2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina vs. M1 MacBook Pro 16”: Full specs comparison

The following is a comprehensive comparison of the 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina and M1 MacBook Pro 16” specifications, including details on CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina Pros

Reasons that 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina is better than M1 MacBook Pro 16”.

Upgradable storage

The 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina comes with a single removable M.2 SSD slot that you can replace and upgrade in the future.

Slots2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
M.2
Yes x1
Onboard
About 26% lighter

The 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina weighed 3.48 pounds, 26% lighter than the 4.7 pounds M1 MacBook Pro 16”.

Weight2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Pound
3.48 lbs.
4.7 lbs.
Kilogram
1.58 kg
2.13 kg
Has one more port and slot

The 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina has more ports and slots count than the M1 MacBook Pro 16”. It has eight versus seven amount of ports and slots on the M1 MacBook Pro 16”.

Ports2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
full-size SD card slotYesYes
HDMIYesYes
headphone jackYesYes
power portYesYes
Thunderbolt 2Yes x2No
Thunderbolt 4NoYes x3
USB-AYes x2No
Total87

M1 MacBook Pro 16” Pros

Reasons that M1 MacBook Pro 16” is better than 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina.

Much newer manufacturing

2021 vs. 2015

Much faster CPU performance

Apple M1 Max (10C, 32G) inside M1 MacBook Pro 16” has a 632% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i7-5557U inside 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
M1 MacBook Pro 16” - Apple M1 Max (10C, 32G)
12,185
M1 MacBook Pro 16” - Apple M1 Pro (10C, 16G)
11,988
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina - Intel Core i7-5557U
1,663
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina - Intel Core i5-5287U
1,619
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina - Intel Core i5-5257U
1,542
Supports larger memory

M1 MacBook Pro 16” supports a larger memory capacity than the 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina. It supports up to 64GB versus 16GB of system memory on the 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina.

Max system memory size
M1 MacBook Pro 16”
64 GB
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina
16 GB
21% larger display

M1 MacBook Pro 16” has a 16.2-inch screen size 21% larger than the 13.3-inch 2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina.

Display size
M1 MacBook Pro 16”
16.2-inch
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina
13.3-inch

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina Price
Apple 60W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter for MacBook Pro with 13-inch Retina Display
Apple 60W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter for MacBook Pro with 13-inch Retina Display
By Apple
$72.00
$79.00 9% OFF
Apple MacBook Pro Retina MF843LL/A 13” Laptop, 3.1GHz Intel Core i7, 16GB Memory, 512GB SSD, macOS 10.14 Mojave (Renewed)
Apple MacBook Pro Retina MF843LL/A 13” Laptop, 3.1GHz Intel Core i7, 16GB Memory, 512GB SSD, macOS 10.14 Mojave (Renewed)
By Apple
$461.03
2015 Apple MacBook Pro with intel I7 (15-inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD)- Silver (Renewed)
2015 Apple MacBook Pro with intel I7 (15-inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD)- Silver (Renewed)
By Apple
$329.34
M1 MacBook Pro 16” Price
Late 2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Pro chip (16-inch, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
Late 2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Pro chip (16-inch, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
By Apple
$1,269.00
Late 2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Pro chip 10-core CPU (16-inch, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD Storage) (QWERTY English) Space Gray (Renewed Premium)
Late 2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Pro chip 10-core CPU (16-inch, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD Storage) (QWERTY English) Space Gray (Renewed Premium)
By Apple
$1,549.95
2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Max Chip (16-inch, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD Storage) Space Gray (Renewed)
2021 Apple MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Max Chip (16-inch, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD Storage) Space Gray (Renewed)
By Apple
$1,999.00

Availability

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Released20152021
Release Date
  • Announced on March 9th, 2015
  • Available on March 9th, 2015
  • Announced on October 18, 2021.
  • Available on October 26, 2021.
Pricing
  • $1,299
    Intel Core i5 5257U | 8GB RAM | 128GB SSD
  • $1,499
    Intel Core i5 5257U | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD
  • $1,799
    Intel Core i5 5287U | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD
  • $2,499
    M1 Pro 10-Core CPU 16-Core GPU 16GB 512GB
  • $2,699
    M1 Pro 10-Core CPU 16-Core GPU 16GB 1TB
  • $3,499
    M1 Max 10-Core CPU 32-Core GPU 32GB 1TB
  • $3,899
    M1 Max 10-Core CPU 32-Core GPU 64GB 1TB
  • $4,299
    M1 Max 10-Core CPU 32-Core GPU 64GB 2TB
  • $4,899
    M1 Max 10-Core CPU 32-Core GPU 64GB 4TB
  • $6,099
    M1 Max 10-Core CPU 32-Core GPU 64GB 8TB
Generations

Exterior

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Dimensions12.35” x 8.62” x 0.71” (314 mm x 219 mm x 18 mm)
  • Height: 0.66 inch (1.68 cm)
  • Width: 14.01 inches (35.57 cm)
  • Depth: 9.77 inches (24.81 cm)
WeightStarting at 3.48 lb (1.58 kg)
  • 4.7 pounds (2.1 kg)
    M1 Pro models.
  • 4.8 pounds (2.2 kg)
    M1 Max models.
Colors
Silver
Space Gray Silver
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Full-size backlit keyboard with 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys (inverted “T” arrangement) with ambient light sensor
  • Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures
Backlit Magic Keyboard with:
  • 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 full-height function keys and 4 arrow keys in an inverted-T arrangement
  • Touch ID
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures

Display

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Size13.3 Inches16.2 Inches
InfoRetina display
  • 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors
  • Supported scaled resolutions:
    • 1680 by 1050
    • 1440 by 900
    • 1024 by 640
  • 300 nits brightness
  • Standard color gamut (sRGB)
  • 900:1 contrast ratio
  • Liquid Retina XDR display
    • 16.2-inch (diagonal) Liquid Retina XDR display;10 3456-by-2234 native resolution at 254 pixels per inch
  • XDR (Extreme Dynamic Range)
    • Up to 1000 nits sustained (full-screen) brightness, 1600 nits peak brightness
    • 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio
    • Color
      1 billion colors Wide color (P3) True Tone technology
  • Refresh rates
    • ProMotion technology for adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz
    • Fixed refresh rates: 47.95Hz, 48.00Hz, 50.00Hz, 59.94Hz, 60.00Hz
 

Ports

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina Ports
Image Source: Apple
Left (5)
  • 1 x power port
    MagSafe 2
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 2
    DisplayPort, 20Gbps
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.0 (5 Gbps)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (3)
  • 1 x full-size SD card slot
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.0 (5 Gbps)
M1 MacBook Pro 16” Ports
Image Source: Apple
Left (4)
  • 1 x power port
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), DisplayPort, Charging
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (3)
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), DisplayPort, Charging
  • 1 x HDMI
    4K@60Hz
  • 1 x full-size SD card slot

Internal Specs

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Processor
  1. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5257U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.70 → 3.10 GHz, 3MB Cache, 28W
  2. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5287U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.90 → 3.30 GHz, 3MB Cache, 28W
  3. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5557U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 3.10 → 3.40 GHz, 4MB Cache, 28W
  1. Apple M1 Pro (10C, 16G)
    10 cores, 10 threads, 3.20 GHz,
  2. Apple M1 Max (10C, 32G)
    10 cores, 10 threads, 3.20 GHz,
Integrated Graphics
  1. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5257U
    Intel® Iris® Graphics 6100
    48 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
  2. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5287U
    Intel® Iris® Graphics 6100
    48 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  3. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5557U
    Intel® Iris® Graphics 6100
    48 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  1. Apple M1 Pro (10C, 16G)
    Apple M1 Pro iGPU
    16 GPU Cores, 16 Neural Engine Cores,
  2. Apple M1 Max (10C, 32G)
    Apple M1 Max iGPU
    32 GPU Cores, 16 Neural Engine Cores,
Memory
8GB
configurable to 16GB of 1866MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory
16GB 32GB 64GB
Unified Memory
Storage
256GB 512GB
configurable to 1TB SSD
512GB 1TB 2TB 4TB 8TB
SSD

Connectivity

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Wi-Fi
  • 802.11ac Wi‑Fi wireless networking
  • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible
  • 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 wireless networking
  • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac compatible
BluetoothBluetooth 4.2 wireless technologyBluetooth 5.0 wireless technology

Battery

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Size74.9 Wh lithium‑polymer battery100 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery Life
  • Up to 10 hours wireless web
  • Up to 12 hours of iTunes movie playback
  • Up to 30 days of standby time
  • Up to 14 hours wireless web
  • Up to 21 hours of Apple TV app movie playback
Power Supply60W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter
With cable management system; MagSafe 2 power port.
140W USB‑C Power Adapter 
Charging up to 50 percent in just 30 minutes with included USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable.

Software

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
OSShipped with OS X YosemiteShipped with macOS Monterey
Built-in Apps
Photos iMovie GarageBand Pages Numbers Keynote Siri Safari Mail FaceTime Messages Maps Notes Calendar Contacts Reminders Photo Booth Preview iTunes iBooks App Store Time Machine
Photos iMovie GarageBand Pages Numbers Keynote Siri Safari Mail FaceTime Messages Maps News Stocks Home Voice Memos Notes Calendar Contacts Reminders Photo Booth Preview Music Podcasts TV Books App Store Time Machine Find My QuickTime Player

Camera & Audio

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Camera720p FaceTime HD camera1080p FaceTime HD camera 
Advanced image signal processor with computational video.
Audio
  • Stereo speakers
  • Dual microphones
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack
    • Support for Apple iPhone headset with remote and microphone
    • Support for audio line out (digital/analog)
  • High-fidelity six-speaker sound system with force-canceling woofers
  • Wide stereo sound
  • Support for spatial audio when playing music or video with Dolby Atmos on built-in speakers
  • Spatial audio with dynamic head tracking when using AirPods (3rd generation), AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max
  • Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones

Misc

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
Touch ID sensor
Security-
  • Touch ID sensor
  • Apple T2 Security Chip
In the box
  • 13‑inch MacBook Pro
  • MagSafe 2 Power Adapter
  • Power cord
  • AC wall plug
  • 16‑inch MacBook Pro
  • 140W USB‑C Power Adapter
  • USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable (2 m)
WarrantyYour MacBook Pro with Retina display comes with 90 days of free telephone support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase the AppleCare Protection Plan to extend your service and support to three years from your computer’s purchase date. Only the AppleCare Protection Plan provides you with direct telephone support from Apple technical experts and the assurance that repairs will be handled by Apple‑authorized technicians using genuine Apple parts. For more information, visit Apple Support or call 800-823-2775.Your MacBook Pro comes with 90 days of complimentary technical support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase AppleCare+ for Mac to extend your coverage to three years from your AppleCare+ purchase date and add up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage every 12 months, each subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other repairable damage, plus applicable tax.
More
Video Support
  • Intel Iris Graphics 6100
  • Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 3840 by 2160 pixels on up to two external displays, both at millions of colors.
  • Thunderbolt digital video output
    • Native Mini DisplayPort output
    • DVI, VGA, dual-link DVI, and HDMI output supported using Mini DisplayPort adapters (sold separately)
  • HDMI video output
    • Support for 1080p resolution at up to 60Hz
    • Support for 3840-by-2160 resolution at 30Hz
    • Support for 4096-by-2160 resolution at 24Hz
  • Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at 1 billion colors and:
    • Up to two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Pro) or
    • Up to three external displays with up to 6K resolution and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Max)
  • Thunderbolt 4 digital video output
    • Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C
    • VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output supported using adapters (sold separately)
  • HDMI digital video output
    • Support for one display with up to 4K resolution at 60Hz
    • DVI output using HDMI to DVI Adapter (sold separately)

Key Features

2015 MacBook Pro 13 RetinaM1 MacBook Pro 16”
At Glance
Released in Early
2015
16:10 WQXGA
13.3”
1600p 60Hz
Weight
3.48 lb
1.58 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-5557U
2C/4T, 3.10 → 3.40 GHz
Geekbench 5
795
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,663
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® Iris® Graphics 6100
48 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
2015 MacBook Pro 13 Retina Ports
Released in Late
2021
16:10 XDR
16.2”
2234p 120Hz
Weight
4.7 lb
2.13 kg
Up to
Apple M1 Max (10C, 32G)
10C/10T, 3.20 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,747
Single Core
Geekbench 5
12,185
Multi-Core
With integrated
Apple M1 Max iGPU
32 GPU Cores, 16 Neural Engine Cores
Configurable up to
64GB
Unified Memory
M1 MacBook Pro 16” Ports

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