Because you basically have no option...let’s be honest
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Apple's Mac Sales Down in Q3 2018 Amid a Lack of Updates
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Because you basically have no option...let’s be honest
Yep. And you could have sold your previous pro level Mac for $4600 for a net of ...wait for it... $400.
All this fuss about Macs not being upgradeable is a joke.
Macs hold their value. To upgrade a Mac you buy a new one, use Migration Asssistant to transfer the data in half an hour, and sell the old one. It’s just the way Apple works. And anyone who’s spent hours or days f***ing around with drivers or other windows crap after a component upgrade will tell you Apple’s way is better.
If you don’t like it, stick with Windows. But don’t knock it. Some of us prefer it this way and we hope Apple will keep it so.
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See what I mean?
I think you are barking at the wrong tree - this seems either CPU related or software related (as in what software do you use for playback, for example older versions of VLC suck at 4K playback)
Well, I for one have: using parallel a Windows computer. All the applications are there or if not, sooner or later there comes an alternative.
So no problem for me, if Apple one day says for the Mac, that it is "game over".
Why spin this as "sales down amid lack of updates"?? That's being disingenuous and attempting to cover up the real reason for declining sales: awful design. The MacBook Pro has a worse-than-useless Touch bar, NO SD card slot, NO HDMI, NO MagSafe, requires a boatload of dongles and adapters just to function, and has a horrible keyboard. That WAS Apple's "update"! The fact is, Apple has no idea how to build a computer anymore. Whatever is most intuitive and useful to users is thrown out the window in favor of "innovations" that no one wants and that detract from the user experience. THAT'S why sales are down.
Keep in mind these numbers are market share for new computers. These show a slow rise in MAC share.
However as MAC's have a much longer user life than Windows computers the percentage of MAC computers "actual in use" is much higher.
My grand daughter inherited my 15 inch Mac book Pro MID 2009 and is using it daily. QED.
However as MAC's have a much longer user life than Windows computers the percentage of MAC computers "actual in use" is much higher.
My grand daughter inherited my 15 inch Mac book Pro MID 2009 and is using it daily. QED.
I’m going to take issue with this rant. All of that is your opinion. And it is a niche opinion.
Sure. Many people her on MR agree with you but the vast majority of the market, including myself, don’t.
For one, all this whining about ports is insane. I use all four thunderbolt 3 ports on my MacBook Pro - as Thundetbolt 3 ports. I need the performance they bring and I have no need for any other ports. People saying “it’s a pro machine so it should have more types of ports” don’t get it. No, it’s a pro machine so it should have PRO ports. That’s what TB3 is. HDMI can’t drive 5K. USB-A is slow - for a pro. If what you’re doing doesn’t benefit from the bandwidth coming out of 4x TB3 and/or if you’re the type of user who is concerned about the cost of TB3 then the MBP is not the right machine for you. But that doesn’t mean Apple has lost its way. It’s the PERFECT machine for the people it is designed for and that’s why they’re selling off the shelves, To THOSE people.
Same with upgradability. Everyone whining about that? See my other reply above. Apple saves billions on support nightmares because it builds complete solutions that work better than anything else in the market and doesn’t allow compatibility nightmares. Sell your old Mac, buy a new Mac. Done. That’s your “upgrade”. No stuffing around installing potentially incompatible crap. That’s how I’ve been “upgrading” for 15 years and it works.
Most of your points only show that it’s not the machine for you. So go buy the machine that is for you and let Apple keep making the machines I and plenty of other people need as they are.
That said, you do make a couple of valid or almost valid points:
1. The keyboard and dust issue. Ok they screwed that up. And hey all but admitted it. You can get the keyboard replaced at their cost for four years even without AppleCare. Quit complaining. The lack of travel issue is a non issue for most people. Most people (not MR readers except for myself) love it.
2. Touch Bar. I know some people love it so it wasn’t a mistake But for me it’s the one feature I think is pretty stupid. It should be optional.
Your other points:
3. TB3 see above.
4. The trackpad size is awesome and at least for me the palm rejection works fine. Perhaps they need to refine that if it’s not working for you but for goodness sake don’t make it small again.
5. Throttled? As you say they fixed it with a SOFTWARE update. So it was a software problem. Therefore the hardware is fine. So Windows or Linux? Still a software problem. (Then again if you want to run Windows or Linux why why are we even talking about this “crappy” Apple hardware?)
6. BTO upgrade prices? That’s just not true. Example. Upgrade from 512GB to 2TB SSD is $1200. The next 2TB is $2K. That’s $800 you’re getting for your original 512GB. Sure, those prices are pretty steep if it’s just about the parts but it’s about a lot more than that.
7. Upgradeability. Addressed above.
8. “Apple charges absurd prices for this.” No. Apple charges $380 for free repairs for 3 years (AppleCare). It’s insane to buy one of these things and keep it for more than one year without AppleCare. But I’m glad they don’t force AppleCare on us because sometimes I’ve enjoyed the option to sell and buy a new one within the first year. And if you’re keeping these things for more than three years then you don’t need the power of the new one in the first place. Don’t buy now what you need in 5 years intending to keep it that long. Spend less now and swap it for a new one in 2-3 years. That’s the “Apple” way and it works.
People just complain because they can’t get their heads out of the idea that they have to be able to tinker with it. No. You don’t. The world has changed. Move with it. Buy what you need now, use it, and then swap it for the newer one when you need that. And if that’s more than three years then you’re not the target market for this machine.
God I could go on and on. Some of you people here just don’t get it. But that’s your problem, not Apple’s, nor the problem of those of us who do get it.
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Sigh. Another port whiner who just doesn’t get it.
Agreed, the Touch Bar is a bit lame, but this is a PRO machine. SD cards are SLOW! HDMI can only just drive 4K it can’t drive 5K. Magsafe is available via USB-C (and no it’s not a dongle). “Requires a boatload of dongles just to function”? What dongles??
No it requires you to bring all your accessories out of the past which you can easily afford to do because you’re a PRO, right? PRO means this machine is a tool for you to make money! If you’re not using it for that then you’re not a pro. And if you are using it for that then you can afford to replace all your USB-A to USB-B cables for all your external slow backup drives with USB-C to USB-B cables and you don’t even have to update your drives. Although if you’re really a PRO then you’ll understand the benefits 4 thunderbolt 3 ports bring to a PRO machine and you’ll be using those ports to drive external NVMe drives and other devices that require that bandwidth. But you don’t. So you’re not a pro and this machine is not for you. But it is the right machine, with its 40Gb/s pro ports for true pros.
The real question is: What are you doing with this machine that needs “a boat load” of dongles for it to function?
No “port whiner” here has yet been able to give me a straight answer to that question. Can you?
I still don't understand why it's so impossibly complicated for a trillion dollar company like Apple to update their computers on a regular basis.
Spec bumps would be a no-brainer, they have the resources for design refinements and spec bumps, but it's apparently too complex for them to focus on a putting out a new iPhone and new Macs at the same time.
While I'm fully aware Apple's 123k employees worldwide don't work in R&D or design, they certainly have the means to do better than this.
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Spec bumps would be a no-brainer, they have the resources for design refinements and spec bumps, but it's apparently too complex for them to focus on a putting out a new iPhone and new Macs at the same time.
While I'm fully aware Apple's 123k employees worldwide don't work in R&D or design, they certainly have the means to do better than this.
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It's not true anymore, while Macs are still superior to most laptops out there, there are manufacturers who have finally upped their game and are now producing solid, pro-grade devices.
Bollocks to the keynote, just release new Macs! I’m sure we can work out what’s going on without some marketing nonsense for 2 hours
Well said. I am not going to rant to back you up but this is what I think :
1. The macbookpro is well priced to the competition
2. It is the best designed laptop out there
3. If people don’t like it there are many others to choose from.
4. The MBP is a compromised device. It is in fact perfect for what Apple wanted to deliver and they are popular. Again if people want ports / upgrade / faster / 4K etc there are options out there. Apple don’t supply those however.
5. I think the iMac pro is an awesome piece of engineering. Fast and super quiet. Makes the surface studio look pedestrian.
That doesn’t make sense in the context of your comment? You’re saying they care somewhat, but could care less than that.
Surely it’s “couldn't care less”?
I have an iMac and a MacBook that I'm waiting to update... but I want to see FaceID integrated into them. They've taken the first steps by adding the secure enclave and TouchID. FaceID makes even more sense on a desktop/laptop computer.
These machines are multi thousands of dollars and you want to use USB sticks on them? What’s wrong with WiFi?
This is the problem. USB sticks are old tech. The future is transferring files over WiFi. It’s an order of magnitude faster. I don’t want slow USB-A ports in my PRO machine for USB sticks. Good lord.
Could you please explain what you mean by “multi screen docks” on all GPUs?
Connect to the “beamer”? What is this?
USB-C and it’s accompanying Thunderbolt are the future. Apple, as it has always done, is pushing that.
I see two things at play here that counter your “Apple did it wrong”.
1. It seems you’re suggesting that Apple got wrong the part where they might want to infiltrate offices that are currently predominantly PC’s. I can see them not particularly caring about that. Apple is building an eco system. They don’t really care to mix easily with offices full of PCs. That’s not to say they don’t mix at all. You hav the dongle options for that. But the issue there is the rest of the world still living in the 2000’s - and the dongles accommodate that. Apple isn’t and has never been interested in easily accommodating the past and that’s one reason their stuff works so much better than everything else.
2. Apple is trying and has always tried to push the industry forward. Apple makes machines that have ONLY USB-C for the same reason it made the original iMac with only USB-A. To force the rest of the world to update everything to work with it. Because of this we will have this one port to rule them all in everything in the near future, sooner than we would have otherwise. And that’s the important part. Without this push from Apple the world will never catch up. And if they hadn’t done that in 1998 we’d still be using Parallel and Serial ports, etc.
I think you said it all when you referred to “the average user”. You’re right about that point, but this machine is not for the average user!! It’s for PROs who are a long way from average.
The average user doesn’t need a pro machine and buys a MacBook Air and doesn’t care that it doesn’t have the latest processor in it.
(Admittedly, Apple really does need to update and clean up the non-pro lineup. The current MacBook should have been the new MacBook Air - especially with the new 13” MBP being lighter than the 13” Air. And a cheaper larger machine should have been the new MacBook. One can only hope that’s their plan pretty darn soon.)
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I thought something like that but BetterTouchTool really makes a difference. Well worth getting for a few pounds.
Now I love the touch bar.
This is correct.
“Could care less” is incorrect and makes no sense (as you’ve described) nearly everywhere people use it today and this trend to use it is very frustrating. “Could NOT care less” is correct.
It’s right up there with “I should of done XYZ.” Sigh. It’s “... should have ...” !!!
Somehow, I don’t think Apple is losing sleep over this, given their record earnings. In summary, the resources not devoted to updating the Macs are then funnelled to work on more lucrative products which go on to earn even more money for Apple.
In the larger scheme of things, Apple evidently finds this a worthwhile trade off.
I suspect we’ll see this in v late October if not November as I think that they’re waiting until after then XR is released.
They’ll want people to prioritise any money that they have on buying an iPhone over everything.
And perhaps Apple themselves are focussing on the XR’s marketing and big fixes etc (as well as getting ready for whatever else they’re going to release).
Ummm... no. Apple is a phone and services company more than anything else now.
Yes they used to be a computer company but they took “Computer” out of their name 10-ish years ago.
Pricing has not helped . Top units are ridiculously priced. Apple used to produce great hardware at a premium price. Now the price is elite levels, while the investment in Mac hardware seems to have shifted to idevices
Couldn’t have put it better. They are so focused on their iPhone all the time. iPhone iPhone all the time. It’s ****ing ridiculous.
Hahhhahahhaha. “Company going down the cr@pper”. Good one.
Except it’s nearly tripled its market cap under Tim.
But agreed, High Sierra and iOS 11 were pretty bad, bug-wise. And grossly outdated MBA and mini is pretty crappy. I really do hope they’re going to get the new Mac Pro right.
Doesn't surprise me at all. I've bought secondhand over the last few years. (I don't know how Apple can justify selling five year old, hardly upgradable 'pro' computers, as 'new' products?) Currently interested in a beefy laptop - I've been pricing one up - but £3.6k - sheesh! I too have been looking at PCs lately.
Also, I don't know where this idea comes from, often cited on this forum, that 'true professionals' will always buy irrespective of the cost. I've never known it. All the professionals I know are very cost concious... (Particularly at the moment.)
Also, I don't know where this idea comes from, often cited on this forum, that 'true professionals' will always buy irrespective of the cost. I've never known it. All the professionals I know are very cost concious... (Particularly at the moment.)
It has been longer than 6 years. It is literally a joke. THat shows how much Apple actually cares about its computer line up. It is outdated and overpriced.
I remember when Schiller gave an interview saying how much they care about their "Pro" Users... LOL...
Go into System Preferences > Keyboard. There’s a setting in there to set the Touch Bar to show actual function keys or the row of brightness/volume/music playback/mission control/etc keys.
Its clear that Tim Cook has little interest in macs apart from being a development platform for iOS and its apps.
I just would like a reasonably priced and featured headless mac, a reasonably priced laptop with ports and one with 17in matte screen. Even a well made plastic 17in laptop that runs macOS would be fine.
I just would like a reasonably priced and featured headless mac, a reasonably priced laptop with ports and one with 17in matte screen. Even a well made plastic 17in laptop that runs macOS would be fine.