Two minute review
The 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) is a contradictory laptop. It’s revolutionary … but it’s safe. Exciting … but a little boring. It’s a weird choice … and it makes perfect sense.
The good news is that it comes with Apple’s new M2 chip, which the company promises to offer a 40% increase in performance over the M1, but is still the same price as the previous model, from $ 1,299 / £ 1,299 / $ 1,999 AU. For anyone who is about to buy a 13-inch MacBook Pro (M1, 2020), getting the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) is a bit of a no-brainer, as you are getting the M2 Update for free.
However, this lack of price increase has a price … well …, as the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) has the same design as the previous model, and the previous one. If you like the look of old MacBooks, this won’t be a problem, but the lack of new design makes Apple feel a bit abandoned. Even if it’s one of the best laptops you can buy right now, could this be the last 13-inch MacBook Pro we’ll see?
If this is the case then maybe this is the way to go. The M2 chip does a good job here, providing excellent performance, especially when it comes to video editing, and everyday use is, again, excellent, with multiple applications running at once without causing the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) any problem. During our time with the laptop, we were also impressed by how quiet it was, with fans rarely turning on to keep things cool.
(Image credit: Future)
You can even play on the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022), and while the performance won’t match a gaming-dedicated laptop, it’s an exciting vision of a future where Apple adopts more Mac games. We hope to see more when Resident Evil Village and No Man’s Sky arrive on Mac later this year. These games will support the M2 chip’s Metal 3 graphics API, and hopefully this will lead to more ambitious and awesome games running on the M2 MacBooks.
Perhaps our favorite aspect of the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) is battery life. With over 15 and a half hours, this is incredibly impressive. Typically, for workstation laptops that are used for heavy workloads, such as video editing, it would have a battery life of about half, or even less.
It even outperforms the previous 13-inch MacBook Pro M1, which shows that the M2 has even less battery power than its predecessor.
However, despite all these successes, there is a feeling that the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) is the latest of its kind. The lack of a redesign not only suggests a lack of enthusiasm for the product, and perhaps a way to use the existing stock of previous models, but with Apple getting into the habit of launching new MacBooks, it’s getting harder and harder. see what it is. the 13-inch MacBook Pro fits.
The upcoming MacBook Air (M2, 2022) has a new design, a larger, brighter screen, and should offer similar performance levels due to having the same M2 chip, although it costs $ 100 / £ 50/100 $ AU less. There seems to be little reason to get the more expensive 13-inch MacBook Pro over the new MacBook Air. The default MacBook Air configuration offers an M2 chip with an 8-core GPU, so for graphics-intensive tasks, the MacBook Pro should have an advantage, though you can upgrade your MacBook Air to an M2 chip with it. 10-core GPU. like the 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Meanwhile, for those who want a more powerful MacBook to work with, last year’s 14-inch MacBook and 16-inch MacBook Pro offer better displays, performance, and more ports.
This means that despite being undeniably a fantastic laptop, the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) is strangely hard to justify.
13-inch MacBook Pro Review (M2, 2022): Price
- It starts at $ 1,299 / £ 1,299 / $ 1,999 AU
- Same price as the previous model
Announced at Apple’s WWDC 2022 event and starting June 24, the 13-inch (M2, 2022) MacBook Pro sells for $ 1,299 / £ 1,299 / AU $ 1,999.
The good news is that this is the same price at which the 13-inch MacBook Pro was launched earlier (M1, 2020), which means you’re basically getting a free upgrade from the M1 chip to the M2.
The M1 was Apple’s first revolutionary attempt to make its own computer chip, rather than relying on Intel to provide processing power. It offered excellent performance and long battery life and caused a resurgence of MacBooks, and we’re not just talking about sales, but also Apple itself. The company had heard for a while that it was more interested in iPhones and iPads, but M1-powered MacBooks (and Macs) seemed to invigorate Apple’s passion for computers.
(Image credit: Future)
Specification sheet
Here are the 13-inch MacBook Pro settings (M2, 2022) sent to TechRadar for review:
CPU: Apple M2 (8-core) Graphics: 10-core integrated GPURAM: 16 GB unified LPDDR5 Display: 13.3-inch Retina display, 2,560 x 1,600 (LED backlit, IPS, 500-night brightness, wide range of colors P3) Storage: 1TB SSDPorts 2x Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C), 3.5mm headphone jackConnectivity: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0Camera: 720p FaceTime HD webcam Weight: 3.0 lbs (1.4kg) ) Size: 11.97 x 8.36 x 0.61 inches (30.42 x 0.61 inches; 30.42 x 21.5 cm; W x D x W)
Therefore, the announcement of the M2 follow-up moved many of us. It comes with published specifications (more on these later) and promises a great increase in performance. So with the M2-powered 13-inch MacBook Pro costing the same as the launched M1 version, it makes this new model look like a good price.
It’s also cheaper than the 14-inch MacBook Pro (2021) and the 16-inch MacBook Pro (2021), which are aimed at high-end users looking for powerful workstations. While they still come with M1 class chips, the M1 Pro and M1 Max are actually more powerful than the M2. The 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022), therefore, is presented as a more affordable alternative to those MacBook Pro, aimed at people who need a powerful laptop, but do not need to perform such strenuous tasks.
Apple also announced MacBook Air (M2, 2022), which will go on sale in late July. It also includes an M2 chip and a completely new design and costs $ 1,199 (£ 1,249, A $ 1,899), but even though it has the same 8-core CPU, the MacBook Air starts with an 8-core GPU.
So the 13-inch MacBook Pro isn’t the cheapest way to get an M2, but the new, more expensive MacBook Air M2 is dramatically approaching the price of the MacBook Pro now, with only $ 100 apart .
As with previous models, there are several configuration options available with the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022), such as increasing the unified memory to 16 GB or 24 GB (which is a new option with the M2 chip) , as well as to expand storage up to 2 TB. The base model includes 256 GB, which is a bit low these days, especially for workstations that will be used for creative professionals, who often use large files, so paying more for a larger SSD could pay off. However, as the specs increase, the price of the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) starts to rise quite substantially.
13-inch MacBook Pro Review (M2, 2022) – Design
- Same design as previous model
- Touch Bar live!
While upgrades inside the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) are welcome and exciting, on the outside, that’s another story. Basically, there has been no change in design, so this year’s model looks identical to two years ago. This may appeal to anyone who likes the current design, but it makes the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) feel a little weird, as does the MacBook Air, the 24-inch iMac, and the 16-inch MacBook Pro. inches. all have had redesigns.
Therefore, the lack of changes in the overall design is a bit confusing. It means that the 13-inch MacBook Pro maintains the 720p FaceTime webcam of previous models, while almost every other MacBook now has a 1080p webcam, including the MacBook Air (M2, 2022).
The old webcam means no notch is distracting from the screen (something some people have found annoying in last year’s MacBook Pros, though they’ve never bothered us).
This means that the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) also has the old, thick bezels that surround the screen, which makes it look a bit old. Meanwhile, the redesigned MacBook Air has thinner bezels, making it a more modern-looking device and allowing Apple to fit a larger screen without increasing the overall size of laptops.
While both the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) and the MacBook Air (M2, 2022) are apparently 13-inch laptops, the MacBook Air now has a larger screen than the 13-inch MacBook Pro. 6 inches compared to 13.3 inches. inches. We’re in a weird situation now where the MacBook Air offers a better screen than the 13-inch MacBook Pro (along with a better webcam and microphones), though it costs less.
(Image credit: Future)
Continuing with the same design means that the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022) still includes the split touch bar, which is a thin screen on the keyboard that shows context-sensitive buttons.
It’s a bit of a surprise inclusion, as most people expected Apple to kill it. People didn’t love it universally, and a growing number of third-party apps were no longer supported. With all the other MacBook lines that have now abandoned the Touch Bar, it will be an even more niche feature.
Of course, there is still a lot to like about the design of the 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2, 2022). It’s solidly built, the screen is still great, and the Touch ID button lets you sign in to macOS quickly and easily using your fingerprint. Apple’s style and build quality are still evident here, and it’s still one of the thinnest, lightest professional laptops out there, though it means it still has two Thunderbolt ports for inputs, which is low for a laptop aimed at professionals.
(Image credit: Future)
So what’s going on here? While Apple may have seen no reason to change the MacBook Pro …