Apple MacBook Pro 13″ (M1) vs Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)

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MacBook Pro 13″ (M1) compared with MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)

	AppleMacBook Pro 13″ (M1)	AppleMacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2012)
Overview
Released
Released	November 2020	October 2012
Display
Screen size
Screen size	13.3″	13.3″
Resolution
Resolution	2560 × 1600	2560 × 1600
Panel
Panel	IPS LCD	IPS LCD
Refresh rate
Refresh rate	60 Hz	–
Brightness
Brightness	500 nits	–
Touchscreen
Touchscreen	No	No
Display type
Display type	Retina display; LED-backlit with IPS technology	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 Refresh rate and brightness unpublished by Apple.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	227 ppi
Colour range
Colour range	Wide colour (P3); millions of colours	–
Screen finish
Screen finish	Glossy (Notebookcheck)	–
Display features
Display features	True Tone; 60 Hz refresh rate (Notebookcheck)	–
Performance
Processor
Processor	Apple M1	Intel Core i5-3210M or Intel Core i7-3520M
CPU cores
CPU cores	8	2
CPU threads
CPU threads	–	4
Graphics
Graphics	8-core GPU	Intel HD Graphics 4000
Memory
Memory	8 GB or 16 GB (better)	8 GB
Storage
Storage	256 GB to 2 TB (better)	128 GB to 768 GB
CPU
CPU	8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores	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	8-core GPU	Intel HD Graphics 4000 integrated graphics
AI engine
AI engine	16-core Neural Engine	–
Memory type
Memory type	Unified memory; 8 GB, configurable to 16 GB	8 GB of 1600 MHz DDR3L onboard memory; no higher memory option
Storage type
Storage type	SSD, configurable to 512 GB, 1 TB or 2 TB	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.
Cooling
Cooling	Active cooling	–
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 20 hours	Up to 7 hours
Battery capacity
Battery capacity	58.2 Wh	74 Wh (better)
Weight
Weight	1.4 kg (better)	1.62 kg
Thickness
Thickness	15.6 mm (better)	19 mm
Width × depth
Width × depth	304.1 × 212.4 mm	314 × 219 mm
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 17 hours wireless web; lithium-polymer battery	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	61 W USB-C Power Adapter	60 W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter with cable management
Materials
Materials	Recyclable, low-carbon aluminium enclosure	Aluminium enclosure
Colours
Colours	Silver, Space Grey	Silver
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × Thunderbolt 3, headphone jack	2 × USB-A, 2 × Thunderbolt, MagSafe 2, headphone jack, SD card slot, HDMI
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6	802.11n; compatible with 802.11a/b/g
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.0	4.0
Webcam
Webcam	720p FaceTime HD	720p FaceTime HD
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Port detail
Port detail	Two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports supporting charging, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt 3 and USB 4 up to 40 Gb/s, and USB 3.1 Gen 2 up to 10 Gb/s; 3.5 mm headphone jack	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	One external display up to 6K 60 Hz alongside the built-in display	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	Backlit Magic Keyboard; 65 (US) or 66 (ISO) keys; Touch Bar; ambient light sensor	Full-size backlit keyboard with 78 US or 79 ISO keys, 12 function keys, four arrow keys and ambient light sensor
Trackpad
Trackpad	Force Touch trackpad	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 high dynamic range; wide stereo sound; Dolby Atmos playback	Stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming	Dual microphones
Biometrics
Biometrics	Touch ID	–
In the box
In the box	13-inch MacBook Pro, 61 W USB-C Power Adapter, USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)	MacBook Pro with Retina display, MagSafe 2 Power Adapter, AC wall plug and power cord; OS X Mountain Lion and iLife apps