12-Inch Retina MacBook Receives Mixed Reviews From Early Adopters

[WilliamG]

The one problem I have with this thing is (besides the need to buy a $80 adapter just to use your USB) the price.

This Macbook is certainly not worth the $1299 for what it does. I can get the current gen Macbook Pro for the same price and I dont need to buy an adapter for my USB and it can do 3x as much. Just saying.

Except if you have to carry around the laptop all day, the new MacBook positively destroys the rMBP. Don't get me wrong - I have a 13" rMBP and love it, and the new MacBook isn't enough for me. But there was a time when it would have been. I, for one, bought the original MacBook Air when it first came out, and don't regret it for even a second. It was ahead of its time, and just amazing. One of my favorite Apple purchases to date.

For one thing, I can see a bunch of university students loving the new MacBook. Carrying heavy laptops around gets quite tiresome..

So it's not for everyone, and - like the original MacBook Air, it's definitely a glimpse into an Apple-notebook future. It'll be glorious.

 

[Ries]

“If I’d asked my customers what they wanted, they’d have said ‘A faster horse.’”
- Henry Ford

A faster horse would properly get me faster to work than a car currently does.

 

[macduke]

I agree that the keyboard takes some getting used to, but I think most people will be able to do that. It takes more than briefly using it. The trick is learning to type with less pressure. If you use too much pressure, I can see how it can fatigue your wrists. Remember that key travel has gradually been going down over the years. Early notebooks resembled desktop keyboards. Apple made the chicklet-style keyboard mainstream, and everyone got used to it. Now they are trying to replace it.

Yeah but I usually don't care and didn't mind the chiclet transition at all, but this one bugged me and I'm no keyboard snob. I don't own one yet so I probably still need time with that design but it just seems too compromised for a Mac. I think we'll definitely see this design in some kind of iPad keyboard cover.

 

[iOrbit]

Except if you have to carry around the laptop all day, the new MacBook positively destroys the rMBP. Don't get me wrong - I have a 13" rMBP and love it, and the new MacBook isn't enough for me. But there was a time when it would have been. I, for one, bought the original MacBook Air when it first came out, and don't regret it for even a second. It was ahead of its time, and just amazing. One of my favorite Apple purchases to date.

For one thing, I can see a bunch of university students loving the new MacBook. Carrying heavy laptops around gets quite tiresome..

So it's not for everyone, and - like the original MacBook Air, it's definitely a glimpse into an Apple-notebook future. It'll be glorious.

exactly.

the point of this product is not price for value, its price for concept.

if you're not carrying around a laptop with you like a tablet, then this product isn't for you. this product is NOT an iteration or "progression" for macbook air or pro. its a new line, a new idea. its the philosophy of tablet portability combined with the desktop experience. i would love to own one. for me, the iPad is the portable content i want in my house. but not the computer. this MacBook IS the portable computer i want to carry with me everywhere/anywhere.

if you (not meaning the poster i've quoted) aren't lugging a laptop around with you regularly, then this product isn't for you. and you're a tool if you purchased it alongside a macbook air/retina pro to use at home.

 

[V.K.]

I don't think it has been mentioned in this thread but the biggest issue for me with the new MB is battery life. I played with one on Saturday when Eaton Center Apple Store finally got one (1! WTF Apple?) display model.
It looks amazing. the screen is way nicer than on the MBA and it's very noticeably lighter than even the 11'' MBA. that certainly matters to me.

I can probably get used to the new keyboard (except for the up and down keys - they are awful). and I can maybe even live with the adapters. but the battery life is a deal breaker. I mostly use my laptop when I travel. and when I do travel I use it a lot and the battery has to last. especially with just one port for everything and no magsafe. Apple clearly implies that it should not be necessary to plug it in during the day. but as I understand it, with heavy usage and at full brightness it will last about 5 hours. not enough.

but the rMB is clearly the future of Apple ultraportables. in a couple of generations rMB will be great and MBA will disappear.

 

[thekeyring]

So it's not for everyone, and - like the original MacBook Air, it's definitely a glimpse into an Apple-notebook future. It'll be glorious.

If the Retina MacBook is a snapshot of the future in the same way the MacBook Air was, it's a great sign for Apple's success post-Jobs: they've released a laptop ahead of its time without him.

In terms of post-Jobs success, they seem to be passing every test and ticking every box.

 

[APlotdevice]

Struggling to manage two laptops isn't really a fair criticism of the rMB.

It is if you need the other laptop to compensate for the shortcomings of this one.

 

[69Mustang]

But Apple isn't ready yet to make this mainstream, just as they weren't ready to make the original MacBook Air mainstream in 2008. Too many people still need the extra ports. So they are pushing the envelope with a machine intended for road warriors and early adopters. Once they recoup their R&D and gotten greater acceptance of USB-C they will make this mainstream.

This may sound snarky but I promise it's not. I don't care if Apple isn't ready to make this mainstream. I don't care what Apple's vision is for any of their products. Same for Google, Microsoft, or any other manufacturer. I base my opinions of products on the product itself. What a company did 7 years ago or what they might do in 3 years don't matter when I pull out my credit card today. If I see value (price & performance) and it fits my use case, I buy it. For me, the MB fits neither. But that's just me. I make no claims for anyone else. I buying knowing something new is coming next year or the year after. When the time and the product arrives, I make decisions about the new product using the same parameters; not on how much v1 cost or performed.

As for Apple's R&D expenses. They spent $2b on R&D in Q1. They made $13.6b in net profit at 40%. There's really no concern over their R&D. USB-C is going to gain acceptance regardless. With all the major players supporting it, it seems like a forgone conclusion.

 

[KohPhiPhi]

The problem with the new Macbook is the huge cost of opportunity: you give up on A LOT (power, ports, resolution, etc) just to shave 1.4 pounds off your baggage compared to the MBPr 13" powerhouse. It's too much of a trade off.

I've been owning Macbook Airs for years, and for my next computer I will step up to MBPr 13" instead of stepping down to Macbook 12". Sorry Apple, but like I said, it's too much of a trade off.

The absolute only reason as of why someone could justify the premium price for such a compromised computer, is if you're a serious mobile user: always on the go with your laptop. Otherwise, there's no way you could justify this purchase vs. the 13" MBPr.

 

[Michael Goff]

It is if you need the other laptop to compensate for the shortcomings of this one.

If you need a second laptop to make up for this one, then this one isn't for you. This is for the crowd that want an iPad Plus (Slightly more power, more storage, better screen, full OS X, faster). That isn't meant to be an insult, that's just what it is.

 

[aront]

This video pretty much sums up the new Tim Cook Macbook:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZ8ek-6ccc

 

[joecool99]

no ****.

 

[dtemp]

Remember the pre-retina 13" MBP chassis? I'd rather they get that, put a retina display in it, put in the electronics from the 13" Air, and have full ethernet ports alongside 2x thunderbolt and USB3, along with a huge battery that took up the space the CD/HDD had. You'd then have something fast with a beautiful screen, without the need to carry around adapters, and gigantic battery life, and a comfortable keyboard.

They'd even be able to fit RAM slots on the mobo so your RAM would be upgradable.

Battery life, ports, upgradability... you're giving up all of that for the sake of 0.2 inches of thickness.

 

[Truefan31]

I think honestly if it had a usb c port on the other side too it'd be a hit

 

[willcapellaro]

All we wanted was a Macbook Air with Retina display. Apple over-designed this one.

What size?

 

[cult hero]

I was hoping this machine was a 12" Air, more or less. However, USB-C was a failure to launch for me because I actually have quite a few Thunderbolt devices. I didn't like the feeling of the keyboard either.

It's a cool machine but it doesn't fit my workflow at all. The idea that needing connectors means I'm "doing it wrong" is ridiculous. Just because something can be done wirelessly doesn't mean it's the best solution for all situations.

 

[nelsonammo]

The retina Macbook is the notebook of the future. Unfortunately, it's not the future, it's the present. In 2018, it will cost $999 for the entry level model and have 20-30% better performance. Also, USB-C devices will be common and they may have even re-designed it with an extra USB-C port or two by then.

As for people who just wanted a MBA with a retina screen...you already have one, it's the retina Macbook Pro. And it will be even more true when (I assume) they redesign the MBPs this year or next with Skylake, add in all the new tech from the MBs and make them thinner and lighter than before. The current MBAs will not be updated other than token processor updates until they are discontinued.

So in 2-3 years we will have the MB for portability and light usage, then the 13" MBP (which will be smaller and lighter than the current 13" air) for more heavy usage and then the 15" MBP for true power users. Currently the MB has lots of teething issues but once they are settled it will be an amazing computer and is the future of laptops...just perhaps a bit too early for most users.

 

[jakebrosy]

Feels like an iPad with an attached keyboard

My hubby ordered the 512GB version the day they went on sale to replace his 2 year old MBA (I think he just wanted a gold laptop).

He used it for a few days and asked me to check if something was wrong with it. He said it seemed slow for a new computer. I did a little work with it and he's right.

Suspecting some sort of misconfiguration I reinstalled the OS and it was still slow. Ran Geekbench3 on the thing and it has pretty much the same numbers as our iPad Air 2s. Which is a shame at $1600.

He went back to his old MBA and listed the shiny gold MB on Craigslist yesterday.

This new Macbook may be a miss for Apple if it can't outperform a tablet.

 

[V.K.]

I think honestly if it had a usb c port on the other side too it'd be a hit

it would certainly help. I am thinking that maybe they should have replaced the audio port on the right with a USB-c port.

 

[TXCraig]

Botched Roll Out

I'm surprised no one is talking about the botched roll out of this Mac. When I was in the Apple Flagship store in Houston last week I asked them how long it took to sell out. They told me to to date they hand not been given one they could sell.

I find this real strange and then a buddy showed me his and I asked him were he got it. He told me he walked into a BestBuy and they had them. So the Apple stores get zero and sending people to the web to buy them... sounds kinda like the watch?

Why have a store if you are going to push all your customers to the web. Apple customers want to see something and buy it. A lot of their sales are on impulse.... I know mine have been.

I would have purchased one, but they don't have any and don't know when they will.

I'm very disappointed in Apple right now.

Their earning are dependant on being able to supply customers with products... and I'm not sure they are doing that right now.

 

[Grey Area]

“If I’d asked my customers what they wanted, they’d have said ‘A faster horse.’”
- Henry Ford

The funny thing is, he most likely never really said that. And why would he, as motorized vehicles of all sorts had been around for years by the time he started buiding cars, albeit in small numbers.

While that 'quote' then might still contain a valuable lesson, one should also keep in mind that later on Ford started to lose out against competitors who listened more closely to their customers, and who thus offered more models, more colours, more options.

 

[Alphazoid]

Should've just added retina to the MBA and they'd have sold a boatload. Reminds me of the first MBA, you avoid it till 2nd or 3rd generation when they've fleshed out the kinks.

 

[AnthonyHarris]

To everyone who mentions the Retina Macbook Pro...

Isn't the Retina Macbook Pro about 75% heavier than this new Macbook?

You know Apple values thin and light... and they price accordingly!

75% heavier yet weighs hardly anything. It'd pop in anyone's man bag with no fuss.

I like thin. I used to admire my thin torso in the mirror and the reality struck me down. Whether you like it or not, regular thickness is normal and we don't have to sacrifice every goddamn port for the hipsters!

 

[brinary001]

Yes other commenters, I know, this is 2008 all over again and we the MacBook haters will be eating our words in two or three years. I get it and I completely agree with you. After all, history does repeat itself and even the tech industry cannot be immune to that, for better or worse. However, I offer my word of caution to the purchasers of this new Mac:

While I can get behind your free radicalism and rebellion in buying this to say three years from now to the doubters, "Seeeee! Didn't we tell you?", just remember that you'll be doing so with three year-old hardware... And yes everyone will have eaten their words and jumped on the bandwagon, but at least they did so with the newest possible machinery...

 

[Paix247]

I'm enjoying mine tremendously. I haven't touched my iPad in a week.