It’s finally here. After some murmurs on Twitter this morning that today was the day, Apple dropped a refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pro, complete with new Magic Keyboard and a bump to its specs.
The new 13-inch Pro is available starting today on Apple’s website. All four configurations feature a quad-core processor, a 13-inch Retina Display, Touch Bar and Touch ID. While the base $1,999 and $2,299 models sport an 8th generation processor, the two more expensive models give you the option of Intel’s latest 10th gen 10nm chips and start at $2,999.
[referenced url=”https://gizmodo.com.au/2020/05/new-macbook-pro-13-inch-australia-price-specs-magic-keyboard/” thumb=”https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/new-macbook-pro-australia-410×231.jpg” title=”How Much Apple’s New 13-Inch MacBook Pro Costs In Australia” excerpt=”Apple dropped its brand new 13-inch MacBook Pro overnight, which is exciting because the dreaded butterfly keyboard is now finally dead. For real. In its place you’ll find the newer Magic Keyboard which has previously been added to the 16-inch MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air. Today is a good day. If you’re keen to get your paws on the new laptop, here’s how much it will set you back in Australia.”]
Apple says in its release that it should translate to 2.8 times faster performance compared to the last 13-inch Pro, which was powered by a 14nm dual-core U-series processor. The new 13-inch also gets a boost up to 16GB of RAM for certain standard configurations, with the ability to upgrade up to 32GB.
With Intel’s 10nm 10th-gen processor it can also promise faster graphics performance with an updated integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics chip for 4K video editing and the ability for users to connect to Pro Display XDR at 6K resolution.
As with the new MacBook Air, Apple’s decided to double the storage on the 13-inch Pro, bumping it up to 256GB standard on the devices with 8th-gen processors and 4TB at the max. The cheapest MacBook Pro with a 10th-gen processor is equipped with 512GB SSD standard.
The new 13-inch is also following the same playbook as the latest 16-inch and the Air, featuring the new scissor-switch Magic Keyboard. That means the physical escape key is back, along with the new “inverted-T” shape for the arrow keyboards.
One thing that didn’t come to pass were rumours that Apple was planning on changing the screen size to 14 inches—though it’s still possible that the rumoured 14.1-inch model might pop up sometime later this year. As for the screen itself, Apple says it’s got 500 nits of brightness, and its True Tone tech.
Despite the global pandemic, the 13-inch Pro is the latest in a series of new product launches. Earlier in March, the company dropped the refreshed Macbook Air along with the new iPad Pro, followed soon after by the cheaper iPhone SE.
[referenced url=”https://gizmodo.com.au/2020/05/apple-iphone-se-review/” thumb=”https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/iphone-SE-header-image-1-410×231.jpg” title=”Apple’s iPhone SE Australian Review: It’s Bloody Good” excerpt=”Last year, Google turned the mid-range phone market on its head by introducing the ludicrously-priced and well-specced Pixel 3a. A few other brands have followed suit since then, but none have been quite as exciting as the new iPhone SE. Now it truly seems like flagship inclusions at lower price points are here to stay – and it’s about damn time. The trend of $1,500 – $2,000 becoming the norm for new phones over the last few years has been bad for buyers. A new middle ground has been long overdue and we welcome it. But is the resurrected iPhone SE actually a good phone to buy in 2020?”]
And if rumours are to believed, the refreshes aren’t quite done yet. While it’s more than likely its flagship 2020 iPhone will be late this year, there’s a good chance we’ll also see some new AirPods, followed by some Arm-based MacBooks in 2021.
If you don’t want to wait on reviews and are trying to figure out which of these MacBook Pros to upgrade to, we’d point to the $2,999 one with a 10th-generation Intel processor, updated graphics, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB SSD. But again, waiting to see how it really compares to its predecessors is a better idea.