In 2016, there wasn't much difference between the 13 and 15-inch Pro models except that the 15-inch model had a more powerful graphics processor, and a larger display. This year's 15-inch model breaks away from the 13-inch laptop in several ways, but keeps the same price tag (starting at $2399). Previous model MacBook Pro users will be jealous of this new device.
The crazy thing is that Apple decided to work with a company to make an even more powerful external graphics processing unit. They teamed up with Blackmagic designs to make an external unit that delivers the best of desktop-quality graphics onto laptops. Designed for the new MacBook Pro's, this device features the Radeon 580 graphics processor with an amazing 8GB of GDDR5 memory.
Same as the 13-inch model, this laptop has the same four USB-C ports that were included on the 2016 Pro's. This is disappointing, because most developers don't make cords that go straight to a USB-C port. You have to purchase an adapter in order to connect them. Whether it be a USB-C to HDMI, or USB-C to USB 3.0, it is annoying to have to connect something in to your computer in order to be able to connect something into your computer. To fix the connectivity problem, Apple makes dongles that can be purchased separately from the laptop. They are overpriced for the quality. It is far better to use a third-party adapter, because there are lots of companies that make very good adapters, for the same price as Apple's, the third-party adapters are more durable. Back to the laptop's ports. You can charge through any of the four USB-C ports, and you can use any of them as a DisplayPort. If your display exporting cord doesn't directly connect to a USB-C port, you will have to purchase an adapter to make it work. When exporting information through the Thunderbolt 3 port, you get speeds of up to 40 Gigabits per second. This is very good, especially compared to the 10Gbps that you get using a USB 3.1 Gen 2 port with an adapter. There are very good multiport adapters, such as I mentioned in my 13-inch MacBook Pro review. They use two of the laptop's existing Thunderbolt 3 ports, and give you lots of common ports that are not available with the computer itself.
Size, Weight, and Color
Measuring 13.75 inches wide, and 9.48 inches deep, it doesn't have a much bigger footprint than the 13-inch model. It is also only a fraction of an inch thicker, at 0.61 inches. It weighs about a full pound more, but depending on the configuration, this can vary a little bit.
This laptop only comes in two boring colors, Silver and Space Gray, there hasn't been a Mac laptop that comes in any other colors besides the regular MacBook that also comes in Gold and Rose Gold.
The Display
This display actually measures 15.4 inches diagonally. It features IPS technology that extends the viewing angles of the display. The resolution measures 2880-by-1800 pixels, at 220 pixels per inch. This is seven pixels per inch less than the 13-inch model, but it isn't enough of a difference to notice. This laptop, like the 13-inch model also features True Tone technology. This feature debuted on the 2017 iPhones. It uses a light sensor to monitor light and colors outside of the laptop and then adjusts the display to make the viewing experience better. The maximum brightness of this laptop's display is 500 nits, which is pretty good for a laptop. For reference, iPhones usually max out at around
700 nits.
Storage and Memory
At base specs, this MacBook comes with 256GB of SSD (solid state disk) storage. Lots of lower end laptops are starting to adopt flash storage, but SSD stores images and video files better. It is heavier than flash storage, but definitely a must have for anyone purchasing a MacBook for editing photo or video files. You can upgrade the storage to 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, or a massive 4TB of SSD storage. The upgrade pricing is $200, $600, $1,400, and $3,400, respectively.
This laptop doesn't come in an 8GB of RAM option. The least you can get is 16GB of 2400MHz DDR4 onboard memory, and you can upgrade to 32GB for an extra $400. For most functions, 32GB of RAM isn't necessary, but if you are purchasing this as a gaming device, or you are rendering 3D models or other programs that need a lot of processing power, this extra RAM is very good to have. In 2016, there were a lot of complaints because lots of people were hoping that those Pro's would come with 32 gigs of RAM. The reason why this wasn't available was that those laptops didn't have strong enough batteries to support that much RAM. This new edition of 15-inch Pro's came with a boosted battery that is able to support the same running time, with 32GB of RAM.
Processors
Another way that the 15-inch model branches farther away from the 13-inch model is in the processors. You can't get the 15-inch laptop with an Intel i5 processor. Without upgrading, this laptop comes equipped with a 2.2GHz 6-core Intel Core i7 processor. It has Turbo Boost capabilities of up to 4.1 GHz, and has a 9MB shared L3 cache. You can upgrade to a 2.9 GHz 6-core Intel Core i9 processor. This upgrade has Turbo Boost up to 4.8 GHz, and has a 12MB shared L3 cache. This extra processing power is not really necessary unless you are doing extremely high processing power tasks. The main processor upgrade costs an extra $400.
For graphics processing, this Mac comes equipped with a Radeon Pro 55X processor with 4GB of GDDR5 memory and automatic graphics switching. It also has Intel UHD Graphics 630. The laptop can be configured with a Radeon Pro 560X graphics processor with 4GB of GDDR5 memory. For gamers, the 15-inch Pro is the laptop to get. With that much graphics processing power, games will come through with virtually no noticeable lag.
The crazy thing is that Apple decided to work with a company to make an even more powerful external graphics processing unit. They teamed up with Blackmagic designs to make an external unit that delivers the best of desktop-quality graphics onto laptops. Designed for the new MacBook Pro's, this device features the Radeon 580 graphics processor with an amazing 8GB of GDDR5 memory.
This device plugs into one of the MacBook's Thunderbolt 3 ports. It has two more Thunderbolt 3 ports, four USB 3 ports, and one HDMI 2.0 port. It also has an 85W power delivery so it can even charge the MacBook when being used.
Ports
Same as the 13-inch model, this laptop has the same four USB-C ports that were included on the 2016 Pro's. This is disappointing, because most developers don't make cords that go straight to a USB-C port. You have to purchase an adapter in order to connect them. Whether it be a USB-C to HDMI, or USB-C to USB 3.0, it is annoying to have to connect something in to your computer in order to be able to connect something into your computer. To fix the connectivity problem, Apple makes dongles that can be purchased separately from the laptop. They are overpriced for the quality. It is far better to use a third-party adapter, because there are lots of companies that make very good adapters, for the same price as Apple's, the third-party adapters are more durable. Back to the laptop's ports. You can charge through any of the four USB-C ports, and you can use any of them as a DisplayPort. If your display exporting cord doesn't directly connect to a USB-C port, you will have to purchase an adapter to make it work. When exporting information through the Thunderbolt 3 port, you get speeds of up to 40 Gigabits per second. This is very good, especially compared to the 10Gbps that you get using a USB 3.1 Gen 2 port with an adapter. There are very good multiport adapters, such as I mentioned in my 13-inch MacBook Pro review. They use two of the laptop's existing Thunderbolt 3 ports, and give you lots of common ports that are not available with the computer itself.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The 15-inch Pro uses a standard-size and layout keyboard that includes four arrow keys. You can also get the keyboard in several languages. The keyboard is sightly quieter than the 2016 models, as it features a "butterfly mechanism rather than a scissor mechanism." According to Apple, this makes they keyboard quieter, while delivering the same or more stability and comfort.
The Touch Bar, which debuted on the 2016 Pro's replaces the Function row on the top of the keyboard. It is, in a way, Apple's compromise to the demand for a MacBook with a touch screen. Apple was reported saying that they were not planning on making a Mac with a touch display, but was more focusing on making iPad Pro's able to support more of the same tasks as a laptop. Apple made the Touch Bar so that it changes depending on what you are doing on the screen. For instance, if you are editing videos, you can use the Touch Bar for more precise scrubbing. The Touch Bar also has an integrated Touch ID sensor that can be used to unlock the device or make secure payments.
The keyboard also features an ambient light sensor. This gives the keyboard and Touch Bar the auto-brightness capabilities of an iPhone.
The trackpad is the same size as the 2016 Pro's, but this isn't a bad thing, as the trackpad is massive, and if it was any bigger, some might say it is too big. It features Force Touch, which is Apple's term for precision touch control. They use it on all of their touch-screen, bar, or trackpad enabled devices. Force Touch also gives access to Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures. Some of these features have been around for a while, but the drawing ability is new. It is similar to how the Apple Pencil draws on an iPad.
Camera and Video Support
The FaceTime camera didn't receive an upgrade (again). It is a 720p camera, but since nobody really uses that camera for anything besides FaceTime or Skype calls, it isn't a big deal that it isn't very good quality. Usually those calls don't come through in good quality anyways.
Regarding video support, this laptop has the crazy ability to support full resolution of its own display at millions of colors, while:
- supporting up to two displays with 5120-by-2880 resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors
- supporting up to four displays with 4096-by-2304 resolution at 60Hz at overa billion colors
The fact that the laptop can do this without the help of an external dock is amazing.
The Thunderbolt 3 ports can export video via the Native DisplayPort over USB-C, or through more common ports such as HDMI, or VGA, as well as Thunderbolt 2, but these require adapters that are sold separately.
Audio
In 2016, the audio system was redesigned, and that same system is included in this year's MacBook Pro's. Manufactured by Dolby Laboratories, these speakers feature premium sound.
There are also three microphones to pick up all the sounds around you, as well as a 3.5 mm headphone jack.
Battery and Power
Same as in 2016, this year's Pro's all support up to 10 hours of surfing the web wirelessly. You can also get up to 10 hours of iTunes movie playback. From a full charge, you can leave your Mac for up to 30 days before it dies. It has an 83.6-watt-hour battery made from lithium polymer. This is substantially larger than the 13-inch model, but with how much better performance this device can deliver, it is good that Apple boosted the battery to give the same run time. This laptop comes with an 87W USB-C Power Adapter that can charge the device through any of its four ports.
Other
The operating temperatures range from 50 to 95 degrees fahrenheit. The humidity must be between 0% and 95% non-condensing. It was tested at up to 10,000 feet. This device is equipped with Bluetooth 5.0 wireless technology.
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