• 3 hours ago
Transcript
00:00There's been a lot of focus of the 15-inch MacBook Pro on my channel recently,
00:03but today I want to bring attention to the 13-inch device.
00:06And I think for most people, this is the more compelling and just better product overall,
00:10compared to the 15-inch device.
00:12So this was also updated this year, the 13-inch, to the 8th gen CPUs,
00:16and these are a really big step up from the previous generation.
00:19But the real draw here is two things.
00:21Number one, the price point.
00:22This is $600 cheaper than the base model of the 15-inch.
00:26And the size.
00:28A 13-inch device is so much easier and just more comfortable to carry than a 15-inch device.
00:33Like, the 15-inch devices are great if you need the bigger screen,
00:36if you need the better processing power.
00:38But if you can get away with the 13-inch device, go for it.
00:41Because it's just a much easier payload in your bag, wherever you go.
00:45It doesn't matter. 13-inch portability trumps 15-inch any day.
00:49The hardware isn't drastically different from last year's model, right?
00:52It's faster, obviously, from the new CPU, and the GPU got a small clock bump.
00:57But battery life is the same, despite having a slightly bigger battery.
01:00Still has super fast storage, still has an excellent screen.
01:03Touch bar for the touch bar fans.
01:05The speakers, however, are redesigned.
01:07They were always excellent, but now they're slightly cleaner,
01:10and all four USB-C ports now support Thunderbolt 3.
01:13There are some feature adds, like the updated True Tone display,
01:16so that'll change the color temperature depending on the environment that you're in.
01:19And you also get the third generation butterfly switches,
01:21so underneath each keycap, you now have a silicone membrane in there to protect it against dust.
01:25And you also have access to hands-free Siri, if that's your jam.
01:28So, the processing power in the 8th gen CPU in here is a huge step up because of the core count.
01:34So this is now running four core CPUs instead of the two core CPUs from previous generations,
01:39and that's a big, big difference.
01:41Depending on your workflow, you can hit, like, 40-60% improvement compared to the previous generation.
01:46That's big.
01:47So, it doesn't matter what you're doing.
01:49If it's, like, Photoshop, video editing, if you're a developer,
01:52any kind of CPU-intensive task is gonna be better on this device,
01:55significantly better on this device, than was in previous generations.
01:59And I think that's the real draw here.
02:01To be able to get away with stuff that required a four core, 15-inch device from the previous generations,
02:06and now you can put that workflow into a 13-inch and basically get very similar performance,
02:11that's a huge win.
02:12So, as an example, I've never been able to edit 4K videos on the 13-inch MacBook Pros from the previous generations.
02:18Like, two core CPUs could never handle that footage very well.
02:21The new ones can handle it so much better.
02:23It's much smoother.
02:24Render times are still a little slow,
02:26but the fact that I can edit 4K videos in Premiere on a MacBook, like a 13-inch MacBook, is pretty cool.
02:33This thing starts at $1,800, and that's where things get a little bit weird.
02:37Because this is a MacBook, because it's an Apple product, you're gonna pay that premium, right?
02:41$1,800 is a lot.
02:43The competitor is this guy.
02:46This is a Windows device.
02:47This is the XPS 13, the 9370.
02:49This is my favorite Windows device in the market right now.
02:52This, similarly specced to this, goes for around $1,400, and that's with the 4K touchscreen.
02:58So the value that you're getting out of this device is just so much better than the MacBook.
03:03So, this makes the whole decision between, like, should you get this or should you not, difficult.
03:10Because if you're comfortable on either platform, like either a Windows device or an Apple device,
03:14then my gut feeling is just go for the Windows device, because it's just so much better in value, just raw value.
03:21But if you have a preference for macOS, you need something a little bit more powerful,
03:25the 13-inch with the touch bar is probably the one to get.
03:28And don't be drawn into the whole 15-inch device, because traditionally this is the one to get if you need power, the bigger device.
03:34But this year, the 13-inch can handle a lot of stuff.
03:37The thing that I find most disappointing about this whole upgrade this year, though,
03:41is that the 13-inch devices from Apple that didn't have the touch bar didn't get the new CPUs.
03:46So those are still running the two-core, 7th-gen CPUs.
03:49And if they had put 8th-gen CPUs into the base model as well, like the non-touch bar devices,
03:55I mean, it would've hurt the sales of these ones, but I think it would've just been a really good value for most people,
04:00because that extra processing power from those new CPUs is money.
04:04Okay, I think that wraps it up.
04:06Like, if you're looking at devices right now and you're kind of deciding between 13 and 15,
04:10keep in mind that the 13-inch is so much more powerful this year than it has been in previous generations.
04:16Okay, hope you guys enjoyed this video. Thumbs if you liked it, subs if you loved it.
04:19See you guys next time.