Two YouTubers have detailed this in their videos, where one declassified the mystery by discovering that the base model of the 13″ MacBook Pro with M2 chip is having only one NAND flash storage chip (256GB) – compared to its former 13″ M1 MacBook Pro, having two such chips (128GB + 128GB).
Wide Difference in Disk Speeds
As we’re getting excited to have our hands on the recently launched 13″ MacBook Pro, tests made on the SSD speeds reveal that it’s not the best choice! YouTube channels Max Tech and Created Tech tested the base variant (256GB) of 13″ MacBook Pro with M2 chip on Blackmagic’s Disk Speed Test app and found shocking results.
They noted the base variant is returning SSD read and write speeds at around 1,450 MB/s, which is significantly lower than the M1 chip-based 13″ MacBook Pro launched last year. To put into real comparison, here’s what Vadim Yuryev of Max Tech noted in his tests;
13-inch MacBook Pro (M1/256GB) Read Speed: 2,900 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2/256GB) Read Speed: 1,446 13-inch MacBook Pro (M1/256GB) Write Speed: 2,215 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2/256GB) Write Speed: 1,463
To know what’s the roadblock here, Yuryev dug deep into the new 13″ MacBook Pro and found out that it’s equipped with only one NAND flash storage chip – instead of two borne by its old M1 counterpart. And this marked the huge difference between reading/writing speeds.
Well, this is limited only to the 13″ MacBook Pro with an M2 chip, whereas the next higher variant (512GB) is well and good when compared to its predecessor. And it’s justified too since it’s having two NAND flash storage chips (256GB + 256GB). So it’s better you bump up your budget to buy the 512GB variant of the 13″ MacBook Pro (M2 chip), or wait for the upcoming MacBook Air (which may have two NAND chips to offer better disk speeds).
