Apple's Phil Schiller: 'We Don't Design for Price, We Design for the Experience'

[Red Oak]

You may not design for price, but my credit card is not designed for your price.

You should move over to Dell. A great value for someone looking for cheaper solution

 

[TheHateMachine]

Yea, the great experience of having to look down at your keyboard when trying to use the tiny touch bar. So magical.

The great experience of using a crappy keyboard that is somehow a further step backwards than terrible chiclet keyboards. All because your designer is obsessed with thinness. Don't forget how this affects battery life!

The great experience of slotting an underwhelming gpu in an expensive high end laptop to get better margins.

So many great experiences!

 

[zhenya]

You're absolutely correct. You don't have to go very far back to see this isn't unusual pricing. In 2010 a 13" Macbook Pro with 2.66ghz Core2Duo was $1500. This was not a very good computer, even for the time.

Exactly. Everyone thinks that this is 'the last straw' for Apple when the reality is that Apple has become the most valuable company in the world by doing exactly what they are doing right now. Building expensive devices with little consideration to cost while being cut-throat at getting rid of old technologies. You can't both love what Apple has been and want them to become Dell.

 

[Polymorphic]

It's kind of weird how many new users to Macrumors, people that as far as I can see just joined today or just a couple of days ago, are today posting negative after negative stuff on this articles...mmm...conspiracy theory...

And some of us aren't remotely new. I've been using Macs for nearly 30 years. My current MacBook Pro is likely the last one I will ever buy (soon to be passed onto my wife). I recently bought a ThinkPad P50, and unlike Apple's new MacBook Pro, the P50 is actually "pro" in every sense of the word.

Apple has lost its way. They're out of touch. I'm not going to subsidize this arrogant, conceited company anymore.

 

[dumastudetto]

Just leave. Enjoy your malware infested Windows PC and the daily reboots. Seriously. I will LMAO if I still see you 6 months from now still commenting on Mac

Well said. Windows 10 should not be a viable option.

While the price increases are regrettable, it's only money. People should be willing to pay a bit for these best in class laptops from Apple. I'm warming to the idea of upgrading now. Apple has packed a ton of innovation into these new laptops, and the price increase is probably completely justifiable.

 

[MedRed]

What are doing on a Mac that has your memory sitting at 15+ in use? And please don't say 'running Virtual Machines' because that is just not a demanding enough use case to upturn Apple's engineering.

Here's a more realistic picture when my VM's are not running on my iMac, but many apps are in use:

I'm not running VM and I wouldn't call adding a 32 gb option "upturning Apple's engineering" as it doesn't require any more physical space than a 16 option.

 

[tehreflex]

Well a lot of users won't Experience this device because of the Price.

 

[Raketemensch]

So, the $200 bump on the non-touchbar model? There's no way that's all down to the screen tech.

I've got a brand new iPhone, and I'm ordering a brand-new Macbook, but I also have to order an extra cable to connect them, plus carry an extra adapter to be able to use the same headphones with both.

It's not that this is a bridge too far or something, it's just that they *could* have handled it better. And this is Apple, they *should* have handled it better. And I don't feel like saying that is anti-Apple, I consider it to be pro-Apple, we SHOULD expect the best of them.

 

[dumastudetto]

Well a lot of users won't Experience this device because of the Price.

I'm not sure. I was upset yesterday and saying there's no way I will upgrade. But when you dig into the detail, these are the best MacBook Pros Apple has ever built. macOS is the best operating system. And the best software is all only available for macOS in terms of traditional computing. It's worth the money to buy a new MacBook Pro I think.

 

[tehreflex]

Just leave. Enjoy your malware infested Windows PC and the daily reboots. Seriously. I will LMAO if I still see you 6 months from now still commenting on Mac

I enjoy both systems. My Windows PC at home has no malware nor does it have daily reboots. Don't think just because it's a Mac it can't get malware (Mackeeper). Most malware requires user intervention on both OS's.

 

[MedRed]

Exactly. Everyone thinks that this is 'the last straw' for Apple when the reality is that Apple has become the most valuable company in the world by doing exactly what they are doing right now. Building expensive devices with little consideration to cost while being cut-throat at getting rid of old technologies. You can't both love what Apple has been and want them to become Dell.

There was always something innovative about what Apple offered. And I wouldn't call using old components on a brand new product "getting rid of old technologies" DDR4 has been out for 2 years now. Price aside, this new Macbook Pro is dud. Sad to see Microsoft innovating more than Apple. Apple is just another tech company now. The magic is gone.

 

[OllyW]

No they aren't! They start at exactly the same as every other new MBP of the past decade! Which means they've actually come down in price. You are reacting to the fact that you've gotten used to the reduced prices of the mature (meaning OLD) products of the last few years.

January 2006 - New Intel MacBook Pro - 15" from $1999
October 2008 - New Unibody MacBook Pro - 15" from $1999
June 2012 - New Retina MacBook Pro - 15" from $2199
October 2016 - New Touch Bar MacBook Pro - 15" from $2399

Your "exactly the same" definition is not very accurate.

 

[Smith288]

Stockholders are probably happy about that quote. *fart*

 

[MuzakaEklekta]

You actually think it's Apple doing the copying here??

I don't for one second think Apple is copying Microsoft. I'm a graphic designer - I'm not that naive.

What is obvious is that Apple need to keep moving the bar. Their competitors can predictably imitate them - albeit, with more finesse. I much preferred Microsoft's 'version' of the execution.

 

[zhenya]

So, the $200 bump on the non-touchbar model? There's no way that's all down to the screen tech.

I've got a brand new iPhone, and I'm ordering a brand-new Macbook, but I also have to order and extra cable to connect them, plus carry an extra adapter to be able to use the same headphones with both.

It's not that this is a bridge too far or something, it's just that they *could* have handled it better. And this is Apple, they *should* have handled it better. And I don't feel like saying that is anti-Apple, I consider it to be pro-Apple, we SHOULD expect the best of them.

The $200 'bump' is merely because the old machines have been around long enough to already have their price reduced. $1499 has long been the starting price for the MBP. Even the base model is a huge step forward.

 

[MuzakaEklekta]

You really think their marketing team came up with that in less than 24 hours? Apple has been advertising like this for years and Microsoft adopted the same formula so this is just coincidence.

Edited my post for clarification.

 

[AmazedGuy]

I bet 50% or more of Apple customers just wanted a newer MBA.

1) With Skylake options

2) A slightly better screen. Would not even have to be Retina.
A 1920 x1200 (the Apple 16:10 ratio) or a 1920 x 1080 (the standard 16:9), either way
you get a roughly 170 ppi experience as opposed to the 124 ppi that Apple MBA has now.
That is good enough on a 13" screen.

No price increase would have been necessary.

Skylake chips are not that much more than Broadwell.

And the price of screens has gone down.

3) They could have upgraded the Thunderbolt port.

Incremental, but the MBA was near perfection. You do not need to toy with it that much.

Had they done that, it would be flying off the shelves right now.

People would have been happy.

The screen improvement could have been pedalled as a breakthrough and no one would have cared about the OLED touchbar.


Right now, in light of this, I am considering an Intel NUC, or a HP Envy 13t (Skylake); yes with all its Windows spyware.

 

[Belmont31R]

My problem with the price is Skylake and DDR3 memory. Other OEM's are shipping Kaby Lake and DDR4 now. After such a long wait we are now getting a generation old processors and outdated memory. They need to include at least a USB C to USB A adapter for a year or two. Go buy a new iPhone 7 and MBP...no way to connect them out of the box which is odd for how integrated Apple products are normally.

I think it's pretty clear now that Mac's are not a priority for Apple.

 

[maverick2007]

Looks like ***** is falling from the crack Apple! I still love apple product except this useless launch.

 

[PavelBaramov]

The MacBook Pros are not designed for the Price but for "Experience"!
Remember this when you look at the specs of the CPUs used into the both 13" and 15" because they are all from 2015 NOT the latest 2016 Skylake models: http://ark.intel.com/products/codename/37572/Skylake#@All

New models of MacBook Pros with old CPUs, BRAVOOO! Grande Apple! Grande

 

[G725]

I planned to upgrade my hardware and already accepted to pay a high price for the new MacBook Pro but with a budget GPU, DDR3 memory and only 256Gigs storage in the $2700 configuration it is just a little bit too expensive to justify a purchase.

 

[MedRed]

My 17" Macbook Pro:
MagSafe power port
Gigabit Ethernet port
FireWire 800 port
3 x USB 2.0 ports
Thunderbolt port
Audio line in
Audio line out
ExpressCard/34 slot
Optical Drive

Now:
4 x USB-C Thunderbolt
Audio line out


Some of the ports on my 17 have run their course, but I can't connect a single thing I own to a new MacBook Pro out of the box other than the headphones... which Apple says use an antiquated connection. With Apple moving to 100% USB-C connections, why on earth would they not do the same with the iPhone? For the first time ever, I hope Europe's call for a charging standard forces apple to comply, since Apple isn't even making its offerings within its own ecosystem compatible with each other.

 

[ikky]

THIS, f that touch bar, it doens't do anything I couldn't do before nor is it faster.

Apple Pay is very meh if you live in The Netherlands (not sure how its in the US or anywhere), but here, we pay with something that's called 'iDeal'. When checking out at a online store, it redirects you to your bank website, you log in, confirm the purchase and, via SMS, you'll receive a code to fill into the website to confirm the purchase again -> done. It's super fast and easy, no need for Apple Pay.

That doesn't really sound super fast

 

[zhenya]

My 17" Macbook Pro:
MagSafe power port
Gigabit Ethernet port
FireWire 800 port
3 x USB 2.0 ports
Thunderbolt port
Audio line in
Audio line out
ExpressCard/34 slot
Optical Drive

Now:
4 x USB-C Thunderbolt
Audio line out


Some of the ports on my 17 have run their course, but I can't connect a single thing I own to a new MacBook Pro out of the box other than the headphones... which Apple says use an antiquated connection. With Apple moving to 100% USB-C connections, why on earth would they not do the same with the iPhone? For the first time ever, I hope Europe's call for a charging standard forces apple to comply, since Apple isn't even making its offerings within its own ecosystem compatible with each other.

I mean, your 17" Pro is nearly 10 years old! How long do you think Apple should support legacy connectors?

Just ONE of the new Thunderbolt ports on the new MBP has something like double the bandwidth of all those ports on your computer!

 

[Pablo.A.Pucci]

Pros
4GB VRam
Faster Ports
new design brighter display
new keyboard butterfly 2.0
new speakers
I really like the much bigger touch pad
Faster hard drive

Cons
No 32GB Ram capability (this for me it´s crucial, and for the price, they should give us all the ram) No 4K Display
No Magsafe
Adaptors for everything

If Apple thinks that putting 32GB ram would make the iMac or the Mac Pro look less desirable, just increase the iMac and Mac Pro capabilities.