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Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016)

Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016)

230 reviews

Dec, 2024

Positive
portability (88)
performance (71)
design (51)
screen (43)
usability (38)

Negative
price (26)
keyboard (25)
connectivity (5)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 230 reviews of Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016). The average rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average rating of 4.0/5 for other products in the same category for all reviews. People are impressed by the usability and screen. The design and performance also get good feedback. Many are negative about the connectivity and keyboard. The energy efficiency and reliability get mixed comments.

portability, performance, design, screen, usability

price, keyboard, connectivity

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other products in the same category the Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016) is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 87/100 = Very good quality.

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Review analysis

(Based on 230 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(46% of reviews)
Show all 5 star reviews (32% of reviews)
Show all 4 star reviews (9% of reviews)
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Show all 2 star reviews (10% of reviews)
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Features

portability
Show positive (94%)Show negative (6%)(Show all)

performance
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design
Show positive (93%)Show negative (7%)(Show all)

screen
Show positive (91%)Show negative (9%)(Show all)

usability
Show positive (88%)Show negative (12%)(Show all)

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Showing 120 review(s)

Expert Reviews User Reviews

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Showing 1 - 80 of 120 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (54)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016)

alaTest has collected and analyzed 4 user reviews of Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016) from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.8/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.0/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.co.uk.

100% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Dec, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016)

alaTest has collected and analyzed 66 user reviews of Apple MacBook 12-inch (2016) from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 3.8/5, compared to an average user rating of 3.9/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.com. Views about the usability and screen are on the whole positive. The design and portability also get good feedback. There are some mixed opinions about the reliability. Many are less positive about the connectivity and image quality.

performance, portability, design, screen, usability

image quality, connectivity

77% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Dec, 2024

Expert review by (engadget.com)

Apple's updated MacBook is indeed faster with longer battery life

Apple deserves credit for improving the MacBook's battery life and disk speeds, but other than that, this is, for better and worse, the same machine as last year's model. If you previously shied away from the 12-inch MacBook because of the "one port"...

Lightweight, attractive design ; Comfortable keyboard ; Gorgeous display ; Improved SSD speeds ; New model does indeed get an extra hour of battery life ; Now available in pink, if that's your thing

Still just one port; adapters sold separately ; Battery life still trails other ultraportables, including Apple's own MacBook Air

How similar is the updated MacBook to last year's model? Put it this way: I was strongly tempted to assign it the exact same score. In the end, I decided it deserved a slightly higher number as a way of acknowledging the extra hour of battery life and...

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by : Lauren Goode (theverge.com)

MacBook 2016 review: all of the possibilities, all of the realities

Last year's introduction of the 12-inch MacBook — that's just MacBook, not MacBook Air or MacBook Pro — highlighted some of the best elements of Apple design. The laptop is beautiful, super thin,...

Incredibly thin/light ; Beautiful Retina display ; Improved performance

Still not as powerful as other MacBooks ; Shallow, edge-to-edge keyboard ; Single USB Type-C port

May, 2016

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Expert review by : Roman Loyola (pcworld.com)

Cyberlink PowerDVD 16 review: Enough new features to justify upgrading (from PowerDVD 14, at least)

When it comes to hardware, Apple isn't afraid to force its users to adapt, to change habits. Longtime Mac users remember when Apple stopped including floppy and optical drives, or when FireWire was discontinued. More recently, Mac users have had to...

Small size and light weight make it ideal for travel ; Increased performance ; Improved battery life

Only one USB-C port for charging and peripherals ; Reduced key travel on keyboard makes the keys uncomfortable to press ; 480p FaceTime camera ; No flash storage customization options available

The MacBook is for the user who values portability over anything else. The 2016 edition comes with a welcomed speed boost and a Rose Gold option.

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by : Joel Santo Domingo (pcmag.com)

Apple MacBook (2016)

The insanely sleek 12-inch MacBook is still the lightest Apple laptop, but competing Windows laptops have caught up in thinness, weight, and screen quality.

Gorgeous, thin build. Weighs less than 2 pounds. Retina Display. 11 hours of battery life. Excellent-sounding speakers. Available in four colors including Rose Gold.

Limited connectivity with a single USB-C port, and no adapters are included. USB-C is not Thunderbolt-compatible. Shallow keyboard and Force Touch trackpad take some getting used to. Internal upgrades can only be made at initial purchase.

Aside from the new Rose Gold option, the new MacBook is visibly unchanged from last year's model, though its new Skylake-based processor improves benchmark performance a bit. But battery life takes a hit due to that faster CPU. You can't deny the sleek...

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by (cnet.com)

Apple MacBook 2016 256GB, silver

Nor is it the only player in the game. Since the 2015 original , we've seen super-thin laptops such as the upcoming HP Spectre shaving millimeters from previous versions, or tablet hybrids such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and Samsung Galaxy TabPro S...

The 12-inch MacBook gets a decent boost to performance and battery life, while keeping the same slim, light premium body. The high-res display and responsive trackpad remain the gold standard. Color options add a fun bit of personalization.

The single USB-C port will continue to be an inconvenience for many. The shallow keyboard isn't ideal for long-form typing. Other super-slim laptops manage to fit in more powerful processors.

With a handful of subtle improvements, the updated 12-inch Apple MacBook is more of a mainstream machine, but remains a few tweaks away from being the best laptop on the market.

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by : Laptop Mag (laptopmag.com)

Apple MacBook 2016 Review

Fantastically light design (with rose gold option); Rich and vibrant display; Faster performance than predecessor; Very good battery life ; Still just one USB-C port; Can't power two external displays; Low-res webcam ; The updated MacBook packs more...

Still just one USB-C port; Can't power two external displays; Low-res webcam ; The updated MacBook packs more performance and battery life into a wonderfully thin and light design, but Apple didn't address the biggest drawbacks.

The updated MacBook packs more performance and battery life into a wonderfully thin and light design, but Apple didn't address the biggest drawbacks.

Nov, 2016

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Expert review by : Jamison Cush (NotebookReview.com)

Apple MacBook 2016 Review: The Good, The Bad, The Expensive

The new Apple MacBook is expensive considering its specs. But it also arguably has the best hardware on the market. Does that make it a compelling product? Read on to find out.

Great hardware ; Excellent display ; Best touchpad on the market

Overpriced for its performance ; Single USB Type-C port frustrating, accessories expensive ; Display not a touchscreen ; Shallow key travel makes for uncomfortable typing

May, 2016

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Expert review by : Klaus Hinum, J. Simon Leitner (notebookcheck.net)

Apple MacBook 12 (Early 2016) 1.1 GHz Review

Pioneering. One of the hotly debated devices from Apple's line-up has been updated: The MacBook 12 omits non-essential features and focuses on highest portability. Fan, many interfaces, a mechanical touchpad, a long key travel: "You don't need that."

outstanding Retina screen ; precise Force-Touch trackpad ; notable speaker quality ; high-end aluminum chassis ; silent as passively cooled, yet still not very hot

a single combo port is a serious restriction ; the short key travel causes typing errors again and again ; no charge indicator via LED ; poor maintainability and upgradeability (iFixit 1/10 points) ; single core performance is slightly lower than the...

The 12-inch MacBook is and remains an impressive device. Low weight, an excellent display, and its build quality are outstanding properties. However, not much has changed compared to the model from 2015. Slightly improved graphics performance and...

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by : Cliff Joseph (zdnet.com)

Apple MacBook (2016) review: Skylake update improves performance and battery life

The MacBook's lightweight design is hard to beat for portability, but there are alternatives that offer better battery life and more connectivity for office use.

Sleek ultraportable 12-inch laptop weighing just 920g ; Impressive Retina Display ; Improved battery life and GPU performance

Expensive ; Few upgrade or repair options ; Limited connectivity

Apr, 2016

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Expert review by : Kenny Yeo (hardwarezone.com)

Apple MacBook (2016) review: Updated, but is it any better?

Apple has updated its super thin and light MacBook with new processors, faster storage, and it's now available in rose gold. Do these upgrades make it the must-have ultraportable notebook? We find out.

Gorgeous design and now available in rose gold ; Unbelievably thin and light ; Awesome Force Touch trackpad ; Great Retina Display ; Excellent build quality

Less powerful than other Mac notebooks ; Shorter battery life than other Mac notebooks ; Only one USB Type-C port ; No dedicated jack/port for power ; Keyboard needs getting used to

In short, our assessment of the MacBook hasn’t changed with the updates that it has received.

May, 2016

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