Nope, but that's what the 14 day return policy is for. If the Retina doesn't meet my expectations, I'll be happy to save the 2k and keep using my 2007 MBP. I primarily upgraded for the screen since I do get a lot of eye strain working all day on my computer. I used to get that same eye strain and post-working blurriness in my vision when using my iPad one, but I don't have that problem with the iPad 3, so I'm really hopping the RMBP achieves the same desired effect.
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Does anyone else not like the direction Apple is going with their products?
- Thread starter monkeybagel
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Nope, but that's what the 14 day return policy is for. If the Retina doesn't meet my expectations, I'll be happy to save the 2k and keep using my 2007 MBP. I primarily upgraded for the screen since I do get a lot of eye strain working all day on my computer. I used to get that same eye strain and post-working blurriness in my vision when using my iPad one, but I don't have that problem with the iPad 3, so I'm really hopping the RMBP achieves the same desired effect.
I didn't try but I did call you out, you upgraded so you could make the most of what you needed to get out of your computing needs. Apple makes it easy to upgrade if needed, to which you did. If you had the option to store 500 gb Over 120gb especially if its is faster and even furthermore if you could put in a SSD you would, you would be stupid not to take advantage of the speed and capacity gains. Sit here and tell me otherwise, in any case you can't do that anymore, you can use airplay which is great if your within you wifi range.
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In a professional context as marketed by apple, yes.
This is a pro machine, a premium machine with a high end price with leading technology targeted at a professional market ? Or am I wrong has apple just gone more towards consumer?
$3,458.99 for the highest end MBPR with processor upgrade but only 8gb RAM? 8Gb is almost a standard today, hence why the airs are now upgradable to 8gb. So with no upgrade options we are stuck with 8 gb ram? keep in mind 16gb only costs $160 online, wait ok lets upgrade the ram for $240 with apple to 16gb. $3,7000 now I can sleep at night, but only for a year and a half when my SSD starts to fill up to regularly and I don't see why i need to carry around an external harddrive when i paid almost 4000 for a machine to last me 5 year. Wait 2 years later and now 1 TB ssd's are faster and very affordable as well as potential RAM sizes. Prices of harddrives and ram have dropped to record lows, I wish I had the option of upgrading, I guess maybe its time to sell and buy a new machine its what apple wanted all along anyway.
iPad 3 is great too. I will be curious what you think about the MacBook when you get it. I was expecting an iPhone/iPad 3 experience like yourself and was disappointed. There was a standard 15" on display next to the retina. After viewing both, I realized that the retina didn't seem as important on a larger screen like a notebook (compared to an iPad/iPhone). But I hope you like it.
Of course everyone likes to get speed increases, so of course there is a certain desirability in having the possibility of upgrades. That being said though, the question for me is whether or not the lack of upgradability is a big factor. I actually think it is very minor one and would prefer to have either increased battery capacity or increased portability, rather than upgradability. If you could have them all, sure throw in upgradability into the mix. But our world isn't like that. In this world there are trade-offs and I happen to think Apple made the right decision in dumping the upgradable model. For me the order is like this: Performance > Battery life > Portability > Style > Upgradability.
My earlier posts were simply to point out that this hyperbole that computers won't last as long anymore is absurd. I merely wanted to point out, even without upgrades, the machines are still extremely capable even 5-6 years down the road.
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I hope I like it too, and since you seem interested, I'll post a follow up after I see it for myself. The other thing that'll be nice, though I think of this simply as a bonus, is the quiet fans. My old MBP is incredibly loud and even for quite mundane tasks it gets extremely hot and the fans kick into full gear. Plus the battery life is barely 2 hours nowadays so that is incredibly frustrating. I'm fed up of having to buy batteries every year for 100$. These 7 hour batteries that last 1000 cycles strike me as quite an advance over my old 3 hours brand new for 300 cycle battery tech.
It's interesting that you want performance and battery power but then style and portability over upgradability. But yet you say the machines are great in the long run 4-5-6 years later despite the fact that yourself and the rest of us are guilty of upgrading when possible. If you want style, battery, portability apple has designed machines specifically around that the macbook air, I would even say that those machines perform really well for what they are. The mbp on the other hand should not be modelled around those portable machines, it has always been a pro machine that catered to a pro market that required pro level upgradability and technology.
The point you made that some users don't upgrade is valid, and is it an important factor, you could argue that there is a target consumer market that wont dive into this as they are light users and not tech savy. That's why we have macbook airs, less sophisticated and complicated at a cheaper price point. You would expect more from the high end "pro" line of apple products.
You make good points, but the MBAs don't last all that long. Yes if they keep the stock software, they will run just fine, but the 2008-2009, and already the 2010 MBAs are already starting to become incredibly sluggish. I rather pay a little more for the Pros and use a 5-6 year upgrade cycle that allows me to run all the latest software than the 3 year cycle that seems to be the trend with the MBAs. That obviously don't apply to everyone since the way we use our computers vary, but for me the Pro is the better long-term investment, even if I never tax the systems to its limits other than towards the end of the 5-6 year cycle.
All this to say, I think the "pro"s are very different things to each individual user and what Apple is trying to do is to spread the net as large as it can. It wants to keep its line focused and not have 50 models, so it has to offer a little something for everyone. So far as I can tell, many professionals who tax the systems are quite satisfied with them, and it strikes me as a very minor group of stat mongers that complain that Apple is abandoning its roots.
I've just started using Macbooks/Apple products (2 years ago).. I used to own an HP, Sony, Fujitsu, Emachine and Dell laptops. I blog, do photography, manage my website and a few other things. My mbp does a wonderful job handling my needs. My laptop right now is 2 years old and still powerful as when I first bought it. 
Can't wait to get the 15 inch retina!
Can't wait to get the 15 inch retina! I've just started using Macbooks/Apple products (2 years ago).. I used to own an HP, Sony, Fujitsu, Emachine and Dell laptops. I blog, do photography, manage my website and a few other things. My mbp does a wonderful job handling my needs. My laptop right now is 2 years old and still powerful as when I first bought it.
Hope you enjoy it!
I am terribly sorry to hear that! Has your MBP experience been such a bad one? Maybe I just got very lucky the last 6 years, but I would not have a single reason to complain at all. Every Apple product works as adverticed and then some. I couldn't be happier, really!
I understand, - not beeing able to upgrade is somehow bad and it makes the initial investment more expensive. At the same time it does not allow the user to lengthen the livecycle of the product. However in the case of apple products, this circumstance is not effective because they controll the livecycle over the software anyways. What does a big RAM upgrade do, if you cant install the newest OSX because of an old Core Duo CPU?? The upgrade path in the Laptop Universe has always been very questionable. The economic benifit or livecycle extension you may get out of it, was never very big. In many cases the user throws money on a dead horse. (Remember the MS VISTA upgrade experience ??!!)
I think people have forgotten what they have with apple... but hey... be my guest and go back to the "China Plastic World of &%$§t"
or maybe you didn't do the full transition yet..
from an apple consumer to an apple shareholder ...
Always look for a couple of Red Flags in some posts.
1. Nostalgia- If someone gets all misty eyed about Snow Leopard and then launches invective at the current OS they could be correct but chances are they're just being a luddite.
2. Referencing Linux as an acceptable solution - Yes I now Ubuntu or some other flavor of Linux can do everything a person needs at a basic level but come on the Linux ship sailed a decade ago.
I'd rather Apple focus on the "rest of us" and not spend inordinate amounts of time and money trying to appease people stuck in the past.
+1! I won't wax nostalgic. Let me just say that I am an old time IT guy and have used Apple laptops exclusively since 2003. Each one has been better than the last and each has been better, by far, than any other computer I had ever owned. We pay the Apple Tax for our Macbooks, but they are well worth the premium, it seems to me. Just as Apple has told us, "They just work."
Built my windows 7 workstation after 18 years of being a mac only user. Couldn't be happier. Now that I'm not looking for Apple to fulfill my power user needs I can enjoy my macs for where they really excel, worry free internet!
It's been a few years since i've built a PC. I'm looking to build a gaming rig eventually.
I think Apple's direction is fine and so is Microsofts. Each is playing up to their strengths and there's no law saying you cannot have multiple platforms. In fact for many it's recommended.
Cutting the invective a bit...
One of the things that happened 10 years ago that started to pick Apple up out of its 90's doldrums was that it built an operating system that was very friendly to power users. The UNIX underpinnings allowed developers total control and access to great tools, but the system also offered a very user-friendly GUI and ran mainstream software, unlike Linux at the time. (And good luck getting any other laptop installed with UNIX out of the box in 2002.)
This core of developers rejuvenated what had at the time been a flagging Mac software market -- one of the reasons people had flocked to Windows was that many more applications were available on Windows at the time. Apple made its platform a relative joy to develop on, and soon there were tons of great software options available for Mac that you couldn't find on Windows.
Moreover, it was by far the friendliest platform out there for web developers in the resurgent "Web 2.0" movement -- like Windows it could run Photoshop; like Linux it had all the utilities and a similar environment to your web hosting environment; and all with a gorgeous and intuitive GUI.
This effect accelerated when Apple switched to Intel processors -- even many people who didn't like the software thought Apple had some of the best Windows/Linux-capable laptops out there. Another attraction of the platform was that Macs retained their resale value very well because they were well made, tended to last a long time physically, and even older hardware was upgradable and performed well with newer operating systems.
What's happening now is that Apple is focusing more on its mass-market products and a "disposable" hardware mindset. This is starting to alienate a lot of the older stalwarts, who jumped on board the platform for its raw customizability and developer-friendly workflows and are finding the new offerings "dumbed down" and that not enough attention is being paid to their needs.
Apple may no longer need these users as their primary market, now that they've recaptured a broader consumer market, but since the Mac platform is becoming less friendly to them and the alternatives still haven't caught up, they're becoming understandably frustrated, and in some cases a bit bitter.
One of the things that happened 10 years ago that started to pick Apple up out of its 90's doldrums was that it built an operating system that was very friendly to power users. The UNIX underpinnings allowed developers total control and access to great tools, but the system also offered a very user-friendly GUI and ran mainstream software, unlike Linux at the time. (And good luck getting any other laptop installed with UNIX out of the box in 2002.)
This core of developers rejuvenated what had at the time been a flagging Mac software market -- one of the reasons people had flocked to Windows was that many more applications were available on Windows at the time. Apple made its platform a relative joy to develop on, and soon there were tons of great software options available for Mac that you couldn't find on Windows.
Moreover, it was by far the friendliest platform out there for web developers in the resurgent "Web 2.0" movement -- like Windows it could run Photoshop; like Linux it had all the utilities and a similar environment to your web hosting environment; and all with a gorgeous and intuitive GUI.
This effect accelerated when Apple switched to Intel processors -- even many people who didn't like the software thought Apple had some of the best Windows/Linux-capable laptops out there. Another attraction of the platform was that Macs retained their resale value very well because they were well made, tended to last a long time physically, and even older hardware was upgradable and performed well with newer operating systems.
What's happening now is that Apple is focusing more on its mass-market products and a "disposable" hardware mindset. This is starting to alienate a lot of the older stalwarts, who jumped on board the platform for its raw customizability and developer-friendly workflows and are finding the new offerings "dumbed down" and that not enough attention is being paid to their needs.
Apple may no longer need these users as their primary market, now that they've recaptured a broader consumer market, but since the Mac platform is becoming less friendly to them and the alternatives still haven't caught up, they're becoming understandably frustrated, and in some cases a bit bitter.