Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Apple 2021 MacBook Pro (14-inch, M1 Pro chip with 10‑core CPU and 16‑core GPU, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD)

Top positive review

Just another Music/Outdoor/Technology Lover

Its every bit as good as I had hoped

Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2022

I have been a Mac fan since the early 1990's. This laptop (MBPro 14", with M1 Pro chip, 16 GB DRAM and 1 TB SSD) is VERY fast, with excellent battery life and great portability. Build quality is as you would expect for a $2k system, very high. The display is gorgeous with great aspect ratio, keyboard is excellent, speakers are great, etc. The only slight nit is it seems a bit heavier and thicker than it needs to be, but really it is as close to perfect as you get.

I have been using computers since the 1980's and MacOS has always been easier to use than most alternatives. I administer many Windows 7/10/11 systems and Windows Server 2019/2022 systems for work, but prefer MacOS for my personal workstation. You literally could not pay me enough to use ANY other OS for my personal system. I have been using Unix since before Linux even existed (early 1980s), DOS before Windows existed, etc. There has never been an OS that is as reliable, easy to use while also supporting virtually every application you could ever need as MacOS.

As an aside, I have tried running LogicProX with 20 - 30 plugins, etc and this sysem didn't even start breathing hard. I also have a Mac Studio for home use, and although that system has the M1 Max CPU with 32 GB of RAM, I don't see much difference between the performance of the systems. There are few workloads this laptop cannot handle.

79 people found this helpful

Top critical review

Critical reviews›

Wayne County Technology Center

Faulty charging cord -Apple made me take over an hour trip to pick up a new one!

Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2023

Received this and it worked fine for a couple of weeks then it would not charge. Apple first sent me (after an hour on the phone with support) a charging block. Still not charging. Another hour+ on the phone with support then sent the computer in to Apple for service. Received back in a charged state but it soon depleted (as the charger I had was defective). When you send the computer in for repairs, Apple does not allow sending accessories. On the phone for another session trying to get service. Apple sends box, and I send the computer in for service. Receive the computer back with another note that Apple could find nothing wrong with the computer. Scheduled an appointment to physically take the computer in (with the charging cord) to the Apple store which is 75 minutes away from me. After a 30 stay in the store, Apple did indeed determine that I had received a faulty charging cord with the brand new computer. Can there not be an allowance to send a new charging cord - especially when everything else has been ruled out - before the customer has to take a day and physically take the computer in to the store??? Because of this and the total of half a day spent on the phone for support, this product is receiving a low review.

One person found this helpful

2,128 total ratings, 318 with reviews

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From the United States

Just another Music/Outdoor/Technology Lover

Its every bit as good as I had hoped

Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2022

Capacity: 1 TBColor: SilverVerified Purchase

79 people found this helpful

Helpful

ebman

I'm in love all over again!

Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2022

Capacity: 512 GBColor: SilverVerified Purchase

Let me start by saying I'm an Apple user all the way, iphone, ipads, and my last former PC was an 8 year old Macbook Air 13, mid-2013, 1.5GHZ dual-core Intel i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB Flash drive. That laptop still today is in great working order for what it is, I find that quite amazing since most of the PC products of recent are junk, designed to last less than one year. You may think me biased, but I'm not, just read the competitor's reviews for yourself which I did extensively before buying my next Macbook Pro. I used to be a Windows user, and still am, but not on a Windows based system with Intel silicon. Those systems are unstable, more hackable, and the hardware that is made even from manufacturers like HP today do not live up to the standards they lived up to in the past. Reading most of the different Apple product reviews, the biggest complaint was price. Well, the old adage still applies, you basically get what you pay for and I was thrilled to wait it out for their September event when I saw this going for $400 off at $1599!. Regarding all the hyperbole about the notch, I honestly do not know it is even there. As far as this new Macbook Pro 14" is concerned, well I cannot express how beautiful this laptop is. The display and sound are to die for, the speed of the m1 silicon is amazing. Yes, it's a little heavier than my previous Macbook Air 13, but the body of the Pro is actually a smaller footprint than it's predecessor, but with a larger display! What more can you ask for.
Now it's just a matter of how well this product survives the test of time. From it's solid construction and feel, I'm not at all worried I will not get another 8 years from this machine.

Update November 23, 2022: I am still very much in love with this laptop. It still amazes me how responsive it is and has not seen one glitch. I am also running Parallels Desktop VM along with Windows 11 Pro as a virtual desktop so that I might run my windows based programs. This also has been smooth as silk providing a seamless gateway from Mac ios to Windows and reverse. Lastly, months later, I still have not heard the internal fan!

117 people found this helpful

Helpful

First MacBook… Perfect laptop but…

Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2022

Capacity: 512 GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase

The media could not be loaded.

It’s my first MacBook, I’ve been a Windows user my whole life.

I've been using it for 10 days and it’s fantastic, great battery, amazing sound, ProMotion and 4K HDR looks astonishing. Only have one little (big) complaint.

I notice that on the display there are some tiny black dots, dead pixels, I called to Amazon (they have a 90-day warranty) but since it was not a software problem, they told me to solve it with Apple and it’s recommendation was to visit an authorized seller, that means that if I have to replace the display, I will stay 1 month without laptop.

Very bad experience considering the price of the equipment, it arrived in perfect condition, new (I took advantage of the USD 400 discount from the sale) and the box in excellent condition too, I guess it's a random issue, but to be aware of.

I'm sure it's a factory fault, I'm only afraid that the problem gets worse, meanwhile, I'll try to ignore it.

26 people found this helpful

Helpful

S. Anderson

The first Mac I've truly loved in years

Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2022

Capacity: 512 GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase

I've been a dedicated Mac user since 1994. I've owned many over the years, but for the past decade, I'd had a string of "dud" MacBooks. I didn't have any major issues that required repairs or anything like that, I was just consistently unimpressed and didn't love my day-to-day experience of using them.

The 2021 14" MacBook Pro changed everything. Larger, brighter screen, faster processor (especially noticeable when rendering video in Final Cut), a genuinely good keyboard, very solid build quality, great design, and unbelievably good speakers. I mean, I really can't overstate how impressed I am by the sound quality of the built-in speakers, especially the amount of bass and stereo separation.

It's also been quite a while since I've been willing to spend this much on a new Mac, although I did manage to snag it when Amazon had a $150 discount going on. But it was well worth the money. If your work involves spending hours in front of a Mac, you should enjoy it! And with this model, you will.

70 people found this helpful

Helpful

The Queen of Healthy Latin Cooking

Excellent machine!

Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2022

Capacity: 512 GBColor: SilverVerified Purchase

It took many years before deciding to get a new Macbook Pro. My 2014 machine was still doing really well. I was ready to catch up and benefit from the the latest technology with the Silicon M1 chip.
I do audio production on a non Apple software platform. I wanted to be sure that software and audio drivers would work. I am also a content provider for a cooking show using FCP.
This purchase was my first 14 inch as my previous machine was 15 inch.
Though I miss the larger keyboard and screen, this 14 inch darling, is just that, darling. Sleek, lightweight and very nice to work on.
I migrated my data and settings seamlessly form Big Sur to Monterey, no isues whatsoever.
Lovely experience. Plus I saved close to 500 dollars from the retail price if I purchased it directly from Apple.
I decided with the purchase savings, , to invest and download Apple's Logic Pro audio software. Also lovely!
Amazon is a great place to shop. This was an excellent purchase and a beauty of a laptop.
Thanks.

52 people found this helpful

Helpful

Ramesh Thadani

Just what I needed: upgrade of my previous MacBook Pro after 7 years

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2023

Capacity: 512 GBColor: SilverVerified Purchase

I was waiting for the right opportunity to upgrade my faithful and reliable old MacBook Pro, which was the last MBP before the Touch Bar appeared. Since then, the MBP's only seemed to have experimentations (Touch Bar; new keyboard spring system; etc), and unspectacular new intel processors. When the first reviews of the home-made apple chips of the "M" series came out, and the first reviews, I knew that the time was rife to change my MacBook Pro. NO REGRETS. Bought it with a good Black Friday deal, so it could not be a better deal. Great computer, and returned the MBP to its reputation of being ahead of the pack.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

J. Aust

Very impressed so far

Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2022

Capacity: 512 GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase

I am a LONG time Windows user, at least since Windows 3.0. Yes that long ago. I consider myself a power user and have built all my computers for over 20 years, well, except for laptops. But I digress. This is my 5th laptop, various models up to 17 inch. My most recent, not included the Mac Book Pro, is a semi-recent Dell XPS13. I really like it a lot as it is very portable/light. The only real drawback is battery life/runtime. I'm lucky if I get 6-7 hours of casual use.

I've read about how these MBPs are supposed to have great battery life. That, coupled with the great sale on this 2021 model prompted me to pull the trigger and get it. Still learning all the ins & outs of MacOS but I get things done easily enough. The display on this thing is fantastic and the battery life does not disappoint.

If you're on the fence about this purchase I would recommend you go for it. Apple doesn't seem to have sales quite like this one. There is plenty of bang for the buck.

46 people found this helpful

Helpful

Charlie Carlisle

Remarkable

Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2021

Capacity: 512 GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase

I haven't upgraded my computer for more than a decade, so it would stand to reason any recent releases would impress me, but this macbook pro has gone above and beyond in the small time I've had it.

The screen is truly something to behold. Smooth, clear, just beautiful. I don't typically care about bezels, but I might start. The expanded screen makes an unexpected difference. Meanwhile, I barely notice the notch. Apple said they'd find workarounds to make it scarce, and they have.

The speakers are wonderful as well. I was skeptical at first -- thought I caught some tinny effects on a couple songs, but the more I listen to them, the more I'm convinced the tinniness was in the recording (it was a live album, which might explain it). As for the spatial audio, I've only heard a couple songs, but it's pretty trippy. This is my first experience with it, and it doesn't disappoint.

In the short time I've had the computer, it's been nothing but fast. Probably more computer than I need, so if you're a sound editor or photographer, this review probably isn't for you. But for those of you casual users who want a solid machine that will last (as I said, my last macbook pro made it more than a decade), this is the one. Excited as I was for my last macbook, I could see room for improvement at the time. Right now, I don't see how things get better than this.