How do you give up all those ports!?!?

[Hieveryone]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

 

[Apple_Robert]

Not everyone is a power user needing to use 4 ports all the time.

Your needs do not equate to the same needs as everyone else's.

Your question is easily answered. No mystery involved or need to overanalyze the obvious.

 

[Yoshimura]

There are docks that allow you to connect a lot more stuff using a single USB-C cable.

And you, how can you disconnect /reconnect all those cables everytime you need to move your machine?

 

[mxims96]

Like others said, you can use a dock, however you might need to carry quite a lot of those around!
Apple has been cutting their products' functionality for aesthetics ever since Cook took over. They've totally swapped their priorities, and I hope some effect will apply as a result of this so they can prefer functionality over aesthetics. Eventually, they will just end up with a slab of glass for every one of their products!
In all reality, however, I really loved Apple, and I hope they can revert back from "1 port on our computers" to "how can we make this run as smoothly as possible".
Just my two cents.

 

[jackoatmon]

literally all of the things you mentioned can be plugged into thunderbolt 3

 

[Abazigal]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

Get that USB-C adaptor which combines power, USB-A and HDMI together. Presto! You can now supply everything just by connecting a single cable to your MacBook.

Alternatively, if you are in the market for a new display, the new LG monitors do just that.

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

Same as above.

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

See above.

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

Get the space you need.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

Adaptor, or USB-C to lightning cable.

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

Do what people have done for countless generations. Adapt. Evolve.

 

[Yoshimura]

There are docks that allow you to connect a lot more stuff using a single USB-C cable.

And you, how can you disconnect /reconnect all those cables everytime you need to move your machine?

In fact, all those cables were the reason I was using a Mac mini instead of a MBP.

 

[Omega Mac]

I use a 2 x Henge Docks (Home/office) for my MBP 2010.

Since I'm not editing graphics or video much any more once the machine is on my lap or travelling I'm not using the ports as a rule, only when docked.

I've never used the firewire port. The ethernet port is handy when doing network stuff that require you to jack in.

 

[Uplift]

If you need all those ports then the new MacBooks are not for you unless you are willing to embrace dongles, or go through a workflow shift.

for me:
- No HDMI needed

- Power, fairly standard across any device, non issue

- Time machine backs up over my network to NAS automatically

- No SD needed, storage is on NAS and my HDD is big enough anyway. I don't use SD enough to think about carrying an adapter, but also non issue as SD adapters were fairly common with standard USB

- I use a power outlet to charge my iPhone.

I really only have 2 USB devices:
- external HDD
- DJ Controller

I basically need one USB to USB C cable, if I wanted to be safe I'd get a spare but would probably never get used.

I panicked When I got the original retina when they moved ethernet and optical.. I went out and spent £90 on the external ethernet/super drive, both never ever got used.. you adjust.. It was a waste of money.

 

[soulreaver99]

Problem solved

 

[therealseebs]

Not everyone is a power user needing to use 4 ports all the time.

Your needs do not equate to the same needs as everyone else's.

Your question is easily answered. No mystery involved or need to overanalyze the obvious.

Every time we go through this, I see a few more people leave because, while not everyone needs those features, they personally did.

I've found replacements for some of my stuff under Linux, a couple of things I might need to run Windows for, but I'm basically on my way out. I'm sorta looking sadly at minis based on two-year-old hardware with no user-upgradeable parts to see if I can find a combination of specs that's good enough to last me a couple of years while I wind things down.

Apple used to cater to people who needed a bit more than the least common denominator. They don't anymore.

 

[v0lume4]

Easy!

 

[Apple_Robert]

Every time we go through this, I see a few more people leave because, while not everyone needs those features, they personally did.

I've found replacements for some of my stuff under Linux, a couple of things I might need to run Windows for, but I'm basically on my way out. I'm sorta looking sadly at minis based on two-year-old hardware with no user-upgradeable parts to see if I can find a combination of specs that's good enough to last me a couple of years while I wind things down.

Apple used to cater to people who needed a bit more than the least common denominator. They don't anymore.

Yes, the landscape is changing. However, I think one can still be a power user with the new 4 port MBP, or even the 2 port. There are a lot of solutions, some more convenient than others. Granted, not everyone likes the direction Apple has been headed. Apple can't please everyone.

In my opinion, Apple has always been reaching out to the average user. It is just that many Apple users have felt that they were entitled in some way to be catered to by Apple (not speaking of you directly). And with Apple making more openly definitive moves to confirm what it has been doing all along, a lot of entitled minded are feeling abandoned, because they created something in their mind that never was.

While I don't agree with everything Apple does, I do agree with this move, even though it has cost me some extra money. In the long run, I believe that they will be able to acquire a larger consumer market.

 

[09mac]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

Easy, I'm returning a 13" MBP in favor of a 12" MB, it's all about what you need

 

[therealseebs]

Yes, the landscape is changing. However, I think one can still be a power user with the new 4 port MBP, or even the 2 port. There are a lot of solutions, some more convenient than others. Granted, not everyone likes the direction Apple has been headed. Apple can't please everyone

But they could please a lot more users if they had two product lines instead of one.

And yeah, technically, you could be a "power user" with these machines, but there are a lot of things you just plain can't do with them, not for love nor rubles. I used to expect Apple machines to stay viable for 3-5 years, with the expectation of swapping in new memory and disk about 2-3 years in. Now I have to either pay Apple's significant markup on prices at launch, or never get those upgrades. (The price difference isn't just the markup; it's that a 1TB SSD will be a lot cheaper in two years than it is today.)

I'm still pretty bummed about this. I've been using NeXTStep since 1988 or so, and it has been one of my favorite work environments, but I can't come even close to getting the hardware I want for it anymore. Blah.

While I don't agree with everything Apple does, I do agree this move, even though it has cost be some extra money. In the long run, I believe that they will be able to acquire a larger consumer market.

I don't think it will be any larger than the market they'd have been able to get if they'd made these machines and the ones the other users wanted.

Do you remember the very early MBP ad where they showed the 12" and 17" next to each other? That was a time when Apple was highlighting that their product range was intended to meet different needs for different users. They didn't want to pick just one set of users and tell the others to go hang.

 

[zhenya]

Literally none of the things you list actually need a dongle. You just need new cables for your existing devices. This happens every few years. Nothing new here.

If you want to make things more convenient on yourself, you now have the option of leaving most of that stuff connected to an adapter or dock at your desk, and plugging in a single connection when you sit down, rather than 4. Carry 1-2 cables in your computer bag for connections you might need on the go.

 

[Hieveryone]

Y'all didn't choose the dongle life. The dongle life chose y'all.


[doublepost=1480034211][/doublepost]

Literally none of the things you list actually need a dongle. You just need new cables for your existing devices. This happens every few years. Nothing new here.

If you want to make things more convenient on yourself, you now have the option of leaving most of that stuff connected to an adapter or dock at your desk, and plugging in a single connection when you sit down, rather than 4. Carry 1-2 cables in your computer bag for connections you might need on the go.

But what if I don't upgrade my drives and external hard drive anytime soon bc they work great. Or don't plan of putting aside my SD card and throw away my perfectly awesome dell monitor.

How am I buying into the future?

Seems like the dongle life would be the only future.

 

[zhenya]

Y'all didn't choose the dongle life. The dongle life chose y'all.


[doublepost=1480034211][/doublepost]

But what if I don't upgrade my drives and external hard drive anytime soon bc they work great. Or don't plan of putting aside my SD card and throw away my perfectly awesome dell monitor.

How am I buying into the future?

Seems like the dongle life would be the only future.

None of the devices you listed need to be upgraded. They just need new cables.

I can't help you with the SD card part of things. Guess you will have to buy a larger SSD.

 

[tubeexperience]

It's obvious.

MBPs these days are trendy items.

Apple's focus these days are affluent customers who can spend $1500+ on a laptop to browse the web.

 

[therealseebs]

Literally none of the things you list actually need a dongle. You just need new cables for your existing devices. This happens every few years. Nothing new here.

I don't think it actually happens "every few years". Some of the USB devices I'm using now, I was using back before USB2 was a thing, and I've got some of those original cables, and they've still worked for those devices. That's a lot more than a "few" years.

I guess displayport replacing DVI was a cable change, and that was only a few years ago, but displayport is still fine for me, and still does everything I care about.

 

[andreyush]

I like how on this forum people went from : "WHAT THE !@# ?? DONGLES? THIS IS SO STUPID" to "I LOVE DOCKS AND DONGLES! IT'S SO MUCH EASIER!"

Keep it up! Apple will always do whatever they want with it's customers and devices because the "blind support" will always be there. And I am not talking about you OP ( obvious).

 

[erichui84]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

Not a Macbook Pro 2016 owner yet but here is my view (everything is different so you have to judge it yourself.
Currently using a 2011 Macbook air but before that I was using a Macbook Pro 2007

1. )I use DVI or displayport for my external monitors. Don't really want a HDMI port as this limits me to monitors with HDMI and most of the monitors I use don't have that. This means I have 1 port wasted which does nothing for me.

2) I use the magsafe power to keep it charged, going to USB-C doesn't change anything except you are losing the magsafe. However it does open up the option in the future where once more devices are supporting USB-C charger it means you are more likely to be able to "borrow" charger from someone else if you don't have your's with you.

3) rarely connects my external drive since I am using the laptop on the road most of the time, and for backup would probably prefer to deal with Network backup solutions so I can share the backup device with other computer on the network.

4) Only have a 240 GB ssd and bought a SD card that doesn't stick out but gave up using it since it appears to drain my battery on standby. Read forums that it might help to eject it before closing the lid, but that's too much for me if I have to do it everytime. so the SD card slot is pretty much useless for me and is just another wasted slot for me.

5) Wouldn't want to charge the iPhone with my laptop since it will drain my laptop's battery. If I am on the road I would use a powerbank or if I am in the office I rather plug it to a wall charger.

Like everyone has said, if the macbook pro doesn't fit your requirement then simply don't buy it.

I actually really wanted to replace my Macbook Air 2011 for a long time with a Macbook pro 13/15 but the previous model was too big/heavy for me. Wanted a machine with 16GB ram as well since I do have the need of running Windows and Linux VM for work, and couldn't justify getting another Air even with 8GB ram, so looks like I finally have something that suits my need.

 

[EndlessBuffoonery]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

1) USB-C does video just fine

2) Charge through USB-C

3) Harddrives connect through USB-C just fine

4) Buy a bigger internal hard drive (SD cards are slow anyways, why would you want that as any of your internal storage?).

5) USB-C to lightning cable.

See, really easy.

 

[iizmoo]

I have late 2013 rMBP 2.6/8/256. I use these ports daily:

1) HDMI for external monitor

2) Power cable to keep keep rMBP charged

3) USB for external hard drive for Time Machine backup

4) Permanent SD card for extra space since I only have 256 GBs SSD.

5) Second USB for lightning dock to keep iPhone charged

That's almost everything. It seems apparent I really need my ports!

If you have an external monitor and all that stuffs, just get a dock, and 1 cable in for power and data out

 

[Micky Do]

None of the devices you listed need to be upgraded. They just need new cables.

I can't help you with the SD card part of things. Guess you will have to buy a larger SSD.

Not even new cables. As suggested by others, just get a hub, or go all out and get the new LG display, and leave the cables attached in either case. Both elegant solutions, which would impress any self-respecting babe.

Or just stick with what you have.