iFixit Tears Down Battery, Improved Keyboard, and Removable SSD of MacBook Pro Without Touch Bar

iFixit has published a teardown of the new 13-inch MacBook Pro without Touch Bar, which the site calls the "Escape Edition" because of its adherence to the traditional row of function keys, along with a tangible Escape key. In the teardown, iFixit delves deeper into the MacBook Pro, uncovering a battery that is 27 percent less powerful than last year's model, along with the Butterfly 2.0 keyboard that's been slightly updated since the 2015 MacBook.

After removing the extra-large new trackpad from the body of the laptop, iFixit gets a better look at the MacBook's battery. Rated for 54.5 watt hours, the 13-inch MacBook might include less battery life than last year's generation, but it does come in above the Touch Bar MacBook Pro model, which clocks in at 49.2 watt hours. In a recent performance comparison provided by Geekbench, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro sans Touch Bar's 15-watt chip was proven to be more energy efficient than the 28-watt chip in last year's entry-level model.

ifixit-teardown-macbook-3
A new spring mechanism is discovered housed next to the MacBook Pro's hinge protector, which "rolls a flat cable up when the display is closed, and unravels when the display opens." This not only seems to make it easier to close the lid of the MacBook, but suggests the overall lighter body of the MacBook Pro needed extra help and couldn't "rely on gravity to close nicely as much as previous models have."

One of the last points iFixit focuses on is the updated Butterfly 2.0 keys on the MacBook Pro's keyboard. Comparing it with the 2015 MacBook, iFixit describes the new MacBook Pro's keys as "a little taller at the edges," so it's slightly easier to find each key with your fingers without looking directly at the board. The dome switches hiding under each key also appear to have more heft than the 2015 MacBook's, further supporting the overall better feel and increased travel on the MacBook Pro.

ifixit-teardown-macbook
iFixit also looked at the MacBook's removable SSD, powered by SanDisk 64GB NAND flash memory and Apple's custom SSD controller. Then, the site dove into the logic board to hunt for the "advanced thermal architecture" described in the MacBook's press release. The board appeared mostly the same as previous MacBooks, with Apple's new architecture apparently describing the "relocation of the heat sink screws to the backside of the logic board."

Other interesting tidbits from the teardown include the MacBook Pro's fans, and the single modular unit taped to the bottom of the notebook's fan, which houses the 3.5mm headphone port. Its location, and Apple's removal of the same port on the iPhone 7, means it "could easily be dropped in favor of a Lightning or USB-C connector" in future MacBook Pro generations. Ultimately, iFixit gave the 13-inch MacBook Pro without a Touch Bar a repairability score of 2, with a 10 being the easiest to repair.

Check out the full teardown on iFixit's website.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Tag: iFixit
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
top stories 2025 07 12

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, iOS 26 Beta 3, and More

Saturday July 12, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
The iOS 26 public beta release is quickly approaching, while developers have recently gotten their hands on a third round of betas that has seen Apple continue to tweak features, design, and functionality. We're also continuing to hear rumors about the iPhone 17 lineup that is now just about right around the corner, while Apple's latest big-budget film appears to be taking off, so read on...
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 17 May See 'Significant' Dynamic Island Changes

Monday July 14, 2025 12:11 am PDT by
The iPhone's Dynamic Island experience is set to undergo "significant evolution" over the next few years, according to a new rumor. Earlier this month, a report suggested that the iPhone 17 lineup will feature a redesigned Dynamic Island user interface, but little else was explained about the software changes. Now, the leaker known as "Majin Bu" appears to have corroborated this, commenting ...

Top Rated Comments

peter2 Avatar
114 months ago
('https://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/01/ifixit-tears-down-macbook-without-touch-bar/')
iFixit has published a teardown ('https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Function+Keys+Late+2016+Teardown/72415') of the new 13-inch MacBook Pro without Touch Bar, which the site calls the "Escape Edition" because of its adherence to the traditional row of function keys, along with a tangible Escape key.
So the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar is now officially called "No Escape Edition" ;-)
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kstotlani Avatar
114 months ago
In the teardown, iFixit delves deeper into the MacBook Pro, uncovering a battery that is 27 percent less powerful than last year's model
That is how it became 24% less in volume. Innovation at its peak. It would be good to see some battery benchmarks on heavy applications like Lightroom or Photoshop.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chupa Chupa Avatar
114 months ago
Tried out the new keyboard yesterday and have to say it is improved and quite usable. Still not as much travel and feel as I'd like but it didn't slow down my typing like the original butteryfly keyboard does. New large trackpad is nice too. I couldn't even tell it had no moving parts.

Ultimately though the RAM and stock SSD are deal killers for me. I'm just glad my 2012 rMBP is so solid that its carrying me along just fine. Maybe next round Apple/Intel will be more on top of things and push out something more appealing for the price tag.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jim Avatar
114 months ago
bottom line: they reduced the size of the battery to save the mm and the 1/2lb. Happier now more than ever that I bought the 2015 model 6 months ago. 10 hours does not equal 10 ACTUAL hours any more than the mileage sticker on the cars guarantees you'll get just that. Leave it at 3-1/2 pounds and give me 13-14 hours of battery life please.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Brookzy Avatar
114 months ago

Then, the site dove into the logic board to hunt for the "advanced thermal architecture" described in the MacBook's press release. The board appeared mostly the same as previous MacBooks, with Apple's new architecture apparently describing the "relocation of the heat sink screws to the backside of the logic board."
*Sigh* Come on iFixit, get with it - the new thermal architecture is only on the Touch Bar model. :rolleyes:
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hustler1337 Avatar
114 months ago
Man, our family is sitting on 2 late 2011 MBP's and one 2014 retina, as well as several mini's that we use for media servers, web servers, and whatnot. I was really hoping that this release would bring something worthy of "Christmasing". After putting Crucial SSD's in place of my 5400 HDD's in my MBP's, I can't find one compelling reason to look at anything new at this point.

In other non-related news, I did pick up a 256GB Sim-free iP 7 Plus last week, and I have to say I'm loving the extra capacity and actually really starting dig the new style home button, so I'm not 100% down on Apple right now; just about 73%.
I'm still with my 2011 MacBook Pro and it's still a solid machine, using it day-in, day-out. Since putting in a Samsung Evo 850 SSD a few months ago, it feels like a new machine and runs very fast. Any performance improvements with the latest MacBook Pros aren't significant enough to warrant a new purchase for me especially when considering the price we have to pay for the 2016 models.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)