Living with the 13″ Retina Macbook Pro: Two months later

Normally, my honeymoon phase with new tech products wears off after a few weeks, but it’s different this time around. I’m still every bit as smitten with my late 2014 Retina Macbook Pro 13″ model as I was when it was first gifted to me by my wife two months ago.

As I’ve written before, the new rMBP is a significant step up from my early 2008 Macbook Pro. Having worked with the new Mac laptop for a few months, I wanted to share some follow-up observations.

Moving from a 15″ Macbook Pro, I was initially concerned about giving up the extra 2″ of screen real estate. That concern all but faded within a few minutes of working on the rMBP, in no small part to the crystal clear rendering of text, UI and apps. Credit, of course, goes to the Retina display. (I’ll go so far to say that reverting to standard definition displays is now painful.)

The rMBP is noticeably lighter than my 2008 MBP, making it very pleasant to carry on my commutes to and from work. The trackpad on the rMBP is superb; especially since the button of yore is nicely integrated with the trackpad.

While the rMBP gets warm when I use it on my lap, it is not “thigh roasting hot” like my old laptop. I can now use my laptop while laying down on my couch, which is something I could only dream of doing with my old Macbook Pro.

Even with a new battery, my old Macbook Pro could hold a charge for only 2 hours at best. By contrast, I’m getting about 9 hours on a single battery charge with the rMBP, which is pretty incredible. Due to the long battery life, I’ve gotten into the habit of leaving my power charger at home during the day. It’s quite liberating.

What a difference six years makes. Two months in, I’m pleased as punch that I moved to a new Macbook Pro. Here’s hoping that the honeymoon continues.

-Krishna