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Apple Announces 12-Inch Retina MacBook With Revamped Trackpad, Starting at $1,299

This computer kind of confuses me. I was all aboard to purchase it. Compromises and all.

However, the battery life is pitiful for what it is. You would think with losing all the ports, the handicapped processor, the lack of fans, it would have the longest battery life of all MacBooks. Yet it can barely get 9 hours.

I would much rather have the rMBP for the same price. No compromises and longer battery life.
 
notice Apple's new policy?

For the first time in 15 years Apple didnt come up with a new name that nobody outside the Apple world cares about but kept the USB-C term as suggested by the USB Implementers Forum
(described in this article http://www.cnet.com/news/usb-type-c-one-cable-to-connect-them-all/ )

things are actually changing ;)

Oh, and this is TRULY amazing:
"Type-C USB also allows for bi-directional power, so apart from charging the peripheral device, when applicable, a peripheral device could also charge a host device."
Your external, stationary harddisk could charge your macbook.
 
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SlCKB0Y said:
Assuming the one port is occupied, an external display, USB mouse or keyboard, non-networked printer or scanner, iPhone/iPad/Android, SD card from camera, usb flash drive, my time machine USB3 SSD, my gamepad. At work I can't use a USB to serial adaptor which means I can't manage Cisco/Juniper network gear, older Sun servers or Equalogic SANs.
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By connecting the adaptor that has its own story on the front page, you can then connect a USB hub and connect all of your devices.
 
kevinl777d said:
Lack of a Thunderbolt port or adapter is a killer as I have a Thunderbolt display and Thunderbolt hard drive. What are they thinking?
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They are thinking that anybody with a Thunderbolt display and Thunderbolt hard drive, which are both permanently stuck on a desk, isn't _that_ much concerned with portability and will continue using a rMBP. 13 or 15".

firewood said:
I develop iOS apps and have my iPhone and other iOS devices connected to one or two of the USB ports all the time for test and debug. Same with Arduino (etc.) boards for testing embedded software.
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Again, that sounds like deskbound work, so why would you pick a computer that is the lightest one that you can buy, instead of the one best suited for the job? For an app developer, 15" rMBP is the computer of choice.
 
I'm also confused why the new MacBook, which is thinner and lighter than the current Airs, wasn't branded as part of that line. It seems like the two lines are so similar--both in terms of product and market target--there could be some cannibalization.

Love the colors and overall design, but I'm worried how functional these machines will be (namely, the single USB-C port). Also, the 480p FaceTime camera seems oddly subpar.

And what kind of performance can we expect from this new Intel chip. (Sorry, I haven't kept up-to-date on the latest processors.) Am I wrong to frown at the 1.1GHz speed?
 
james2538 said:
This computer kind of confuses me. I was all aboard to purchase it. Compromises and all.

However, the battery life is pitiful for what it is. You would think with losing all the ports, the handicapped processor, the lack of fans, it would have the longest battery life of all MacBooks. Yet it can barely get 9 hours.

I would much rather have the rMBP for the same price. No compromises and longer battery life.
Click to expand...

Well, you posted a problem and the solution. It should be obvious what to do.
 
Sharewaredemon said:
or you could spend under 200 bucks and put an SSD in that 6 year old computer.
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It would still be a 6 year old computer.

I have STOPPED updating hardware in computers years ago. It often creates more problems than it solves. Even when I did update, I never did it on a machine older than 3 years.

It isn't getting replace tomorrow, but probably in the next year and this is the perfect machine for her.

It is fast enough, has a vivid monitor, has plenty of storage, and most importantly it is very light weight.

Someone earlier said it was a large iPad with a keyboard. They meant it as a slam. To me that is true but it is a compliment.

Covet
She will have to try the keyboard first before buying. That is my one concern.
 
AppleInLVX said:
I'd be more happy if they included this in the box. Seriously, who doesn't need this? Feh.
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My wife wouldn't have the slightest need for it. Not the slightest. Most buyers (by that I mean much more than 50%) will never connect this MacBook to anything other than power by cable.
 
petsounds said:
Xcode already compiles for both ARM and x86. All this would require would be a UIKit for OS X, and some lead time to give developers time to update their apps.
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The last transition took years, not "some lead time" as you have so conveniently minimised the effort to. The last transition was to a platform (x86) with at least two times the CPU raw power whilst consuming way less energy. A migration to ARM now would mean the most powerful Mac would have the equivalent of an Atom processor.

And what about the other required part I mention (which you conveniently left off)? No way, no how will ARM be emulating x86 at any acceptable speed within the next half decade at least.
 
First rule of Apple club is NEVER BUY THE FIRST VERSION of any apple product.
$1,299 in the US or £1,049 (including Sales Tax) here in the UK is expensive for what it is. Can peeps cast their mind back to what they were charging for the 13 inch rMBP when released in 2012? I do. Here in the UK they thought they could get away with charging £1449 for the base model at 8GB/128SSD for a Pro machine:mad: and £1,699 for the 8GB/256 SSD version:eek:. For another £100 more you could buy the 15 inch rMBP 8GB/256 SSD version.

But now the 13inch rMBPs are not priced anywhere near what they were in 2012. So this is typical Apple that the first version is put at an extortionate price as it's a brand new design etc and is aimed at the first buyers who buy it on impulse.

Once this base model comes down to $999 then it will be more worth it.
 
philipk said:
My wife needs a fully mobile computer for basic work and photos. She is a teacher whose school supplies her with an unusable netbook.

I don't get the negativity in these posts.

This isn't a computer for me but it is perfect for my wife. That is why they still make the Macbook Air and the Macbook Pro.

Hope your wife doesn't see this!
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That's exactly what I meant - if she sees this, she'll want to upgrade to it! Not that I don't, too, of course - but I'm holding out for the second-gen Retina iMac (that can be used as an external display, like the non-Retina models, so I can keep using the display after the internals are obsolete.)
 
venom600 said:
Is it just me, or does $1300 seem like a lot for a slow notebook with almost no connectivity? The Core M has has proven to be a dog in other computers, so I wouldn't expect much here either.
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if you don't need ultra mobility than this notebook isn't for you. pretty simple.

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Hieveryone said:
This computer is a waste of people's hard earned money.

Why doesn't Apple just call it what it is - an ipad with a keyboard.

1 port, no headphone jack, 12 inch screen, weak processor, $1300 base.

Spray paint a computer gold and call it "revolutionary"

That's messed up.
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so much ignorance. it has a headphone jack, doesn't run ARM or iOS, it's not spray painted, they never said revolutionary.

hate on, dude.
 
Domen151 said:
Why are the macbook air and pro prices higher in europe now? Much higher :eek:
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You can say a big "thank you" to your friends in Greece for dumping the value of the Euro. For me, it's good; my next holiday on the continent has just become 10% cheaper :p But unfortunately your prices for buying things made outside Europe are going up by 10 percent.
 
chaosbunny said:
Every designer can design something beautiful completely ignoring basic functionality. When form follows function it's impressive and a great user experience.
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err what? The whole problem with Ive is that he prioritises form over function to an extreme degree.

This new laptop is all form without even trying to shoe horn function into it, they have just removed it.
 
SlCKB0Y said:
I couldn't care less about the stock price and the investors dont give two ***** about the devices Apple makes.
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You are right, investors may not care about the devices Apple makes. But they do care about whether or not consumers like those devices. They like that consumers are lining up outside the doors to buy them (literally). Take the last iPhone release... I wandered down to the local Apple store several hours before open, it there were so many people down there it was crazy. I mean like tons of people... which at like 4:00am in the morning, was quite bizarre. There was a mall cop wandering around chasing people off.. telling them they could not get in line until like 6:00am. It was hilarious, because there were people hiding behind vending machines, trash cans, poles, benches.. it was a site to see.
My point: you personally may not care about their products recently... but millions of people do love them. Apple can't possibly please everyone. And as others have pointed out... the people that hang out here in Macrumors are not very representative of the Apple consumer population as a whole.
 
SlCKB0Y said:
I don't want to pay $80US more for the privilege of being inconvenienced.
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But you're willing to spend $1300 on a laptop? People are weird. Clearly this computer is not for you then. Accept it and move on. Is whining on forums going to change anything? Does it make you feel better? You're just wasting your fingers and energy.

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SlCKB0Y said:
err what? The whole problem with Ive is that he prioritises form over function to an extreme degree.

This new laptop is all form without even trying to shoe horn function into it, they have just removed it.
Click to expand...

It has many functions. Just because they are not functions for you, it does not make it so for everyone else.
 
gnasher729 said:
iPhone and iPad have been syncing over WiFi for ages.
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You can't charge over WiFi. You can't effectively do any development without USB.

You are using an SSD drive for Time Machine? Seriously?
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I'm using a partition on an external SSD, yes. What should I be using in your infinite wisdom?

The percentage of customers that Apple will lose because USB to serial adaptors don't work is something that Apple is probably very worried about. Not.
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I have no doubt that this is a niche use but I don't care if no one else has this requirement, I do.
 
was pretty busy today so just now having a chance to check out all of this stuff. Many will buy. At the starting price of a macbook pro though. I'd just, buy a macbook pro personally.
 
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