I had a 2009 13" MBP before it recently died on me. I replaced my old one with this one, expecting the extra screen size to make it heftier in my book bag. NO. This laptop is super light, very thin, and it turns on within seconds because of its onboard flash memory. I bought it directly from Amazon.com, saving myself an extra $100 compared to the Apple price, and getting it within two days (which really helped for school!).
I love this laptop so much. Literally everything is perfect about it. Currently, I have it dual-booted for OS X Yosemite and Windows 8.1. I've run into no major problems except for initially trying to encrypt my hard drive and then run bootcamp (tip: don't do that!). Seeing as that is a software glitch, I'll let it slide for this review. Some other laptop downsides were the lack of an ethernet port and the lack of a DVD drive. This MBP compensates by providing you with an HDMI port, 2 USB 3.0 ports, and 2 lightning ports.
Read/ Write speeds are phenomenal with the built-in flash memory. Programs download and install rapidly. They open up lightning quick. Even in Windows, the immense speed of this computer is evident.
Graphics are great. I've only tested the graphics on a CAD program in Windows (Creo Parametric 2.0) and Runescape in Yosemite, but it works superbly with both. With Runescape, I was able to run the game at full frame rate and 1080p graphics. I had no issues with pixel scaling. In Creo, there was no lag whatsoever.
The retina display is something you didn't know you need. Before I bought this computer, I thought it was an unnecessary luxury. I was wrong. I use my laptop for a lot more web browsing these days, a lot more news reading, and now I can actually enjoy writing reports. Whenever you open any file on your Retina MBP, what you see on your screen is pretty much what it's going to look like on paper when you print it out. It's great.
I give this a 5/5 all around for its speed, high quality, beauty, excellent battery life, and the nice feeling of satisfaction it leaves inside of me everything I use it.
| Standing screen display size | 15 Inches |
|---|---|
| Max Screen Resolution | 2880x1800 pixels |
| Processor | 2.2 GHz core_i7 |
| RAM | 16 GB DDR3L |
| Memory Speed | 1600 MHz |
| Hard Drive | 256 GB PCIe-based Flash |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Intel Iris Pro Graphics |
| Chipset Brand | Intel |
| Card Description | Integrated |
| Wireless Type | 802.11n, 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11ac, 802.11g |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 14 Hours |
