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No big improvements to battery life were expected with the move to Intel's latest generation of CPUs, and this model's run time of 6 hours and 54 minutes in our video playback battery drain test is exactly the same result as last year's Pro (which was similar to the iteration before that). It's also about what you'll get from either the 15-inch Retina Pro or the 13-inch Pro. We've settled into a comfortable level of battery life with MacBook Pro laptops. It's impressive, but I'm looking forward to moving the goal posts again for the next generation.
Apple includes a one-year parts-and-labor warranty, but only 90 days of telephone support. Upgrading to a full three-year plan under AppleCare will cost an extra $349 and is pretty much a must-buy, considering the proprietary nature of Apple products and their sealed bodies. Support is also accessible through a well-stocked online knowledge base, video tutorials, and e-mail with customer service, or through in-person visits to Apple's retail store Genius Bars, which, in personal experience, and as heard from others, is generally a frustration-free experience.
This revision to the 15-inch MacBook Pro looks minor from the outside, with nothing new to report designwise. But inside, sure, there are new Intel CPUs, but the Nvidia graphics and USB 3.0 may be a bigger deal. I've previously called this the most universally useful laptop you can buy. That title now has to be split with the Retina version, and honestly, if you buy this, there may always be a twinge of remorse that you didn't make the jump to the Retina model, budgets be damned.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
Benchmark testing by Julie Rivera.
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