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Why You Shouldn’t Buy the New MacBook Yet

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Apple will launch its all-new MacBook tomorrow, but here’s why you shouldn’t buy it right now.

Apple announced the new MacBook last month during the Apple Watch event, but instead of giving it the “Pro” or “Air” suffix, the company is simply just calling it the new “MacBook.” However, the all-new MacBook definitely has the MacBook Air feel to it, as Apple CEO Tim Cook says that it’s “the most extreme and efficient notebook we have ever created.”

The new MacBook weighs just two pounds and is only 13.1mm thin at its thickest point, which is 24% thinner than the 11-inch MacBook Air.

As rumors have been predicting, this new MacBook comes with a 12-inch display and is equipped with a Retina-quality resolution of 2304 x 1440, making this the first ultra-thin MacBook to sport a Retina display.

It’s certainly a design marvel that looks really great, but its beauty is only skin deep. Here are some reasons as to why you shouldn’t buy the new MacBook yet, and instead wait for the second generation model if anything.

It’s Slow

Complete specs of the new MacBook include a 1.1GHz Intel Core M processor, 8GB of memory, 256GB of flash storage, and Intel HD Graphics 5300. 8GB of memory is great, but the problem is with the processor.

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According to some early benchmarks, the new MacBook scored a 1924 and 2044 during two single-core tests, and a 4038 and 4475 for multi-core tests. The 2015 entry-level MacBook Air scored a 2881 during a single-core test and 5757 on multi-core. That should tell you right away that the new MacBook doesn’t quite stand up against the latest MacBook Air.

According to Primate Labs, this puts the new MacBook’s performance roughly on par with the 2011 MacBook Air and the 2010 MacBook Pro.

Obviously, that isn’t the best performance, and anyone looking to buy a new MacBook will probably want something a bit faster. Of course, the new MacBook is perfect for web browsing, email, and other basic tasks, but shelling out $1,299 for a casual computer may not be the best choice for some buyers.

It’s Expensive

The new MacBook starts at $1,299, which is the same price as the entry-level MacBook Pro, which is far more powerful and provides an extra inch of screen real estate.

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You can even go cheaper than that and still get something that performs way better than the new MacBook. The Macbook Air, which starts at $899 for the 11-inch model, comes with a 1.6GHz Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, Intel HD 6000 graphics, and 128GB of flash storage, whereas the new MacBook only comes with a 1.1GHz Intel Core M processor, but also comes with 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of flash storage. The 8GB of RAM is great, but it can’t do much if the processor isn’t up there with it.

At this point with the new MacBook, you’ll really only be paying for the design, which isn’t a great thing to do if you’re even remotely frugal. Of course, a thin and light design like this is great for constant travelers, but the MacBook Air is still really thin and light, and you’ll get way more for your money by going that route.

The Webcam Isn’t HD

This isn’t a huge deal, but it’s rather dumb when a computer that’s made in 2015 doesn’t have a webcam that’s in high definition.

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Of course, webcams are really only there to provide a basic image while you’re video chatting, but don’t expect it to do anything more than that, and especially don’t count on your video chatee to get a really crisp image of your face.

Adapters, Adapters, Adapters

As for ports, the new MacBook only has a headphone jack and one Type-C connector, which supports USB, DisplayPort, HDMI and VGA. If you want to plug anything into your new MacBook besides headphones and the MacBook’s charger, you’ll have to buy Apple’s $79 adapter that gives you a USB port and an HDMI port, but that’s it.

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In other words, the technology world isn’t quite ready for USB Type-C connections just yet, so Apple is getting a bit ahead of the times right now. In the future, yes, Type-C will become more common, but right now it’s still a very new technology that needs time to grow before it becomes the one main port on any computer.

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