NOTE: For this FAQ’s page, all the laptops mentioned have been discontinued. Nevertheless, this is an up-to-date guide for anyone interested in buying or selling any of these notebooks in the used market.
The 13-inch MacBook Pro Core i5 2.6 and 13-inch Core i7 3.0 models (also called the 13-inch “Early 2013” Retina Display MacBook Pro laptops) are very closely similar to their predecessors — the 13-inch MacBook Pro Core i5 2.5 and 13-inch Core i7 2.9 models (also called the 13-inch “Late 2012” Retina Display MacBook Pro laptops).
It’s very important to add here that the “Early 2013” models did not replace the “Late 2012” line of Apple laptops. With Apple’s continuing efforts to offer revised and just a tad less expensive products, the “Late 2012” notebooks are released along with the new “Early 2013” laptops around that time.
Major variations are only by configurations, processors, and identifiers. For a smarter laptop purchase and decision-making in determining whether these models are suitable for your needs, some of these differences may come in handy for you to pick the best notebook among a range of laptops available in the market.
Photo Credit: Pocket-lint.com
External Similarities
Both the 13-inch “Late 2012” and “Early 2013” Retina Display MacBook Pro laptops use the same glass design with an effectively “sealed” wafer thin aluminum, which only weighs 16.2 kg, just slightly more than 3.5 pounds. While MacBook Air laptops have a tapered design (from back to front), all 13-inch Retina Display laptops, on the other hand, have uniform dimensions: 0.75-inch thick, 12.35-inch wide, and 8.62-inch deep (when closed).
These 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro lines of laptops both share the same 13.3-inch widescreen, LED-backlit, high resolution “Retina” Display at 2560 x 1600 (227 ppi). Both have the same full-size “chiclet-style” backlit keyboard, integrated stereo speakers, a glass (no button) trackpad with “inertial scrolling” support, dual microphones, and an integrated 720p FaceTime HD webcam. An external optical drive can be bought at extra cost if preferred, but neither models have the drive built into these laptops.
Connectivity Similarities
It’s pretty straightforward for both lines as they have identical connectivity features which include the following: 3-stream 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, two (2) USB 3.0 ports, two (2) Thunderbolt ports, an audio port, an SDXC card slot, an HDMI port, and a “MagSafe 2” power connector port.
Neither the “Early 2013” nor the “Late 2012” line have Firewire 800 or Gigabit Ethernet ports. Apple offers adapters for this: (1) Thunderbolt-to-Gigabit Ethernet, and (2) Thunderbolt-to-Firewire 800 if you need this connectivity.
Identification Differences
Both lines – 13-inch “Late 2012” and “Early 2013” Retina Display MacBook Pro models – share the external model number (A1425) and the MacBookPro10,2 software model identifier.
These identifiers alone are sufficient, however, if you need more distinguishable specifications, the EMC number is a more precise and better external identification. The “Late 2012” notebooks have EMC number 2557, while the “Early 2013” laptops have EMC number 2672. There’s a page for a quick look of these identifications in detail here on the Techable.com website for your reference, and you can also do a lookup of these unique identifiers by their serial numbers if you prefer so and for your convenience.
Internal Similarities and Differences
Photo Credit: Anandtech
The internal features of the “Late 2012” and “Early 2013” models are very similar, using the same “Ivy Bridge” architecture. They have dual-core (not quad-core) – Intel Core i5 or Core i7 processors, an integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 graphics processor that shares 768MB of system memory, and have 8GB of onboard 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM soldered in place, which can not be upgraded (at the time of purchase or even after).
Storage is not intended to be upgraded after purchase for both lines so they use internal flash storage rather than a hard drive. The removable module mounted in a drive caddy is these laptops’ flash storage, making it upgradeable for a larger capacity flash memory module, after purchase.
The 74 watt-hours lithium-polymer battery is glued in place and provides up to 7 hours of runtime in Apple standards (tested for both lines of products; NOTE that actual runtime may still vary). It is not impossible to change the batteries, however, maybe a tad bit more difficult than other notebooks in the market.
Comparison Chart
Here’s a summary of the processors, identifiers, default storage, etc. to differentiate the 13-inch “Late 2012” and “Early 2013” Retina Display MacBook Pro laptops:
 |  | |
| 13-inch Retina (Late 2012) | 13-inch Retina (Early 2013) | |
| Processor Speed | 2.5 GHz, 2.9 GHz* | 2.6 GHz, 3.0 GHz** |
| Processor Type | Core i5 (I5-3210M) Core i7 (I7-3520M)* | Core i5 (I5-3230M) Core i7 (I7-3540M)** |
| Shared L3 Cache | 3MB, 4MB* | 3MB, 4MB** |
| Standard RAM | 8GB† | 8GB† |
| Maximum RAM | 8GB† | 8GB† |
| Internal Storage | 128GB, 256GB†† | 256GB |
| Integrated Graphics | HD Graphics 4000 | HD Graphics 4000 |
| VRAM (Shared) | 768MB | 768MB |
| Display Size | 13.3-inch widescreen | 13.3-inch widescreen |
| Display Resolution | 2560 x 1600 (227 ppi) | 2560 x 1600 (227 ppi) |
| Battery Life | 7 hours | 7 hours |
| SDXC Card Slot | Yes | Yes |
| Dimensions | 0.75 x 12.35 x 8.62 | 0.75 x 12.35 x 8.62 |
| Weight | 3.57 lbs (1.62 kg) | 3.57 lbs (1.62 kg) |
| Order Number (US) | MD212LL/A, MD213LL/A†† | ME662LL/A |
| EMC Number | 2557 | 2672 |
| Model Identifier | MacBookPro10.2 | MacBookPro10.2 |
*The dual-core 2.9 GHz Core i7 processor (I7-3520M) has 4MB of level 3 cache. This was available as a “Late 2012” custom configuration for an extra US$200.
** The dual-core 3.0 GHz Core i7 processor (I7-3540M) has a 4MB of level 3 cache. This was available as an “Early 2013” custom configuration for an extra US$200 (US$1899 total).
† Both lines have soldered RAM in place. Neither laptop model can be upgraded to more than 8GB of RAM, whether from time of purchase or after
†† MD212LL/A originally was offered with 128 GB of storage for US$1699 and MD213LL/A was offered with 256 GB of storage for US$1999. On February 13, 2013, Apple lowered the price of the MD212LL/A configuration to US$1499 and discontinued the MD213LL/A configuration. These remaining configurations were discontinued on October 22, 2013.
