... the "lacks connectivity" argument is just stupid. How about a parallel port? Floppy drive? No VGA either
Just buy an adapter!
Actually panasonic laptops, which are real workhorses, do have serial port, VGA, 2xRJ45, RJ11...
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Did I spend twice as much over a Windows Notebook on a disposable piece of eye candy?
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Actually panasonic laptops, which are real workhorses, do have serial port, VGA, 2xRJ45, RJ11...
I stongly disagree. I am not aware of any other computer on the market that could be a better professional machine for my proposes, which are teaching, research, IT administration and software development. Having a compact and light laptop which is also a powerhouse is much more important to me than legacy options or pointless upgradeability, as I have to move around a lot. A MBP makes my life much more easier and convenient, while allowing me to be more productive.
I understand that the few people who work in certain sectors need ethernet connection, as well as that there are few professionals that need large internal storage capacity. I am glad that those people still have all these legacy options on the market.
For majority of users though, these things are irrelevant. Last time I have used a wired network connection was over two years ago. Optical media — around five.
Sometimes I wonder how some people world can be so black and white.
You buy expensive electronics because you need them to fulfill your needs, you know... Work & play. With that money you did get class leading build quality, eye candy, nice display, portability, awesome user experience etc. You got a great and powerful computer to get your stuff done. And as you said, you enjoyed while it lasted. Which means that you made the right decision.
Anyways. Electronics have a tendency to last or not to last. This time it didn't. Which is a shame. But I guess you are clever boy and were aware of this when you bought your 4000$ laptop.
Apple makes great products but they aren't wizards. They can't guarantee that if you buy a 4000$ laptop it will last at least 15 years. If something is going to fail, it will fail. I bet Apple's engineers do the best they can to assure longlivety of their products, but you'll never know.
I assume that you are aware of the fact that even 500,000$ and even 1,000,000$ supercars can and will fail. The price guarantees you the experience, luxury, build quality, eye candy and the power. But it doesn't guarantee the longlivety.
Keep that in mind.
You buy expensive electronics because you need them to fulfill your needs, you know... Work & play. With that money you did get class leading build quality, eye candy, nice display, portability, awesome user experience etc. You got a great and powerful computer to get your stuff done. And as you said, you enjoyed while it lasted. Which means that you made the right decision.
Anyways. Electronics have a tendency to last or not to last. This time it didn't. Which is a shame. But I guess you are clever boy and were aware of this when you bought your 4000$ laptop.
Apple makes great products but they aren't wizards. They can't guarantee that if you buy a 4000$ laptop it will last at least 15 years. If something is going to fail, it will fail. I bet Apple's engineers do the best they can to assure longlivety of their products, but you'll never know.
I assume that you are aware of the fact that even 500,000$ and even 1,000,000$ supercars can and will fail. The price guarantees you the experience, luxury, build quality, eye candy and the power. But it doesn't guarantee the longlivety.
Keep that in mind.
I'm asking this sincerely, because I'm curious. What does it have that make it so practical for that tasks? (teaching, IT administration and software development)
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I don't know if they are the future, but they are the present in the factories MacBooks, macs and mac pros are being made. Just pointing.
Tim Cook looks cool next to that mac running windows xp with 1234120 adapters for running the CNC-CMM system
There's no way I'm buying a $2000 laptop if I have to buy adapters on top of that.
I got my 2011 MBP instead of a Retina specifically because it had an ethernet port, optical drive, and a replaceable battery. When it dies, I'm getting another used one or going with a non Apple laptop.
Damn ...Image
Tim Cook looks cool next to that mac running windows xp with 1234120 adapters for running the CNC-CMM system
... I think Tim also looks cool in a dress Says nothing about the ports though. They are still not part of the future.
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good. You know what you want. Whatever works fo you.
I can say I feel for the OP, I had the same GPU related failure with my 2011 MBP that was ultimately fixed by Apple with a replacement rMBP. Mine didn't outright fail, but would consistently hang and give the characteristic colourful screen when doing anything graphics card intensive - making it rather useless for graphics intensive work which was part of why I had bought it in the first place.
Had Apple not finally replaced my defective 2011 MBP I can say without a doubt I would have been equally mad as heck as the OP.
There is a guy who is trying to document as many cases as he can, looks like he has a fairly sizeable list so far: http://www.mbp2011.com
There is also change.org petition for the 2011 MBP GPU failure.
Had Apple not finally replaced my defective 2011 MBP I can say without a doubt I would have been equally mad as heck as the OP.
There is a guy who is trying to document as many cases as he can, looks like he has a fairly sizeable list so far: http://www.mbp2011.com
There is also change.org petition for the 2011 MBP GPU failure.
Not the 15" or 17" MacBook Pro. There's a design and/or manufacturing issue with the AMD GPUs. After two failed repairs Apple have just agreed to replace mine.
Not sure if anyone else mentioned here already but the Radeon GPU that are dying in the 2011 Macbook Pros have issues with other manufacturers as well. I have the 15" 2011 Macbook Pro and so far no issues but recently I've been just forcing only the HD3000 to be used just in case.
Except for battery wear, all my mac computers still work like they day I bought them. If there were any issues, Applecare took care of it.
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Thunderbolt theoretically could be any port with the right adapter and drivers. That was it's purpose originally...it's just a straight line into your PCIe bus + mini-displayport input.
I expect my fridge, my car or my oven to last no less than 10 years. If a computer lasts less than this, it wouldn't get my vote of confidence.
Actually, I never kept any computer for ten years, but after some upgrades, my 4-years Macbook is still a capable machine. I also have a cheap Asus netbook (Atom N270, upgraded with 64GB SSD, 2GB) which is still working and can do some browsing (Gmail, Facebook, etc).
That is, in my experience, I can't assure a Mac will last way longer than a cheap PC. I will only trust Macs if they pass the 10-years usage keeping some of their original functionality.
Actually, I never kept any computer for ten years, but after some upgrades, my 4-years Macbook is still a capable machine. I also have a cheap Asus netbook (Atom N270, upgraded with 64GB SSD, 2GB) which is still working and can do some browsing (Gmail, Facebook, etc).
That is, in my experience, I can't assure a Mac will last way longer than a cheap PC. I will only trust Macs if they pass the 10-years usage keeping some of their original functionality.
Such a different type of device. The fundamental technology in a fridge or car hasn't changed in decades. The fundamental technology in a computer (CPU/GPU) changes radically every couple years with die shrinks.
Can you elaborate on what you mean by this?
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The myth that Macs last longer is just that: A myth. I have used all kinds of old PCs and they've held up great. My current daily driver is a $700 gateway desktop I picked up in September 2007. It's gone from Windows Vista to Windows 8.1 Update 1. Only upgrade was from 2GB of RAM to 8GB at a cost of approximately $40.00. Not because I needed to but rather because it was so inexpensive. I have an IBM ThinkPad T40 that is still going strong. A Compaq Presario circa 2005 still running strong.
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I can't count how many times Mac advocates have used reliability as a selling point for Macs.
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The ice book G3 systems had very high failure rates...approaching 75%. The G5 systems, save for the last iteration, earned very poor marks for reliability. I'm not saying Apple computers are bad. But Apple isn't immune from problematic systems. Which is what the OP is expressing his concern about.
right
OP...In the same boat as you are...my 2011 MBP has given way to a screen distorted by artifacts. I have already started to un-Apple my household. Aperture is out, Lightroom is in. iPhone out, HTC in. Over the weekend, will install Windows 8 on my bootcamp and set it as my main OS. I am gonna make it work with Windows this time. I am already paying the price for being so easily seduced by Apple...never again.
OP...In the same boat as you are...my 2011 MBP has given way to a screen distorted by artifacts. I have already started to un-Apple my household. Aperture is out, Lightroom is in. iPhone out, HTC in. Over the weekend, will install Windows 8 on my bootcamp and set it as my main OS. I am gonna make it work with Windows this time. I am already paying the price for being so easily seduced by Apple...never again.
Totally agree with your perspective, but doubt that sharing it here will benefit you much.
In case it might help, I've found that the secret to having a repair and worry free Mac experience is to buy used Macs and simply toss them when they break, and fire up the next used Mac.
As example, you could have bought about 10 five year old Mac laptops for $4000, and there is pretty much zero chance they would all die on you. You don't have to buy them all at once of course, only as needed. Keeping an extra on hand is helpful.
You lose the latest greatest features when you buy used of course. Most people don't really need the latest greatest features, but if you really do, then buying used won't work, and you'll just have to make peace with playing the lemon lottery.
Yeah...I don't like Windows. I like OSX more. But what I don't like even more is shelling out 3-4 grand every 2-3 years and then finding ways to lie to myself on how the investment was totally worth it. Been through that twice now. Not anymore. I just can't get past the ridiculousness of a top-tier machine failing in less than 3 years and then saying that the machine was well past its time.
Yeah...I don't like Windows. I like OSX more. But what I don't like even more is shelling out 3-4 grand every 2-3 years and then finding ways to lie to myself on how the investment was totally worth it. Been through that twice now. Not anymore. I just can't get past the ridiculousness of a top-tier machine failing in less than 3 years and then saying that the machine was well past its time.
I always get applecare. No reason spending so much on a laptop with no replaceable parts without a warranty to guarantee that it will last long enough to be worth the price.
Yeah...I don't like Windows. I like OSX more. But what I don't like even more is shelling out 3-4 grand every 2-3 years and then finding ways to lie to myself on how the investment was totally worth it. Been through that twice now. Not anymore. I just can't get past the ridiculousness of a top-tier machine failing in less than 3 years and then saying that the machine was well past its time.
Yeah I haven't had problems so I'm staying loyal.
there's valid points to be made on both sides. i have a 2011 machine. i've heard about the failings, my coworker even has run up against it. i think it does sound like a widespread enough issue that apple should probably be doing a bit more than they are.
however, machines dying immediately out of warrantee is hardly a given when buying mac. my first mac laptop in 2008 is still going strong as my mom's main machine. and even my first mac from 2005 still runs fine (yup, i still boot it up sometimes!)
i actually haven't checked the state of my 2011 machine, because unrelated to any failings, i upgraded to a new macbook pro earlier this year. now i'm not trying to suggest that upgrading is the solution, but rather to share that even with a potentially "defective" 2011 machine, for me it wasn't an overpriced waste. i'd actually consider it the best computer i've ever owned. when i got it, it was almost triple the performance over my previous laptop. and i did not treat it with baby gloves. i pushed it every day at work doing video, animation and motion graphics. it went with me to shoots. it even survived a fall from my backpack (due to my own stupidity) within the first month of ownership. probably dumb luck, but nary a scratch, nor any functional issues from the fall for the 3 years that followed.
it sucks that the 2011 laptops have a fault. one could live with a cynical view that they're somehow designed that way by greedy executives, but i doubt its that simple. by and large, my experience with macs have been great, and in particular, that model was spectacular for the 3 years i used it. to me, it is still a great value.
however, machines dying immediately out of warrantee is hardly a given when buying mac. my first mac laptop in 2008 is still going strong as my mom's main machine. and even my first mac from 2005 still runs fine (yup, i still boot it up sometimes!)
i actually haven't checked the state of my 2011 machine, because unrelated to any failings, i upgraded to a new macbook pro earlier this year. now i'm not trying to suggest that upgrading is the solution, but rather to share that even with a potentially "defective" 2011 machine, for me it wasn't an overpriced waste. i'd actually consider it the best computer i've ever owned. when i got it, it was almost triple the performance over my previous laptop. and i did not treat it with baby gloves. i pushed it every day at work doing video, animation and motion graphics. it went with me to shoots. it even survived a fall from my backpack (due to my own stupidity) within the first month of ownership. probably dumb luck, but nary a scratch, nor any functional issues from the fall for the 3 years that followed.
it sucks that the 2011 laptops have a fault. one could live with a cynical view that they're somehow designed that way by greedy executives, but i doubt its that simple. by and large, my experience with macs have been great, and in particular, that model was spectacular for the 3 years i used it. to me, it is still a great value.
Spending $4000 on a laptop (disposable appliance) is crazy. Your frustration is understandable but your thought process is flawed. Expecting an expensive luxury vehicle to outlast (sans major repairs) a much cheaper budget model is ridiculous. More bells and whistles to go out, and much pricier parts to repair. Hopefully this will show you that 'future-proofing' doesn't exist and to always get whatever will work for you in the here and now, with the understanding that there will be something better and more effective in the future when you require it.