Apple MacBook Pro (13-inch, Early 2011) vs Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Only show differences

Better figure, where one is clearly better

Share comparison

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Early 2011) compared with MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)

	AppleMacBook Pro (13-inch, Early 2011)	AppleMacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)
Overview
Released
Released	February 2011	October 2012
Display
Screen size
Screen size	13.3″	13.3″
Resolution
Resolution	1280 × 800	2560 × 1600 (better)
Panel
Panel	TN LCD	IPS LCD
Touchscreen
Touchscreen	No	No
Display type
Display type	LED-backlit glossy widescreen LCD, millions of colours; TN panel explicitly confirmed by Notebookcheck's exact Early 2011 2.7 GHz review. No antiglare or higher-resolution option. Apple does not publish refresh rate or brightness.	Retina LED-backlit IPS display with millions of colours; native 2560 × 1600 and scaled modes of 1680 × 1050, 1440 × 900 and 1024 × 640. Refresh rate and brightness unpublished by Apple.
Pixel density
Pixel density	–	227 ppi
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i5-2415M or Intel Core i7-2620M	Intel Core i5-3210M or Intel Core i7-3520M
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	2
CPU threads
CPU threads	4	4
Graphics
Graphics	Intel HD Graphics 3000	Intel HD Graphics 4000
Memory
Memory	4 GB or 8 GB	8 GB
Storage
Storage	128 GB to 750 GB	128 GB to 768 GB (better)
CPU
CPU	Dual-core Intel Core i5-2415M at 2.3 GHz with 3 MB shared L3 cache or Core i7-2620M at 2.7 GHz with 4 MB cache. Exact identities confirmed by Notebookcheck's respective 2.3 GHz and 2.7 GHz reviews.	Dual-core Intel Core i5-3210M at 2.5 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.1 GHz and 3 MB shared L3 cache, or Core i7-3520M at 2.9 GHz with up to 3.6 GHz and 4 MB cache. Exact processor identities documented by Ars Technica.
GPU
GPU	Intel HD Graphics 3000 with 384 MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory	Intel HD Graphics 4000 integrated graphics
Memory type
Memory type	4 GB of 1333 MHz DDR3, two 2 GB SO-DIMMs; two slots support up to 8 GB	8 GB of 1600 MHz DDR3L onboard memory; no higher memory option
Storage type
Storage type	Core i5 base has 320 GB and Core i7 base has 500 GB, both 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard drives. Configurable 500 GB or 750 GB 5400-rpm hard drive, or 128 GB, 256 GB or 512 GB SSD. Storage capacity rows use HDD for 320/500/750 GB and SSD for 128/256/512 GB; memory upgrades apply to either processor. Macworld confirms 750 GB upgrades on both bases; Apple's configure-to-order list includes it despite the shorter Storage subsection omitting it. 8× slot-loading SuperDrive supports DVD±R DL, DVD±RW and CD-RW.	Flash storage; 128 GB base configurable to 256 GB, 512 GB or 768 GB, and 256 GB base configurable to 512 GB or 768 GB. Both bases offer the Core i7 upgrade.
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 7 hours	Up to 7 hours
Battery capacity
Battery capacity	63.5 Wh	74 Wh (better)
Weight
Weight	2.04 kg	1.62 kg (better)
Thickness
Thickness	24.1 mm	19 mm (better)
Width × depth
Width × depth	325 × 227 mm	314 × 219 mm
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Built-in 63.5 Wh lithium-polymer battery; up to 7 hours wireless web under Apple's test conditions. Reference weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process.	Built-in 74 Wh lithium-polymer battery; up to 7 hours wireless web or 30 days standby under Apple's test conditions. Reference weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process.
Charger
Charger	60 W MagSafe Power Adapter with cable management	60 W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter with cable management
Materials
Materials	Aluminium unibody enclosure and glass trackpad	Aluminium enclosure
Colours
Colours	Silver	Silver
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × USB-A, Thunderbolt, MagSafe, headphone jack, SD card slot, Ethernet	2 × USB-A, 2 × Thunderbolt, MagSafe 2, headphone jack, SD card slot, HDMI
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11n; compatible with 802.11a/b/g	802.11n; compatible with 802.11a/b/g
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	2.1 + EDR	4.0
Webcam
Webcam	720p FaceTime HD (Macworld)	720p FaceTime HD
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Port detail
Port detail	Two USB 2.0 ports up to 480 Mb/s, Thunderbolt up to 10 Gb/s, FireWire 800 up to 800 Mb/s, 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet, SDXC card slot, MagSafe, combined headphone/line input with digital output, and Kensington lock slot. Native Mini DisplayPort output; DVI, VGA, dual-link DVI and HDMI audio/video through separate adapters.	Two USB 3 ports up to 5 Gb/s, two Thunderbolt ports up to 10 Gb/s with native Mini DisplayPort output, HDMI, SDXC, MagSafe 2 and headphone/optical digital audio output. Supports Apple iPhone headset with microphone. Ethernet and FireWire require separate Thunderbolt adapters.
External displays
External displays	Built-in screen plus one external display up to 2560 × 1600, both with millions of colours; dual display and video mirroring	Built-in screen plus up to two external displays at 2560 × 1600, with millions of colours; DVI, VGA and dual-link DVI adapters sold separately
Keyboard
Keyboard	Full-size backlit keyboard with 78 US or 79 ISO keys, 12 function keys and four arrow keys	Full-size backlit keyboard with 78 US or 79 ISO keys, 12 function keys, four arrow keys and ambient light sensor
Trackpad
Trackpad	Glass Multi-Touch trackpad with inertial scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, three-finger swipe, four-finger swipe, tap, double-tap and drag	Glass Multi-Touch trackpad with inertial scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, three-finger swipe, four-finger swipe, tap, double-tap and drag
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers with subwoofer	Stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	Omnidirectional microphone	Dual microphones
In the box
In the box	MacBook Pro, display cleaning cloth, power adapter, AC wall plug, power cord, software DVDs and documentation; Mac OS X Snow Leopard and iLife ’11	MacBook Pro with Retina display, MagSafe 2 Power Adapter, AC wall plug and power cord; OS X Mountain Lion and iLife apps