MacBook Pro 13 2019: Apple Delivers Always Excellent Computer

Presentation

The 13-inch MacBook Pro is Apple's leading figure in computing. Symbol of the Cupertino firm's know-how in terms of design and innovation, it also wants to offer a certain power to its users, unlike the MacBook Air with more modest characteristics.

During the summer, Apple has released new versions of its computers. The most affordable model of the 13 "MacBook Pro gets an Intel Core i5-8257U, a chip that should be a little more energy efficient than the Core i5-8259U used on the previous generation, but just as powerful Likewise, all models are now equipped with the famous Touch Bar, a long Oled screen complementing the keyboard.

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Construction

No change in the chassis of this MacBook Pro, identical to the previous version. It is always free from major defects, with an impeccable finish. The chassis is "unibody" (that is to say designed in one piece) in aluminum with a design as simple as it is efficient, the trademark of Apple. It has a thickness of 15 mm, which does not make it one of the thinnest on the market, but what remains very honest on an ultraportable. Small flat, it is very complicated to disassemble the computer and impossible to replace the SSD. However, Apple's after-sales service is very effective in the event of a problem.

One of the novelties of the recent line of MacBook Pro is the arrival of the Touch Bar on all models, when it was only an option before. This long Oled screen runs the entire length of the computer and serves as an extension to the keyboard, allowing not only to display the Fn commands, but also different shortcuts depending on the application used. For example, it allows you to adjust the sound and displays a navigation bar when watching a video. For the sake of saving battery power, it turns off when the user does not need it, but turns on immediately when touched.

Convergence of Apple products requires, the Touch Bar can also display the commands of an iPhone if the user has one. On the far right of this long Oled screen is the Touch ID button, which allows you to unlock the product by fingerprint, or even pay online. A sensor that works perfectly and which, according to Apple, is secure. For the moment, nothing seems to be able to affirm the contrary.

The butterfly keyboard is similar in design to that of the previous version of the MacBook Pro, which had corrected the reliability problems of the 2017 models. The specialized site iFixit nevertheless specifies that the materials used are no longer the same on this edition of 2019. A keyboard with an extremely short stroke which should no longer get stuck after a few months thanks to the presence of a thin membrane located under the keys . The typing sensation does not change, remaining very pleasant, but will require time to adapt for the unaccustomed. The layout of the keys is exemplary and should be the norm on all computers on the market. Finally, the extremely large trackpad is extremely effective and responds to the user's finger and eye, aided by a suitable macOS. Double clicking or scrolling is a real pleasure.

Regarding the connectivity, Apple chooses minimalism with two USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 ports (one of which is used for charging) and a headphone jack. Limited connectivity, but completely assumed by Apple.

In terms of heating and noise, the MacBook Pro 13 is doing very well. During our usual test protocol (Unigine Heaven benchmark for one hour), the computer is mounted at 44 ° C on the ventilation grille, located between the keyboard and the screen, and at 41 ° C under the chassis. Conditions that the user will have little chance of meeting during an ultra-mobile use, but which will still allow him to work serenely with his MacBook Pro on his knees. The heating is accompanied by a small discreet whistle, measured at 39 dB - its presence will only annoy the user if he is in a completely silent room.

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Screen

The 2019 MacBook Pro 13 has a 13.3-inch (33.8 cm diagonal) screen with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 px with True Tone technology, which allows dynamic temperature management. Apple did not bet on the sharpness of the edges of the screen, however the screen / front ratio of 82% is very correct, being a little above the current average between 75% and 80%.

The MacBook Pro 13 delivers very good results, with a contrast at 1240: 1 and very deep blacks. The average delta E has been calculated at 1.5 (3 being the threshold beyond which the human eye can perceive a difference between the displayed color and the real color; NDRL), a perfect score which demonstrates scrupulous respect for colors displayed on the slab. An ideal screen for those wishing to do photo editing, for example. Finally, the temperature calculated by us is 6,910 K, which is quite close to 6,500 K of the video standard. However, this latter data was measured with True Tone disabled, and therefore is of little importance. Indeed, Apple activates by default True Tone technology which adapts the heat of the screen according to the ambient light, in order to bring greater visual comfort to the user. A real asset.

The maximum screen brightness is also excellent, measured at 424 cd / m², which compensates for the brilliant slab subject to reflections. It can therefore be used without problem outdoors. The remanence is 15 ms, which is the average value observed on laptops passed through our hands. Compared to what can be found on fixed monitors and TVs, this value is not very good (it would be rated 2 stars) and well reflects the limits in terms of IPS, the technology chosen by Apple for its laptop screens. In practice, this results in a slightly fuzzy trail when traveling in films, for example. However, this phenomenon is less noticeable on this 13 "screen than on a 27" fixed monitor in particular.

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Performances

As we saw above, the processor does not really evolve compared to the previous generation. The Core i5-8257U of this machine is thus of the same generation (Coffee Lake) as that of the processor of MacBook Pro 13 "of the previous year (Core i5-8259U). The difference lies in the energy envelope, lower on the 2019 edition than on that of 2018 (15 W against 20 W) .The base frequency is thus lower - the computer will be more energy efficient during light spots like surfing on the Internet -, but that in turbo gains 100 MHz, enough to hope for similar performance between the two generations of machines. It also offers 8 GB of RAM and a 128 GB SSD on the most accessible version, that of this test.

During our usual test protocol (video compression, audio, 3D calculation ... all under macOS), this 2019 model - with a result of 95 on our scale of values - is at the level of the mid-range MacBook Pro of 2018 and well above the latest MacBook Air, which we tested last year. Thus, the user will be able to easily run greedy software, well helped by a perfectly optimized system.

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Mobility / Autonomy

The MacBook Pro of course bets on mobility with its 13-inch screen. Apple does not change a formula that wins with a 15 mm chassis and a weight of 1.3 kg on the scale. If it is not the lightest of ultraportables, the MacBook Pro is still good in this segment, especially if we take into account the relatively light charger of 280 g. We regret, however, that Apple has decided to do without the small fins present on the charger. These made it possible to quickly wind and fix the cable on its charger. An unfortunate saving of candles for a resolutely high-end computer.

In terms of autonomy, the MacBook Pro remains one of the kings of the market. During our usual test protocol (Netflix in Safari, backlight off, headphones plugged in and brightness set to 200 cd / m²), the computer shut down after 13 h 1 min. A result similar to the 2018 model and which makes the MacBook Pro one of the most durable computers on the market in terms of autonomy. Thus, it will be possible to spend your day in a meeting without plugging in your MacBook, or even use it during a Paris-New York without worrying.

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Audio

The MacBook Pro 13 of 2019 offers a very correct sound reproduction despite the size of its chassis. The positioning of the speakers contributes greatly to this impression since it allows you to benefit from a true stereophonic width (which slightly exceeds the width of the screen), unlike the overwhelming majority of portable computers. The speakers are relatively powerful, however, it is not possible to exploit this power reserve to the maximum since the distortion comes quickly to point the tip of his nose, clearly deteriorating the listening experience (sound scene much more confused, its more aggressive). The bass is, not surprisingly, absent subscribers. However, the extension in the high / mid / treble is more than correct. The intelligibility of the voices is perfectly guaranteed.

The headphone output performance of this 2019 MacBook Pro 13 is close to last year's model. It reproduces the signal in a very faithful way, with a power largely sufficient to supply many headsets on the market, all this with excellent management of the distortion. The dynamics are very well respected. This headphone output does a little worse than the previous model in terms of crosstalk (interference of the left signal on the right channel and vice versa), but nothing that fundamentally spoils the listening experience.

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Conclusion

Not surprisingly, the 2019 MacBook Pro is a neat computer that stands out as one of the best ultraportables in terms of technology. Like the previous model, it has an impeccable chassis, offers a well calibrated screen and above all excellent autonomy. On the least expensive version, tested here, the processor remains a model of speed, with a performance very close to that of last year. Failing to observe deeper changes, Apple continues to successful model.

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