Apple MacBook Pro unibody 13-inch (Mid 2012) Pro Reviews

When my esteemed colleague Dabbsie reviewed the 2011 model last November he bemoaned the MacBook’s high price but concluded that it was justified as this was ‘the best bloody entry-level laptop in the world’. This year’s model is just as good, but the Windows PC competition is now catching up and, at this price, it’s hard to argue that it’s still the best.

The Apple MacBook Pro 13 Mid 2012 is, just like its predecessor, a powerful notebook with great battery life and outstanding build quality. But is has competition from two sides: the modern Ultrabooks on one, and Apple's own MacBook Air 13 Mid 2012 on the other. As the smallest member of the Pro-series, this notebook is supposed to deliver the correct balance between performance, mobility, and last but not least, price. We think that Apple doesn't quite hit the mark here. The MacBook Pro does feature a pretty powerful processor and can back up its performance claims with benchmark results. On the other hand, the included RAM is not really sufficient, considering this is a Pro model. At least for Mac OS, an increase in RAM should be considered. The same is true for the (fairly sedate) hard drive that Apple uses. A SSD would be a much better fit here and increase overall performance significantly. We find absolutely no issues with the workmanship. The build quality is just superb and very few competitors have notebooks that come close in that regard (and none have surpassed the MacBooks as far as build quality is concerned - at least not in our book). The keyboard is well suited for fast typing, even in the dark, since it features a backlight. The touchpad simply has no equal.

Equipped with a new Core i5 Ivy Bridge processor and Intel HD Graphics 4000, this year's MacBook Pro is a capable machine. Is it the highest-performing system out there? Nah -- and without discrete graphics or an SSD, that's hardly a surprise. This is a solid laptop, even with the entry-level specs, but if you can part ways with a bit more dough, you'll be a happier camper with a Core i7, SSD-equipped configuration. If your heart isn't set on the 13-inch form factor, you can always go for the 15-inch Pro, which is available with an NVIDIA GT 650M GPU, not to mention a higher-res display. More broadly, though, Apple's new MacBook Pro with Retina display has put a wrench in the company's otherwise straightforward lineup. If you're an OS X fan, you're no longer making a simple decision between the Air's portability and the Pro's graphics chops / ample storage -- a brilliant screen is vying for your dollars now, too. If your needs are fairly simple, just go for the Air: it's a faster performer, and your back will thank you. If you need discrete graphics and an optical drive (or just can't afford the Retina model), the Pro remains a solid bet.

The 2012 MacBook Pro is a pretty intriguing product. It’s the latest and last in a line of standard-setting notebooks that helped shape the direction of the notebook industry over the last 5 years. This design has been around for a while, accompanied by the same general specsheet formula: the latest Intel processors, a performance-class GPU, a high quality display panel, and a $1799 starting price. These things haven’t changed since the original Intel MacBook Pros from 2006 (with the exception of the odd low-end 2009 MBP15, which started at $1599 and came with an Nvidia 9400M IGP).

The Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (Mid 2012) gives us the familiar MacBook design with speedier performance and new faster USB 3.0 connections.

While the 13-inch MacBook Pro remains a well-built laptop, it's fallen behind the MacBook Air and Retina Display MacBook Pro in design, lacks higher-end upgrades, and feels too expensive compared with the competition.