I tried using a Mac for 2 years. Here’s my review

Summary

In this review, the long-term user shares their experience with a MacBook over two years, highlighting the pros and cons of Mac OS compared to Windows. They praise Mac OS for its consistent design, smooth font rendering, and efficient memory management, which results in fewer crashes and bugs. The user also appreciates the MacBook's high-quality display, impressive speakers, and quiet operation. However, they criticize the operating system's issues with external mice, full-screen app management, and the lack of a USB-A port. The hardware is lauded for its build quality and trackpad, but the keyboard's wear and the lack of gaming capabilities are noted downsides. The video concludes that the MacBook is worth the investment for those who value a smooth OS experience, don't game heavily, and are part of the Apple ecosystem.

Takeaways

• 💻 The reviewer uses laptops for extended periods, often 2 years or more, providing a long-term perspective on the MacBook's performance and durability.
• 🖥️ The MacBook's hardware and macOS are praised for their consistency and design, with the operating system offering a user-friendly experience for those willing to learn its nuances.
• 🔧 macOS is appreciated for its stability, with fewer bugs and crashes compared to Windows, especially when running resource-intensive applications like Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro.
• 🖥️ The MacBook's display, including its OLED screen, high refresh rate, and resolution, is highly regarded for its quality, making it ideal for tasks like video editing and screen recording.
• 🎵 The laptop's built-in speakers and microphone are noted for their good sound quality, suitable for both entertainment and content creation.
• 🔇 The MacBook is lauded for its quiet operation, a significant advantage over the noise levels experienced with the reviewer's Windows laptop.
• 🔋 Battery life is satisfactory, with the MacBook maintaining a 90% capacity after two years of use, and the convenience of not needing to shut down is highlighted.
• 🖱️ The trackpad is commended for its functionality and haptic feedback, though the reviewer prefers a mouse for certain tasks due to comfort and efficiency.
• 💾 The MacBook's build quality is solid, but the keyboard shows wear over time, and the lack of a USB-A port is a drawback for those with legacy devices.
• 🎮 Gaming is not a strong suit for the MacBook, and the reviewer is content using a separate Windows PC for gaming, acknowledging the MacBook's limitations in this area.
• 🛠️ Repairability and upgradeability are limited with the MacBook, which could be a concern for users facing hardware issues or wishing to customize their storage and RAM.

Q & A

How long does the user typically use their laptops?

The user typically uses their laptops for at least 2 years, with the last one serving for 5 years.

What is the user's perspective on the MacBook review?

The user's perspective on the MacBook review is from that of a long-term user, having owned the MacBook for 2 years.

What does the user like about Mac OS?

The user likes the consistent design, the way Mac OS renders fonts, the integration of Pages and Keynote, the lack of random updates, and the fewer bugs compared to Windows.

What issues did the user encounter with Windows that they did not have with Mac OS?

The user encountered issues like random updates that force restarts, more bugs, and poor memory management with Windows compared to Mac OS.

What is the user's opinion on the MacBook's screen quality?

The user is very satisfied with the MacBook's screen quality, praising the deep blacks, high refresh rate, and sharp resolution.

How does the user feel about the MacBook's speakers and microphone?

The user enjoys the sound quality of the MacBook's speakers, describing them as nice and Bassy. They also found the built-in microphone to be satisfactory for voiceovers.

What is the user's experience with the MacBook's battery life and charging options?

The user has a positive experience with the MacBook's battery life, finding it sufficient for their needs, and appreciates the ability to charge with either MagSafe or USB-C.

What are the user's thoughts on the MacBook's trackpad?

The user finds the MacBook's trackpad to be amazing, providing a satisfying haptic feedback and being customizable to their preferences.

What hardware aspects of the MacBook does the user dislike?

The user dislikes the MacBook's keyboard wear, the lack of a USB-A port, and the difficulty in repairability and upgradeability.

Why does the user believe the MacBook is worth the investment?

The user believes the MacBook is worth the investment for those who are willing to learn a new operating system, do not need it for hardcore gaming, already own an iPhone, and have the budget for it.

Outlines

00:00

💻 Long-Term MacBook User Experience

The speaker, a long-term user of laptops, shares their perspective on using a MacBook for an extended period, contrasting it with the short-term reviews often seen on YouTube. They emphasize the importance of software and operating system experience over physical features like speakers or screen. The user discusses their experience with macOS, highlighting the ease of customization, consistent design across the OS, and the quality of text rendering. They also mention the benefits of Apple's suite of apps like Pages and Keynote, the lack of random updates, and the overall fewer bugs compared to Windows. However, they note a specific bug related to memory management and app performance after heavy workloads.

05:01

🖱️ Mouse Compatibility and Software Issues on Mac

The speaker discusses their experiences with using external mice on macOS, noting the initial difficulty in customizing mouse settings without third-party software. They recommend an app called 'Linear Mouse' for better control over mouse settings. The user praises the Kyron M3 mouse for its performance with MacBooks. They also express frustration with fullscreen app behavior, particularly how it disrupts the order of virtual desktops. Additionally, they mention a specific animation bug when switching virtual desktops that is affected by the monitor's refresh rate. The user concludes with a note on the convenience of having multiple instances of the same app open and the visibility of these instances in the dock.

10:05

🖥️ MacBook Pro Hardware Review

The user reviews the hardware of their MacBook Pro, starting with the screen's quality, particularly the deep blacks and high refresh rate, which enhances the user experience. They also appreciate the screen's resolution and Apple's display scaling. The speakers are described as sounding 'nice and Bassy,' and the built-in microphone is noted for its decent sound quality for a laptop. The quiet operation of the MacBook is highlighted, along with the good battery life and the convenience of not having to shut down the laptop. The trackpad is praised for its functionality and haptic feedback. However, the user points out the keyboard's susceptibility to wear and tear, the lack of gaming capabilities, and the absence of a USB-A port as drawbacks. They also mention issues with the charging cable causing noise when using certain earbuds and the general lack of repairability and upgradeability of Apple laptops.

15:06

💸 MacBook Pro Value and Final Thoughts

In the final paragraph, the user reflects on whether the investment in a MacBook Pro was worth it, concluding that it was, especially for those who are willing to adapt to a new operating system, do not require gaming capabilities, already own an iPhone, and have the budget for it. The user suggests that owning both a MacBook and a Windows PC allows for the best of both worlds. They also hint at a forgotten point, adding an element of intrigue to their closing thoughts.

Keywords

💡Mac OS

Mac OS, short for Macintosh Operating System, is the operating system that powers Apple's Mac computers. In the video, the user discusses their experience with Mac OS, highlighting its design consistency, such as the uniform dark mode, and the smooth rendering of fonts. They also mention the ease of use and the ability to customize settings, which were enjoyable aspects of the Mac OS experience for them.

💡Dark Mode

Dark Mode is a display mode that uses dark colors for application's user interfaces and menus. The script mentions that the user appreciates how Mac OS handles dark mode, as it provides a consistent experience across the system and most third-party apps, unlike their experience with Windows where certain elements may not adapt to dark mode.

💡High DPI Resolutions

High DPI (Dots Per Inch) resolutions are display settings that provide more pixels per inch, resulting in sharper images. The user discusses an issue with Mac OS on external monitors, particularly non-Apple displays, where certain resolutions do not scale well. They mention using a third-party app called 'Better Display' to add suitable high DPI resolutions for better scaling on external monitors.

💡Pro Motion

Pro Motion is a technology used in MacBook Pro models that offers a variable refresh rate, up to 120 HZ, for smoother visuals. The user praises the Pro Motion feature for making animations, scrolling, and cursor movement appear smoother, enhancing their overall experience with the MacBook Pro.

💡Adobe Premiere Pro

Adobe Premiere Pro is a video editing software. The user compares the stability of Adobe Premiere Pro on Mac OS versus Windows, noting that it crashes less frequently on Mac, which is a testament to the system's reliability and efficient memory management.

💡AirDrop

AirDrop is a feature that allows Apple devices to easily and wirelessly transfer files between each other. The user appreciates the convenience of AirDrop, as it seamlessly integrates with other Apple devices, enhancing the user experience within the Apple ecosystem.

💡Mouse Acceleration

Mouse acceleration is a feature that alters the speed of the cursor based on the speed of the mouse movement. The user discusses their preference for disabling mouse acceleration on Mac OS and how they use third-party software to customize their mouse settings to their liking.

💡Finder

Finder is the file manager application on Mac OS. The user contrasts Finder with Windows' File Explorer, stating that Finder is faster and more stable, especially when dealing with large files in a folder. This highlights the user's preference for the efficiency and reliability of Finder over File Explorer.

💡Trackpad

A trackpad is a pointing device on laptop computers that allows the user to control the cursor. The user praises the MacBook's trackpad for its responsiveness and haptic feedback, noting that it is a significant advantage over using a mouse for certain tasks, despite their preference for a mouse in other contexts.

💡Battery Life

Battery life refers to the amount of time a device can operate on a full charge without needing to be plugged in. The user comments on the MacBook's battery life, stating that it meets their needs and has maintained a high capacity even after two years of use, which is a testament to the laptop's power efficiency.

💡Repairability

Repairability refers to how easy it is to repair or replace parts of a device. The user mentions the poor repairability of Apple laptops, indicating that it is difficult and costly to repair or upgrade components like RAM or storage, which is a drawback for those who may need to extend the life of their devices through upgrades.

Highlights

Long-term user perspective on MacBook review

MacBook intended for use over 2 years unlike short-term reviews

Importance of software and operating system in laptop experience

Mac OS's consistent design and dark mode implementation

Preference for Mac OS's font rendering and text appearance

Mac OS's stability and fewer bugs compared to Windows

MacBook's efficient memory management despite less RAM

Fewer crashes with Adobe software on Mac compared to Windows

Finder's speed and reliability over File Explorer on Windows

Convenience of Apple ecosystem features like Airdrop and Notes syncing

Challenges with external monitor resolutions and mouse compatibility on Mac OS

Use of third-party apps to improve mouse settings and functionality on Mac

Annoyance with fullscreen app behavior and virtual desktop management on Mac OS

Praise for MacBook's OLED screen quality and high refresh rate

Excellence of MacBook's built-in speakers and microphone quality

Silent operation and quiet fan noise on MacBook

Durability and battery life of MacBook after 2 years of use

Trackpad's superior performance and haptic feedback

Lack of gaming capabilities on MacBook

Desire for a regular USB-A port on MacBook Pro

Issues with electric noise when using certain earbuds with MacBook

Notch on MacBook's design and its lack of noticeable impact

Challenges with repairability and upgradeability of MacBook

Value for money spent on MacBook and its suitability for non-gamers with an iPhone

Transcripts

most people use their laptops for way

longer than 4 or 6 months unlike most

YouTubers that review them I'm one of

those people when I buy a computer I

intend to use it for at least 2 years

the last laptop I bought served me for 5

years until I built this Beast so this

MacBook review will be from the

perspective of an actual long-term user

now I bought this Mac 2 years ago and

for me the laptop experience isn't just

about what's on the outside like the

speakers or the screen which I'll talk

about later what's sometimes more

important is the software the operating

system so let's talk about Mac OS first

now I'm the type of person who likes

tinkering with their operating system

and toggling every single setting to see

what it does if I don't like something

instead of learning to live with it I

look for ways to fix it so learning to

use Mac OS initially instead of Windows

wasn't a big deal for me it was actually

a fun experience and after using it for

2 years there are a lot of things that I

like about it and a lot of things I hate

or that I hated and then found a way to

fix later let's start with the things I

like the design consistent if you turn

on dark mode on Windows most things

become dark but not this panel or this

or this top bar also these are Mouse

settings but so are these why are they

separate and why is one 10 years older

than the other one this is a lot rarer

on Mac OS if you turn on dark mode you

won't get randomly flashbanged browsing

through settings even most third party

apps support it the way that Mac OS

renders fonts it's a personal preference

but I like how text looks on Mac OS

obviously the resolution of the display

and its scaling play a massive role but

here's the same text on the same Monitor

and similar display scaling numbers

pages and keynote those are a nice touch

it's essentially Microsoft Word Excel

and PowerPoint but applified of course

you can still use Microsoft Word or

Excel on Mac Apple's and Google's

alternatives are just free no random

updates forcefully restarting your PC I

didn't realize how annoying this was

until I built my first PC and tried

editing video on Windows I left my PC to

get some food for 5 minutes and when I

came back I saw this great way less bugs

compared to Windows I was also brutally

reminded of what a buggy mess Windows

actually is for example here's a random

white square on my desktop that stays

above all the apps the only way to get

rid of it was to log out and back in

which of course closed all the apps that

I had opened or your device is running

low on memory my PC has twice as much

memory as my MacBook yet I'm always

surprised at how good my Mac is at

managing it no 16 GB of RAM on Mac isn't

the same as 32 on Windows as Apple would

like you to think but no matter how many

apps I have open it always blows my mind

that the app I'm using doesn't slow down

or crash because I'm exporting a video

in the background there is this weird

bug that happens after a heavy workload

where dragging apps around becomes

weirdly delayed strangely it also

happens when using the screen sharing

app and controlling someone else's

MacBook you can see how the mouse cursor

is not on the apps window but I can

count on my fingers the number of times

something crashed because it was using

too much memory it happened though

speaking of crashing Adobe Photoshop and

Adobe Premier Pro they just crash

continuously when I'm using them on

Windows it's probably not only windows's

fault but it just happens a lot less on

Mac actually I don't remember when was

the last time Premiere quit unexpectedly

on my Mac I had so many bugs with OBS as

well on Windows it's a screen recording

software like it getting stuck on

stopping recording or whatever this is

then there's the taskbar sometimes apps

randomly decide jumping on each other

what's this gap on the taskar why is it

not in the Cent

Oh very interesting and sometimes all

icons go blank just for fun I'm not

saying that there aren't bugs on Mac OS

but over the 2 years of using it I had

to deal with a lot fewer of them finder

is much faster and crashes less than

File Explorer for some reason File

Explorer gets insanely slow when there

are a lot of big files in a folder this

is on an SSD by the way it also keeps

crashing if I go back and go back in it

takes the same amount of time this

doesn't make any sense and I don't think

I've had finder crash once also

searching for something on Windows

without third party apps is annoyingly

slow airdrop is very convenient and the

other Apple ecosystem features like

being able to message someone from your

Mac or copy things on your iPhone and

paste them on your Mac the notes app

syncing everywhere if you have an iPhone

and a Mac they synergize so well and the

final thing I'm going to mention is the

mouse cursor I like it on to the things

I dislike about the operating system

everything on an external monitor will

look garbage if you're using Macos

especially if you have a 1440p monitor

this is because Mac OS only likes very

specific screen resolutions that it

scales nicely with they're called high

DPI resolutions and I have a 1440p

external monitor but thankfully a while

back I discovered this free app called

better display essentially what it does

is it adds a bunch of these high DPI

resolutions to your Mac that you can

then choose from on your external

Monitor and every goes from looking like

this to this very nice Mac OS hates

external mice I made an entire video

talking about mice and Mac OS you will

find it in the description right under

the like button not long ago you

couldn't even disable Mouse acceleration

on Mac without third party software then

they added it here under Advanced but

getting your mouse to work as you want

isn't that hard by using an app called

linear Mouse it's free and it lets you

do things like change your scrolling

speed per application this is very

useful for me it lets you enable the

back and forward buttons If your mouse

has them and even enable the middle

click which for those of you that don't

know is when you press down the scroll

wheel it will let you close tabs without

clicking on the little X and open links

in new tabs now your life is changed

also I've tried using many mice with my

Mac including the infamous MX Master 3s

and the even more Infamous Magic Mouse

but this was the only mouse that worked

the best for me it's called the Kyron M3

I'll leave a link in the description it

connects via USBC unlike other mice and

there's also a Bluetooth mode that has

the least amount of Bluetooth latency

out of all the Bluetooth mice I've

tested back to software issues the next

thing I absolutely hate is related to

fullcreen apps on Mac just like on

Windows you have virtual desktops you

can create them for different tasks like

one for planning a trip and another for

work however if you full screen an app

like when watching a YouTube video that

app always gets sent to the end of all

your desktops this is horrible because

if you now decide to go back and do

other stuff while it's in full screen

you will have to scroll all the way to

the end when you finally want to pause

the video or get to the app animations

they're nice for the most part Mac OS is

full of cool smooth animations just like

iOS however there's one animation that

annoys me every time that I see it it's

this one when switching virtual desktops

why you ask because its duration

increases with the refresh rate of my

monitor if I set my displays refresh

rate to 60 HZ this animation is very

nice and fast but if I do 144 Herz it

becomes much slower not only that I

can't start clicking something on the

space that I'm switching to until it

fully finishes the animation it only

starts registering The Click once it's

fully finished this is probably a thing

that 99% of people would never notice

but it's been annoying me for so long

also I love that on Linux you can just

slide a slider and increase or decrease

the speed of all animations I would love

for this slider to be in Mac OS having

two instances of the same app open I've

gotten used to this now but on Mac OS

when you have multiple instances of the

same app open like here to Chrome

Windows you can't really see that in the

dock unless you right click on Windows

you just hover over an app and you see

what you have open and this is just

inconvenient at first I kept losing all

my windows because they just wouldn't

show up in the dock by the way if you

like the wallpapers I'm using they're

from one of my wallpaper packs I'll

leave a link in the description I also

had an issue where the battery would

drain insanely fast when my Mac was

closed sometimes faster than when I was

using it but this Reddit post helped me

solve it it had to do with changing some

sleep settings through the terminal okay

so far I've talked about Mac OS which is

the same across every Apple laptop but

now let's talk about this laptop in

particular starting things off is the

screen it's so good much better than the

MacBook Air Model or anything else that

I've seen first the blacks are insane

once I started using it I realized that

on every other monitor I have the blacks

are gray but on this screen they're

really black obviously you won't see how

black through this video if your monitor

isn't OLED it's not perfect though

because if I set my screen brightness to

very high there's a slight halo around

bright colors on a dark background like

the mouse cursor or subtitles when

watching a movie but there are two more

things about this screen that I love the

first is the refresh rate all MacBook

Air models come with a 60 HZ screen

meaning that your display updates the

image that you're seeing 60 times per

second but the MacBook Pro Models come

with a pro motion screen 120 HZ variable

refresh rate now if you've never gamed

on a high refresh rate monitor or you've

never used one before this probably

won't matter to you but to me a high

refresh rate makes the experience so

much nicer all the animations the

scrolling and the cursor movement look

so much smoother by the way if you're on

Windows go to display settings then

Advanced display and make sure that this

is set to the highest amount because

it's not by default you might have

bought a high refresh rate monitor and

you might still be using it at 60 HZ

double check and the next thing I love

about this screen is the resolution

paired with Apple's display scaling it

makes everything look super sharp on the

screen screen recordings look so good on

it as well when I do long tutorials for

things like lessons for my YouTube

course I usually choose to do it on a

Mac just because the screen recordings

turn out very nice it's also super easy

to record the screen you hit command

shift 5 enter and there it is it's

recording the speakers watching movies

or listening to music on this thing is

great the speakers sound nice and Bassy

even when you turn up the volume and all

other laptop speakers that I've listen

to or just so far behind MacBook

[Music]

speakers the microphone up until I got

this microphone a few months ago I've

done most of my voiceovers for videos

and courses on the builtin MacBooks

microphone it's not the most comfortable

experience talking so close to the

screen but it sounds not bad for a

built-in laptop microphone mhone oh look

there's a spider on the wall oh look

there's a spider on the wall oh look

there's a spider on the wall the

macbook's microphone sounds a bit more

muffled than the dedicated one obviously

it's not as good but it managed to carry

me through most of my YouTube videos

this is the quietest computer I've ever

owned I never appreciated the silence

until I tried using a Mac and then came

back to my Windows laptop it's night and

day difference in terms of noise levels

because everyone's asleep at night the

battery life it's great although I have

to say that I mostly use my Mac with a

cable plugged in or a cable nearby that

I can use to juice back up I haven't

benchmarked the battery but it lasts

enough for my needs even when I'm

editing videos after 2 years of use

mostly with a cable my battery is at 90%

of its original capacity I also use an

app called Old Dente that lets me limit

how much my battery can charge up to

just FYI they've been a channel sponsor

in the past but I genuinely use this app

and I would definitely recommend it I'll

leave a link in the description I also

love that I never have to shut the

MacBook down and I can trust that when I

close it and open it back up again

everything will be exactly the same as I

left it all the apps still open and I

can resume doing whatever I was doing

before using Windows always gives me

anxiety when I try waking it up from

sleep the trackpad is simply amazing I

haven't used the newest Windows laptops

with apparently good trackpads to

compare them but I can say that even for

me who's a heavy Mouse enjoyer this

trackpad is great but stuff sorry but

stuff like video editing in Premiere or

very long work session sessions are just

better suited for a mouse because your

finger gets tired and it's faster doing

it with a mouse however if I need to

make a quick thumbnail or if I'm too

lazy to get up from the bed and move to

the table I might not even bother

connecting a mouse and use a trackpad it

doesn't have any buttons and you can

click on it anywhere to get this

satisfying haptic feedback when it

registers a

click you can customize the strength of

it in the settings as well the charging

it's really nice that this MacBook can

charge with Mac safe or USBC my Mac safe

connector seems to be a little broken

because it needs to be at the right

angle to work so instead of having to

buy a new one I can just use either of

the three USBC ports to charge it very

nice build quality it feels very solid

except for the bottom cover which is

plastic so it feels cheaper and also the

keyboard which nicely brings me over to

the things I don't like about the

hardware over time the keys that you use

most will start looking shiny or oily

because the coating will wear off you

can clearly see that I only press the

space bar with my left thumb I've been

typing on this keyboard almost daily for

2 years and this is how all the keys

look not new this makes the laptop seem

cheap and used after it's been used also

the keyboard background being black on

the MacBook Pro Models makes the dirt

more visible compared to when it's white

and only the keys are black although it

looks cool when it's clean there is no

chant at gaming I mean there is but not

really if you're a heavy gamer

especially if you play FPS games games

getting a Macbook is not going to make

you super happy I'm so happy that I

recently built a Windows PC that I can

use for gaming using both a Macbook and

the Windows PC means that I can get the

best of both worlds it's the ultimate

setup I dreamed about for so long and I

finally have it I would love a regular

usba a port it's nice that things are

moving towards USBC but there are so

many things that still use USB like my

hard drive connectors or Mouse dongles I

hate that there's not even one usba a

port on this Pro computer speaking of

ports when I plug in my IMS by the way

these are the best quality to price

ratio earbuds I've ever owned there's a

slight hissing or electric noise that's

always there unless I pull the charging

cable out of my MacBook and this is

really annoying but I also have a pair

of wireless earbuds that I started using

instead of the IMs to avoid dealing with

this issue the notch I don't get why

it's there but I pretty much never

notice it almost forgot to mention it

it's there though repairability and

upgradeability it's just not a thing

with Apple laptops thankfully I didn't

yet run into any issues that would force

me to open up the laptop or have it

repaired but I know that when that

happens it's going to be a huge pain I

probably won't be able to do it myself

like with my Windows laptop which means

that it will make more sense to just buy

a new Macbook instead of having this one

repaired because of how much repairing

costs also I hate that you can't upgrade

the RAM or storage what you buy is what

you're stuck with this is how much

storage actually cost costs by the way

and this is how much apple is charging

for it just FYI also things like

removing the keyboard Keys it's

strangely complicated and I managed to

break one pin on the F key trying to

remove it because there was something

stuck inside preventing it from being

clicked so was it worth spending over

$2,000 on this laptop 2 years

ago yes I think if you're someone who

isn't scared of spending time learning

and adjusting to how a different

operating system works if you don't want

to do hardcore gaming on your laptop if

you already have an iPhone and your

budget allows it then I think you'll

enjoy your MacBook experience oh and

there's one more thing I forgot to

mention Psych