The 2015 MacBook Review
by Ryan Smith on April 14, 2015 10:15 AM ESTThe MacBook’s Usability
But by far the biggest question however is what all of this lends towards the usability of the new MacBook. With Apple developing a smaller form factor and then charging a premium price for it, whether it’s worth it is a perfectly legitimate question. And the answer to that question is that it depends.
We’ll get to the all-important performance considerations in a bit, but I want to start with design first. For something built for a new form factor like a MacBook I think it’s important to look at the overall design and whether it makes sense in the first place before even getting to the tradeoffs Apple made to get here.
The 2015 MacBook reminds me of the original MacBook Air in a lot of ways, and in fact that’s probably the biggest knock against it. In 2008 the MacBook Air was revolutionary, it created what we now know as the Ultrabook category and was so cutting edge that it contained an Intel Core CPU in a form factor that no one else could get at the time. Consequently the MacBook Air wasn’t just smaller than the MacBook or MacBook Pro, but it was a lot smaller than its larger, heavier predecessors.
Big & Little: MacBook & 27" iMac
The MacBook, by contrast, is not the same jump in size. Calculated against their respective thickest points, the new MacBook is still 73% of the volume of the 11” MacBook Air. Similarly, its 0.92Kg weight is 85% of the weight of said MacBook Air. This means that whereas the original MacBook Air was a very important jump for the Apple’s laptop line, the new MacBook doesn’t get the same benefit.
With that said, there is still a distinct difference between the MacBook and MacBook Air, one that likely doesn’t mean as much in numbers as it does in feel. On a personal note my travel laptop of choice is an Asus ZenBook UX21A, an 11” Ultrabook that is a dead-ringer for the 11” MacBook Air in size and weight. So having toted around the MacBook for the past week working on this review, I was surprised by just how different it felt from my 11” ZenBook. The ZenBook is already towards the light-end of the Ultrabook spectrum, and yet after carrying around the MacBook the ZenBook feels heavy. It may only be 20% heavier in practice, but just carrying the two in hand it certainly feels like it’s more than that.
Left: MacBook. Right: Asus 11" ZenBook Prime (UX21A)
For work purposes I have always favored the 11” Ultrabook for its size and weight. It’s easy to carry around and small enough to hold with one hand or to balance on one knee as situations dictate. And while it’s not perfect – 11” isn’t much screen real-estate and doesn’t allow for much of a keyboard – as an ultra-portable secondary computer for someone who already has a desktop, it fits my needs very well.
Which is why I was surprised by just how much I ended up liking the MacBook’s size and form factor. It’s smaller than an 11” Ultrabook and yet if anything it feels bigger when in use – perhaps due to the 16:10 screen – and the weight difference can really be felt. Before using the MacBook if you had asked me whether I would want an even smaller laptop I would have dismissed the notion, but after using the MacBook I have to stop and reconsider that position.
Ultimately I’m reminded a great deal of the launch of the original MacBook Air, where Apple specifically touted it as a travel computer for someone with more than one computer. For most people it’s smaller than what you’d want to use day-in and day-out, but as a travel laptop it’s great. Consequently the MacBook as it stands is an interesting alternative to the MacBook Air lineup; it fills a lot of the same roles, but it does so while being even thinner and lighter.
Top: MacBook. Middle: Asus 11" ZenBook Prime. Bottom: Surface Pro 3 w/Type Cover
That said, compared to a MacBook Air these size improvements don’t come for free. There are performance considerations to be had with the Core M processor, which we’ll get to in our look at system performance. The trade-off for thin and light is a similar reduction in performance, so even though the MacBook and MacBook Air overlap at times, they are separated by size versus performance.
Finally, we would be remiss in not covering the tablet/laptop crossover factor as well. The fact that Apple takes as many design cues as they do from the iPad – the colors, the focus on size, and the limited number of ports – is telling. I hesitate to say too much about the MacBook as an iPad alternative since these devices are still so different. But for someone wanting to step up from something like an iPad into a full sized, fully capable laptop computer, this is exactly what such a device might look like.
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az060693 - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
You will not be able to output 4k@60hz from the macbook; the intel graphics on the Core M series doesn't support it as per their specifications.BillBear - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
I'm not getting the extreme angst about the USB port.When I want to use multiple devices at once, I tend to be at my desk, whether at home or at work, where a simple USB hub solves the need for multiple ports.
Just because Monoprice doesn't have bog standard USB-C hubs yet doesn't mean there won't be a wide selection of them available soon.
Heck, I've even heard tell of USB docking stations that add features like audio/video out and wired Ethernet to the standard USB hub.
VengenceIsMine - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
I'm one of those disgusted by the single port and I'll explain my reasoning. The whole point of this device type is ease and portability. Unfortunately that is undermined if I need to tote around 2-3 dongles, which while light in weight, add up to more significantly more hassle. Additionally, while occasional, I still run into issues doing things like flashing phones or working with equipment that plugs in via USB that hubs cause compatibility issues. There really was no good reason to design this device with just the 1 USB port other than as a design statement, Samsung made practically an identical device with much more connectivity options. The Air is a great device, not because it is stylish but because it is eminently capable for meeting the needs of most computer users AND because it has great ergonomics and style. Unfortunately for a much larger % of people, through a combination of weaker performance AND design decisions to limit its utility via its connectivity this device will fail to meet the needs of many which is fine but it didn't have to which is rather aggravating. (so are the constantly crappy trackpads on PC's, it doesn't have to be like that)BillBear - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
If the primary thing you value is portability, you probably aren't going to be carrying around multiple devices that need to be plugged into your laptop constantly while you are on the go.VengenceIsMine - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
Actually I do carry around multiple phones but you incorrectly assume that all the devices I plug into are mine and that I carry them with me.BillBear - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
It's perfectly fine that you aren't in the target market, but Apple is betting that enough people are to make production worthwhile.That doesn't change the fact that a simple USB hub fixes the ports problem when you get home or to work where having multiple devices that need to be plugged in at once becomes a likely scenario.
VengenceIsMine - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
Wow, wear blinders much? Like a lot of the potential target market for an ultraportable device, I work in a lot of different places in the course of a month and lugging multiple dongles around seriously degrades the convenience of the form factor. It would be one thing if this was a necessary sacrifice but it wasn't, this was done because someone at Apple decided more than 1 port offended their delicate sensibilities. And to judge by the # of reviewers and comments who have pointed how much that can affect their potential use, it looks a lot like a needless blunder.BillBear - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
OK, so you're basically ignoring reality. The body of this unit is composed of keyboard and battery sandwiched together out to the edge. It's only on top of the keyboard that there is room for ports.Now they could have gotten rid of the two noise cancelling mics and audio in/out jack on the right side, but I suspect people have gotten pretty used to those features.
I imagine that if they had added a second USB port there instead and released a USB-C set of beats headphones and told people to buy those instead, there would have been even larger amounts of OMG Apple butthurt on display.
Dorek - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
The obvious solution is to make the laptop sliiiightly thicker so that they could put a USB-C *and* a 3.5mm jack on one side. Then they could fit extra battery as well. Thinness is only useful to a point.Dorek - Tuesday, April 14, 2015 - link
You don't think the average person walks around with, say, a cell phone and a USB drive? Or a microSD/SD card from their camera? I'd say literally everyone who could afford this computer walks around with at least one of those devices, and they won't be able to use them at all while they're charging.