ifixit disassembled the new MacBook Pro M2 and lo and behold: in principle it is constructed in exactly the same way as the M1 model. So Apple simply resells the 2016 design with the latest chip.
The reviews of the M2 Pro are correspondingly restrained. You get an M2 chip, but the screen and webcam remain outdated, and you also have to be comfortable with the Touch Bar (although that might be the pro argument for some).
ifixit found that the M1 and M2 boards can be swapped, but then the Touch ID doesn’t work (to be expected) and the trackpad doesn’t want to either. This now seems to be linked to the logic board as well.
To compare the M1 and M2: Notebookcheck took a close look at the device and found that the M2 gets significantly hotter than the M1 under full load and that the cooling system can’t keep up. The M2 can consume up to 35 watts and the cooling doesn’t get rid of that. The fan runs at full load and the processor is still throttled. This may be due to the fact that the M2 is still being manufactured in 5nm technology instead of the targeted 3nm. So we’d say the MacBook Pro 13″ is a compromise the way it is.
Since the MacBook Pro with an active cooling system cannot compete with the M2, it will be interesting to see how the M2 MacBook Air will behave with passive cooling. We expect a significant throttling. In many scenarios there is probably not that much of a difference between M1 and M2.
