Apple has announced new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pro models for 2019, debuting the first variant with an eight-core processor.
The company isn't just focusing on improvements in raw performance, though, as it's also updating its Butterfly keyboard to resolve the issues plaguing it.
New 15-Inch MacBook Pro
For the first time ever, the 15-inch MacBook Pro is coming with an eight-core processor. That's for the pricier configuration that starts from $2,799.
To be exact, this model houses a ninth-generation Intel Core i9 chip with eight cores that clocks at 2.3 GHz and up to 4.8 GHz with Turbo Boost. Users can also take things up a notch further with a ninth-generation Core i9 CPU with eight cores that clocks at 2.4 GHz and up to 5.0 GHz with Turbo Boost.
Meanwhile, the cheaper option that starts from $2,399 is equipped with a ninth-generation Core i7 processor with six cores that delivers 2.6 GHz and up to 4.5 GHz with Turbo Boost. This can also be upgraded to a ninth-generation Core i9 chip with eight cores and 2.4 GHz with the capability of going up to 5.0 GHz with Turbo Boost.
New 13-Inch MacBook Pro
The upgrade in internals isn't that huge in the new 13-inch MacBook Pro, not to mention that it applies only for the model with the Touch Bar. The update is still noteworthy, though. At that, it's housing an eighth-generation Core i5 CPU with four cores that clocks at 2.4 GHz and up to 4.1 GHz with Turbo Boost. It can be upgraded to an eighth-generation, quad-core Core i7 chip with 2.8 GHz that can reach up to 4.7 GHz with Turbo Boost.
Its price starts from $1,799.
Butterfly Keyboard
In a press release, Apple says that the new MacBook Pro models with eight- and ninth-generation processors should be able to perform two times better than a quad-core MacBook Pro and 40 percent faster than a six-core MacBook Pro, describing the new model as "the fastest Mac notebook ever."
What the Cupertino brand didn't mention in the announcement is the fix and redesign for the Butterfly keyboard. Talking to The Verge, it confirmed that it's using "new materials" for the mechanism of the switches that should reduce the frequency of double and unresponsive key presses.
Sticky keys and missed presses have been the bane of MacBook users for more than a year, but back in March, Apple finally acknowledged the issue with its keyboard, and during the next month in April, it started offering next-day repairs as a quick solution. Now the company has also expanded its repair program to accommodate every MacBook with the Butterfly mechanism, meaning almost every modern variant is covered. Before this, certain new models weren't eligible for the service.
The takeaway here is that the new current-generation MacBook Pro models, which will all ship with the fourth-generation Butterfly key switch, shouldn't exhibit the same old keyboard issues — or at the very least, they shouldn't occur as often. On top of that, pretty much every older-generation unit out there with the mechanism should get the fix that they deserve.
