Wow! Count me in for this. I’m pretty much iPad only but the unlimited cellular data has a ton to do with that. I’d pay for data on a MacBook even if I didn’t use it as much as my iPad. Options are great to have.
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DigiTimes: Apple to Launch MacBooks with Cellular 5G Connectivity in Second Half of 2020
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If you are travelling a lot, is it to be tethered to your computer or just to say you can have solid fast Internet so you can check email and browse the web for 15 mins or maybe an hour at most?
When I am travelling, other than catching up on email, occasional Skype with family or WhatsApp, I am spending most of my time doing something other than in front of my computer.
The same conference I attend each year - major industry player like Apple, I wake at 5 in the morning, check my phone thats the first thing. Using the room wifi, I can do whatever email, web browsing I want on it. By the time I am at the laptop, I probably have another 30 minutes of time to use it for any additional activity, which likely if I am writing something or making a long correspondence - seriously, this doesn't need 5G.
Next, I shower, go down stairs, have breakfast with other attendees, I am not even touching my device, because I don't want to be antisocial and hardly anybody else is. Rooms at the location also have speedy Wi-Fi that I am able to get work done on it just fine. Its probably the commute where I would need it on the shuttle and even then the 4G LTE seems to do the job and in most cases, I am talking to another attendee. You will see the one or two antisocials who will have a laptop open and they are likely in a coding environment, not actually browsing the web.
After years of attending these significantly tech oriented conference, I actually discovered my Internet usage is significantly low and data I do have meets the needs for Google maps and other activities. Same with vacations too. I think one area where it would likely be very beneficial is a long haul flight, but good look with airlines rolling that out.
This might have been a thing back in 2007, but now it seems a bit .... behind the times. I can see how an iPad Pro through iPad Mini would benefit from cellular, but adding the parts to a laptop seems redundant. Most people have cell phones with them, and can connect through their cell phones wirelessly.
Sure, it's an extra device, but how many of us say, "I won't need my cellphone today, I'll just use my Macbook."
Sure, it's an extra device, but how many of us say, "I won't need my cellphone today, I'll just use my Macbook."
Yes thank you finally I found someone who thinks this is dumb as well haha. So far all the comments I've seen are something to the effect of "Oh this is a good idea I'm sure lots of people will use it!" or "Well I think we all knew this was inevitable from Apple!"
NO!!!!
I'm sorry but..no..this makes no sense! For one thing, think about all the additional SKUs that'll add to inventories (including Apple's). Second, they already have cellular options for all flavors of the iPad and obviously the iPhone which, don't forget, you can use as a hotspot!! And last but not least, Qualcomm. They would almost certainly have to use their modems for something like this and they literally JUST bought Intel's modem business, sooooo yeah...not gonna see a bunch of new MacBooks with cellular (especially 5G) in the next six months or so. Think about how crazy that sounds to say there will be 5G Macs before 5G iPhones...
We've been seeing this rumor pop up every now and then for more than a decade, and they've been wrong every single time.
like i said it really depends on the data plan, my verizon plan doesn't offer much on hotspot, the only way i can get unlimitish hotspot plan is if i put the sim in the device itself, so either the laptop have sim capability or i carry around a jetpack with me.
if i was still on my previous t-mobile plan then yes i too would have 10gb of hotspot data.
Nah they ain’t ready for that yet, I thought they’d ditched the MacBook though?
I don’t think this rumour is true anyway..
Apple doesn’t get a cut of iPad connection fees. Why would they for MacBooks?
My guess is to have carriers help sell them through their stores and their monthly payment options. Having the carriers offer them at $55. A month with contracts will be a lot easier for some people to acquire.
If they incorporated the modem into the chip as some speculate will be the case, And i’m guessing that these would be ARM based macs, wouldn’t they just make all of these devices cellular capable? Reducing SKUs and further streamlining chip production and economies of scale?
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You may be right, but it could be another selling point for getting people on board ARM based Macs. Especially if it ends up being exclusive to them.
I think you are right about Qualcomm royalties being a major factor in preventing laptops having cellular. Since they demanded a % of the purchase price of the device, that is a much bigger amount on high-end laptops than it is on high-end phones. I still would rather tether than pay for a service I would only use a handful of times a year though.
Man will have colonized Mars before that occurs...just sayin’!
My first iPad was a 3G model. But that 3G connectivity was completely unnecessary. All it added to my life was another bill to pay every month.
I'm pretty sure everyone has their iPhone on them pretty much all the time. So just use the goddamn ****ing Personal Hotspot for ****'s sake.
It's not like everyone's a researcher that's out and about in the woods where there's no WiFi and they can't use their hotspot because it will drain their battery. In case you indeed work for the Discovery Channel and want to use your MacBook in the wild, you should already be bringing a battery pack.
Jesus Christ.
I'm pretty sure everyone has their iPhone on them pretty much all the time. So just use the goddamn ****ing Personal Hotspot for ****'s sake.
It's not like everyone's a researcher that's out and about in the woods where there's no WiFi and they can't use their hotspot because it will drain their battery. In case you indeed work for the Discovery Channel and want to use your MacBook in the wild, you should already be bringing a battery pack.
Jesus Christ.
It may sound crazy but if Apple introduced their own 5g network it would pull the rug out from under the status quo. It’s not too far fetched. They were partnered up a few years ago with a satellite company researching low orbit satellite internet networks. I don’t recall the details but the info is out there.
So, and the modem in the iPad has exactly what to do with a Macbook? Absolutely nothing. Hotspot is more like an "emergency internet access" not an everyday solution. And for people who travel a lot an integrated modem is just perfect. Trust me, I have one in my Dell. Everytime I'm not at home I don't need to bother with WiFi. Internet is there as soon as you login. Not relying on WiFis also means better security no retarded Firewall and no Captive Portal that kicks you and you wonder why the emails don't go through.
Beyond that the new 16" device would be a perfect launch plattform for integrated 5G. Also, the laptops would deal much better with the drawbacks of 5G, while on the phone you notice every little mA of battery drain.
Last but not least, 5G brings little to no advantage on mobile phones, while on a laptop you might actually benefit from it...
Interesting idea. It would remove one of the key reasons I chose the iPad over portables.
I think the rumor is false I don’t think 5G will happen by then, and I don’t think the networks want to take on PC level loads. It already costs tens of billions to support mobile devices.
I could easily be wrong.
I think the rumor is false I don’t think 5G will happen by then, and I don’t think the networks want to take on PC level loads. It already costs tens of billions to support mobile devices.
I could easily be wrong.
Why oh why do they put the antennas above the keyboard (in the patent picture)? That way they're blocked when the laptop is closed. So no active standby connection obviously.
Why not come up with something else like another material. High quality plastic? Aluminium is so 2005.
Why not come up with something else like another material. High quality plastic? Aluminium is so 2005.
While I remain skeptical, I can kind of see how this fits in. A lot of rumors have said Apple plans on releasing an ARM MacBook in 2020. So the modem could be integrated into the SoC- if it is an apple modem. It makes sense for them to first release their own modems for iPads and MacBooks, where it’s less important, before going to the iPhone. I believe the first Apple-designed chip, the A4, was released on the iPad?
You'd like to always be paying for 5G connectivity, even at home? And route all your internal network stuff through the public internet?
I doubt this will happen any time soon. In the future providers will be offering "in-house" 5G services to corporations to replace WiFi using the millimetre band (more secure and more bandwidth available than even on the 5Ghz WiFi band) but this is still in development.
It’s actually live in various cities in the US via mmWave.
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Not everybody wants to tether. Also, lots of plans have strict data limits on the data used via smartphone hotspots.
I’d love a laptop where I can just fire it up and access a ‘secure’ internet service. And at top speeds too.
Not to mention, because it would naturally have a larger surface area, it would have better reception.
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