Review roundup: Apple's Retina MacBook Pro is pretty but pricey

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 114
    macinthe408macinthe408 Posts: 1,050member


    I don't like the headline for this story. It's akin to a car review in which the headline is, "The Bugatti Veyron is an awesome car, but too expensive. A car with 1,001HP, an 8-liter 16-cylinder engine with four turbos, and a top speed of 253MPH should not cost this much. It needs to be a lot cheaper." 

  • Reply 22 of 114
    doh123doh123 Posts: 323member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Duo View Post


    Santa (aka FedEd delivery guy) just stopped by and I'm loving my new toy! That said, it really is a big step up for me since I bought my last MBP in '08 just before the unibodies came out. No complaints thus far!



    uhhg.. i ordered mine right away and it still hasn't shipped.  I know its CTO being I ordered with 16GB of ram.. but sheesh.


     


    What did show up today?  My Magsafe magesafe 2 adapter... yaaay!! now i can sit and stare at it and put it on and off my older magsafe adapter thinking about how it will plug into my laptop when I finally get it... they say wont be until the 21st - 25th.

  • Reply 23 of 114
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member

    Quote:



    Originally Posted by russgriz View Post


    "Reviewers ... remain put off by the $2,200 entry price."


     


    Apparently the Reviewers are the only ones who are "put off", Apple can't seem to make them fast enough as shops times have slipped to 3-4 weeks.



    It is a misleading  headline. If they remain put off they were already put off, right? And 'put off' is a negatively loaded term. I can be put off buying something because I can't afford it, or I can be put off an item because I think it is overpriced. One is reflection of the fact that it is expensive and I can't afford it. The other suggests the item's value is diminished because I am being ripped off. 

  • Reply 24 of 114
    flabberflabber Posts: 100member


    @Ryuk;


    I agree wholeheartedly :)  I can't even remember the last time using my ethernet port, and the only reason I used my Superdrive is because I couldn't get my Windows installation (via Bootcamp) to work via USB-install. Assuming I'm doing something wrong with the USB-install of Windows via Bootcamp, I could live 100% without both integrated ethernet and the Superdrive.


     


    The only thing I want to be able to do (myself), is upgrade the ram at some point in the future (software and OS'es are not standing still after all), and replace or upgrade the HD and/or battery when they start failing. To me personally that's the only real downside of the new Retina MBP.

  • Reply 25 of 114

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by OllieWallieWhiskers View Post


    "Pretty but pricey" isn't that Apple's motto?

     



    The new Retina MBP is $300 cheaper then the old MBP when it first came out with the same specs.

  • Reply 26 of 114


    I would miss the super drive a little bit.  We get the netflix discs in the mail and more often than not watch them on my 2011 MBP.  That is really all I have used the drive for.  If I were to shell out for a MBP Retina, whats an extra $79 to get the external drive for the times we watch movies in bed?

  • Reply 27 of 114
    msimpsonmsimpson Posts: 452member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by nagromme View Post


    Why Apple, why? I only wanted THREE things from the new retina MacBook:


     


    1. A retina display with higher res than any computer has ever seen, but priced the SAME as an ordinary display.


     


    2. A super thin ultraportable design, with high performance, long battery life, AND an optical drive inside. Portability matters to me, and therefore I like to carry a stack of scratchable discs with me.


     


    3. The ability to carry a 60” Ethernet cable around with me. NOT 63” but 60”. If I stick the Ethernet-to-Thunderbolt adapter on the end of my Ethernet cable, it becomes an unusable 63” long. WiFi is hard to find, and ALL of Apple’s products should still have Ethernet built-in. Not just some, ALL of them. Updating the old MacBooks Pros as well is just not good enough, Apple.


     


    I think I’ve summed up the feelings of those who don’t see this as the future.


     


    My own credit card awaits next year’s retina 11” Air!



     


     


    Quote:

    Originally Posted by russgriz View Post


    "Reviewers ... remain put off by the $2,200 entry price."


     


    Apparently the Reviewers are the only ones who are "put off", Apple can't seem to make them fast enough as shops times have slipped to 3-4 weeks.



    LMAO.   Wi-fi is hard to find?  What national park do you live in?  


     


    A 63 ft Ethernet cable would be larger and heavier than a MBPR.   Maybe you can write Tim Cook and ask him to include a hose reel attachment for the MacBook  

  • Reply 28 of 114
    duoduo Posts: 26member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by doh123 View Post


    uhhg.. i ordered mine right away and it still hasn't shipped.  I know its CTO being I ordered with 16GB of ram.. but sheesh.


     


    What did show up today?  My Magsafe magesafe 2 adapter... yaaay!! now i can sit and stare at it and put it on and off my older magsafe adapter thinking about how it will plug into my laptop when I finally get it... they say wont be until the 21st - 25th.



     


    Well, at least you're prepared. I've been using the computer since I got it at about 9:20 am PST and it doesn't look like I'm gonna have to go to the local Apple Store to pick up an adapter till later this afternoon. 


     


    If it's any consolation, you may get your order before the ETA in your email. Ordered mine as soon as the store went back online and got the "ships in 5-7 days" and an ETA of anywhere between the 22nd and 26th. Mine's a BTO as well with a processor and RAM upgrade. Didn't bother with the SSD since an external drive would be cheaper anyway.

  • Reply 29 of 114
    jfc1138jfc1138 Posts: 3,090member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by msimpson View Post


     


     


    LMAO.   Wi-fi is hard to find?  What national park do you live in?  


     


    A 63 ft Ethernet cable would be larger and heavier than a MBPR.   Maybe you can write Tim Cook and ask him to include a hose reel attachment for the MacBook  



    You might want to update your browser, the sarcasm font on that post you responded to doesn't seem to have loaded correctly.

  • Reply 30 of 114
    mactelmactel Posts: 1,275member


    People seem to be willing to pay the price of innovation.  Those blazing the trail will help to make the price go down as the components become commodity.  Who doesn't want one of these, but I can wait.

  • Reply 31 of 114


    I don't know how anyone could consider this pricey for a Mac considering Apple's prices have gone down considerably over the past several year.  3-4 years ago this MacBook Pro would have started at $2999.

  • Reply 32 of 114
    bigpicsbigpics Posts: 1,397member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by ExceptionHandler View Post


    I would miss the super drive a little bit.  We get the netflix discs in the mail and more often than not watch them on my 2011 MBP.  That is really all I have used the drive for.  If I were to shell out for a MBP Retina, whats an extra $79 to get the external drive for the times we watch movies in bed?



    Or for that matter a $40 third-party external ODD...  ...or stream your Netflix movies.....

  • Reply 33 of 114
    hmmhmm Posts: 3,405member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by msimpson View Post


     


     


    LMAO.   Wi-fi is hard to find?  What national park do you live in?  


     


    A 63 ft Ethernet cable would be larger and heavier than a MBPR.   Maybe you can write Tim Cook and ask him to include a hose reel attachment for the MacBook  



    Since you're incapable of reading notation, 60" = 60 inches or 5 feet. 60' = 60 feet. A double quotation mark signifies inches.


    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post





    You left out one important fact:

    If you really want a cheaper solution, last year's MBPs have been updated and are now available for hundreds of dollars less. Funny how everyone whines that Apple doesn't give choices, but when they do, the alternatives get ignored.

    As near as I can see, the only real negative for the way I'd use it is lack of a 17" model, but that's not enough to make me switch to Windows.




    As I recall you typically keep your computers for a number of years between upgrades. You could always wait this cycle out and see if it comes back. Otherwise you get haswell rather than ivy, which doesn't seem like a bad option given the further power management improvements that intel has promised.

  • Reply 34 of 114
    bdkennedy wrote: »
    I don't know how anyone could consider this pricey for a Mac considering Apple's prices have gone down considerably over the past several year.  3-4 years ago this MacBook Pro would have started at $2999.

    I remember when Toshiba laptops with a 640x480 "active matrix" color display would cost $4995 so you could see the Windows 3.1 desktop in glorious 8-bit color. I couldn't foresee the day when I could get a 2880x1800 retina display for half the cost, not adjusting for inflation. Seriously, if reviewers cared that much about price, let them go back to their beloved $259 Netbooks running crippled Windows Starter Edition.
  • Reply 35 of 114
    zunxzunx Posts: 620member

    "It's got less glare than previous MacBook Pro screens"


     


    WOW, How could they do it? 


    Hint: matte screens have no glare!!!
  • Reply 36 of 114

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zunx View Post




    "It's got less glare than previous MacBook Pro screens"


     


    WOW, How could they do it? 


    Hint: matte screens have no glare!!!



    The retina MacBook Pro has a glossy screen.  Just one designed to reduce glare over previous ones.

  • Reply 37 of 114
    I don't like the headline for this story. It's akin to a car review in which the headline is, "The Bugatti Veyron is an awesome car, but too expensive. A car with 1,001HP, an 8-liter 16-cylinder engine with four turbos, and a top speed of 253MPH should not cost this much. It needs to be a lot cheaper." 

    It's misleading. It doesn't seem that any of these reviews have said that he MBPR is a bad value. They are only complaining that the entry level price is high. Anyway, consumers don't seem to think it's cost-prohibitive.
  • Reply 38 of 114

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by macinthe408 View Post


    I don't like the headline for this story. It's akin to a car review in which the headline is, "The Bugatti Veyron is an awesome car, but too expensive. A car with 1,001HP, an 8-liter 16-cylinder engine with four turbos, and a top speed of 253MPH should not cost this much. It needs to be a lot cheaper." 



     


    Also the Bugatti doesn't have a pickup bed in the back for the one time every 3 years I need to haul dirt. To all people freaking about the lack of a DVD drive, get a $40 USB DVD drive for the one time you use it every 3 years. "But a USB drive is not as portable!". Really? So you complain it's not portable but yet you carry around install DVDs and movie DVDs everywhere you go?

  • Reply 39 of 114
    lightknightlightknight Posts: 2,312member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by nagromme View Post


    Why Apple, why? I only wanted THREE things from the new retina MacBook:


     


    1. A retina display with higher res than any computer has ever seen, but priced the SAME as an ordinary display.


     


    2. A super thin ultraportable design, with high performance, long battery life, AND an optical drive inside. Portability matters to me, and therefore I like to carry a stack of scratchable discs with me.


     


    3. The ability to carry a 60” Ethernet cable around with me. NOT 63” but 60”. If I stick the Ethernet-to-Thunderbolt adapter on the end of my Ethernet cable, it becomes an unusable 63” long. WiFi is hard to find, and ALL of Apple’s products should still have Ethernet built-in. Not just some, ALL of them. Updating the old MacBooks Pros as well is just not good enough, Apple.


     


    I think I’ve summed up the feelings of those who don’t see this as the future.


     


    My own credit card awaits next year’s retina 11” Air!





    I don't like Wifi. Apart from that, fun piece.

  • Reply 40 of 114
    lightknightlightknight Posts: 2,312member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by BigBillyGoatGruff View Post





    It's misleading. It doesn't seem that any of these reviews have said that he MBPR is a bad value. They are only complaining that the entry level price is high. Anyway, consumers don't seem to think it's cost-prohibitive.




    Neither is the Veyron, it sells quite well... get one today :p

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