MBP M2 SSD Speed

phlamethrowre

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Around the time the new M2 MBP was released I bought a M1 model on sale at Best Buy. Today I saw that the new model was already on sale for about the same price I paid. I was pretty mad about it since my window to return the M1 ended on 7/24. Anyway, I did a little research to find out how much better the M2 is over the M1 and discovered that Apple used slower SSD in the 256GB M2 than they used in the model I have. Has anyone heard or read about this?
 

Up_And_Away

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Yes, it is factual. The M1 256 model uses a step up on the SSDs as well as using 2 x 128 / 2 “NAND” chips. On M2 256 there is 1 X 256 / 1 NAND chip. While The step up SSD model on M1 provides a modest + difference, it is the single NAND chip that makes a very substantial difference. Ultimately your r/w speeds will be substantially higher on M1 256 vs M2 256. With M2 512 (2 NAND chips) may be near the same though likely a bit slower than M1 256 due to that step up SSD.

To give credit where it’s due, I know this due to MaxTech on YT. It has been the point of all this. You can see their last video on it here (they literally said “this is our last video on the subject” all drama closed from here). https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H6Olqv5ChlQ
They’re generally fans of Apple but they were disappointed with the NAND issue and step down SSD. But it is important to note MaxTech uses Light Room video edits and exports for their daily use. That matters to them, and use it to stress test the machine. The average user is unlikely to see any performance degradation unless they are stressing the machine.

Bottom line, for an M series MBP 13, you probably made the right choice with M1.
 

phlamethrowre

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Yes, it is factual. The M1 256 model uses a step up on the SSDs as well as using 2 x 128 / 2 “NAND” chips. On M2 256 there is 1 X 256 / 1 NAND chip. While The step up SSD model on M1 provides a modest + difference, it is the single NAND chip that makes a very substantial difference. Ultimately your r/w speeds will be substantially higher on M1 256 vs M2 256. With M2 512 (2 NAND chips) may be near the same though likely a bit slower than M1 256 due to that step up SSD.

To give credit where it’s due, I know this due to MaxTech on YT. It has been the point of all this. You can see their last video on it here (they literally said “this is our last video on the subject” all drama closed from here). https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H6Olqv5ChlQ
They’re generally fans of Apple but they were disappointed with the NAND issue and step down SSD. But it is important to note MaxTech uses Light Room video edits and exports for their daily use. That matters to them, and use it to stress test the machine. The average user is unlikely to see any performance degradation unless they are stressing the machine.

Bottom line, for an M series MBP 13, you probably made the right choice with M1.

I agree about the choice. I made it inadvertently though.
 

FFR

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If you are happy with the m1 keep it. If you aren’t I would try customer service, they might not initiate a return but an exchange might be plausible.

Personally I would pick an m2 over an m1, that midnight color is and the brighter display with thinner bezels is long overdue.
 

phlamethrowre

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If you are happy with the m1 keep it. If you aren’t I would try customer service, they might not initiate a return but an exchange might be plausible.

Personally I would pick an m2 over an m1, that midnight color is and the brighter display with thinner bezels is long overdue.

The M1 and M2 13.3 MBP are identical except for the chip and SSD.

You’re probably thinking about the Air.
 

phlamethrowre

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You are right I was talking about the air. Mea culpa

The M2 Air with 512 SSD is the model to buy. Better everything including screen. I haven’t seen it for less than 1499 yet. I only paid 1049 for my M1 MBP and it works fine for me.
 

Up_And_Away

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I agree. If I was choosing today — I already have the M1 MBA — I’d go with the M2 MBA (once it is on sale at the Apple refurb store for close to 1,000$). For an all around laptop IMHO it’s about as good as it gets around that price point. And I’d personally have no issue getting the base model. The r/w speed just isn’t something that would be a ‘choke point’ for my usage. Imho, only imho, if someone’s use case needs video editing/rendering etc, an M1 Pro MBP 14 or better should be the target.
With that said, if someone needs as inexpensive as possible, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the M1 MBA especially if we start to see an 800$ price point at the refurb store.
 

FFR

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The M2 Air with 512 SSD is the model to buy. Better everything including screen. I haven’t seen it for less than 1499 yet. I only paid 1049 for my M1 MBP and it works fine for me.

The Mbp is a great computer, nothing wrong with it. It’s just the mba is a different beast altogether, especially that midnight color.
 

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