After seeing in iFixit’s teardown that the base model of the new 2016 MacBook Pro without the Touch Bar had a removable PCIe SSD storage unit, many were excited at the possibility of aftermarket upgrade parts across the new MacBook Pro lineup.
But new images surfacing on the web this week after the first MacBook Pro with Touch Bar units began reaching the hands of buyers are showing that the Touch Bar models don’t follow suit and have SSD storage chips soldered into their logic boards instead.
This is going to come off as a major disappointment to anyone who was looking forward to a company, such as OWC, making aftermarket upgrades for these machines, but it also highlights the importance of picking the right storage option from the get go.
Additionally, it’s surprising that Apple would mix and match by going with the removable PCIe unit in the lower end MacBook Pro and the soldered PCIe-based unit in the higher end MacBook Pro.
The pictures first showed up on an online forum and reveal that there was some protective shielding over the SSD. The brave new 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar owner had to remove the shielding to see what kind of SSD was hidden beneath, so you can imagine the suspense leading to the disappointment after this finding.
Although this is the 15-inch model, it’s said from other buyers that the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar follows suit, which means only the non-Touch Bar model still has the removable PCIe module.
Apple’s MacBook Pro with Touch Bar begins at 256GB of storage, but for where that’s not enough, buyers can opt for factory upgrades up to 2TB when buying their machine online. Bumping the storage up while checking out on Apple’s website adds anywhere from $200-1,200 to the total cost of the machine.
The images also illustrate the relatively small battery cells, which don’t take advantage of every nook and cranny inside the machine as they could. Apple likely reduced the size of the batteries on purpose in order to cut on weight and meet their four-pound goal.
Also read:
- Try the Touch Bar on any Mac with Touché
- 25 awesome things you can do with the Touch Bar
- iFixit tears down the base model MacBook Pro without the Touch Bar
Are you upset to see that the SSD in the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar can’t be upgraded? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: MacRumors