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10 Things We Love And Hate About The New Retina MacBook Pro
If you are a professional, then you don't need to be convinced why the Retina MacBook Pro is an awesome computer.
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But if you are a consumer with a bit of disposable income, you might want to consider Apple's newest 15-inch.
While the MacBook Pro line is marketed toward graphic designers and other professionals the Retina MacBook Pro has advantages over the smaller MacBook Pro and thinner MacBook Air for consumers too.
The computer purrs—we have never once heard the fan turn on while running 20 tabs at once or while watching HD video.
The Retina MacBook Pro is almost perfect but after using the computer for a week we found five things we love about the computer and five annoyances.
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Keep reading to check them out.
When using the MacBook Pro under normal conditions, the bottom gets pretty hot.
When multitasking the heat becomes a larger problem. This doesn't mean we experienced burns or anything, but the machine does get hot.
The charger brick also gets really warm if it has been plugged in and is charging the computer.
This may not bother a lot of users, but if you have a child or dog that could come in contact with the charger you should exercise caution.
Apple introduced Thunderbolt implementation in February 2011. It's been over a year and Thunderbolt still hasn't really taken off.
A few manufacturers have begun to make Thunderbolt peripherals but we would have preferred if Apple included an extra USB 3.0 port instead of two Thunderbolt ports.
This is a temporary problem, but we're annoyed that we can't use all of our favorite apps with the Retina display.
Apple introduced the Magsafe 2 charger with the Retina MacBook Pro.
The revamped charger has an aluminum tip, and the port does not support previous MacBook chargers.
This is a problem if you have multiple chargers.
We like to keep one at home and one at the office and now if you still want to use your old chargers you have to buy an accessory.
The Retina MacBook Pro is a powerful computer.
The Intel quad-core i7 processor allows the Pro to run smoothly. We experienced very few "beach balls" or freezes. Coupled with the solid state drive, the computer responded quickly to our commands.
We really like that we can't hear the fan while watching videos or having a lot of tabs open.
The Retina MacBook Pro is a quarter-inch thinner than the regular 15-inch MacBook Pro. Apple still managed to cram as much useful hardware in such a small frame.
The computer is easy to transport and easier to lift when moving around.
Finally.
This is the first Apple notebook to support HDMI out, and we love it.
The HDMI port makes it really easy to connect to a TV or other monitors.
The display.
The display is bananas. It's what everyone has been raving about and for good reason.
The Retina display is sharper, easier to read, and more detailed. We don't know how Apple packed 5 million pixels into a 15.4-inch screen, but we aren't complaining.
The screen has a 2880-by-1800-pixel resolution, meaning the Retina MacBook Pro has 3 million more pixels than an HDTV.
Wow.
If you can get over the high price tag, we definitely recommend the new MacBook Pro; it's a beauty.
We love using this computer.
The slim profile, excellent battery life, and powerful performance more than make up for the few shortcomings.
Here are the full specs:
15" Retina MacBook Pro, $2,199
- 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor (Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz)
- Storage: 256GB solid state drive
- 8GB of 1600MHz DDR3L memory
- Screen: 15.4" diagonally, 2880 x 1800 native resolution
- Size: 14.13" width, 9.73" deep, 0.71" thickness
- Weight: 4.46 pounds
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