Agreed.
Still the renders from Prosser's artist was quite close to what we got with the M1 iMacs ... not the ports/arrangement, but the basic overall design was close. I'm sort-of thinking something similar with the MBA Mx 2022.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple to Unveil 13-inch M2 MacBook Pro With Unchanged Design Next Month, Claims Original MacBook Pro 'Notch' Leaker
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Still the renders from Prosser's artist was quite close to what we got with the M1 iMacs ... not the ports/arrangement, but the basic overall design was close. I'm sort-of thinking something similar with the MBA Mx 2022.
Laptops are likely to get notches on redesign as it allows the screen to be larger without making the overall case larger. The same is not likely on desktops as there is little value in a smaller case.
This updated 13" MBP will likely not get a notch now as this is a spec bump and not a redesign.
It was clear when they announced the M1 "Pro" and "Max" naming scheme that there would be confusion. We're now going to have an M2 processor that is slower and less capable than those M1 processors.
Most casual observers are going to think the M2 is the faster chip. Not that it really matters, I guess.
Definitely a lost opportunity from Apple with no hints of ideas for developers. I feel when Craig showed off Emoji (in an excited fashion) this killed it before it was even tried.
Yes - The absence of external keyboards is the evidence that the TouchBar didn't perform as well as Apple intended.
Aside from having software support for two different interfaces, having to change the user's habits if they switch between two different computers is a pain.
"The TouchBar is the best thing ever! unless... you have use a dock... or have a Mac Pro... or iMac... or Mac Mini... or iMac Pro..."
Spray some Blue, Green, Pink, Orange, or Red paint on it like the iMac 24". Same chassis , spray some non space-gray/silver paint on it , and drop the "Pro". Maybe slap a white bezel on it. Most folks won't get them confused at all. ( would get "yelled at" on fan forums but general market , cost concuious consumers. Does it work? yes. In my budget? yes .... buy . )
Has certainly done that in the iPad and iPhone space. Not so much in the Mac space. the volumes and diversity is different. Mac's have an higher upper half of the marketspace. Most of those are STILL ON Intel solutions 1.25 years into the transition.
Once the iPad Pro's and other two lower end Mac laptops dump the M1 there isn't much there in volume left to justify a M1. [ Apple appears not moving to toss it into a AppleTV or some other product line. ]
Apple has driven the average Mac selling price up with the M-series ; not down. Apple hasn't demonstrated any huge effort in looking for cheaper Macs. The other issue is that they don't look to be trying invoke fratricide between Macs and iPad Pros. ( Apple's 'answer' to affordable Chromebooks has been iPads ... not super discount Macs ( e.g. MBA 11.5" was dumped long ago and not really replaced. ) )
If Apple can sell all the M2 , M1 Pro/Max and up SoCs they can make , then that is the path their probably take. They aren't looking for a $600 priced, "windows killer'.
The iPhones are substantively different. The leading edge iPhones sells for a much higher average selling price than the mainstream cellphones on a percentage change basis. Apple's lower half laptops are more expensive but not more expensive than the mid-upscale laptops from other vendors in the Windows space. The MBA is about same price as a Dell XPS without the upscale options. Pile the upscale BTO to the XPS and the entry MBA is cheaper. The iPhone... phef. Samsung maybe the majority of cellphone market isn't trying to push those prices. The iPhone is substantially more on an island.
iPad ... pretty much the same. As mentioned above the $300 Chromebook is largely targeted by the $329 iPad. However, the Fire8 , Fire10 ... Apple isn't chasing those tablets in race to the bottom pricing.
The M1 has quirks. Quirks in the display support. It is off in ProRes support ( which even iPhones have to some coverage for). Pretty good chance it has other "Version 1" bugs in there. I don't see Apple wanting to hold onto to these for an extended period of time. M2 generation perhaps , but first gen is probably heading to retirement without much detours.
Either the trailing adjectives in the suffix mean something or they don't.
I think folks are grossly exaggerating the potential confusion here. If Apple strips the Pro suffix off of the systems with a plain M1/M2/M3/etc that would straighten things out even more. Don't have a "pro" on the inside then no "pro" on the outside case. The system price differential would be all the market segmentation that folks would need. Apple has pushed the M1-with-a-suffix systems prices higher.
Apple has some work to do to propagate out the notion that "Max" > "Pro" but it isn't that hard in the level of buyers at the Max level. ( it isn't full of buyers who don't do any homework before purchase. )
Once there are multiple generations of the M-series it isn't going to be hard for folks to see that M1 < M2 < M3 ... the same way folks saw the A4 < A5 < A6 .... Wasn't much vast confusion between A12X and A13.
That the suffix means something significantly different.... that certainly shows up in system price.
The "Max" and plain M-x may not move in lock step evoluations. May get M1 -> M2 -> M3 ... but only M1 Max -> M3 Max .... if the SoCs are on a different progression rate then the the number is EXACTLY what it stands for "generation" not "power' or 'performance'. No suffix just means it is the mainstream ,
'regular' SoC.
I hope this article turns out to be true, I’m waiting to upgrade my 2015 MacBook Pro 15” to a smaller size. As long as Apple keeps the TouchBar on it I think it will be just fine for my next laptop.
Personally, I liked the touch bar but it's not something I lose sleepover.
External keyboards runs into a problem with Apple's dogma on wirelesss keyboards (with very long battery lifetime). Apple 'hates' wires more than they 'like' the Touch Bar. That is probably the primary blocker here. Apple has no wired input devices for Mac for the last several years.
[ Wants to hide the battery charge port on mouse so much it is still on the bottom. Similar kind of dogma blocker. ]
The most popular one does not mean it is the best. It is plagued with many issues.
If dropped along side an updated iMac large screen and Mini 'Pro' it wouldn't be too weird if done in the right order.
1. Here is our Mini Pro ( with M1 Pro/Max) ... wow look at these super high benchmark/throughput numbers. The "Pro" SoC gets you "Pro" performance.
2. Here is our new iMac Pro 27" ... wow look at these super high benchmarked /throughput numbers .. all driven by M1 Pro and M1 Max. And look at that snazzy new enclosure.
3. Here is our M2 Macbook. Faster than M1 but lower numbers than those M1 Max'es we just dazzled you with.
Apple didn't need any "dazzling" new case to introduce the M1 Mini. M1 MBA , or M1 MBP 13" ... those were all retreads too. Could straightforwardly work for a second round on just one of those cases.
If Apple establishes a Mini Pro to live along side a 'plain' Mini then probably do need a new case for lower end Mini that is a better fit. MBA could be new case also ( especially if move the price up in range ). The entry MacBook would sell on case sizzle , but on affordable. ( going back to Macbook was before flip-flop in role with the MBA. ). If move the price point back to $1099 or so , then some will cheer and some will complain.
I doubt that would have been the primary plan back in 2019 , but multiple rounds of pandemic evacuated industry labs ... it is a less risky path. They have more time to work out the new low end Mini and new MBA cases. Could spray paint with some iMac 24" colors and spin them as "new look" cases. It is just a lower cost container if older leads to more affordable.
There are real supply chain issues. If try to order a entry level iPad it is multiple weeks to get an item. New fancy enclosure that takes 2.5 months to get versus 1-2 week "old" enclosure can get on time. .... which one is going to be "better" ?
Sure, but give the MBA 16GB/512GB to bring the spec closer to the base MBP14, and it's $1499, which is bang in the middle of those two prices. Apple is tempting you with a $500-800 upgrade to the MBP14 for a much faster computer with a better screen and more ports.
Yes that might be the niche for this machine … however for all these scenarios the M1 Air will probably do as well
I still don't understand why they didn't call that SoC the P1 and P1Max... After all, it doesn't have a lot in common with the M1. Yes, the cores might be the same (albeit clocked slightly higher) but there are already differences in how the cores are packaged and addressed. Aside from the cores, the Pro/Max Chips are completely different beasts. It's like using the same cylinder in a 3-cylinder engine and then in a V8 with a single turbo charger and in a V12 with dual-turbos + hybrid-system...
I doubt that Apple's "just in time" manufacturing processes keep a large stock of any components. They no doubt put a lot of effort into calculating optimal supply chains with minimal in-stock inventory.
It's only if there are major issues with unreliable supply chains (possibly the case with Covid) or if a machine signifcantly undersells against forecasts that Apple would be left with lots of excess stock of any component.
There is a reason your machine takes several weeks to arrive - it's being built to order essentially, or at least balancing supply chain with actual and forecast customer demand.
There is unlikely to an M2 Pro/Max for a new MBP16 this year, it's more likely towards the end of 2023. So that would be a 2-year refresh cycle for the Pro/Max with the intermediate year for the lower end M<n> updates.So my M1 16" MBP is set to arrive in about a month, and now they have the M2 coming out?
I feel like canceling my order and waiting for the M2 refresh, but that may take another year.
Releasing a new model every year decreases the value of the device.
I do like the idea of having the TouchBar, I do find it very useful.
That seems perfectly reasonable, and makes refreshes sufficiently far apart to prevent buyers from "waiting for the next update around the corner". If you can wait 2 years, you don't really need it now....
Like the US we have two primary parties in the UK, a right-of-centre party (Conservative) and a left-of-centre party (Labour). There are a million other parties but the one which sees itself as the real third option is called the Liberal Democrat Party. It basically sits on the fence and largely disagrees with the policies of both Labour and Conservatives, promising things it never has to deliver because neither it nor its equivalent predecessors have been in power during any living person's memory, and it knows it never will.no idea what that means but it made me spit out my coffee with confused uncontrollable laughter, so thank you
Why no fan? You do realise that you can't hear the fan on any of the M1 Macs (even the maxed out M1 Max) 99% of the time, don't you? These are totally different beasts to any previous Intel Macs you may have used.
But the fan(s) are there when actually required if you "step on the gas".
As someone who has a 3 month old computer with a failing fan, my next computer will most likely be fanless.