Reasons to Buy New MacBook Pro 2021
Last year’s MacBooks with M1 chip confused most buyers as the more affordable MacBook Air and MacBook Pro both used almost similar specs despite a big difference in their prices. So the “Air” was the first choice for many, but this year, not only the chipsets are new but there are several other improvements as well. Let’s find out how these new models fare against their predecessors in terms of specs and other features. It will help you in deciding which one to buy in 2021.
MacBook 2021 Vs MacBook 2020 Specs
Bigger and Better Displays
As you can see in the above specs table, the screen not only got bigger but also better with the new models. The new 14-inch and 16-inch models have better Liquid Retina XDR displays with higher resolutions. Also, these are mini-LED backlit displays unlike the LED displays on 2020 models.
In terms of display brightness, the new models have made quite a leap. While the 2020 MacBooks come with a peak brightness of just 400-500nits, it goes up to 1600 nits in the newer models. Moreover, the new models come with “ProMotion” display technology that is Apple’s other term for a higher refresh rate. The 2021 MacBook Pros come with up to 120Hz adaptive refresh rate for better graphic-intensive tasks.
Powerful M1 Pro and M1 Max Chips
Chipsets are no doubt the biggest improvements in the new MacBook models. The new M1 Pro and M1 Max have 10-core CPUs with 8 performance cores and 2 efficiency cores. Also, the new M1 Pro has up to 16 core GPU, and on M1 Max it goes up to 32 cores, unlike the 8 core GPU on the previous models.
The new chipsets also feature a powerful media engine with dedicated ProRes and ProRes RAW support for better video processing. These also have up to 400GB/s memory bandwidth.
More RAM and Storage
With the new MacBook Pro models, you get up to 32GB unified memory option which is configurable up to 64GB on M1 Max. Also, these also pack up to 1TB SSD which is again configurable up to 8TB. While on previous year’s models, the max RAM option was up to 16GB, and max configurable storage was up to 2TB only. Apart from this, the new models’ SSD is two times faster than the previous generation with up to 7.4GB/s read speed.
Full-on Connectivity Ports
One of the best improvements in the new MacBook Pro is the inclusion of all types of necessary connectivity ports. There are 3X Thunderbolt USB Type C ports, one SDXC card slot, an HDMI port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Moreover, there is now a MagSafe port that can fast charge the machine.
1080p FaceTime Camera
The new models feature a 1080p FaceTime HD camera inside a notch on the top middle of the screen. Whereas the previous models had a 720p webcam. These also come with an advanced image signal processor with computational video, just like last year.
Big Battery and Fast Charger
The new MacBook Pro models come with a bigger battery. The last year’s 13-inch Pro model has a 58.2 watt-hour battery, and the new 14-inch and 16-inch models come with 70 watt-hour and 100 watt-hour cells respectively.
However, only the 16-inch model has better battery life than the last year. But the good thing is that new models come with a fast charger and a Magsafe port that can charge the machine up to 50% in just 30 minutes. The 14-inch model has up to 96W adapter, depending on the model and the 16-inch MacBook Pro has up to 140W adapter.
Upgraded Keyboard
The new MacBook Pros come with a Magic keyboard that now features 78 keys including 12 full-height function keys row and a wider escape key. This replaces the Touch Bar from earlier models. The Force Touch trackpad is still the same as last year.
Better Audio Output
The new MacBook Pro 2021 comes with a high-fidelity six-speaker sound system that has force-canceling woofers. These also support Apple’s spatial audio on built-in speakers when you play music or video with Dolby Atmos.
Moreover, the 3.5 mm headphone jack on these models now comes with advanced support for high-impedance headphones.
Similar Form Factor
Some other reasons to buy MacBook Pro 2021 could be that despite all the improvements and upgrades, the new machines are not much thicker and heavier than the previous models. However, the 16-inch model and MacBook Air do have a considerable difference in terms of weight and width. So as you can see there are plenty of reasons why one should go for the latest MacBook Pro models. However, if you are a student or working professional whose work doesn’t require heavy graphics, you can still go for last year’s models.
