Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Expected to Adopt Keyboard With Scissor Mechanism for Upcoming 16-inch MacBook Pro

I wouldn’t expect them to cut the corners off the screen for that rounded look. It makes sense for a small device like an iPhone, but on a laptop it’s too much form over function.

Oh man, looking back at MacBook Pros since 2016, Apple is 100% form over function. Well crap, maybe we’ll get rounded corners then.
[doublepost=1564080177][/doublepost]
DaveRivera said:
Why stop there, you could fit an 8" one at the very bottom
Click to expand...

Man, where does it end? A laserdisc player?
 
  • Like
Reactions: otternonsense
My conclusion is the design language for the 16 inch MacBook Pro will be back to a squared off design, similar to the XDR Pro Display. That is definitely what I am betting my money on. Apple, is going back to older classic designs. So, expect new MacBook Pro thats thin and light, but similar in design to the first generation Intel MacBook Pro.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lone Deranger and motulist
"A keyboard with a scissor mechanism will be thicker than the butterfly keyboard, but Kuo believes that most users won't be able to tell the difference."

Actually, that's the whole point. Thicker = more travel. Thin isn't always good for everything.
 
  • Like
Reactions: motulist
Jack Burton said:
More powerful GPU hardware would be nice. Something to at least compete with Nvidia and something with more than 4 GB vram.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately I think that thermal issues will prevent that - they think the eGPU is the option (though until it supports both ATI and Nvidia, it's not viable IMHO).

I agree with the other comments - drop the emoji bar. it's a useless, expensive, gimmick.

As for ports, I'm resigned to having dongles until I can truly replace everything with USB-C/TB3. For video, it's going to be a long time...hopefully for storage it's much sooner, but pricing isn't there yet. It's less an issue on the Mac than the iphone - dongles for headphones just suck (and no, wireless isn't a viable option). At least now we have cheaper options than apple's that work reliably.

As for mag safe, I've found arcing on a number of machines ports. I don't think it'll come back.
 
smetvid said:
I have an older 2011 17" MBP that is stuck with crappy ports that are no longer very useful like FW800 and USB2. USB-c allows the MBP to adapt to any new future connection technology and prolong the life
Click to expand...

Yeah, that’s what people said about that thunderbolt port on your MacBook Pro, USB-C will be replace soon enough. I do agree that having multiple USB-C ports is a good thing, need dual Ethernet? No problem, buy two USB-C adapters and boom you have two or even three if you want to get crazy.
 
Jack Burton said:
More powerful GPU hardware would be nice. Something to at least compete with Nvidia and something with more than 4 GB vram.
Click to expand...

The AMD 560X isn’t awful, it has 4GB. I’ve been playing Rise of the Tomb Raider with decent settings at 1080p, running in Boot Camp, it’s playable. Sometimes it bogs down to 30fps, but overall it’s not that bad.

I mean, I just ordered an eGPU, since I’d like to get a bit more performance, but that’s a big old heavy thing on the desk. I picked up a used Razor Core X for $200, and a used Sapphire Pulse RX 580 4GB for $100. Plenty of bang for the buck. 8GB would be nice for running higher resolutions than the 580 would be suited for, so I saved the $50.
 
eatrains said:
The butterfly isn't inherently bad. The precision and stability of the 2016-era keyboard are great. They just need to be more reliable and have more travel. I hope they don't throw the baby out with the bathwater...
Click to expand...

I think the problem stems that if they go back, add more travel, and reliability, then there's no real reason for the butterfly. The butterfly was the solution to thinning out the device. If it's no longer needing to be that thin cause of lengthened keythrow, than the older style keyboards are just as fine and the new mechanism is a solution in search of a problem and unneeded.
 
  • Like
Reactions: motulist
frosty18 said:
The new MacBook pros have a silicone layer under the keys and have had no problems reported so far. I’ve also never had a single issue with my 2017 Pro
Click to expand...

I had luck with both the 2017 and 2018 models so far, but my wife's 2018 from December needs a replacement already. The butterfly just sucks.

But to the OP, if you want a 13, you probably will have to live with the butterfly and the 2nd gen membrane. Just don't eat or drink while you use it and you should be ok :)
 
So longer travel bla bla bla but then most users won’t be able to tell a difference? A bit contradictory!

I like both keyboards honestly. I could live with either and I’m actually starting to lean to the butterfly feel of the key travel. If they could perfect it I’m all in!
 
LuciusWrong said:
Agreed. Screens are measured corner to corner....so rounding off the corners would be counter productive for the specs.

And yeah, most programs (i.e. "apps" for the kids...) use the edges of the screen. The OS for example shows status info on top, and the dock on the bottom. Any "notch" or rounded corners would disrupt this layout.

Question: If the top corners are round, and if a window is full screen, how do you close the window? The handy little red dot we have grown accustomed to clicking on will be off the screen....

I think it is safe to say that we will not get rounded corners.
Click to expand...

eh, I think you might be overblowin it bit. Just like the rounding of corners on tablets and phones, it just needs some clever new designs to the UI to account for it. Shifting touch points slightly to account for the curves, etc.

Traditional screens were square because technical limitations of display tech. Now that we can make displays of various shapes and sizes, claiming the way it's always been before should be the way of the future is a bit closed minded to possibilities. But I don't inherently see rounded corners as something that fundamentally changes UI and UX
 
how likely do you think it is this thing will ship with a high-end 64GB ram option? I'm either gonna get the new Mac Pro or MBP16 (more ideally) but I can't do my job with anything less than 64GB of ram......also the i9s that are shipping in the current 15inch support 64gb and I believe even the latest Dell XPS's can have 64GB. Thoughts?
 
Kinotto said:
Silently acknowledging the mistake and going back on their steps: that’d be real courage
Click to expand...


It is helpful to understand how product development works. Apple knows the keyboard isn't objectively "bad". One must realize that Apple did extensive testing of this design before it was ever put into a product. They aren't going to say it is bad when it passed all their testing. And they have comprehensive data of failure rates, which I expect are much lower than is generally assumed.

It is a case of bad PR. If reviewers, like those on youtube, had said they loved the feel of the butterfly keys, explaining how great the new design is, then people would be more likely to defend the keys despite small issues. But instead, all the reviewers united to say, "It's loud, it hurts my fingers!" People seem to assume the design was bad, possibly influenced by these reviews, and then extra focus was placed on occasional failures. It is like everyoen was looking for a reason to hate on the keyboard....
 
  • Like
Reactions: Detnator
So longer travel bla bla bla but then most users won’t be able to tell a difference? A bit contradictory!

I like both keyboards honestly. I could live with either and I’m actually starting to lean to the butterfly feel of the key travel. If they could perfect it I’m all in!
 
Rogifan said:
Really? You think Dan Riccio, Jeff Williams and Phil Schiller would be fired if they didn’t implement this keyboard?


My guess is it will be something like that. I’m not sure how Apple will announce/market it but my guess is they’ll do it in a way that doesn’t look like a complete ereversal of the butterfly design.
Click to expand...

You think those same guys would otherwise allow multiple generations of a flawed keyboard design to be released on their most important computers for any other reason?
 
LordVic said:
eh, I think you might be overblowin it bit. Just like the rounding of corners on tablets and phones, it just needs some clever new designs to the UI to account for it. Shifting touch points slightly to account for the curves, etc.

Traditional screens were square because technical limitations of display tech. Now that we can make displays of various shapes and sizes, claiming the way it's always been before should be the way of the future is a bit closed minded to possibilities. But I don't inherently see rounded corners as something that fundamentally changes UI and UX
Click to expand...


Talking about possibilities is an exercise in futility. Possibilities are literally unlimited.

Talking about reasons, however, that is a bit more productive.

A question: what is the reason an Apple computer would be improved if the screen had round corners and a notch for the web cam? Making a change like this would take an awful lot of work and expense; what is the benefit that warrants all that investment?

If there is no clear benefit, then nobody will invest in making it happen. Yes, they can work around the problems, but why create problems for yourself that you then need to fix? There needs to be a reason. Companies rise and fall over stuff like this; careers are made and jobs are lost over decisions like this, so there should be a clear reason.
 
  • Like
Reactions: motulist
Really worth the extra .6 inches? they said it is an all new design so I would assume it looks a bit difference but the lack of leaked images makes me feel like it wont be released for a long time.
 
LuciusWrong said:
Talking about possibilities is an exercise in futility. Possibilities are literally unlimited.

Talking about reasons, however, that is a bit more productive.

A question: what is the reason an Apple computer would be improved if the screen had round corners and a notch for the web cam? Making a change like this would take an awful lot of work and expense; what is the benefit that warrants all that investment?

If there is no clear benefit, then nobody will invest in making it happen. Yes, they can work around the problems, but why create problems for yourself that you then need to fix? There needs to be a reason. Companies rise and fall over stuff like this; careers are made and jobs are lost over decisions like this, so there should be a clear reason.
Click to expand...

yes, but that's a seperate argument :p

I didn't say rounding the corners was a GOOD thing, just that it wasn't automatically a bad thing either. it's just a thing. tthe excusve given that screens were always square before, so they need to always be square tomorrow is just not a valid argument (in my opinion).

I personally don't see the benefit other than "looks" and form over function. But that doesn't automatically mean the UX has to suck.

it's the old argument that we've had regarding the Apple watch... the square vs Round displays.

people who are creative at writing and designing UX can account and even come up with better interactions than previous limitations due to square only.

this is how innovations happen. new tech opens the door for new expiriments
 
DaveRivera said:
I think it has a great, almost throwback feel to it. I hope they do come with curved edges like that. I love the way they look on the iPad Pros. Mix that with a rainbow logo, and a slightly more textured body and I think it would be an awesome aesthetic.
Click to expand...
It would be objectively terrible from a Dev perspective. There are tons of apps right now that would have to be "fixed" so that curved corners didn't cut off content and this would lead to everyone not using a new curved screen to have stupid wasted space at the corners of their apps. Also as a developer I would want to be able to see how my apps/web page looked for 99.9% of the people I am developing for who will not have a curved screen laptop.

Not a big deal on a 2ndary device like an iPad but having a laptop which is meant to be the primary machine for a wide range of users have such a limitation is a huge mistake.
 
  • Like
Reactions: motulist
Saturn1217 said:
Not a big deal on a 2ndary device like an iPad but having a laptop which is meant to be the primary machine for a wide range of users have such a limitation is a huge mistake.
Click to expand...


this looks like Apple trying to unify the display shape accross the devices, likely with the expectation that development for MacOS and iPadOS should aim for the same overall goals and dimensions

Not saying it's a good idea. but I think that's what they're going for.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back