The 12" current Macbook can take a price cut if you introduce an entry storage SKU with 128Gb SSD. For very little engineering work you can get rid of the MacBook Air by starting the MacBook a little lower and perhaps consider a price cut to the non touch bar pro for the people who need Thunderbolt in some form.
There's also no real reason to have just one USB-C port on the MacBook. It should have 2 by now, or at least make the single USB-C port a full Thunderbolt one. Having one port on an expensive machine is silly in this age, increasing it to two will make it more useful for the people looking for a cheap Mac.
I don't rate this story at all, by the way. As @fokmik says - why have a 13" MacBook when there's a 12" one. It makes the range extremely cluttered.
There's also a consideration mentioned elsewhere in these forums that engineering resources could be diverted to the modular Mac Pro right so why would Apple split their time?
Ultimately, at some point in the next 18 months the logical line-up should be as simple as:
12" Macbook (with 2 USB-C ports)
14" Macbook (2/4 Core with Iris Graphics; 2-4 TB3 ports - choose 28w version with touchbar or 15w version without)
16" Macbook (4/6 Core with AMD Vega; 4 TB3 ports)
Note that the new 14 and 16" versions are Apple's secret fix for the keyboard and battery life problems in the 2016/17 model. Introduce a bigger shinier higher resolution retina screen while fixing both of those criticisms. You can't then compare apples with apples (ahem).
No, a current MacBook Air... replete with 'legacy' ports, magsafe, chunky silver bezels, a 720p FaceTime camera, scissor-mechanism keyboard, 12 hours battery life (or more with a more efficient chip?).Soooooooo...basically you want a current MacBook?
The Air is terrible. I'll never understand why people buy it.
Can experts enlighten us as to why in 2018 we're not talking about OLED laptops (Macbooks) yet?
I don't post much but I have to say I prefer the MacBook Air form factor..I recently bought a previous gen MacBook Pro 13 inch...complete with all the ports. I would have preferred the Air but could not pass up the deal on the Pro and it's screen and speed.
I say keep the Air....the form of the chassis is far better than any of the current portables, easy to pick up easy to carry, looks good etc...keep the size or close to it but update to either 14inch retina reducing the bezels or keep it a 13 retina and shrink it just a bit....but after the screen update keep all the ports...add some of the newer ones, update the chipset so it can have more memory and higher speed SSD like the newer systems (lowest power i5 Dual is probably fine I7 optional)...keep the big battery...keep the price around $1000
The Air is a really good size and form for the person that just travels with the notebook...It doesn't have to be the fastest thing just respectable...It doesn't need to be the lightest machine (I have held some laptop PCs that feel 1/2 the weight of the lightest apple machines) but just not a burden to carry....It needs to have all the ports with no dongles needed, and I like MagSafe but moving to USB charger is ok....
What is the use case for this...Students, Teachers, IT people, and Programmers. I have been, at times, all four. I move around alot with my machine, I carry it like my phone in just a thin protective shell case...It needs to always have juice so a long battery life is needed...It needs to be able to accept a usb stick or connect to a monitor or projector or HardDrive (TB and HDMI) when I walk into a room where it is required..needs connect to Wifi, and wired network again without me having to carry or run back for the right adapter. Basically it is a "It just works" machine in whatever situation I find myself...like a real Apple Computer should be.
I know people think Air is/was a reference to weight and size and certainly that was true when it came out...but now to me Air means I can carry and use it in the air...I don't need a bag full of adapters and power bricks and cables to make it work..I can pop it open and handle 90% of the situations I am in and when I back at base I can plug it in and let it charge up while I use it as a desktop with a big monitor, full keyboard and mouse to code or do whatever needs doing.
Actually, the 13 inch MacBook Pro Retina without touchbar for all intents and purposes should be the new Macbook Air.
Here's a comparison:
Macbook Air:
-traditional keyboard
-magsafe, 2 USBA, SD, headphone, T2
-1.8Ghz 5th gen Core i5
-900p display
-3 lbs
Macbook Pro Retina 13:
-2nd gen butterfly keyboard
-2 T3, headphone
-2.0Ghz 6th gen Core i5
-1440p Retina display
-3lbs
The Pro Retina 13 is basically an upgrade over the Air at the same size and weight. It only lacks the ports and traditional keyboard that you could possibly want from the Air. I don't even understand what makes the Pro Retina 13 even a Pro notebook. It's a Retina Air basically and thats what it should replace. Apple should just reduce the cost of the Pro Retina 13
Every bloody time when they release a new iPhone?
The old one is being sold at lower price.
Basically what your saying is Apple should lower prices, because they should be willing to accept a lower profit margin than they currently maintain. You could say the same thing about any profitable business.Yeah how gracious of them to continue selling old phones which have amortised R&D, available tooling (which doesn’t have to be disposed), set up factory lines and don’t need no more marketing. Tbh, this method probably is the real cash cow for Apple because old generations should be much closer to component, production and supply cost than the new ones. Who at Apple cares for a $100 price cut if you can cut $400 R&D, production overhead and marketing costs (because people will buy it for being a cheap iPhone) off your calculated unit cost? Continuing to sell old units at a slightly lower price isn’t really an example for a price cut, it’s a highly profitable business strategy.
I largely agree that the MBP nTB was designed to be the MBA replacement, but it has fallen short:
Reliability issues and keyboard failures
Limited ports and no MagSafe
$300 more expensive
Poor battery life by comparison to the MBA
If Apple dropped the price of the MBP nTB to $999, I could live with it....except, the keyboard failure issues are legendary. I just could not buy this computer until this issue is fixed.
When you consider how most people use their Laptops, the MBA has plenty of power. Give it a decent (not necessarily retina) IPS display, replace the TB2 port with TB3, routine spec bumps......don't sacrifice battery life, don't increase entry price ($999).......done deal. Keep the iconic form factor and beloved glowing Apple Logo.
No that‘s not my point. Their current pricing scheme works so this is what they should stick to, though overall lower prices would be appreciated. What I’m saying is that offering a previous generation for a slightly lower price doesn’t count as a price reduction because what they reduce in price is only a fraction of what they save in costs. They sell old wares at a still relatively high price level and very successfully so.Basically what your saying is Apple should lower prices, because they should be willing to accept a lower profit margin than they currently maintain. You could say the same thing about any profitable business.
Apple currently makes about 20% after taxes. You think that’s too high; what number would be ok with you?
Even if Apple just put a Retina display into the Air the battery life would drop.I largely agree that the MBP nTB was designed to be the MBA replacement, but it has fallen short:
Reliability issues and keyboard failures
Limited ports and no MagSafe
$300 more expensive
Poor battery life by comparison to the MBA
If Apple dropped the price of the MBP nTB to $999, I could live with it....except, the keyboard failure issues are legendary. I just could not buy this computer until this issue is fixed.
When you consider how most people use their Laptops, the MBA has plenty of power. Give it a decent (not necessarily retina) IPS display, replace the TB2 port with TB3, routine spec bumps......don't sacrifice battery life, don't increase entry price ($999).......done deal. Keep the iconic form factor and beloved glowing Apple Logo.
I understand your point, but I disagree with your rather strict definition of a price reductionNo that‘s not my point. Their current pricing scheme works so this is what they should stick to, though overall lower prices would be appreciated. What I’m saying is that offering a previous generation for a slightly lower price doesn’t count as a price reduction because what they reduce in price is only a fraction of what they save in costs. They sell old wares at a still relatively high price level and very successfully so.
Not necessarily, they said the panel in the MacBook is the most efficient they’ve ever used, and a newer more efficient chipset wouldn’t necessarily use more power working harder to push the pixels...Even if Apple just put a Retina display into the Air the battery life would drop.
Come on, this is Apple we’re talking about.
When was the last time they just made something cheaper?
Even if Apple just put a Retina display into the Air the battery life would drop.
Please keep the ports on the thing. I don't want just a single USB-C port and a headphone jack
and mag safeKeep regular usb ports, give it a 1080p ips display and not that ****** subpar screen macbook airs have and im sold