Apple Launches 2018 MacBook Pros: 8th Gen Core, Up to 32GB of RAM, Third-Gen Keyboard, Quad-Core on 13-Inch and More

[ThisIsNotMe]

Dear People Still Bitching Years After MagSafe Was Discontinued:
Yeah it was great for what it was but Apple has moved to the one port to rule them all which will play out a lot better long term. And.....

Here are some more ways to bring MagSafe charging back to your USB-C MacBook Pro

 

[redheeler]

Apple is going retro with FaceTime.

FaceTime and a display with the same display resolution and refresh rate I experienced on my first Mac (Retina MacBook Pro) in 2012. Nice to see Apple catering to their nostalgic customers. Hopefully a Mountain Lion theme for Mojave is next.

 

[lec0rsaire]

Lies, updated specs and it's the same prices as the 2017 base models.

Not only that but the most significant upgrade in specs since the original i7 machines. 2 extra cores for the same price is a big deal especially on the 13” where it will make more of a difference over the previous ones.

 

[e1me5]

Fully loaded 15" i9 32GB 1TB SSD here I come!!
If only they released today an upgraded ipad pro to buy them together. :/

 

[tdar]

Totally expected update. Brings parity with PC laptops announced months ago. Only real surprise is that we still do not have a 4K screen available. Most every top level PC laptop does.

 

[Ries]

Apple: 32 GB. There. Have it. Ya'll happy now?

Not really, since the last model couldn't have 32GB RAM due to battery concerns, but now it is suddenly possible?

 

[rdowty]

I’m on the 2016 model, after 1.5 years I still have to look down to locate the position of the slider. Hard to get used to something that’s not at a fixed position.

Also I dislike the Touch Bar sometimes when it makes simple tasks like adjusting the brightness while watching a movie more complicated than on previous keyboards.

Tapping the Bar to activate it, pressing the button and than adjusting the slider feels so much more unintuitive than pressing and holding a single key on the older keyboards.

If the non TB models had TouchID, I would prefer them over my current MBP which is my first Apple computer that I find very underwhelming.

Instead of tapping the button, try holding it and see what happens.

 

[TallManNY]

Not really, these quiet updates do happen. Usually we hear rumours of what will be coming, we all kind of figured this was coming but it is a surprise they launched today.

Still, I at least would think with all the scrutiny that Apple gets that it could no longer do this.

 

[Suture]

Think I'll finally pull the trigger for replacing my Mac mini. Just hope I can get used to the keyboard quickly.

 

[val.kalinic]

A few notes- personal opinion:

POSITIVE:

• RAM, processing, graphics, etc: finally, welcome improvements
• TouchBar: upon reconsidering, seems to be becoming useful - curious to try it, AutoCAD & Pixelmator specifically

NEUTRAL:

• USB C charging: still can't accept it as an improvement over MagSafe, but not that important
• Ports: Still uneasy with the 4 USB-C ports, I believe the move was premature, at least for the Pro lineup
• Build quality: as the few last models had various issues, it's only wise to wait for the reports

NEGATIVE:

• Price: still quite steep, but no surprise there
• Keyboard: the most important concern - absolutely have to wait and see if actually fixed

 

[[AUT] Thomas]

Your eGPU is still being throttled by 20% with thunderbolt 3. Yes, your $1200 enclosure+decent GPU slapped to the $3000 brick still have the graphic performance of GTX 1080TI*80%= $640.

You can get the eGPU a lot cheaper by now... just saying. You also lose less performance with an eGPU connected to an external screen. On internal screen most losses are when you have high FPS -where it doesn't really matter.
Is that cost efficient? No. A dedicated Win10 gaming sys will still be cheaper.
However, an eGPU that I can connect to any modern laptop without having to transfer user settings makes things a lot easier if you just want to keep going on the same device.

 

[Maclver]

Wallpaper anyone!

 

[lec0rsaire]

FaceTime and a display with the same display resolution I experienced on my first Mac (Retina MacBook Pro) in 2012. Can't fault Apple for catering to their nostalgic customers.

I wonder what you would’ve said in the pre-HDTV era. People spent decades with the same resolution! The current resolution is sufficient for 13 and 15 inch screens.

 

[Return Zero]

Why? there are no slim light 13 inch intel machines using DDR4 or offering 32gb. That’s fair it’s not desktop replacement machine and quad core is the new dual core...

I didn't say I'm angry... just that some people will be

 

[Jacoblee23]

13' 2017 MBP TB owner here. My initial reaction was disappointment because my wife and I just bought nearly maxed out MBP 13' a few months ago.

News articles on this are misleading and wrong. I am no longer disappointed and no, we'll be staying put.



Yeah, the first news article I read on this said that the 13' came with 32GB. They've corrected it since then. This would have bummed me out the most (having just bought a 2017 13' MBP TB). But since 16GB is the max, I'm not even jealous.

The price of $1200 for 2TB … yeah, we're very happy with our 2017 MBP 13' TB laptops.


I was using a 2011 Mac Mini with 8GB ram - never once getting close to taxing the ram (even with Word, xcode, Safari with 20+ tabs, etc...), up until we purchased our 2017 MBP 13'. So I'll be happy with 16 GB Ram.

What is misleading about the news articles? What am I missing?

 

[mrklaw]

According to John Gruber the issue with the keyboards had to do with supplier sourcing of a specific metal part that wasn’t up to standard. Supposedly that has been fixed. He didn’t get this first hand so he said take with a grain of salt of course.

please keep that grain of salt away from my keyboard

 

[Kiwikat88]

I think this is probably my farewell from the Apple ecosystem. Once my iPad and watch are done I'll probably be done with Apple for the time being.

My recently purchased Thinkpad P52 has graphics about on par (maybe better if you consider it is nvidia vs. AMD), the same processor, tons of ports, a wonderful keyboard and touchpad, and great battery life, all for 600 dollars less than the intro 15" mbp. It can also be expanded far beyond what is available in any mbp for $$$$. Ehhh... I hope they give me some reason to return to MacOS down the road.

 

[dollystereo]

The XPS15 is looking very tempting now.

 

[manu chao]

Macbook Pro 15" i9 / 32Gb / 1Tb

UK - £3689
US - $3899 = £2948
Japan - Y423800 = £2849

£3689 - £2849 = £840 less than across the road from me in Oxford Street!

Flight to Tokyo = £550
Total saving £290

Books flight to Tokyo.
My country is such a rip off.

Sure, that 20% VAT in the UK (which means that Apple is only getting £3074 vs £2948 in the U.S.) which contributes to financing the NHS is such a ripoff.

 

[BigMcGuire]

What is misleading about the news articles? What am I missing?

Oh nothing, some sites I was looking at incorrectly stated that the 13' had the 32GB Ram option. They've since corrected it. This had me initially disappointed cuz I had just updated a few months ago.

 

[potatis]

Would standard DDR mean SO-DIMM's that can be replaced? Assuming you manage to open the case.

 

[lec0rsaire]

I don’t think Face ID would be a great idea for anything more than unlocking the machine. I like to know what I’m accepting. If you have no time to reject a prompt that’s not really good.

 

[Cloudkicker]

A real shame the 13" doesn't come with a 32GB option. Would've been a close to perfect system with quad cores + 32GB RAM.

I see a lot of complaints but honestly I quite like the 13" MacBook Pro.

2 whole ports? Woo-hoo! Thanks, Apple! /s when one of them is for power. Minimum spec 13: $1729 Canadian. Crazy. Still need a lottery win to afford basic MBP.

 

[BigMcGuire]

Is it correct to say that the 8th gen cpu is 2x faster because of two additional cores?

 

[lec0rsaire]

Would standard DDR mean SO-DIMM's that can be replaced? Assuming you manage to open the case.

Would Apple voluntarily lose out on $400? I really don’t think so.