Apple Spoiled the Looks of 16" rMBP !!

[augustya]

Do you guys think it was a wise move by Apple to remove the Touch Bar ESC key from the 16" rMBP ? Phil Schiller was quoted saying that it was the number one complaint Apple was getting about the Touch Bar rMBP ? I mean c'mon who cares Touch or physical ?? For a normal person WTF Does it matter if it is touch or not ? Infact I think they, Apple Spoiled the aesthetics of the Touch Bar rMBP by including a physical ESC Key ? I mean can anyone explain me had the Touch Bar ESC key would have also been there what difference would it have made to an average common user ,?

 

[AnotherSoftwareEngineer]

Yes, it was.

 

[Marzel]

Again, it's supposed to be a Pro machine aimed at Pro users. If Pros found the touch Esc key annoying then Apple did very well making it physical again. So many threads these days regarding aesthetics of a performance laptop...

 

[Flow39]

The physical escape key is better for a lot of workflows, such as coding, editing, and modeling, where the escape key is used a lot. The Touch Bar escape key was a problem just because it was being accidentally pressed when not needed or the Touch Bar wasn’t functioning properly, thereby causing frustration for the user when trying to hit the escape key.

 

[augustya]

Yes, it was.

For me as an average user it does not matter even a dime if it is physical or touch ! Infact now they have Spoiled the looks of the rMBP ! How's does having physical ESC help can you explain me ??
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The physical escape key is better for a lot of workflows, such as coding, editing, and modeling, where the escape key is used a lot. The Touch Bar escape key was a problem just because it was being accidentally pressed when not needed or the Touch Bar wasn’t functioning properly, thereby causing frustration for the user when trying to hit the escape key.

So if i have the money and I want to buy and use the 16" rMBP i should not right ?? Because i am not a coder ? What sick theory is this ?? Because the 16" is only for coders not for a common man !!

 

[Ifti]

Apple need to cater for the majority, and the majority seemed to want a physical Esc key.

Whether its physical or touch, I couldn't care less. Neither do I think it spoils the look of the system. In fact, personally I think its a complete non-issue.

 

[Hakiroto]

I mean c'mon who cares Touch or physical ?? For a normal person WTF Does it matter if it is touch or not ?

I'm not saying developers are the most common users of a MacBook Pro – I know that's not the case but I also know that a fairly significant number of users are developers – but for some idea, after working at a company with 2000+ developers, I can tell you that pretty much every person I knew that was upgraded to the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar (from the previous generation) was at least initially frustrated with the lack of escape key and I remember having this conversation with many people over the space of a year or so. Anecdotal, I know, but it's my experience.

My brother, a writer, also immediately hated the change to a virtual key with the Touch Bar as well. I imagine that there are lots of people from other industries who have similar experiences but I also agree that many normal users won't care. It's a tough one balancing beauty vs. practicality, especially when you're Apple.

Personally, I agree that a single bar probably looks a bit neater but like many, I'm so glad Apple have apparently done what the user wants here and gone back to having a dedicated physical key.

 

[btraill]

So if i have the money and I want to buy and use the 16" rMBP i should not right ?? Because i am not a coder ? What sick theory is this ?? Because the 16" is only for coders not for a common man !!

The Pro's are not really marketed to the 'average' consumer. It's a pro device. It's meant for professional workflows.

You wouldn't sell/market a Cartier pen to the 'average' consumer.

If we wanted to logically or successfully make that analogy -- you'd be talking about a MBA.

No serious programmer, network admin, unix admin, etc is going to be happy using that. As it is, the touch bar tech is clunky and sometimes renders the keypress (not really a keypress) useless/delayed. Big no no.

Add up the amount of times you'd have inconsistent ESC behavior over the years of use. You'd be surprised how much of a flaw it really is.

 

[Falhófnir]

I think it looks great, what I notice most vs the outgoing 15" is the corner radius on the trackpad and keyboard indent looks a little larger, which makes it look more traditionally MacBook Pro.

 

[Bandaman]

Yes, it was.

/thread

 

[retta283]

This move was made to appeal to the demographic the 16" MBP is targeted for. It was a good move.

 

[pshufd]

If you don't like the looks, stick with your 2016, 2017, 2018 or early 2019.

 

[Lobwedgephil]

My two biggest issues with the Touch Bar are no ESC key and hitting the power button on accident all of the time, they solved both of those problems on the 16 inch.

 

[AnotherSoftwareEngineer]

So if i have the money and I want to buy and use the 16" rMBP i should not right ?? Because i am not a coder ? What sick theory is this ?? Because the 16" is only for coders not for a common man !!

Of course you can buy it. And you can live with the fact that it has a physical escape key, because the users it was built for overwhelmingly requested it.

 

[Fishrrman]

The lack of an actual ESC key was one of the major complaints about the touch bar.
Apple "did the right thing" by responding to customer input and putting it back in.

 

[pshufd]

Of course you can buy it. And you can live with the fact that it has a physical escape key, because the users it was built for overwhelmingly requested it.

It's refreshing when a company listens to its customers.

 

[Ma2k5]

So you're not a coder but realise this, as a non-coder, the physical escape key is perfectly functional and just doesn't appeal to you aesthetically. Under the old system, it ruined other peoples functional use case. You see where I am going with this? Form over function isn't always the smartest thing to do.

Non-coders also have complained about it, some common complaints were:
1. Users were pressing ` instead of escape key as they are used to a physical key
2. Unresponsive escape key, the touch bar itself can become non-responsive
3. One pet peeve I had is, the area of the left of the "esc" on the touch bar worked in some use cases, but not in others. So sometimes you had to press "esc" spot on, while others it didn't matter - which was maddening.

 

[pshufd]

Funny story: the escape key on one of my mechanical keyboards broke. So I removed it and pulled off another key that I don't use off the top row and put it in place of the escape key. I did this until I found the package of extra keys that came with the keyboard and used one of those.

The thing is that it's the only key I've broken. Ever. And, of course, it was the Escape key. Because I use it so often. And I had to get a replacement for it of course.

 

[fokmik]

For a normal person WTF Does it matter

The macbook air is for normal user...this mac should be for pro...and coders love the physical esc key

 

[26139]

Do you guys think it was a wise move by Apple to remove the Touch Bar ESC key from the 16" rMBP ? Phil Schiller was quoted saying that it was the number one complaint Apple was getting about the Touch Bar rMBP ? I mean c'mon who cares Touch or physical ?? For a normal person WTF Does it matter if it is touch or not ? Infact I think they, Apple Spoiled the aesthetics of the Touch Bar rMBP by including a physical ESC Key ? I mean can anyone explain me had the Touch Bar ESC key would have also been there what difference would it have made to an average common user ,?

MBPs are not built for an average common user.
Notice the Pro moniker.

 

[Flow39]

So if i have the money and I want to buy and use the 16" rMBP i should not right ?? Because i am not a coder ? What sick theory is this ?? Because the 16" is only for coders not for a common man !!

Hence the “Pro” name and the fact that they specifically marketed this computer to pros. The physical escape key isn’t a big deal honestly. If you’re super attached to the touch bar escape key, I’m sure some nice deals will go up for the 15” Pros that just got discontinued.

 

[chrono1081]

I personally had no issue with the non-physical escape key but people were freaking out over it left and right (including my coworkers) so I think Apple was smart to add it back in.

I'm glad they didn't listen and remove the Touch Bar, it so unbelievably useful if you have apps that support it correctly. I know a lot of people hate it but I find it a fantastic addition.

 

[rcianpandacian]

the escape key is necessary in order to use vim and to be able to edit files directly on the server instead of having to ftp the file every time you make a change. For programmers it can be a very important thing.

 

[pshufd]

the escape key is necessary in order to use vim and to be able to edit files directly on the server instead of having to ftp the file every time you make a change. For programmers it can be a very important thing.

Don't forget the math professors editing TeX files with emacs.

 

[mj_]

The lack of physical ESC key was the only reason why from the day it was first introduced I knew instantly that I would never be able to get a Touchbar MacBook Pro/Air. I cannot do my job without a physical ESC key since I use it all the time, and need to be able to locate and hit it blindly and instantaneously without having to take my eyes off the screen. It was the #1 complaint and I for one am super happy that it's back. I would also love to see physical function keys again return to the Pro series because it would make debugging with F9-F12 much easier and less painful.

So yes, you're right. The so-called "common user" won't know the difference because they don't even know their keyboard HAS an ESC key. Pros, on the other hand, rely heavily on it (depending on workflow of course) and cannot do without.