.7 Ghz CPU is about twice as fast as the 2008 MacBook I had. It scored 6800 points on Geekbench. Installing Office Mac 2011 and Adobe CS3 was super fast and I look forward to have VMWare Fusion running much better than on the older MacBook. I just watched the full iPad2 keynote (1h) over wireless on battery plus 1 hour of surfing, battery says 4h left, awesome! I already swapped the hard drive for a 320GB/7200 and in 6-12 month I might go SSD, but for now I stay with regular disks. There are some great 750GB /7200rpm drives now for about $100.
It's slick. I love the illuminated keyboard, finally on the smaller pro machine. The trackpad is awesome. The new LED screen is super crisp and bright. The new graphics HD 3000 chip is pretty good and enough for light Photoshop work. I can only recommend it. If you think MBP 13", go for the fastest CPU like this one (2.7 i7) and get all the rest of the upgrades later. Additional RAM is cheap these days and better HDD and soon the prices for the SSD will come down as well. Swapping the hard drive is easy and the same as will all the Pro models of the last 2 years or so. I can't wait to put like 500GB of SSD into this in 1-2 years and have it fly... Love this machine, best Mac ever (after PowerBook and 2 MacBooks).
Buy Apple MacBook Pro MC724LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Now
I went looking for a new laptop. My requirements were 13" Screen, backlit keyboard and 8+ hours of advertised battery life. I have always been a PC user and do IT support for a living. This is my first Mac and I am very pleased with it so far. While the OS is a learning curve the hardware is plain awesome. The new core i7 processor is blazing fast. I'm able to run 2 Virtual machines which keeps my gets me my Microsoft fix without even having to reboot. Backlit keyboard is everything I hoped it would be and the battery lasts a solid 6 hours which isn't bad for the advertised 7 hours of wireless surfing.Read Best Reviews of Apple MacBook Pro MC724LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Here
I am a long time PC user that has gradually migrated over to being a Mac fan. This review is not really technical but instead general observations I've had changing from PC to Mac and some things I ran into along the way.It all started with an iPod touch and finally sold me on Mac after having an iPad for the last six months. So when my old HP started giving troubles after nearly six years I decided to break down and try a Mac. But I decided to wait for the 2011 version to hit the stores before I made my investment. Two days ago they were announced so I found myself in Best Buy earlier this evening. I spent some time chatting with a very nice Apple rep in our Greenville, SC store named Bobby. The store didn't even have them on the shelves yet but he made sure I got one from the high racks where they were stored.
I asked things like would it work with my existing flash hard drive, is the wireless N compatible with my old G router, can I upgrade the memory and hard drive later. I was pleasantly surprised with a yes on all accounts!
The thing that got my attention was that he says the hard drive can be upgraded to solid state drive (SSD) later on...when the prices for those become more reasonable. At first I thought about getting the SSD but the amount of memory I wanted didn't justify the added price so I got the SATA instead. I also thought about the 750GB drive but ended up with the 500GB and will opt for an external drive later. The memory is also upgradable to 8GB later as well...not a hard DIY fix.
So I've been playing with my shiny new toy all evening. When I opened up the box and started going through the initial setup I got a little frustrated because, being a PC user, I didn't know the track pad actually clicks! So I went through the menus with tab and what I discovered to be the spacebar for enter. It didn't take me very long to figure out how to change the track pad settings to work with a light touch to single click instead of physically clicking the pad button. Hint: go for the settings gears icon along the bottom first.
I also didn't like the name that got selected for my home folder during the initial setup. (I clicked through it a little too fast...). To change this I just went in the users and made a new profile that was admin, logged off, logged on as new, and then deleted the old one. Of course I had to make my track pad settings again.
Google mail, calendar, and contacts were a breeze to set up!
Overall, I am very happy with my purchase. I was worried that it would be hard to learn a new operating system but with a little playing around I think it'tonot too hard to figure out. When you get stuck, hit the Google website and usually you find someone before you had the same questions.
A good place for news and how to guides is the iPhone Blog, Lifehacker, and Make Use Of (look them up on Google).
...and so the discovery continues!
Want Apple MacBook Pro MC724LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Discount?
This is my first Mac in my 15 years of IT life. My requirements were 12" or 13" screen, lightweight, good battery life, and should look beautiful. I am a Software Engineer and do a lot of photography, and sometimes make videos too. So I needed a laptop which has high performance, good battery life, and a beautiful design.I was considering Macbook Air, Macbook Pro, and new VAIO Z for a month, and decided to get this Macbook Pro 2011. The price on Amazon was pretty good. This Amazon price (discounted & no tax) was actually better than the student price after tax. I decided to get an Macbook Pro with core i7 2.7Ghz since I cannot use nice CPU for Air (it is limited), and I had been using 3 VAIO models (SR, SZ, Z) laptop for last 3 years so wanted to try Mac. I am very pleased with my purchase.
I love the user interface most, the speed, and battery life although it took me little time to get used to my first mac. The new core i7 is really fast, and I upgraded the ram from 4gb to 8gb to use Parallels faster. Backlit keyboard is so beautiful, and multi-touch trackpad is super convenient. Two fingers with all-way scrolls, and three fingers with browsing back and forward.
I would say this Macbook Pro (lighter than 2010 version) is the best laptop for me so far over my former experience with VAIO, HP, Compaq, Acer, Samsung, Netbooks, and etc. Someone complained about heating problems, but I don't feel like that. This amount of heat is much better than HP, Compaq, and better than VAIO.
If you don't need super fast laptop, I recommend you a basic model of Macbook Pro. Your main usage is web surfing and documenting, I recommend you to get a Macbook Air. If you never used Mac, I strongly recommend you to experience it. BTW, when you buy a Mac, get a basic model if it is possible and upgrade it. It will save you a lot of money. I upgraded RAM by myself, and will upgrade HDD to SSD soon. I can't wait to use SATA III SSD on my MBP!
0 comments:
Post a Comment