[Quagmire]

Which is why I like LTT. Since they are not in Apple's good graces, they pay for their units. I remember the crap they went through with the iMac Pro after they broke it. Yeah they knew they were going to pay out of pocket for the repair, but Apple apparently refused to repair it? Heck I remember the BS SnazzyLabs went through with his iMac Pro.

[psmith2.0]

Okay, straight up...plain English, no car analogies, no overselling (I know what I need/use), etc.

How does the entry-level M1-based 13" MacBook Pro ($1,299 + $200 for the 16GB RAM, for a total of $1,499) stack up against the current Intel-based $1,799 model (part of those two higher-end models that didn't get the M1 yet).

I don't mean a side-by-side spec comparison - I can do that at Apple's site - but actual performance/speed, real world? If the two were placed side-by-side and doing all the things I'd be doing (Affinity Designer, Sketchup, Photos, Safari/Mail/Messages, some Garageband and iMovie usage, iTunes [or whatever it's now called in post-Mojave systems], etc.). Is the less expensive M1-based model going to really put it to the pricier Intel-based model to such a degree that the decision, solely between those two models, is a complete no-brainer?

I have no problem with just the two Thunderbolt ports (I keep a single USB cable plugged into my current Mac) and 256GB SSD (that's what I currently have and it's not even half filled)...all I'd be doing is upgrading to 16GB RAM.

But, performance-wise, I would imagine this M1 model is a good bit faster than the beefier, pricier Intel-based model still in the lineup at $1,799. Is this correct? Because while I know the two higher-end Intel models will eventually go to the M-based Apple stuff, leapfrogging the Intel ones they replace, I don't know if I need to wait for that (the two extra ports I'll never use and whatever else). A month or two ago, I was going to lay out $1,799 for that higher-end 13" MacBook Pro.

I'm never going to buy a new Mac that is Intel-based. And I have ZERO Windows installation/usage needs and any third-party stuff I use (Affinity Designer and Photos) is both Big Sur and M1-ready, so I have no reason to hang back on Intel-based Macs.

Is this new $1,299 M1-based model significantly faster/better than the current Intel-based $1,799 model that it should be a no-brainer decision, if I were pulling the trigger before the end of 2020? If I know I can get at least the same, if not much better, of a machine at $1,499 than $1,799, then that's what I'll do.

Someone tell me something...either conform, or dispute, the above.

[Brad]

For someone in your use case, Paul, if you have the cash burning a hole in your pocket and it's time to replace some hardware, the M1 systems should be a no-brainer. In all the real-world tests I've seen, native software is just as good if not faster on the M1s than their equivalent Intel counterparts.

The only reason someone in your shoes might want to wait is for the Adobe apps, that is, if you still have any. I've seen mixed reviews of their performance under Rosetta 2 emulation. They work fine, but performance-heavy users with large or complex files will likely notice a speed hit until they have truly native versions out (probably late next year).

If you're not hitched to the Adobe suite, which sounds like is the case, then there's your answer.

edit: well, the Rosetta performance concern also applies to other third-party apps like Affinity Designer and Sketchup which might not yet be fully ported. I see you mentioned Designer is M1-ready, but I couldn't find any supporting release notes in my own quick searches. Definitely check any apps you rely on for updates first!

edit, the second: I guess I didn't search hard enough: https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/apple-m1-chip-support/ and https://help.sketchup.com/en/sketchu...m-requirements

We have determined that SketchUp is running stably on the 'Apple Silicon' hardware that powers Apple’s 2021 Mac devices. Currently, SketchUp is supported by Apple’s Rosetta 2 translation service on this hardware. If you encounter issues running SketchUp on devices with Apple‘s M1 chip, please report them here..

[psmith2.0]

Thanks.

Yeah, the Affinity stuff is there already, no worries. My Sketchup usage is that free, web-based version (since they no longer offer the free downloadable one as before). I use it occasionally to flesh out a product or room/small house design, but the bulk of my time is in Affinity Designer, which has replaced Adobe Illustrator.

I no longer own/use any Adobe titles, so no issues/concerns there at all.

If this $1,299 model held its own against the $1,799 Intel-based one, that's what I'll get (because, before, the $1,299 Intel one didn't seem like that good of a buy, compared to the $1,799 version. So that was what I was trying to figure out, if performance/legs I was willing to spend $1,800 for two months ago, I can now get for $300 less just by being happy with the entry-level 13" model.

Thanks again for the input/help. I Google a lot of this stuff, but it's always a lot of numbers/scores and I can't always wrap my head around that as well as someone saying "well, it definitely equals (or surpasses), this, this and that Mac...".

[chucker]

Definitely up it to 16 GB; it’s just a better investment for the future. The SSD can be expanded externally anyway; the RAM cannot.

[turtle]

Yeah, what he said. Do the RAM. Cloud based storage and other external drives are available if the SSD gets tight. There is no option to expand the RAM later.

Edit: I'm actually thinking about the same M1 machine for Mrs T as a surprise. She doesn't need VMWare, but the M1 is solid for everything she does.

[kscherer]

Get the M1. Keep in mind that all those performance comparisons are with Intel machines running their fans like vacuum cleaners, while the M1's are essentially snoozing.

[psmith2.0]

Right.

No, I totally know to get the 16GB RAM for all the reasons given. I'd never, in 2020, get the base 8GB in anything...for years now. I had 3GB on my iMac for all those years, and this current 13" loaner has 8GB. I'd never consider anything less than 16GB.

So that (and storage, Thunderbolt quantity, etc.) are all things I'm set on/fine with, I was just wondering how that $1,299 M1-based 13" stacked up against the 2GHz Intel quad-core i5...better, similar, less, etc.