Wesley Hilliard
The 13-inch MacBook Pro wasn't redesigned when it gained the M2 processor, and the latest iFixit teardown shows exactly how little did change.
At a glance, the external casing is identical down to the printed model number on the bottom. However, the EMC number is different, which is the only way to tell the two machines apart from the outside.
Once inside, iFixit was able to point out a few differences in the logic board and heat sink. The heat sink has slightly rounded corners in the M1 model, while the M2 has squared-off corners.
The M2 board was able to fit into the M1 case, but it wasn't able to boot properly since the device couldn't detect the internal peripherals. That means you cannot perform a logic board swap on an older model just to get the M2, at least not without bringing your own mouse and keyboard. Touch ID was also disabled in this Frankenstein machine.
The lack of upgradeability between generations appears to be limited by a firmware lock, since the hardware itself seems interchangeable. It isn't clear if this was a deliberate limitation on Apple's part, but given previous behavior by the company, it seems likely.
The SSD read and write speeds that reviewers are commenting on were also addressed by the iFixit teardown. As we discussed in our review, the M1 MacBook Pro has two 128GB flash chips for the 256GB capacity versus the M2 having one 256GB flash chip. There's more parallelization in the M1 MacBook Pro at 256 GB than there is in the M2 MacBook Pro with the same capacity, and therefore, more speed.
When AppleInsider did a comparison between the two machines, we had a difficult time telling them apart. The M1's performance is still good, and the lack of physical differences made them indistinguishable.
The 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 is available to purchase, but it sits at an odd place in Apple's lineup. The M2 MacBook Air will launch in July, and that is expected to be a much more exciting machine for consumers.
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5 Comments
Seems to me that Apple has a boat load of these chassis and internal parts left, hence why nothing has really changed. I suspect that once they sell through these, this product in it's current state will be EOL.
This is a machine nearing EOL. Apple needed to sell remaining chassis and Touch Bar’s. The rumored 15” MacBook will provably replace this one.
This is very likely the last machine from this era.
It’s a step down from the M1 machine. The M1 MacBook Air is actually faster then the M2 without upgrading the hard drive or RAM. Apple, you are going backwards with this release…
As Apple revealed at WWDC, the MBP 13" is its #2 best-selling laptop. And you don't EOL your #2 best seller, so I'm not sure this model is getting dropped anytime soon. What HAS changed is a reason for this model to exist -- it made more sense in the pre-M chip days, when its performance and features made it more of a "pro" jump from the Air. But now? The M-series Air is already so good, and about to get even better, I wonder if an "entry level pro" middle ground even exists between the Air and the MBP 14". Price wise, yes, but what would the features of such a machine be that are clearly a step above the Air without getting too close to the MBP 14" territory?