“Having got my maxed-out 15-inch 2016 MacBook Pro set up yesterday, I’ve now been using it for a total of around 12 hours – so I’m calling this one my first real-life usage impressions,” Ben Lovejoy writes for 9to5Mac. “Impressions of the form factor will obviously vary depending on whether you’re coming from a pre-Retina machine – as I was – or a later one. The new machine is smaller, slimmer and sleeker either way, but the difference is of course much more dramatic from a pre-2012 model. And in my case, I’m also moving from a 17-inch machine to a 15-inch one.”
“The base unit is much thinner, and the lid is almost unbelievably so. It’s also significantly lighter,” Lovejoy writes. “I said before that I think I may be able to switch from two Macs to just one. This one feels portable enough that having a separate MacBook Air now feels like overkill. But for all its slimness, it doesn’t feel remotely flimsy: the build quality feels absolutely rock solid.”
“It’s fantastic having Touch ID on a Mac… Logging-in just by touching the power button is great, and likewise being able to do things like unlock notes by fingerprint – just as you do on iOS devices – feels long overdue,” Lovejoy writes. “The second new toy is, of course, the Touch Bar. Photos really don’t do this justice: it has to be seen, and up close, to really be appreciated. It really looks like printed, backlit symbols rather than a display screen.”
Much more in the full review – recommended – here.
MacDailyNews Take: While we still much prefer the tiny, preciseness of the 12-inch MacBook for our backpacks, the Touch Bar make us want 13-inch MacBook Pro units instead (the 15-inch is too big for us as we’re very used to 11-inch MacBook Air units while on the road). So, how long do we have to wait for Touch Bar-equipped MacBooks, Apple?!