12" MacBook (2017)

[Eug]

The 12" MacBook release is imminent, likely in the coming month (May 2017).

The facts are that the 11" MacBook Air is already gone, and the 13" MacBook Air hasn't seen an update in over two years (March 2015). I suspect this means that when the 12" MacBook is updated, the 13" MacBook will be discontinued. This goes along with a claim from someone a while back saying Apple was retiring the "Air" branding both on the iPad side and on the MacBook side. That has already proven to be accurate for the iPad.

Currently the 13" MacBook Air is priced as follows:

1.6 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
Turbo Boost up to 2.7 GHz
Intel HD Graphics 6000
8GB memory
128GB PCIe-based flash storage
US$999 / CAD$1199

1.6 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
Turbo Boost up to 2.7 GHz
Intel HD Graphics 6000
8GB memory
256GB PCIe-based flash storage
US$1199 / CAD$1449

Currently the 12" MacBook is priced as follows:

256GB PCIe-based onboard flash storage
1.1 GHz dual-core
Intel Core m3 processor
Turbo Boost up to 2.2 GHz
8GB memory
Intel HD Graphics 515
US$1299 / CAD$1649

256GB PCIe-based onboard flash storage
1.2 GHz dual-core
Intel Core m5 processor
Turbo Boost up to 2.7 GHz
8GB memory
Intel HD Graphics 515
US$1599 / CAD$1999

Hopefully, along with this 2017 12" MacBook release, it will see a price drop, although that might be optimistic. I'd like to see:

256 GB SSD
1.0 GHz m3-7Y30
Turbo Boost up to 2.6 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1199 / CAD$1499

512 GB SSD
1.2 GHz i5-7Y54
Turbo Boost up to 3.2 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1499 / CAD$1899

This would essentially eliminate the <$1000 category for Apple laptops, which is why I'm not 100% certain of the pricing tiers. Will Apple be willing to give up this group of customers (students)? Also, I'm not entirely sure how they want to position this vs. the MacBook Pro. Currently the cheapest MacBook Pro is US$1499 / CAD$1899 which overlaps the 12" MacBook line, but then again, that's for the crippled MacBook Pro. The true full fledged MacBook Pro is actually US$1799 / CAD$2299.

I am also hopeful that the new 12" MacBook will gain one additional USB-C port, but I am not expecting it, as it serves as a product differentiator vs. the MacBook Pro line. However, I am optimistic the 12" MacBook could get Thunderbolt support.

tl;dr:

I think the 12" MacBook will be released in May 2017, and the MacBook Air line will be discontinued. Along with the 12" MacBook release, I am thinking/hopeful the pricing will decrease slightly to partially fill the pricing void.

 

[Cappuccino]

So which one do I get? The 12" MacBook in May 2017 or the older ones? Worth paying the extra for the new release version or?

edit - nvm this is not the macbook pro is it?

 

[Eug]

So which one do I get? The 12" MacBook in May 2017 or the older ones? Worth paying the extra for the new release version or?

In the UK? Well, if you don't want the new features, then the refurb 2016 Skylake models are decently priced. Even better priced are the used IBM-warrantied models available in Canada (and I think in the US). Very inexpensive, with 15-month IBM warranty. However, I am strongly leaning towards the 2017 Kaby Lake models, with the hope that they'll drop the pricing a bit with this new release too, as they discontinue the MacBook Air.

Some of the advantages of the 2017 MacBook over the 2016 MacBook:

1) Faster. In fact, for the mid-tier there is no longer an m5 in 2017. It will be called i5. However, the 2017 m3 will almost compete speed-wise against the 2016 m5.
2) Full hardware 8-bit and 10-bit V9 decode. (Skylake has hybrid 8-bit decode only software 10-bit decode.)
3) Full hardware 8-bit and 10-bit HEVC h.265 decode. (Skylake has hardware 8-bit decode and hybrid 10-bit decode.)
4) Full hardware 8-bit VP9 encode. (Skylake is only software.)
5) Full hardware 8-bit and 10-bit HEVC h.265 encode. (Skylake is has partial 8-bit encode and only software 10-bit encode.)
6) Probable 4K DRM support, although it may take a new version of macOS to get this. Netflix 4K would leverage this. (2016 Skylake models will never get this.)
7) Possible Thunderbolt 3 support.

The disappointment is that it likely won't get HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2 support, so don't expect to watch 4K Netflix on an external monitor or projector from a 2017 MacBook.

Also, hopefully they've gotten the keyboard kinks worked out in the new 2017 models.

 

[Cappuccino]

Thanks senpai! I think I get the new mac book pro

 

[Eug]

Damn. May is already 1/3rd gone. Where is the new MacBook 12-inch?

I was using my 2009 Core 2 Duo 2.26 GHz MacBook Pro on the road and it was at times painful just surfing. It seems some of those multimedia-rich pages really can bring these old computers to their knees. Mind you, some of that was ads. I've turned on ad blocking on some browsers just for performance reasons. The advertisers would see a lot less ad blocking if their ads weren't so damn bloated.

Back on topic... I was expecting/hoping the MacBook would be out by the 2nd week of May, but no dice. Will they wait for WWDC? The keynote is June 5, at 1 pm ET.

FWIW, Core i5-7Y54 Kaby Lake gets 3425 in PassMark, whereas my Core 2 Duo P8400 Penryn gets 1462 in PassMark. That means with this very limited test, the Core i5 is roughly 2X to 2.5X as fast as the Core 2 Duo (although the Core i5-7Y54 has much more variability, with some getting well over 4000 I believe). Interestingly, the single-thread score of Core i5-7Y54 is just under 1300, or basically exactly the same as the single-thread score of my desktop 2010 2.93 GHz Core i7 870 Lynnfield.

 

[Eug]

If they do delay the MacBook 12-inch Kaby Lake update until WWDC in June, one can only hope this means they'll announce alongside it support for Netflix 4K and full macOS 10.13 access to the hardware for 10-bit HEVC and 10-bit VP9 decoding. Hey, maybe they'll even officially support hardware encoding as well.

The main thing I worry about though are the draconian HEVC royalty requirements.

 

[Eug]

Bloomberg claims they're coming in June at WWDC, and also suggests the Air might stick around for a bit longer:

Apple Plans Laptop Upgrades to Take on Microsoft

Apple Inc. plans to announce an update to its laptop lineup at an annual conference for app developers in early June, a move that could help offset new competition from Microsoft Corp. as well as declining iPad sales.

Apple is planning three new laptops, according to people familiar with the matter. The MacBook Pro will get a faster Kaby Lake processor from Intel Corp., said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss internal planning. Apple is also working on a new version of the 12-inch MacBook with a faster Intel chip. The company has also considered updating the aging 13-inch MacBook Air with a new processor as sales of the laptop, Apple’s cheapest, remain surprisingly strong, one of the people said.

---

BTW, not sure if this is meaningless or not, but the timing seems similar. Xiaomi is clearing out its 12" Core m3 based Skylake units now, and pre-orders have started for a June release for Kaby Lake Y models.

 

[Blackjack200]

Wow, a processor refresh for the MBP barely six months after the launch? I feel stupid for buying mine now.

 

[Eug]

Wow, a processor refresh for the MBP barely six months after the launch? I feel stupid for buying mine now.

Yeah, I have to wonder about that, but they've done it before.

If you don't need the video improvements then your MacBook Pro is probably fine, but if you wanted the video improvements then you should have waited. Then again, not everyone can wait, and many would have expected the wait for a new MBP might have been a year (despite the fact the U-series Kaby Lake chips were due out Q1 2017).

Bloomberg's info seems remarkably mundane though. Basically, it could be a wild guess based on existing roadmaps and the timing of the WWDC event, given the little they've said. However, I posted the article because they claim they actually have inside info.

 

[Blackjack200]

I'm not really angry, the video features of Kaby Lake are not important to me. I'm just amused that they took so long to refresh the old MacBook pros and now they're refreshing them again almost immediately while other products like the Mac Mini languish.

 

[Eug]

This is not the Y series, but it is interesting nonetheless since it's a low end Core i3 U chip, Skylake vs Kaby Lake.

Granted, this is a torture test, but it's remarkable how easily and smoothly it plays on the Kaby Lake system. OTOH, on the Skylake system, the video is essentially unwatchable.

 

[JAG87]

This is not the Y series, but it is interesting nonetheless since it's a low end Core i3 U chip, Skylake vs Kaby Lake.

Granted, this is a torture test, but it's remarkable how easily and smoothly it plays on the Kaby Lake system. OTOH, on the Skylake system, the video is essentially unwatchable.

Anyone who thinks 10bit HEVC hardware decoding is not an important feature today, will eat their hat in 12-24 months.

Unless something miraculous happens with AV1, 10bit HEVC will become the standard for all streamed video, in all resolutions. The improvements in quality and bandwidth savings are incredible compared to 8bit AVC and VP9. It's not only for 4K HDR, it enables 720p and 1080p to be streamed at extremely low bit rates with (relatively) excellent quality. Hardware decoding is imperative in 2017, it's especially imperative on low-end battery driven devices. Actually it should have been imperative last year, but Intel slacked.

And I'm not even going to bring up the DRM side of things.

 

[Eug]

Anyone who thinks 10bit HEVC hardware decoding is not an important feature today, will eat their hat in 12-24 months.

Unless something miraculous happens with AV1, 10bit HEVC will become the standard for all streamed video, in all resolutions. The improvements in quality and bandwidth savings are incredible compared to 8bit AVC and VP9. It's not only for 4K HDR, it enables 720p and 1080p to be streamed at extremely low bit rates with (relatively) excellent quality. Hardware decoding is imperative in 2017, it's especially imperative on low-end battery driven devices. Actually it should have been imperative last year, but Intel slacked.

And I'm not even going to bring up the DRM side of things.

It seems like YouTube will stick with VP9 (until AV1 is viable), despite the efficiency advantages of HEVC over VP9. But that only strengthens your argument in a way, because Skylake's support of VP9 is even worse than its support of HEVC, whereas Kaby Lake supports playback of both VP9 and HEVC quite well. The same can be said for web browsers. VP9 is the belle of the browser ball, while HEVC skipped the ball almost entirely, because nobody invited it.

As people have said in other threads, AV1's spec won't even be finalized for another half year, which means it won't be fully supported in hardware on laptop CPUs any time soon. Given my primary laptop is already 8 years old, I'm not prepared to wait that long for hardware AV1. My original plan was to get a new machine in 2016, but then I realized that Skylake was missing all those video features, so I stuck it out one more year. It sounds like full 10-bit AV1 hardware support in Intel CPUs might mean 2019 or later.

 

[Eug]

Some Macs (incl. desktops?) and 4 iPads coming, among other things.

http://consomac.fr/news-6702-de-nouveaux-macs-et-ipad-en-juin.html

 

[Eug]

 

[Eug]

I was in the Apple Store today and they woman there said the MacBook and Pros had arrived, but hadn't been sorted out and opened yet. Expect to see them on display very, very soon.

So I checked out the 2016 model MacBook vs. the 2016 model MBP (Touch and non-Touch), and the keyboard on the Pros was just that much better. I thought so last year, and again reaffirmed that today.

However, the good news is that the new MacBooks have the new Butterfly 2 keyboard that the 2016 (and 2017) MBPs have. I wasn't sure how much that was just marketing, but according to some hands-on previews, the 2017 MacBook has a much improved keyboard vs 2015 and 2016. If really true, that alone is worth the extra cost IMO.

cnet: https://www.cnet.com/products/apple-macbook-12-inch-2017/preview/

The biggest complaint I heard over and over again about the 12-inch MacBook was that its superflat keyboard just never felt entirely right. It lacked tactile feedback and the keys were too different from the standard island-style keys found on nearly every other laptop in existence.

When the MacBook Pro series adopted a similar flat keyboard last year, it at least had an improved butterfly mechanism (the x-shaped trigger under the individual keys on the keyboard), which made the typing experience feel more substantial, even if some people still preferred the old-style traditional MacBook Pro keyboard.

Now the 12-inch MacBook has adopted that improved second-gen butterfly mechanism from the Pro line. Even using it in just a few initial typing sessions, I can totally tell the difference -- there's a click and spring to the keyboard that was lacking before.

As someone who has typed hundreds of thousands of words across both previous generations of the 12-inch MacBook, I'm very pleasantly surprised by how good this keyboard feels.

However, The Verge was not as positive. They do agree the keyboard is improved, but not by a huge amount.

The Verge: https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/7/1...keyboard-intel-core-i5-i7-kaby-lake-processor

I can tell you a little about the keyboard. Beyond the processor, it’s the only other thing Apple’s changed. The keys have a slightly updated butterfly mechanism compared to last year’s model — they’re more similar to the keys on the MacBook Pro now. That doesn’t mean that they have a ton more key travel, though, because they feel about the same to me. I think I prefer the newer keyboard; it’s a little less clacky and the keys feel a little softer as you press down, but there’s still a satisfying click when you hit them. The finish is a little more matte, and Apple added the proper symbols above the Control and Option keys.

That’s a lot of words for a keyboard that, like the processors, isn’t likely to change the basic equation for most people. It’s slightly better than before. I like it, but then I am also a fan of the keyboard on last year’s MacBook (and many people are not).

 

[Eug]

Hopefully, along with this 2017 12" MacBook release, it will see a price drop, although that might be optimistic. I'd like to see:

256 GB SSD
1.0 GHz m3-7Y30
Turbo Boost up to 2.6 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1199 / CAD$1499

512 GB SSD
1.2 GHz i5-7Y54
Turbo Boost up to 3.2 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1499 / CAD$1899

I totally missed this on launch day, but Apple is NOT using the m3-7Y30. They are using the m3-7Y32, which was released April 2017. And for both those machines they have increased the base clock speed by 100 MHz (with slightly increased TDP?) and significantly increased the Turbo speed too, which means this is the current configuration:

256 GB SSD
1.2 GHz m3-7Y32
Turbo Boost up to 3.0 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1299 / CAD$1729

512 GB SSD
1.2 GHz i5-7Y54
Turbo Boost up to 3.2 GHz
8 GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 615
US$1599 / CAD$1999

This actually represents a HUGE increase in performance of the m3 model compared to the 2016 version.

The 2016 m3 version is 1.1 GHz with Turbo to 2.2 GHz.
The 2017 m3 version is 1.2 GHz with Turbo to 3.0 GHz.

The base clock speed has only changed by 100 MHz, but the turbo clock speed has changed by a whopping 800 MHz, or 36%.

BTW, I'm currently just surfing with a couple of Chrome Windows and Activity Monitor and Mail open, and I'm using almost 7 GB RAM. So, I think for future-proofing I will want 16 GB RAM.

 

[Eug]

1. I ordered the 2017 m3 MacBook with 256 GB SSD and 16 GB RAM.

2. iFixit has done their 2017 m3 MacBook teardown.

Intel SR346 Intel Core m3-7Y32 Processor (4M Cache, up to 3.00 GHz)

Toshiba TH58XGT0JFLLDVK 128 GB NAND Flash (+ 128 GB on the reverse side for a total of 256 GB)

• Rumor has it that the second gen butterfly mechanism inherited from the Pro makes this MacBook way more usable—so what's inside?
  
• Comparing the space gray "new" keyboard to the rose gold MacBook of yesteryear, we can see:
  • The mechanical switch that detects the keystroke is a simpler rounder dome, not the fancy 'x' shape it once was.
    
  • The plastic butterfly mechanism also accommodates the new switch, swapping to a new, slightly thinner frame.
• While not really a mechanical change, the control and option keys got some new ink. They now mark keyboard shortcuts rather than translating for PC users.

 

[quikah]

I totally missed this on launch day, but Apple is NOT using the m3-7Y30. They are using the m3-7Y32, which was released April 2017. And for both those machines they have increased the base clock speed by 100 MHz (with slightly increased TDP?) and significantly increased the Turbo speed too, which means this is the current configuration:

The 7Y32 has a configurable base clock up to 1.6 GHz. The TDP of the base at 1.1 is 4.5W, the TDP at 1.6GHz is 7W. Maybe about 5W or so if it is linear increase.

Thank god they changed the keyboard, the original was unusable. Though I do still hate the new MacBook Pro keyboard in meetings, the clicking drives me batty, thankfully most people are considerate enough to not be tapping away during a meeting.

 

[Eug]

Nice. It would seem all of the new MacBooks should have HDCP 2.2 support now. The old ones don't and even the earlier versions of the same CPUs didn't, meaning if Apple released the new Kaby Lake MacBooks last Xmas like some PC vendors did with their Kaby Lake Y machines, they wouldn't have HDCP 2.2.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-615.174029.0.html

The revised video engine now supports H.265/HEVC Main10 profile in hardware with 10 bit colors. Furthermore, Googles VP9 codec can also be hardware decoded. The first models do not support HDCP 2.2 and therefore Netflix 4K. This was added with the new models in 2017 and beginning of May 2017 also the older CPU models like the m3-7Y30 are now shipped with a new S-Spec Code that supports HDCP 2.2. HDMI 2.0 however is still only supported with an external converter chip (LSPCon).

 

[ViRGE]

Nice. It would seem all of the new MacBooks should have HDCP 2.2 support now. The old ones don't and even the earlier versions of the same CPUs didn't, meaning if Apple released the new Kaby Lake MacBooks last Xmas like some PC vendors did with their Kaby Lake Y machines, they wouldn't have HDCP 2.2.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-615.174029.0.html

The revised video engine now supports H.265/HEVC Main10 profile in hardware with 10 bit colors. Furthermore, Googles VP9 codec can also be hardware decoded. The first models do not support HDCP 2.2 and therefore Netflix 4K. This was added with the new models in 2017 and beginning of May 2017 also the older CPU models like the m3-7Y30 are now shipped with a new S-Spec Code that supports HDCP 2.2. HDMI 2.0 however is still only supported with an external converter chip (LSPCon).

But what are you going to do with HDCP 2.2 when you don't have HDMI 2.0 support?

 

[Eug]

But what are you going to do with HDCP 2.2 when you don't have HDMI 2.0 support?

It doesn't actually say in the specs, but this page suggests HDMI 2.0 is indeed supported, if you have the right adapter and a 2016 ot 2017 MacBook. The adapter Apple has been selling only supports HDMI 1.4b though. Also, the 2015 is not supported.

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT206587

HDMI
You can use 4K displays and Ultra HD TVs at the following resolutions and refresh rates via the built-in HDMI port of your Mac:

• 
  
  • 3840x2160 at 30Hz refresh rate
  • 4096x2160 at 24Hz refresh rate (mirroring is not supported at this resolution)

With macOS 10.12 or later, MacBook (2015 and later) and MacBook Pro (2016 and later) support these resolutions and refresh rates over HDMI 1.4b using the USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter:

• 
  
  • 4096x2304 at 48Hz refresh rate
  • 3840x2160 at 60Hz refresh rate (mirroring is not supported at this resolution)

MacBook (2016 and later) and MacBook Pro (2016 and later) support 60Hz refresh rates over HDMI when used with a supported HDMI 2.0 display, an HDMI Premium Certified cable, and a supported USB-C to HDMI 2.0 adapter.

Edit:

The other issues are whether or not Apple chooses to expose this new HDCP 2.2 support to third party adapters, and finding a third party adapter that supports both HDCP 2.2 and HDMI 2.0. I looked around briefly and found ones that do HDMI 2.0 but not HDCP 2.2. However, it seems this support is very new so there is hope both will be supported eventually with the right hardware, but only with the 2017 MacBook or later.

 

[Eug]

So it looks like there are actually three different Kaby Lake Y Core m3 chips. Luckily Apple only uses the best one.

m3-7Y30 SR2ZY
m3-7Y30 SR347
me-7Y32 SR346

SR2ZY was released August last year. It has Turbo up to 2.6 GHz. It does NOT support HDCP 2.2.

SR347 was released April of this year, and also has Turbo up to 2.6 GHz. It supports HDCP 2.2.

SR346 is the one used in MacBooks, and was also released April of this year. It has Turbo up to 3.0 GHz, and it also supports HDCP 2.2.

 

[Eug]

I posted this elsewhere, but held off posting here until the end of the weekend to get more entries. However it seems the numbers have largely held, and there still are no entries for the new i7.

GeekBench 4 for new Kaby Lake Y m3 and i5 MacBook:

https://browser.primatelabs.com/v4/cpu/3047596
https://browser.primatelabs.com/v4/cpu/3059404

m3-7Y32: 3901 / 7075
i5-7Y54: 3866 / 7319
(There are no entries for the 2017 i7 yet.)

Note that a lot of the m3 single core scores are more in the 3700-3800 range. Still, that means the i5 improvement is marginal at best over this year's m3, with only a single digit percentage difference in performance, likely barely noticeable at best. However, the 2017 m3 is an enormous improvement over previous years.

2015 MacBook Core M-5Y31: 2791/4924
2015 MacBook Core M-5Y51: 3033/5759
2015 MacBook Core M-5Y71: 3314/6176

2016 MacBook Core m3-6Y30: 2969/5582
2016 MacBook Core m5-6Y54: 3349/6481
2016 MacBook Core m7-6Y75: 3740/7373

Basically this means that at least according to this bench, the 2017 m3 is 40-45% faster than the 2015 m3, and about 25-30% faster than the 2016 m3.

The 2017 m3 is about 15% faster than the 2015 m7 too. Furthermore, the 2017 m3 is roughly 10-15% faster than the 2016 m5, and is similar in speed to the 2016 m7, actually beating it in single core speed and losing by a small margin for multi-core.

For reference, my current MacBook Pro is a Core 2 Duo 2.26 GHz P8400, and that only gets 1565/2653.

 

[Fir]

I have the 2015 model. I like its size and having no fan. The battery has around 200 cycles and showing 84% health which I think is rather alarming since my original rmbp from 2012 with 550 cycles is around 90%.

In any case, the 2015 12" is slow especially compared to my 15" mbp 2016 model with touch bar!

I normally wouldn't care but seeing they put a dual core i7 in the higher end with 16GB RAM sure looks promising.

Is the i7 model still fanless? That would be outstanding because I hardly use my SP4 for that reason. That little whining fan drives me nuts.

Oh and the speakers on the 12" macbook are outstanding for such a tiny laptop. I'm sure the 2017 models are just as good. (fingers crossed)