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Apple Introduced Its Most Controversial MacBook 10 Years Ago Today

Admiral said:
I would leap at the opportunity to buy an ultralight 12" MacBook with Apple Silicon, especially if it had the Apple C1 modem for 5G connectivity.
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I would also buy it. Apple released this before it’s time. Intel couldn’t provide a proper chip for this device. It should’ve always been on Apple Silicon. With cellular connectivity this thing would be so much better than an iPad with a folding keyboard. Just use the same housing throw in the Apple Silicon SOC and it would be an instant buy for me.

Of course, this is from my perspective as an older person that can get a lot more done with a physical keyboard rather than a touchscreen. I think someone in their 20s might prefer an iPad as a portable device because they grew up as a child holding a touchscreen.
 
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It's tough to say if I would have preferred one of these over my new 11" iPad Pro. I needed a smaller laptop, an 11" iPad was my only option in the Apple ecosystem. It fits my needs just fine, even if it ended up being more than I wanted to spend.
 
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maerz001 said:
yes and no. i think the issue was a bit overblown. usually canned air solved the issue. my 2016 model still works
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I think the main issue was people eating over their laptop. If they got a bunch of food crumbs into the keyboard, it would cause problems. Also, I’m sure there was regional problems because if you live in a desert area, sand gets into everything. You can try blowing it out, but it’s a mess and I can see sand causing major problems with that keyboard.
 
AND411 said:
Bring it back. With Apple Silicon. Please!

@Tim Apple
I promise that I will buy two new devices:
A new MacBook 12 inch and a MacMini M4 pro,
they would replace my MacBook Pro M1.
Surely that's a reason to bring it back, Tim?
And I'll keep my iPad Pro 11 M2 anyway!
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What a device it would be.
I need a smaller MBA.
 
I thought it was really good. I seriously thought about getting one. But the single USB port for data AND charging was a deal breaker. That was a stupid choice. I had to have a couple of ports even if one was used for charging.
 
Daalseth said:
I thought it was really good. I seriously thought about getting one. But the single USB port for data AND charging was a deal breaker. That was a stupid choice. I had to have a couple of ports even if one was used for charging.
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This isn't the machine for you if you need more ports. A very small, lightweight laptop is not, and should not be, a pro-level design.
 
I bought a 2015 12" MacBook second-hand this past summer - I was going to be travelling in the Fall and wanted something small, light - and inexpensive in case of damage or theft. I was well aware of the single USB-C port and the butterfly keyboard controversy. I was surprised how much I enjoyed using the MacBook - the butterfly keyboard was not a problem for me - though I continually have problems with the small (and oddly-shaped) Return key. Post trip, I keep it on my bedside table and use it sometimes in bed.
 
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They should release one with the same wedge shape as original Air had. Or make iPad Pro be able to run MacOs as well. I’m sure that if iPad Pro could run MacOs, sales would shoot like a rocket. But, MacBook sales might plunge and Apple doesn’t want that.
 
turbineseaplane said:
I think we all would!
I honestly expected it with the advantages of Apple Silicon

The problem seems to be "Tim Cook" and his absolute antipathy towards anything that might even hint at stealing from iPad sales.

What he fails to realize is that folks who want something like a 12" ASi MB are more likely "not buying anything" right now, as the iPad+KB is clunky and the OS doesn't allow what this buyer would actually want (macOS capabilities).

Apple continues to look pretty hopeless on future innovation with Tim Cook still around.
It's so far past time for him to be gone.
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Tim Cook personally introduced the 12” MacBook at the launch event. I think he wanted it to be a success. Apple even stopped updating the MacBook Air for 3 years. But that initial Intel Core M processor was awful (as was the CPU in the original MacBook Air). It throttled (as did the original MacBook Air), and ate up the small battery. That, plus the butterfly keyboard gave it a bad reputation. The 2016 and 2017 versions were significantly better (in particular the m7 in the 2017 model was actually fairly usable. But by then the damage was done. The “old” MacBook Air was still Apple’s best seller in 2017 even after not being updated since 2014. Apple released the redesigned MacBook Air with Retina in 2018 (and a 7W version of the CPU that was in the 12” MacBook) and the writing was on the wall.
 
Controversial? Underpowered. Throw an A18+ in there and off I go…

Tiny, lightweight, high quality, silent, long battery life. DONE
 
The 12" MacBook was a test-bed of technologies with lots of interesting design features yet a lot of failure in implementation. Some of that was driven by Jony Ive, some of it was caused by Intel's anemic processor offerings. What I remember about the 2015-16 period was that I was using my 2013 MBA and looking to upgrade. The MB was there and the MBA barely got any refreshes thanks to the performance gap between Intel's U-series (in the MBA) and the Core M-series (MB) being so vast. I thought it was curious that Apple never considered using the U processors in the MacBook, but I knew the battery life would've been horrible. 2016 brought the new MacBook Pro offerings. I got the MBP "Escape" model instead of the MB or MBA. It held up well, didn't have any keyboard issues for me, and was fine except for the permanent fan noise. Eventually I got rid of it when the M1 Air was released.

So I don't have nostalgia for the 12" MacBook since I never owned one. Like the iPhone mini, it's a nice footnote of a machine that had a niche audience and a short lifespan. Apple ceded the <13" market to the iPad while giving up on small iPhones altogether. All this talk of stuffing modern internals into a 12" chassis reeks of a fantasy football draft vibe. Sure a terraced battery is neat. Is anyone making curvy laptops anymore? 2016-2019 was not the best time in Apple history. Best to leave it in the past.
 
12” MacBook with M chip, C1 chip as option, 24GB RAM, 1TB storage, 2 USB-C, MagSafe and Space Grey/Black color would be a dream portable laptop.
 
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The tragic irony is, the 12" MacBook had the best OS and chassis design for an on-the-go, ultra-portable Mac, but not so great hardware/chip to run it all, making it a performance and efficiency flop.

Now that Apple has the most efficient and powerful chip that they can use in an even smaller and lighter (fan-less) Apple Silicone 'MacBook mini', they refuse to produce one in fear of cutting into iPad Pro sales, a device that has amazing hardware/power but with an anemic OS that's missing the 'Mac'.
 
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turbineseaplane said:
If you're someone who thinks an iPad + Keyboard is a suitable replacement for a 12" Macbook, you are simply not in the demographic a hyper thin/light Macbook is meant for.

The macOS part of a 12" MB is every bit as important as the super light/thin/all in one package.
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I disagree, I think that might be the case for a certain subset of people.
I even think it would be really cool, and if Apple wants to experiment they should.
But I think you’ll find that the market who would handle a computer that only has one single USB-C port overlaps a lot more with iPad users than it does with users of MacBook Air and MacBook pros.
iPad users rarely plug anything into their iPads, other than power, and those who do are certainly not the majority.
Meanwhile, people using macOS are way more likely to also be using things like external hard drives, SD cards, and other devices that require them having access to more than one port.
 
My favorite MacBook ever, and the only Apple notebook that could pull me away from the iPad Pro, if I was looking to switch (I’m not).

For a while there, it didn’t seem like Apple had the industrial design chops to pull off something like the 12-inch MacBook again, especially after this last MacBook Pro redesign. The M4 iPad Pro (and hopefully the iPhone Air) gives me hope that Apple still knows how to design thin, but still usable, devices.
 
Oh gosh, I remember an insane amount of hate that poor thing got at launch. People were mocking "we thing this is the best laptop we ever created" from Apple ad and lack of ports. It's really interesting to see all these nostalgic reviews. The bubble appeared out of darkness in the ad was cool...
 
magicvash said:
The 13" MBA seems like the successor to it.
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The 13“ MBA (13.6“) is closer to 14 than to 13“. The 12“ is significantly smaller AND lighter than the MBA - 920 grams vs. 1240 grams (35% more). I had a12“, nothing beats the form factor. Unfortunately it was too weak for my tasks.
 
Some of my most used programs exist on Mac OS only, so an iPad wouldn't work for me. I'd think seriously about trading in my M3 MacBook Air for either an 11" Air or 12" MacBook with current specs and at least 2 ports.
 
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