The 2018 MacBook Pro Review: A Comprehensive Analysis
When it comes to laptops, having the right device can make all the difference in terms of productivity and performance. In this review, we'll take a closer look at the 2018 MacBook Pro, specifically the base model with an Intel Core i5 processor, as well as the upgraded Touch Bar model.
For those who have been following our channel, you may recall that I've been using my MacBook for work on a daily basis. However, when I'm not at the office, I often find myself looking for ways to increase productivity and organization. One of my favorite tools is the 5K monitor that connects and charges using a single Thunderbolt 3 cable, adding four more USB ports to connect devices to my MacBook. While the LG 5 case screen was an excellent option in the past, there are now plenty of less expensive USB C monitors available that offer similar functionality.
One of the most exciting features of the 2018 MacBook Pro is its Touch Bar, which has been updated with new features and specs. However, our experience with the original Touch Bar model has left us feeling underwhelmed. We've found ourselves using it less and less over time, opting for keyboard shortcuts instead whenever possible. The extra touchpad functionality can get in the way, making what was once a single key press into two or three steps. But with the updated Touch Bar model, we're excited to see if Apple has managed to address our concerns.
The new Touch Bar model comes equipped with a quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, which is clocked at the same speed as the base model but offers double the cores and a higher boost clock. This significant performance upgrade will be beneficial for users who engage in power-demanding tasks such as video and photo editing, rendering, and more.
In terms of graphics, both models are equipped with an Intel Iris + 640 GPU, which may seem like it doesn't offer much of a difference. However, we're excited to put the new model's specs to the test using OpenCL graphics testing tools. Results will be revealed in our upcoming video review.
But what really sets the Touch Bar model apart is its range of new features and updates. True Tone display technology provides an immersive viewing experience, while the updated keyboard is designed to keep dust out of the keys. The new speakers are also powered by Apple's T2 chip, which takes a load off the processor and enables Siri integration.
Perhaps one of the most exciting features of the 2018 MacBook Pro is its compatibility with Mac OS Mojave, which is set to arrive this September. With the Home app coming to the Mac, users will be able to control their smart home devices using Siri. For now, we're eager to dive into every single change that came with the new model.
In conclusion, while the base model of the 2018 MacBook Pro may seem like a cost-effective option at $500 cheaper than the Touch Bar model, we can't help but feel that the upgraded model offers too much value. The extremely low 128GB SSD is unrealistic for most users, and upgrading to a 256GB SSD only makes it three hundred dollars cheaper than the new Touch Bar model. If you're on a budget or don't need the extra performance, the base model will get the job done – but be aware of the limited storage space.
As we move forward with our review, we'll continue to provide more insights into the 2018 MacBook Pro and its various features. We've got a lot more content planned for you, including video reviews, price guides, and social media updates. Be sure to subscribe and enable notifications so you don't miss out on any of our latest videos and articles.
**Related Content**
* Check out our detailed long-term Touch Bar review
* Follow us on social media for the latest Apple news and deals
* Watch our upcoming video reviews, including in-depth analysis of the MacBook Pro's performance
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enApple has just released the brand-new 2018 MacBook Pro and one of the biggest questions is if the new 13-inch touch bar model is worth the extra 500 bucks over the base model will show you all of the differences so you can decide which one is right for you the most important thing to mention is at the base 13-inch model for $12.99 is completely unchanged from last year meaning that it's still packin Intel's seventh gen dual-core processor the new TouchSmart model for $17.99 has now been updated to intel's 8th gen quad-core processor so the performance differences should be pretty huge well do some performance tests later on in the video but first I want to talk about the storage the base model comes with 128 gigs of storage which is honestly very limiting sure you can upgrade to a 256 gigabyte SSD for $200 more but then you're only $300 behind the brand new updated MacBook Pro which already comes with the 256 gig SSD to make it even more interesting the 256 gig SSD is actually quite a bit faster than the 128 gig especially in write speeds where it's seeing almost double the speed now here's one of the biggest differences the base model only gets 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports compared to 4 on the touch bar model high-end users will likely need for our ports but for a lot of people - should be fine because of the flexibility of Thunderbolt 3 but that may mean using adapters a dock or use PC monitor when I'm on the go it's rather than they need more than 2 ports at once since the battery life is great the real port limitation comes with heavy use when I'm at the office however I have a 5 K monitor that connects and charges using a single Thunderbolt 3 cable and it also adds 4 more USB sea ports to connect devices to my macbook you don't have to spring for an expensive LG 5 case screen though there are now plenty of less expensive USB C monitors that can do the same some even provide regular USB ports as well you also have the option of a Thunderbolt 3 dock like the ODBC dock we reviewed that gives you a ton of ports and charges your MacBook if that's a bit too pricey for you a simple USBC adapter like this 8 and 1 will give you the most flexibility at a much lower price there's also the brand new Blackmagic a GPU which gives you an extra Thunderbolt 3 port and 4 USB C 3.1 ports for accessories if you don't know what click the card above to see how it works if you're going to use an e GPU the base 13-inch model is more likely to bottleneck the e GPUs performance thanks to the old dual-core CPU we'll be doing a lot more easy PU testing so make sure to subscribe and enable notifications and yes we're gonna be testing games in Windows 10 in bootcamp now for performance differences the touch bar model comes with the quad core IFI processor that's clocked at the same speed as the base model but it's obviously got double the cores and the boost clock is a bit higher so let's run Geekbench 4 to see the differences in single core tasks there isn't much of a difference between both models so if you're someone like a student who mostly just serves the web and does homework you won't notice much of a difference on the other hand the new touch bar model completely destroys the base model in terms of multi-core tasks so this will help anyone who does a lot of video and photo editing rendering or other power demanding tasks now moving on to graphics the new model is packing an intel iris + 6 v 5 GP you compared to the base models iris + 640 looking at the open CL graphics test results there honestly isn't not much of a difference now let's talk about the touch bar itself we've been using it since the MacBook redesigned in late 2016 at first we are excited and gave it a chance forcing ourselves to use it over time we used it less and less and now we've really only use it when we're forced to like standard brightness adjustments and other tasks that you would do with the standard top row of keys usually it's faster to just use keyboard shortcuts at times the extra touch for our menus actually get in the way making what was once a single key press into two or three steps on the plus side the touch bar comes with touch ID which is convenient for logging in and buying stuff with Apple pay after one and a half years we ended up calling the touch bar a gimmick if you want to see our detailed long-term touch bar review click the card above but now that the new touch for our model has been updated we think it's worth it for the spec updates and new features alone on top of that the touch bar model comes with a bunch of new features including true tone display technology an updated keyboard that's meant to keep dust out of the keys better speakers in Apple's t2 chip which takes a load off the processor in SSD while also enabling Siri making the new 2018 MacBook Pro the first Mac ever to support it to make it even better Mac OS Mojave is coming this September and is bringing the home app to the Mac so you'll be able to use Siri to control your home KITT devices if you want to see every single change that came with the new 2018 MacBook Pro you can click the card above so in conclusion now that the touch for our model has been updated with new features in a quad-core processor there is just too much value for us to recommend the 13-inch base model sure is $500 cheaper but the 128 gig SSD is seriously unrealistic and upgrading to a 256 gig SSD makes it only three hundred dollars cheaper than the new touch bar model now if you're on a budget or someone who doesn't need the extra performance the base model will definitely get the job done but you may struggle with the extremely low 128 gigs of storage let us know which model you think is better and why in the comments section below we've got a lot more 2018 MacBook Pro videos coming soon so make sure you subscribe and enable notifications so you don't miss out if you enjoyed this video like it and hit that subscribe button also check out a price guide which makes it extremely easy to find the best deals and Apple products updated daily be sure to follow us on social media and we'll see you in the next videoApple has just released the brand-new 2018 MacBook Pro and one of the biggest questions is if the new 13-inch touch bar model is worth the extra 500 bucks over the base model will show you all of the differences so you can decide which one is right for you the most important thing to mention is at the base 13-inch model for $12.99 is completely unchanged from last year meaning that it's still packin Intel's seventh gen dual-core processor the new TouchSmart model for $17.99 has now been updated to intel's 8th gen quad-core processor so the performance differences should be pretty huge well do some performance tests later on in the video but first I want to talk about the storage the base model comes with 128 gigs of storage which is honestly very limiting sure you can upgrade to a 256 gigabyte SSD for $200 more but then you're only $300 behind the brand new updated MacBook Pro which already comes with the 256 gig SSD to make it even more interesting the 256 gig SSD is actually quite a bit faster than the 128 gig especially in write speeds where it's seeing almost double the speed now here's one of the biggest differences the base model only gets 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports compared to 4 on the touch bar model high-end users will likely need for our ports but for a lot of people - should be fine because of the flexibility of Thunderbolt 3 but that may mean using adapters a dock or use PC monitor when I'm on the go it's rather than they need more than 2 ports at once since the battery life is great the real port limitation comes with heavy use when I'm at the office however I have a 5 K monitor that connects and charges using a single Thunderbolt 3 cable and it also adds 4 more USB sea ports to connect devices to my macbook you don't have to spring for an expensive LG 5 case screen though there are now plenty of less expensive USB C monitors that can do the same some even provide regular USB ports as well you also have the option of a Thunderbolt 3 dock like the ODBC dock we reviewed that gives you a ton of ports and charges your MacBook if that's a bit too pricey for you a simple USBC adapter like this 8 and 1 will give you the most flexibility at a much lower price there's also the brand new Blackmagic a GPU which gives you an extra Thunderbolt 3 port and 4 USB C 3.1 ports for accessories if you don't know what click the card above to see how it works if you're going to use an e GPU the base 13-inch model is more likely to bottleneck the e GPUs performance thanks to the old dual-core CPU we'll be doing a lot more easy PU testing so make sure to subscribe and enable notifications and yes we're gonna be testing games in Windows 10 in bootcamp now for performance differences the touch bar model comes with the quad core IFI processor that's clocked at the same speed as the base model but it's obviously got double the cores and the boost clock is a bit higher so let's run Geekbench 4 to see the differences in single core tasks there isn't much of a difference between both models so if you're someone like a student who mostly just serves the web and does homework you won't notice much of a difference on the other hand the new touch bar model completely destroys the base model in terms of multi-core tasks so this will help anyone who does a lot of video and photo editing rendering or other power demanding tasks now moving on to graphics the new model is packing an intel iris + 6 v 5 GP you compared to the base models iris + 640 looking at the open CL graphics test results there honestly isn't not much of a difference now let's talk about the touch bar itself we've been using it since the MacBook redesigned in late 2016 at first we are excited and gave it a chance forcing ourselves to use it over time we used it less and less and now we've really only use it when we're forced to like standard brightness adjustments and other tasks that you would do with the standard top row of keys usually it's faster to just use keyboard shortcuts at times the extra touch for our menus actually get in the way making what was once a single key press into two or three steps on the plus side the touch bar comes with touch ID which is convenient for logging in and buying stuff with Apple pay after one and a half years we ended up calling the touch bar a gimmick if you want to see our detailed long-term touch bar review click the card above but now that the new touch for our model has been updated we think it's worth it for the spec updates and new features alone on top of that the touch bar model comes with a bunch of new features including true tone display technology an updated keyboard that's meant to keep dust out of the keys better speakers in Apple's t2 chip which takes a load off the processor in SSD while also enabling Siri making the new 2018 MacBook Pro the first Mac ever to support it to make it even better Mac OS Mojave is coming this September and is bringing the home app to the Mac so you'll be able to use Siri to control your home KITT devices if you want to see every single change that came with the new 2018 MacBook Pro you can click the card above so in conclusion now that the touch for our model has been updated with new features in a quad-core processor there is just too much value for us to recommend the 13-inch base model sure is $500 cheaper but the 128 gig SSD is seriously unrealistic and upgrading to a 256 gig SSD makes it only three hundred dollars cheaper than the new touch bar model now if you're on a budget or someone who doesn't need the extra performance the base model will definitely get the job done but you may struggle with the extremely low 128 gigs of storage let us know which model you think is better and why in the comments section below we've got a lot more 2018 MacBook Pro videos coming soon so make sure you subscribe and enable notifications so you don't miss out if you enjoyed this video like it and hit that subscribe button also check out a price guide which makes it extremely easy to find the best deals and Apple products updated daily be sure to follow us on social media and we'll see you in the next video\n"
