Hardware-Free WWDC Sets Stage for Busy Second Half of 2016

[Frosties]

It's looking a LOT like the quest for the G5 laptop. Soon, just wait....

 

[rboerdijk]

But how is the laptop supposed to be super thin then?

Make it thicker, obviously... I personally don't care that they make it 1mm thinner each time. Just up it back to the 2010 mbp size - just make it have a top CPU + GPU.

 

[KPOM]

Wow, that company used to care about computers, now it seems like Mac is an absolute afterthought...
A "hobby" to put it in Cook terms.

Glassed Silver:mac

Apple sees Mac as a legacy product line. That's why the MacBook is the focus right now on the Mac side. It is the most consumer-oriented Mac and I would not be surprised to see it become the top seller (if it isn't already). Let's face it. Apple thrives based on the iPhone now. iPad and Mac are "halo" products to bring in additional revenue.

 

[pat500000]

if next mac mini is as horrible as the 2014 one I surely will switch to hackintosh

Lot of people are doing that now.

 

[CmdrLaForge]

I guess I am not the only one who wishes for an updated Mac mini with again a quad core cup and a decent igpu

 

[pat500000]

I finally bit the bullet the last night and bought a 13" MBP that was on sale for $150 off. I'm moving and need a laptop to replace my 27" iMac, and couldn't wait any longer. Nothing like paying almost $1,400 for two year old tech when a refresh is probably a month or two away, but I'm out of options. If the new model is as whiz-bang as it really should be, I'll just eBay this one and take a bath on a couple hundred bucks. Not super thrilled with Apple or Tim Cook at the moment though.

Hackintosh if needed for desktop. Whatever you do, it's better you buy from 3rd and not directly from Apple.

 

[Johnny907]

Apple's profit numbers are fake because they find ways to milk everyone out of their money. Even with the constant milking, the numbers are still going down. Tells you how much Apple has fallen since a few years ago.

Agreed. I thought about doing the math on just how inflated the profit margins are on these MBP's running such old parts at premium prices, but I'm in enough pain as it is and didn't feel the need to twist the knife. If not for all money I have invested in software licenses at this point, I would have switched back to PC's in a heartbeat to avoid that Apple Tax burn if anything else.

 

[technopimp]

Hope its soon, desperate for a MBP.

On a side note, what happened to the "Yup" guy (Jim somebody)? He doesn't get mentioned anymore.

Hopefully he's faded into obscurity and is no longer afforded the pseudo-fame he obviously desperately craves by smugly pretending he doesn't (does) know (not know) someone/something at Apple that's purposely feeding him leaks.

 

[pat500000]

Well, computer makers have to do that if they want to maintain the sales levels they enjoyed in the good old days, when this year's processor was substantially faster than last year's.

The danger is that Apple will lose interest in the Mac because it is no longer a growth area.

The outdated-ness of the rMBP range may be exaggerated, but in the past it would have been Apple first out of the gate with Thunderbolt 3/USB-C driving change in the wider industry. Its ludicrous that the Mac Pro has never seen a CPU or GPU spec bump since launch - a fairly specialist Pro machine like that, which demands changes in, e.g. how a business organises their storage or what specialist peripherals they buy - really needs a "roadmap" to give users some long-term confidence.

That said, some of this may still be Intel's "fault" - the various models in the last two generations of chips have dribbled out so slowly that everybody has been talking about the next generation before all of the current chips are shipping. I'm not clear when the low-power + Iris Pro graphics chips that Apple needs for the 15" rMBP actually became available (I think its the one used in this which has only recently hit the streets - and presumably Intel get first dibs). Even the top-end rMBP with discrete graphics makes use of the Iris Pro to save power by only firing up the discrete GPU when needed.

I'm not sure if you read about Tim Cook wanting to go idevices as a direction.

 

[Johnny907]

Hackintosh if needed for desktop. Whatever you do, it's better you buy from 3rd and not directly from Apple.

Yeah I need a laptop, otherwise I would have kept my iMac which has been very good to me.

 

[pat500000]

Tim and Phil weren't listening carefully.

And guess what? That dementia Tim Cook doesn't know what Steve was talking about at that time.

 

[Johnny907]

I think Apple wanted to use the same keyboard for the new Macbook Pro redesign as the Macbook. But with the feedback very loud that it was bad, Apple is having to adjust it and that takes more time. I like the Macbook keyboard but don't hate the current Macbook Pro keyboard.

It's funny.. I've hated the Macbook Air keyboard since Gen 1, but I really didn't mind the Macbook Retina's keyboard for the month or so I demo'd it. It was surprisingly responsive despite it's shallow travel. If they included an improved version on the new MBP, I'd be ok with that.

 

[KPOM]

Will someone explain to me why Apple can't update their computer hardware with normal modern specs like what we took for granted under Steve Jobs? Nothing too flashy, just what is expected in 2016? Build them and they will come. I don't understand the wait; they are losing to the competition by neglecting dedicated user base who use product on daily basis.

You mean the Steve Jobs who released brand new MacBook Airs and Pros in October 2010 with 2 year-old Core 2 Duo chips when everyone else was releasing Core i5/i7 chips? Apple has always released products on its own schedule.

Something to consider is that Intel's schedule has slowed. CPU performance really hasn't improved much since Sandy Bridge (about 5-10% per generation). Intel's focus has been on the GPU and improving battery life. Kaby Lake in particular strikes me as something that Intel is putting out just to say they put something out (after the whole debacle of Broadwell being so delayed that Haswell had such a long cycle).

My guess is that Apple will be updating Macs on a longer cycle, apart from the MacBook, which will get annual updates (e.g. Kaby Lake in 2017, Cannon Lake in 2018) until it reaches the point where it becomes mainstream and the price drops.

 

[pat500000]

I hope Apple steps it up hardware-wise this year. I'd like to see them take graphics more seriously instead of focusing solely on making products thin...especially with the VR revolution happening right now. There are a lot of great new cards from Nvidia and ATI that I'm jealous of as a Mac user.

I don't want them to take gpu seriously....I want them to take themselves seriously.

 

[Queen6]

Exactly. As a loyal Mac user since 1992, their consistent lackadaisical attitude toward their computer user base in recent years makes this customers less enthusiastic about their consumer line-up, i.e. phones, iPads, watches, etc. I don't see Apple as the cutting edge company they used to be. Therefore any cultish following I had for the brand is certainly waning, along with my excitement for an upgraded phone. (Hell, iPhones turn into slugs with every iOS update anyway, why bother?)
[doublepost=1466102647][/doublepost]

I they will, once they come to their senses!

Apple no longer produces the best product for the consumer, Apple today produces the best product for Apple, WWDC exemplifies this paradigm, requiring the user to purchase several companion devices in order to experience the full functionality. Apple will very likely deepen and intensify this strategy in an attempt to compel it`s customers to purchase ever more Apple product & services with Apple`s associated exorbitant margins.

Personally I find this all very shallow, with Apple trading innovation for the highly controlled release of technology, with little innovation driven by sheer greed & profit. The Mac may still well be an integral component of Apple, eqaully far from the top of the tree in the revenue stream. Apple no longer has focus on the Mac as a direct result, leaving an uninspiring range of personal computers as a direct result. Dropping sales may well provoke Apple to invest in the Mac, however the Mac will never be what it could have once been, playing little more than "second fiddle" IOS, it`s devices and Apple`s services.

The quandary now is why support a company that no longer prioritise the personal computer or it`s associated operating system, other than as a vehicle to sell other product lines. Add in the buggy and less than compelling OS X releases of late, Apple in my mind is very far off being cutting edge, rather more doing as little as possible, yet positioning itself to capture as much of it`s customer money as possible...

Q-6

 

[KPOM]

So let me get this straight. This fall we might get:

iPad Pro 12"
MacBook 13"
MacBook Pro 13"
MacBook Pro 15"
Thunderbolt Display
iMac
Apple Watch
iPhone 7
iPhone 7 Plus
Mac Pro
Mac Mini

All in one event?

Probably 2 events. September for the iPhone. October for everything else. Also, there likely won't be both a 13" MacBook and 13" MacBook Pro. There will be one or the other. The iPad Pro might not see an update until 2017 (Apple seems to be on an 18-24 month cycle.

 

[gugy]

I was actually in the process of looking at used ones until Best Buy put the model I wanted on a one day sale. The price difference was maybe a hundred dollars, and I have 45 days to take it back in which maybe the new model will be released. New MBP's in July? Eh, one can dream.

Honestly at this point the earliest I expect to see updates will be in September, more likely October. IMO Apple is using their back to school promo to sell as much as they can the current inventory before releasing update models. I think their promo ends in September.

 

[pat500000]

iPhone and probably Apple Watch 2 in September, and Mac's and possibly iPads in October, that's what Apple use to do before. However I'm not sure they will announce new iPads this year, they announced the iPad Pro 9"7 in March this year so I can't see that ending updated. And the iPad Pro 12.9" was announced in September last year so I'm not sure.

By the way didn't they release iPad Pro late last year?

 

[KPOM]

Are they ever going to update the Mac Mini again or is that a dead product? It would be a great solution for me where I don't need a display but want more horsepower than my 5 year old MBP.

I'm guessing the latter. It was specifically targeted at desktop "switchers." In 2016 most PC/Mac sales are notebooks.

 

[NufSaid]

Popping Prozac

I have to say Mac has matured to the point where it is cooler to criticize them than to complement them. Forums are becoming places of deep depression.

There are ALWAYS going to be things that YOU didn't find or want in an announcement. I was left wanting. I am in the market for a new Macbook Pro and an Apple Watch. But what if you wanted a new OS for the iPhone 6s you just bought? You are pleased as punch.

Just because what YOU wanted wasn't there doesn't mean you have to go fuming and venting to the world. Apple has changed so many areas of tech and life with their innovations and the mimicking of their innovations.

Breathe....pop a Prozac....enjoy your phone.....you could be using a Samsung.

 

[KPOM]

By the way didn't they release iPad Pro late last year?

The rumor is that they originally wanted to release the iPad Pro in the spring but it wasn't ready. That explains in part why the 9.7" iPad Pro has more advanced technology (screen, camera) than the 12.9".

 

[CFreymarc]

My crystal ball:
* First press event in the new arena on in-progress campus.
* iPhone 7 launch, two black bezel color options to complement the "dark mode" in iOS 10
* MacBook Pro update with OLED display just above keyboard
* Updated Mac Mini with quad-core and SSD standard
* Second generation Apple Watch
* NO new iPads
* NO new Apple TV
* NO new Mac Pro
* scheduled for late September

 

[Dave245]

By the way didn't they release iPad Pro late last year?

They announced it in September alongside the iPhone 6s and Apple TV 4. The iPad Pro was then released November 11th. Mine arrived very soon after I pre-ordered.

 

[crsh1976]

I don't see how the current crop of hardware couldn't handle anything most folks need. A college person will use Office, maybe XCODE, and possibly some graphic design apps. The MacBook Pros current and past offerings can handle those tasks with ease.

I think many folks are stuck in the 1990's where hardware specs were the key differentiator for sales. Let's face it, Skylake will give you maybe 15% performance boost? Is that really something to get excited about? I can see if we are talking about GPUs and battery life because Apple really skimps to maximize profits there.

If I'm missing something or misinformed, please fill in the gaps for me.

Hi, pro user here, I'd like my rMBP to be able to drive two 4k screens that are all the rage right now, but the current 15-inch Haswell-era rMBP cannot handle it. Skylake + Thunderbolt 3 brings a lot more to the table than a mere 15% CPU performance increase. In case I'd want to get a desktop Mac instead, I'm not sure shelling out $4-5k for a 3 year-old Mac Pro makes any sense.

Pro users are getting the middle finger these days; I get that emoji-loving kids on rose gold iPads is a booming market Apple wants to capture, but it feels like they are repeating the error they made with the education market: ignore user needs and you'll drive them away (for reference, the current state of the education market can be summed up in one word: Chromebooks).

I'd love to throw $3k at Apple for a new rMBP, but Apple doesn't put out what I need - and thus I'm not buying anything rather than going for last year's model.

 

[sudo1996]

Dumb. Hardware is what makes Apple.