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Given Apple's history with regard to laptop products, AppleCare is a necessity. I usually do not bother with AppleCare for any of my Apple devices -- except for the laptops. It's a requirement.
But the AppleCare experience bares no resemblance to what it used to be. It took me 3 trips over a year's period to finally get Apple to pony up for a new motherboard in my 2018 mini. Roll back in time and it would have been a new or refurb handed to me on the first trip. I had screen shots and crash logs but they'd keep wearing me out with “we can't replicate”.
 
But the AppleCare experience bares no resemblance to what it used to be. It took me 3 trips over a year's period to finally get Apple to pony up for a new motherboard in my 2018 mini. Roll back in time and it would have been a new or refurb handed to me on the first trip. I had screen shots and crash logs but they'd keep wearing me out with “we can't replicate”.
I never had such a problem -- probably because I am willing to make a scene in the store and use profanity if necessary. I do not doubt what you are saying though. All "insurers" hate to payout on claims.
 
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But the AppleCare experience bares no resemblance to what it used to be. It took me 3 trips over a year's period to finally get Apple to pony up for a new motherboard in my 2018 mini. Roll back in time and it would have been a new or refurb handed to me on the first trip. I had screen shots and crash logs but they'd keep wearing me out with “we can't replicate”.
I had the exact same experience. I had lightbleed issues on my M1 MacBook Pro that were only visible in the dark. Apple refused to repair it, even when I showed them evidence, because they couldn’t replicate the issue. You know why they couldn’t replicate the issue? They had no curtains in the Apple Store, which means they couldn’t test it in a dark environment. To top it all off, they give it back to me with a big fat scratch, on exactly the spot where they noted was very slight wear and tear when they took my MacBook in. It almost seemed like it was on purpose.
 
the iPhone processors have plateau'd and now they can only push camera improvements. that won't work with the computers.
Yeah, and 640K is more memory than anyone will ever need.

...and 40 year-old memes will last forever. Just wait a few months for the M1X to come out and we'll be arguing about whether anybody needs more than 64,000,000K (...if we're lucky and M1X doesn't max out at 32GB).

If you compare the decade that took us from the Apple II (1977) to the Macintosh II (1987) (or even the Mac SE if you think the Mac II is too high-end) with the decade that started with the 2011 MacBook Pro and ended with the 2021 MacBook Pro.... well, the clue is in the names, we're talking evolutionary vs. revolutionary.

...but you also have to look at need - and there we're into diminishing returns. In the mid 80s, someone handed me a 5.25" floppy which, after chunking away for about a minute while it filled the entire RAM of my 6502 BBC Micro, proceeded to display a grainy smudge that was just about recognisable as a 5-second clip from Star Wars rendered in 160x256, 7-colour graphics. By the late 80s, Mac II-era computers could play and edit postage-stamp sized 128x128 Quicktime movies of a reasonable length - maybe good enough to use to build an off-line edit decision list or a multimedia product where any video was a novelty. Then by the mid/late-90s you could actually do realistic non-linear video editing at "better than VHS" (faint praise!) quality on "prosumer" PC equipment and end up with reasonable quality "home videos" that looked fairly good on a full-size TV. So, really, video editing on affordable personal computers went from "can't do" (but with tantalising hints of the future) to "can do" in the space of a decade. ~2010 and a half-decent personal computer could edit 1080p. ~2020 and... make that 4k, and you can probably shoot that on your phone. Sure, big jump in bandwidth, (probably mainly down to hardware codecs in the GPU rather than raw CPU) but, heck, half of what I watch on TV isn't even 1080p yet and its not worth getting 4k on anything less than a 50" screen...

Hence diminishing need - At some point in the last 15 years we shot through "good enough for most people". Being able to shoot and edit even HD video on a phone and edit it on an entry-level Mac opens up huge new possibilities. Being able to do 8k video... can wait for most. Heck - priorities - I'd strongly recommend getting a proper HD camera with proper lenses and support for proper microphones, proper tripods, proper lighting first. I mean, it would be nice not to have to use HD proxies for 8K editing, but, oh, the humanity...

I'm not saying that nobody needs more power - but it's now about shaving 20% off the time to do your job whereas, in the past, it has been about opening up previously unthinkable possibilities.

I'm just using video as an example - the iPhone long passed "good enough" for a pocket phone/email/web/media player which is why Apple are pushing its photography/video capabilities and ability to morph your head into a talking poo emoji.

Nobody seems to have come up with the killer consumer application for super-fast phone/PC processors yet. The big advance of the last decade or so has been in internet access, web apps and social media - which are more about networking infrastructure - and cutting size/weight/power consumption (...and we now have featherlight machines that can run all day on a charge and phones too thin to contain a camera lens...) - the next iPod or iPhone, or new paradigm to displace the UI has yet to emerge. Apart from web stuff, we're mostly running - albeit greatly improved - of the WP/DTP, graphics, spreadsheet, video editing, audio production, coding etc. software that a time traveller from the early 90s would still recognise.

Hell, we haven’t even seen anything but the 15W consumer-grade base-level Mac silicon yet!

True. The problem is that the pro-level Mac silicon is looking a bit overdue, which is concerning. The 15W "MacBook Air" chip was the low-hanging fruit for the switch to ARM. We're all eager to see how well the key features of the M1 - like integrated graphics and on-package unified RAM - can scale to fit the MBP/5k iMac- replacements, which isn't completely obvious.
 
I would agree to this to a certain extent

It would seem that the first few generations are going to be problematic but then there are tons and tons of people who buy the first generation product that end up very well with no problems whatsoever.

Apple is very good when it comes to reputable quality that I have never really experienced any problems in any of my devices.

This news might come in handy though so Apple care is a great choice as well
 
If you need a new mac, buy one, but for me I run older software such as Adobe CS6 or autoCAD. There is many other programs that have a problems with M1 chip. Also if you have older hardware better check it out first "no driver support". Apple and Microsft Windows 11 knows what they are doing, they are driving us away from software ownership to subscription software and we have to upgrade are hardware. Its all about the dollar. So I am staying with the intel chip for now. I know the day will come that I will have to upgrade but for now my intel MacBook Pro 15 can do anything that the M1 chip can do and more, big deal if it is a few seconds slower.
 
I know that everyone and their mother is jonesing for Apple Silicon replacements to the MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019) and MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) and particularly because it will bring a new redesign, but I must offer a few words of caution for those who would be early adopters:

There have been four body styles of MacBook Pro to date. The first one or two releases of those body styles (four in the case of the original and three in the case of the unibody) had serious issues that affected reliability and/or functionality and/or usability in at least one size of MacBook Pro. In some cases, quality repair extension programs were issued, but in all cases, there wasn't much of a fix because the issues were inherent to the design and/or parts used. With the exception of the first design generation of MacBook Pro, usually the most reliable release of MacBook Pros from within a given generation are the last one or more, rather than the first one or two. The original design generation (that largely continued the design of the aluminum 15" and 17" PowerBook G4s) is a notable exception (in which pretty much all of those sucked), but this has otherwise largely been true of all of the design generations of MacBook Pro, especially for the Retina and Touch Bar iterations.

All that to say that if you're determined to be an early adopter on this new generation, consider that the odds of you having issues with what you buy will be greatly increased over waiting a refresh or two.

Hiya,



A good post! Good food for thought.

I've got a positive view point on this:

Well done to early adopters! :)

Without them, MacBooks etc. would not get refined so quickly in the following releases.

The later adopters benefit - The people less financially gifted, and less time rich and less tech savvy; The kind of people that just want something awesome, tried and tested out the box, which just works.



My 2 pennies worth.

Martin :)
 
It's not just first-edition defects, but more often it's desirable features that didn't make it to Version 1, but show up in Version 2. For example: the 2nd Retina MBP in 2013 added 2x SSD speed, the then-new wireless AC and 2 hours more battery life, or most frustratingly, the 2nd Retina iMac 5k which included a new P3 wide-color display , causing many early adopters to gnash their teeth in regret.

Now, you might say "well, every new version has new features." True, but in my 17 years of buying Apple products, it's usually been the 2nd Edition that's included the most desirable upgrades.*

My end-of-the-line 2019 MBP 16 inch is pretty stable and very fast. And since we already know from Apple's leaked roadmap that the M2 will trounce the M1X (which, let's admit, is a transitional processor) I can wait until 2022 when Apple releases MBP's with even greater power and battery life, as well as whatever new and unexpected features they're cooking up.

*Other examples: 2nd iPod touch added physical volume controls; 2nd iPad Air added laminated, less-reflective display; 2nd iPad Pro 12.9" added Pro-Motion, P3 wide-color and True Tone to the display.
 
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It's not just first-edition defects, but more often it's desirable features that didn't make it to Version 1, but show up in Version 2. For example: the 2nd Retina MBP in 2013 added 2x SSD speed, the then-new wireless AC and 2 hours more battery life, or most frustratingly, the 2nd Retina iMac 5k which included a new P3 wide-color display , causing many early adopters to gnash their teeth in regret.

Now, you might say "well, every new version has new features." True, but in my 17 years of buying Apple products, it's usually been the 2nd Edition that's included the most desirable upgrades.*

My end-of-the-line 2019 MBP 16 inch is pretty stable and very fast. And since we already know from Apple's leaked roadmap that the M2 will trounce the M1X (which, let's admit, is a transitional processor) I can wait until 2022 when Apple releases MBP's with even greater power and battery life, as well as whatever new and unexpected features they're cooking up.

*Other examples: 2nd iPod touch added physical volume controls; 2nd iPad Air added laminated, less-reflective display; 2nd iPad Pro 12.9" added Pro-Motion, P3 wide-color and True Tone to the display.And

And let's not forget that extra 2 hours of battery life cost many of us a trip to the Bar to get a swollen battery replaced and a new (flat) bottom. At least they did it with no questions asked. My 3 Air's were rock solid. My 3 Pro's all needed service within the Applecare period. OP has a valid point from my POV.
 
And let's not forget that extra 2 hours of battery life cost many of us a trip to the Bar to get a swollen battery replaced and a new (flat) bottom. At least they did it with no questions asked. My 3 Air's were rock solid. My 3 Pro's all needed service within the Applecare period. OP has a valid point from my POV.
While I agree with you, I believe that there has never been a more fragile MacBook Pro design than the current lineup. I think that now Jony Ive has left we’ll see a more practical MacBook Pro that’s made to be used.
 
While I agree with you, I believe that there has never been a more fragile MacBook Pro design than the current lineup. I think that now Jony Ive has left we’ll see a more practical MacBook Pro that’s made to be used.
be ready for some disappointment, is my guess.
 
Mind explaining what do u mean and what your guesses are ?
They will be as thin as they can possibly make them as the M1X will allow for this.

If the iPad Pro can handle the M1 no problem, without overheating and be as thin as it is, I expect the MBP to be a revolution in design for laptops.

My thoughts are it is likely to be more fragile than less, and it certainly isnt just Jonny Ive who drives thinness. Look at the current PC laptops being released. Apple can out do them with the M chips.

Also Apples direction with the MBP has always been a laptop is for mobility with reasonable power. They aren’t workstations, but will go as thin and light as they possibly can without effecting the M1X performance.

It will be an interesting launch that’s for sure.
 
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They will be as thin as they can possibly make them as the M1X will allow for this.

If the iPad Pro can handle the M1 no problem, without overheating and be as thin as it is, I expect the MBP to be a revolution in design for laptops.

My thoughts are it is likely to be more fragile than less, and it certainly isnt just Jonny Ive who drives thinness. Look at the current PC laptops being released. Apple can out do them with the M chips.

Also Apples direction with the MBP has always been a laptop is for mobility with reasonable power. They aren’t workstations, but will go as thin and light as they possibly can without effecting the M1X performance.

It will be an interesting launch that’s for sure.
All in all i don't see that much negative things in what you're wrote ;)
They will be as thin as they can possibly make them as the M1X will allow for this.

If the iPad Pro can handle the M1 no problem, without overheating and be as thin as it is, I expect the MBP to be a revolution in design for laptops.

My thoughts are it is likely to be more fragile than less, and it certainly isnt just Jonny Ive who drives thinness. Look at the current PC laptops being released. Apple can out do them with the M chips.

Also Apples direction with the MBP has always been a laptop is for mobility with reasonable power. They aren’t workstations, but will go as thin and light as they possibly can without effecting the M1X performance.

It will be an interesting launch that’s for sure.
All in all i don't see that much negative things in what you've written :)

I don't think they'll be much thinner than current intel MBP lineup,since they need to put a fan(2 actually) .and mini-led will also be thicker so we could see an increase of size actually lol.

I won't lie to you,i want to get them so bad...i have enough money for it (meaning i don't have much more than what these machines will cost lol) , particularly interested by the gorgeous HDR display that they will have...yet idk if I should buy them,or just wait for next year with 120hz pro motion hopefully,as this is the upgrade that would make me resell the m1x i would have bought...thus losing a lot of money.i currently have the MBA M1 16/256 ,and besides the screen that is simply ok,it also has troubles with external SSD speeds ...so perhaps could return it and get a MBP 14 or 16...but then it's like double the price.mba is 1200€ ,MBP is 2500 ,so about 3000 dollars ...( with student pricing )
I just don't know what to do
 
They will be as thin as they can possibly make them as the M1X will allow for this.

If the iPad Pro can handle the M1 no problem, without overheating and be as thin as it is, I expect the MBP to be a revolution in design for laptops.

My thoughts are it is likely to be more fragile than less, and it certainly isnt just Jonny Ive who drives thinness. Look at the current PC laptops being released. Apple can out do them with the M chips.

Also Apples direction with the MBP has always been a laptop is for mobility with reasonable power. They aren’t workstations, but will go as thin and light as they possibly can without effecting the M1X performance.

It will be an interesting launch that’s for sure.
That‘s certainly possible. But I can also see them keep the thickness the same and increase the battery size, that will give insane battery life when combined with Apple Silicon. Apple increased the thickness with the 16 inch MacBook Pro to increase battery size, so I can see them do it again.
 
That‘s certainly possible. But I can also see them keep the thickness the same and increase the battery size, that will give insane battery life when combined with Apple Silicon. Apple increased the thickness with the 16 inch MacBook Pro to increase battery size, so I can see them do it again.
I think if anything they will remain the same or get thinner. I dont know the technicalities around the cooling or battery size requirements, but surely it is a lot less with the M1X than Intel plus GPU. Weight will hopefully come down too.

The iPad Pro 12” is certainly a good pointer to what they can do - it has the M1, no fan, Micro LED and lasts a long time. I am typing this on mine right now.

This topic hasn’t been discussed recently at all, and there is a clear opportunity here for Apple to show how innovative they can be. The previous laptops were just housed in existing shells, whereas this really is the time for them to shine.
 
All in all i don't see that much negative things in what you're wrote ;)

All in all i don't see that much negative things in what you've written :)

I don't think they'll be much thinner than current intel MBP lineup,since they need to put a fan(2 actually) .and mini-led will also be thicker so we could see an increase of size actually lol.

I won't lie to you,i want to get them so bad...i have enough money for it (meaning i don't have much more than what these machines will cost lol) , particularly interested by the gorgeous HDR display that they will have...yet idk if I should buy them,or just wait for next year with 120hz pro motion hopefully,as this is the upgrade that would make me resell the m1x i would have bought...thus losing a lot of money.i currently have the MBA M1 16/256 ,and besides the screen that is simply ok,it also has troubles with external SSD speeds ...so perhaps could return it and get a MBP 14 or 16...but then it's like double the price.mba is 1200€ ,MBP is 2500 ,so about 3000 dollars ...( with student pricing )
I just don't know what to do
I used to be in your shoes as a student and making the hard choice.

Buy what you need not what you want.

You will be waiting another year for the next update if there is no 120hz on this one, so just buy the right size when they launch in Oct / Nov. 14” for portability / 16” for more desktop use [If you are carrying it around all day 14” without a doubt].
 
IMHO, I'm an enthusiast and I'm willing to take the risk. In addition, the pros greatly outway the cons - bigger display, more ports, better camera (hopefully), and better display vs the possibility of a design flaw.
 
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If they don't redesign it, how will everyone know I bought the newest one? I have a M1 Air and it looks just like the i5 Air I had. Now, I have to tell everyone that I bought the newest one so that they know.
 
If you compare the decade that took us from the Apple II (1977) to the Macintosh II (1987) (or even the Mac SE if you think the Mac II is too high-end) with the decade that started with the 2011 MacBook Pro and ended with the 2021 MacBook Pro.... well, the clue is in the names, we're talking evolutionary vs. revolutionary.

I feel like this is in the eye of the beholder. Feels pretty revolutionary to me. I judge that on the fact that I couldn't do what I do on a 2010 MacBook Pro. Back then, I needed a high end Mac Pro.

For example, the 2010 MacBook Pro's best config came with a 2 core i7, topped at 8gb of ram and a mere 512MB of GDDR3 vram on a GT300M. Flash forward to 2020, we've got up to 8-cores, 64gb of ram and 8GB of HBM2 vram on a RP 5600M. On top of that we have quantum leaped in hard drive tech and display tech. The top end 17" screen of 2010 can't hold a candle to the incredible p3 Retina display on today's 16" MacBook Pro. The tech on either machine is night and day.
 
Damned if I do and damned if I don't. Either current M1 with a potential screen problem or wait a bit for a 1st gen MBP, which is seldom a great idea. After my 2015 MBP and 2018 mini, I'm on a first name basis with the entire Genius Bar.
 
I used to be in your shoes as a student and making the hard choice.

Buy what you need not what you want.

You will be waiting another year for the next update if there is no 120hz on this one, so just buy the right size when they launch in Oct / Nov. 14” for portability / 16” for more desktop use [If you are carrying it around all day 14” without a doubt].
:) honestly i dont rly have much use for the money i saved up during my young years,hence why im wondering if now is time to get sth good and sth that i want :)

for my needs mba m1 is just enough honestly,and perhaps its worse screen would help me read more books as i am willing to ,instead of watching movies and whatnot

ye but ive heard the 14 might be more expensive hence closer to the 16 in terms of price.which i would totatlly expect as power may be the same thanks to the different arch and cooling requirements.and if i have no only have around 400 bucks for a much bigger display ...wouldnt it be worth it ? besides i dont carry it that much ...right now.tho i may need to ,further in the future,god knows .

i dont have such a good view tbf ,13.3 feels rly small to me,im wondring how different will 14 be ,and how it will compare to 16.hard to choose ig :)
 
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