Following yesterday's introduction of new Retina MacBook Pro models, the machines have already begun showing up in Geekbench benchmarks, offering the opportunity to see how their raw performance compares to the previous generation.
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While several of the entries appear to be fakes, there are enough legitimate results to begin to get a sense of the new machines' performance, which arrive with the following 32-bit Geekbench 3 averages so far:
15-inch with quad-core CPU:
- i7-4750HQ @ 2.0 GHz: Single-Core 2844, Multi-Core 10887
- i7-4850HQ @ 2.3 GHz: Single-Core 3100, Multi-Core 11771
- i7-4960HQ @ 2.6 GHz: Single-Core 3379, Multi-Core 12813
13-inch with dual-core CPU:
- i5-4258U @ 2.4 GHz: Single-Core 2613, Multi-Core 5248
- i5-4288U @ 2.6 GHz: Single-Core 2856, Multi-Core 5954
- i7-4558U @ 2.8 GHz: Single-Core 3000, Multi-Core 6189
As is fairly typical for updated machines, most of the benchmarks come in at approximately 4-10% higher than their predecessors, while the increased efficiency of Intel's Haswell chips has allowed Apple to improve overall battery life. Apple has also made the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro thinner, matching the thickness of its larger sibling but at the cost of a slight decrease in battery capacity from 74 Whr to 71.8 Whr.
The base 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro had shown up back in June in results from Geekbench 2 benchmarking software, which uses different baseline scores than the current Geekbench 3. A 15-inch model also showed up in early July, but with a chip that Apple ultimately elected not to use in yesterday's update. The chip in that early machine was Intel's i7-4950HQ at 2.4 GHz, but Apple bumped the high-end chip in the released lineup to the i7-4960HQ at 2.6 GHz, a new chip that was officially launched just last month.
Top Rated Comments
This argument comes up in nearly every thread - No, Apple hasn't done anything really "new" since the iPad. But let us remember, the iPad was Apple's fastest "new innovation" being 3 years apart from the iPhone launch. iPhone was 6 years after the first iPod. Everything in-between those years was incremental.
We are still in the third year from the iPad launch. If there isn't anything new next year then I would be concerned - but Apple never was one to release new products in new categories every year (Or even every 3.)
100% radiohead14. I've often wondered why consumers want Apple to charge high margins. It seems to be a point of pride for certain people. Stock holder? I get it. Consumer? Flabergasted may be too strong of a word but not by much. It's not even a criticism. I'm genuinely curious how a person develops an affinity for a company's high margin. Maybe it's passion. All companies need to make a profit, but I can honestly say I've never cared how much profit any company makes.
Me? I'm more concerned with the value to me. Line up the products. Which meets my need best? That's what I choose. Then where can I get it for the best price. How much profit that company makes is never a variable in that equation.
off topic I know... apologies :o
If you were considering a Macbook Air in the first place you weren't going to buy a Macbook Pro. :rolleyes: