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Apple Discontinues 12-Inch MacBook
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My wife has the first generation version and the keyboard started failing about a four months ago. Now I'm trying to figure out what to replace it with. I'm hoping she can make it until the scissor keyboards are available on the Air or Pro.
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It probably needed a 13" display, but by the time you do that it's basically a MacBook Air anyway.
No fan, thats a big difference. I like the air, i have a 11 inch 2012 one fully maxed, but the fan is its biggest issue.
I was waiting for an extra port & a 720p Camera [not a must but they were put on the air since 2012] and maybe an improved keyboard, 16GB ram and 512GB SSD which they added in their 2017 update...it was going in the right direction, why change?
I was waiting for an extra port & a 720p Camera [not a must but they were put on the air since 2012] and maybe an improved keyboard, 16GB ram and 512GB SSD which they added in their 2017 update...it was going in the right direction, why change?
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I agree, choice is good, while too much choice might end up confusing. But I would argue that having a 12" in addition to one or two 13" models is less confusing than having a bunch of 13" choices only.
Moreover, I could argue that people who get confused by the fact that a 12" laptop exists in the same world as a 13" maybe don't really need to worry about buying a computer
No. Having just 1 USB-C port was always a stupid handicap that was unnecessary. The new 13" MBA is superior in just about every way possible compared to the 12" MacBook so Apple definitely made the right decision. The MBA has always been a popular choice so it just makes sense now Apple have finally brought the MBA into the modern era (shame about the CPU though).
If I wanted thin & light I'd opt for the low end MacBook Pro as that at least has a proper processor inside rather than one of these gimped ultra low power CPU's.
Unfortunately the 13” is too tall with lid open.
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Thank you! What model did you pick?
[doublepost=1562929072][/doublepost]Sorry, pressed the wrong button! I have a 2016 MacBook (only bought it last year). Hope it'll get the updates for the 5 years of my PhD!
I just quoted my other post about this, the fact that its fan-less is the biggest draw
I wonder if things would have been different had Apple included a well-designed mini hub rather than the clunky, extra cost hubs they introduced in 2015. I rarely use it, but I have a hub that combines 3 USB-A, HDMI, ethernet, SD and Micro-SD, and pass-through charging in a color-matched aluminum casing about 2/3 the size of an iPhone SE. It is only about $50 on Amazon. Including something like that would have mitigated the criticism that it only had one port.
As for the Air, it has basically the same processor (Apple could have put an Amber Lake m3 or i5 into the MacBook), but is bigger and heavier. And last year’s model had a middling screen. I don’t consider it much of an improvement in any respect. Sure it has Thunderbolt, but if you need that, chances are the new 13” Pro is a much better choice considering it actually is about the same size as the Air and is only $200 more.
That was the dealbreaker - and it is the primary reason why a lot of clients that I consult for have instead gone with the MacBook Air.
Had the 12” MacBook had 2 USB-C ports, this would have been a goto device for a larger number of people.
... but it was a Jony Ive vanity product - which condemned it to languishing, and why it never saw any significant updates. You can look across the product line and you will see other such products. They could have updated it a year or two later with a second USB-C port, but that never happened.
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What’s the significance of the second USB-C port? Either way you still need hubs as long as USB-A devices are prevalent, and there are plenty of inexpensive options now that include pass-through charging.
My guess is that adding a second USB port would be more difficult than you suggest. They likely couldn’t just put it on the other side (otherwise they would take that approach with the 2 TB-3 models). An additional USB controller would generate more heat.
Supplying power while an external drive is plugged in (to use as Time Machine, for example - which is common)
Your guess is wrong - the SOC in use, as well as the CPU, handily support multiple USB ports. Furthermore, the Mac Pro models, as well as the MacBook Air have USB ports on both sides. This was a deliberate design decision, not a technologically imposed one.
XPS 13 (9370) i7 - 16gb Ram - 512GB SSD - UHD (better battery life)
The newer 9380 came out this year but with the webcam moving from below the display to the top you miss out on facial recognition with Windows Hello but still get the finger print reader. Personally I prefer the 9370 (last years) but I don't use the webcam beyond Windows Hello.
You can still buy both for between £1000 - £1400 with 1 years on site warranty depending on deals and discounts from Dell direct or Amazon.
People asking for a second USB port on the 12“ MB don’t understand this machine and it’s intended use: The 12” MB is fully aimed at wireless working (and looking good while doing so). Backups and data transfer are meant to be done wireless.
The existing USB port is mainly intended for charging. Being able to connect devices by cable is kind of a fallback solution, nothing more. People who really _want_ more ports, can get an inexpensive port extender. If you feel you’d _need_ more ports built in, you’re looking at the wrong machine for your needs.
I would have gotten the 12” MB even with 0 USB ports (and wireless charging), but I do admit that that would’ve been a stretch even for fans.
The existing USB port is mainly intended for charging. Being able to connect devices by cable is kind of a fallback solution, nothing more. People who really _want_ more ports, can get an inexpensive port extender. If you feel you’d _need_ more ports built in, you’re looking at the wrong machine for your needs.
I would have gotten the 12” MB even with 0 USB ports (and wireless charging), but I do admit that that would’ve been a stretch even for fans.
I am surprised that they completely killed it. I thought it would've gotten a minor spec bump. It was an impressive product from a design standpoint, and a very good ultraportable for those who didn't need ports.
Best regular MacBook has to be the white plastic unibody, discontinuing that was one of the worst decisions made by Apple IMO.
Best regular MacBook has to be the white plastic unibody, discontinuing that was one of the worst decisions made by Apple IMO.
I am hoping it’s going to come back with the rumored keyboard change. They are obviously not selling well and they can turn some people that were holding out for the update towards the Air.
It’s too nice of a machine and Ipad is not yet there even though they seem to take another swing with Ipad OS
A simple hub with pass through charging takes care of that. And in 2019 there are MANY such hubs.
The extra port would have been nice but is not that big of a deal, a dual hub that has a charging and extra usb would be enough, i usually charge my iPhone through my Air and usually the other port is unused or sometimes i used for an external hard but on the go if only need 1 port.
Agreed - it was the best school and general purpose “my first MacBook” portable. Nearly indestructible, and with incredible longevity, and inexpensive to boot.
Obviously - and then you end up spending extra money, and dragging extra stuff around, to help Apple save a few cents, and rationalize a bad design decision.
Seriously, it’s like the Jony Ive Apology brigade.
Here’s my point - YOU would still love the 12” MacBook if it had a second port, since you only want and need one port - but a whole lot of people didn’t buy it because it lacked a second port... in fact, so many didn’t buy it that Apple discontinued it.
So, now is having that second port such a bad idea?
I agree.
I mean, it was even market as such during the keynote. The macbook is aimed at users who want ultimate portability and don't mind what they have to give up to get it. I assume that if you got one, you would be prepared to adjust your workflow to cater to the Macbook, assuming it wasn't already (eg: having all your files stored in the cloud).
Which then begs the question - could the Macbook have supported a second USB-C port while still maintaining its current form factor? That's one thing that virtually every criticism I see seems to conveniently not address.
If you want two ports, the end result would essentially have been the retina MBA, which is way larger and heavier than the Macbook. In this context, yes, a second part seems like a bad idea if it comes at the expense of portability.
It's no different from when I bought an 11" MBA in 2012. I knew I would have to carry around a thunderbolt-to-VGA adaptor everywhere I went, and honestly, the benefits have outweighed the drawbacks.
For one, I don't use those ports all the time, and removing them have allowed for the MBA to be as thin and light as it is.
Second, if the adaptor is simply lying around on my desk, then it's really no added inconvenience to me. There is no difference between hooking in a HDMI cable at my desk, and hooking a HDMI cable with a thunderbolt-to-HDMI adaptor at the end.
Third, you still have to buy adaptors anyways. Regardless of how many USB-C ports your Macbook has, you will need need an adaptor or a hub to connect it to the peripherals you want. So I fail to see how I am any better off regardless of whether a Macbook has 1 or 4 or even 8.
I mean, say I want to add an external display to my Macbook. Apple sells this adaptor that has a USB-C power port, a HDMI port and a USB-A port. So I connect my charger, monitor and a USB hub to it and it fits nicely into my Macbook. I am not sure what I would do with a second port anyways.
A bad decision is not being rationalised here. The issue where which many critics don't seem to grasp is that more isn't always better, especially when people are not getting more of what they want, but instead being saddled with more issues that they have to contend with.
The issue isn't that we are somehow averse to more ports, but that we recognise that having just 1 port is the price to pay for the macbook being as thin and light as it is, and we accept, embrace it even.