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Well I used to be the one who bought Apple's laptops. Now I'm the one who complains about them.

Personally, I'd rather buy one, but they don't sell a single machine I'm interested in. I wouldn't trade my 2011 cMBP for their latest rMBP if they offered me a straight swap.

Perhaps you might consider whether building the products you desire is really in their best interest at all, or whether it would actually drive them into bankruptcy.

People who think that companies won't cater to their needs usually believe they represent either a vast untapped market or the majority of consumers. They're almost invariably quite incorrect.
 
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Following a previous report claiming Apple's much-rumored 12" ultra-slim notebook is planned to arrive in silver, gold, and space gray color options, Jack March has issued a follow-up report sharing additional details on the machine.

According to March's report, which MacRumors believes to be based on legitimate information, the new notebook has a much thinner design the appears to sacrifice many of the usual ports seen on Apple's current notebooks and may adopt the new reversible USB Type C connector that has seen its specifications recently finalized.Interestingly, the report raises some questions about charging on the notebook, indicating that the usual MagSafe port has been removed in favor of a new, unspecified charging method.

In line with previous rumors, the machine is reportedly fanless, suggesting it will adopt an ultra low-power processor such as the Broadwell-Y Core M processors recently announced by Intel. The body of the new notebook is also said to be narrower than the current MacBook Air, with narrower display bezels and a keyboard stretching right to the edges of the machine. Finally, the speakers are said to be located above the keyboard with visible grilles, unlike the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro that have their speakers located underneath the keyboard.

Apple's 12-inch notebook has been rumored for some time, with the launch perhaps being pushed back due to multiple delays for Intel's Broadwell chips. March's previous report indicated Apple appears to be currently looking toward a mid-2015 launch.

(Image: Chassis of current MacBook Air)

Article Link: Apple's Ultra-Slim 12-Inch Notebook Rumored to Gain USB Type C and Fanless Internals

Anyone else think that rumors for the iPad Pro and rumors for this machine are pointing to the same device? I mean, we're due for retina MacBook Airs any day now and have been for a while. But 12" seems odd. 13" is perfect. Years of MacBooks, 13" MacBook Pros and 13" MacBook Airs can attest to this. My guess is that this is the iPad Pro.
 
Anyone else think that rumors for the iPad Pro and rumors for this machine are pointing to the same device? I mean, we're due for retina MacBook Airs any day now and have been for a while. But 12" seems odd. 13" is perfect. Years of MacBooks, 13" MacBook Pros and 13" MacBook Airs can attest to this. My guess is that this is the iPad Pro.

No, I don't think that the are pointing to the same device at all. The rumors are about two, distinct, new products.
 
What is it that is worse about the current line-up than your machine?

I have a 256 gig SSD and 1 TB HDD both internal. There is no benefit to the latest machines that would make up for losing my internal storage. 0.25" thinner so I can carry and extra box and cable? I also have 16 gig of ram which cost me $80 back in 2011. I am aware I can buy the upgrade from Apple for the lasted, but $300 just to break even with what I had 3.5 years ago?

This one isn't a dealbreaker, but I do use my ethernet port a few times a month. I'd buy a machine without one but I'd still miss it.

Apple just keeps taking away features and performance to make it thinner. If the machine this thread is about does turn out to be real, it will be 4 years newer than mine and still have a slower CPU and less features.
 
You don't know that. You never saw an Apple designed ARM chip from the ground up to be used on laptops. What we do know is that intel is holding things down with their slow pace.

ARM would AT LEAST give the control to Apple. Apple only would call the shots. Every time that happened great products were made.

The processor and graphics are a crucial part of the product, and sooner or later Apple will own it. As things stand today, Apple is at the mercy of what intel thinks a computer is supposed to be. There's no way around that. You can't order a costume processor like you can order a different screen.

So it is 100 % certain that it will happen.

Well, we know 100% for certain that it would break binary compatibility -- ARM is a RISC instruction set, Intel i-3/5/7 is CISC.

And we know 100% for sure that Haswell uses less power per flop than any Arm chip you can get.

And we know 100% for sure that Broadwell will use a 14nm die size which nobody else in the world can produce and smaller dies reduce power per flop.


And no, we do not know 100% for sure what Apple will do next week much less next year, because unlike Intel, Apple does not provide its customers with a roadmap. But We can be 99.999% sure that Apple will not be stupid enough to break binary compatibility for all its users and developers without a better reason than crying over Broadwell being delayed.

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Perhaps you might consider whether building the products you desire is really in their best interest at all, or whether it would actually drive them into bankruptcy.

People who think that companies won't cater to their needs usually believe they represent either a vast untapped market or the majority of consumers. They're almost invariably quite incorrect.

Well I do represent the vast majority of computer uses who made Apple a success in the 90's and pre-iToy era.

So if Apple wants to throw aside it's former base of core users and supporters, it should be interesting to see what happens with the iOS fad fades. And if you think it won't, try talking to RIM fans from 10 years ago. Or Palm Pilot fans. Are there any companies that were on top in the 90's that are on top today? Nope, I didn't think so. Apple has to know it won't last forever.

Apple made it's rise to power by being the platform of choice for artistic, creative professionals. Now that they've thrown those people under a bus, how long do you think iPhone will be "cool".

This forum makes fun of hundreds of innovative products from other companies, and that's fair because almost all will fail horribly, but it only takes one runaway success to disrupt a company like Apple that is stuck in a rut of "thinner, faster, thinner, faster, thinner, more awesome marketing, thinner, more uncool music people, thinner". There comes a point where a bit thicker is okay too if it has more functionality.
 
luckily for you, apple notebook battery like has been INCREASING over the years, despite the REDUCING the case size.

i mean, dont you even know the basics, here??

j90io1.jpg


What i am saying is: if they kept the same form factor, which was perfect, they could have used faster processors (higher clock, more cores), bigger/more powerful battery and better GPUs....

we'd have a lot faster laptops and a lot longer battery times...

Don't you even know the basics, here??

FFS look at the battery performances of the new iPhones....what is the need to go that thin? I'd choose a thicker iphone and a 2/3 days battery any of the week.....
 
Well, we know 100% for certain that it would break binary compatibility -- ARM is a RISC instruction set, Intel i-3/5/7 is CISC.

And we know 100% for sure that Haswell uses less power per flop than any Arm chip you can get.

And we know 100% for sure that Broadwell will use a 14nm die size which nobody else in the world can produce and smaller dies reduce power per flop.


And no, we do not know 100% for sure what Apple will do next week much less next year, because unlike Intel, Apple does not provide its customers with a roadmap. But We can be 99.999% sure that Apple will not be stupid enough to break binary compatibility for all its users and developers without a better reason than crying over Broadwell being delayed.

Right/wrong. Apple used fat binaries before with great success. The tech is already there.

Wrong. We don't know that because no one ever made an ARM chip to use on laptops.

Right. But there are ways to make a kickass chip with bigger die sizes. Aren't GPUs at 28 nm?

We know that, more than ever, Apple will do everything they can to own core technology. See ARM CPUs, sapphire plants, the whole ecosystem and app store + default apps, etc. Look who they have been hiring. You talk like if Apple's goal is to make an intel clone with ARM. There are a gazzilion other windows to improve performance on a computer: Software optimization, SSDs, etc. For the regular user with regular needs (the millions and millions that buy MBAirs, the first line to go ARM) CPU alone doesn't improve performance at all. There is almost 0 difference between Sandy Bridge and 2014 models.

Let's wait and see: If they go with core "M", it's a clear sign that CPU speed isn't the priority here, at all. So ARM might appear.

http://www.applenews.zone/2014/09/why-macs-will-get-armd.html
 
And we know 100% for sure that Broadwell will use a 14nm die size which nobody else in the world can produce and smaller dies reduce power per flop.

If Broadwell is 14nm in die size, it wouldn't perform faster than Cyclone, or even faster than a 1938- era analog computer ,that's for sure! :D
 
Well, we know 100% for certain that it would break binary compatibility -- ARM is a RISC instruction set, Intel i-3/5/7 is CISC.

From what I read there isn't much difference these days. Intel's offering are CISC/RISC and RISC processors are becoming more RISC/CISC blurring lines between both. There was more of a gap back in the PPC days, not so much now.
 
Apple's 2015 Lineup:
  • Apple Watch - 1" (?)
  • iPod Nano - 2.5"
  • iPod Touch - 4"
  • iPhone 5s/c - 4"
  • iPhone 6 - 4.7"
  • iPhone 6 Plus - 5.5"
  • iPad Mini - 7.9"
  • iPad Air - 9.7"
  • MacBook Air - 12"
  • MacBook Pro - 13"
  • MacBook Pro - 15"
  • iMac - 21.5"
  • iMac - 27"
  • Apple Thunderbolt Display - 27"
  • Apple TV - 60" (whatever size your TV is)


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I fail to see the point in a 12-inch laptop when there is an 11-inch Macbook Air and a 13-inch Macbook Air already available. It would seem like a 12-inch screen wouldn't be worth making for the 1-inch screen size difference, unless it is a completely "new" device in its own league.

I agree, which is why I believe there's a good chance that this new 12" notebook replaces both the 11" and 13" Airs in the lineup (which may continue being sold for a period of time like the cMBP until fully sunset).

They may feel that there's too much overlap today between the 11" model and the iPads and the 13" model with the MacBook Pro of the same size. So, make a model smack-dab in the middle, differentiate it with some new technology/utility, and call it a day.
 
Stop this thinness madness...

We need performance and battery life....not a credit card thin laptop/smartphone/tablet...

Speak for yourself buddy. Most people want a portable computer that lasts a majority of the day (which the Air already does), and is capable of standard computing tasks. There is no perceivable limit to the convenience of portability for a laptop at this time. If you want something with some power, get a MacBook Pro. That's what it's for.
 
I fail to see the point in a 12-inch laptop when there is an 11-inch Macbook Air and a 13-inch Macbook Air already available. It would seem like a 12-inch screen wouldn't be worth making for the 1-inch screen size difference, unless it is a completely "new" device in its own league.

I'm guessing it would replace the MBA altogether, maybe not immediately at release but over a year or two, like the rMBP replaced the classic MBP. So we'd have an 11 and 13 inch MBA, and a 12 inch "ultra thin" MacBook that would be quite different, probably much more expensive due to the Retina display too, then slowly the price would drop until there would be no point to keep the MacBook Airs around.
 
This is gonna be sick. I can see it now in my mind already.

Super thin display and keyboard with a battery in the keyboard part. iPhone like thin bezels on the sides of the screen with speaker at the top/bottom forehead and chin. Huge trackpad, hopefully running osx.

3-4 usb type-c, possibly charging through any of the ports too so you can plug your external screen into any of them to get power and display port out.

Low power cpu/gpu with retina screen. current gen iPhones are basically downscaling at the res this would operate at so you could provide a 6000mAh battery at 3.8v and get 2 days battery life if the backlight LED is optimised!

There is a market for a kind of updated netbook now to slot between more powerful laptops and the likes of the iPad Air. Super slim super light, insane battery life.

It's coming folks.
 
I can't wait for this thing. This and a 27 inch retina iMac. :eek:

i'll go imac over macbook pro for the first time ever if there's a 27" retina screen. holy gawd - portability be damned. i doubt we'll see that for another year after whenever they drop the 21" retina though. which will be...?
 
This thread has starting me thinking on convergence. What makes the ideal device, ideal? Do you like your iPad because it's small or because of iOS? Would you like an iPad with Mac OS? Would you like a laptop with iOS? Would you enjoy a laptop as small as an iPad with a keyboard that runs Mac and/or iOS?
 
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