I’m not a fan of Apple’s new design language direction

[leman]

I disagree with this statement somewhat. If it was just a tool, what made you get a mac over any other laptop.

Cosmetic preferences aside, Mac is objectively a better tool for many use cases. Portable performance, battery life, ergonomy, ease of software setup are big factors.

But I agree with you that it’s always a fashion statement in some form. Maybe there are people who really don’t care about how an object looks abs feels as long as it fulfills ist function, no idea. The thought does seem strange to me. I am more comfortable using tools that I personally like.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

I don’t like the “raised” feet, the notch, removal of the Mac logo from the screen, or single-tone keyboard (black keys with black base/underside).

I think all these changes make Mac look more like a generic laptop and have muddied the distinctiveness of the brand.

Well, think of it as function before form. Subjectively those design choices may not appeal to everyone, but objectively they are improvements over previous iterations.

Raised feet - I think you're referring to how the feet are now a flat base rather than concave? An improvement since the surface area is larger, which will result in less wear over time and more stability.

Notch - There are only two solutions to this. One is what we've previously had, a wide but uniform border. The other is a narrow but not uniform border, with the advantage of a larger screen within similar area dimensions. There is no in-between, Apple cannot shrink the size of the camera components any further without sacrificing image quality (which we've all be complaining about for years).

Mac logo - Well... that's just branding. But it was never really consistent when other display panels, such as the iMac, didn't have 'iMac' written on the front either. That ended with the G4.

Black-on-black keyboard - The uniform colour helps the user to identify a letter easier, because you're not navigating the silver 'paths' around the keys.

There are plenty of other examples of this, but one of my favourites is the fact that they squared-off the chassis. This allows for a more uniform placement of components, whereas the taper design of the previous MacBook Pros meant that Apple had to implement and unnecessarily compromised 'terraced' battery - all for the sake of aesthetics.

 

[Tozovac]

Agree? Disagree? Am I just wrong?

I can live with all the ”more robust” looking changes, but I’m not a fan of the embossed MacBook on the underside.

Somehow looks cheap to me and seems more like a “do something different” type of change.

But at least it’s on the underside, out of view 99.9% of the time.

 

[Basic75]

I disagree with this statement somewhat. If it was just a tool, what made you get a mac over any other laptop.

macOS

 

[TechRunner]

Apple cannot shrink the size of the camera components any further without sacrificing image quality (which we've all be complaining about for years).

And believe me, you don't want them to. I have a nice, thin, notchless top bezel on my Dell XPS 15. And a correspondingly poor camera as a result due to the size constraints.

 

[Jonathan Leclerc]

Regarding the physical design, for me the 16" redesign is pure perfection. Obviously, this is very subjective and I could understand why some people would dislike it. But for me, it pops in every single way that matters to me. Sturdier, a sort of retro vibe for some reason I can't explain, non-flashy colors.

It's the interface and application design that has me worried. Looking at each element, it's clearly less a work-of-art (like Snow Leopard was) and more of a standard also-ran that could have been designed by some slapped together group project of some hipsters in college.

I'm 100% with you regarding the interface. For me, Snow Leopard was the summit of Aqua, and a piece of art. It's been pretty much consistently downhill since then. As a matter of fact, I still use Catalina as I am incapable of tolerating the post Big Sur interface — and I only reluctantly upgraded to Catalina in the first place, but thankfully could customize it with Aqua icons, window control buttons, Snow Leopard like dock, coloured Finder sidebar icons, etc.

I'm very concerned for the future. There's no end in sight for the Yosemite-Big Sur madness. I've been a Mac user for 20 years, and I don't know where that leaves me in the foreseeable future...

 

[nquinn]

It's not a big deal to me, but I generally agree. The notch at the moment is particularly offensive because it can't even do face id, so why do we have it?

I prefer the look of the older chiclet style keyboard over the giant black monolith, and the size/weight is quite big.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

The notch at the moment is particularly offensive because it can't even do face id, so why do we have it?

Because it houses the FaceTime camera module and LED.

 

[JMacHack]

I'm 100% with you regarding the interface. For me, Snow Leopard was the summit of Aqua, and a piece of art. It's been pretty much consistently downhill since then. As a matter of fact, I still use Catalina as I am incapable of tolerating the post Big Sur interface — and I only reluctantly upgraded to Catalina in the first place, but thankfully could customize it with Aqua icons, window control buttons, Snow Leopard like dock, coloured Finder sidebar icons, etc.

I'm very concerned for the future. There's no end in sight for the Yosemite-Big Sur madness. I've been a Mac user for 20 years, and I don't know where that leaves me in the foreseeable future...

Hard disagreement here, having used snow leopard all the way up to big sur I can say my preference lies squarely with the big sur redesign. Snow Leopard, in my opinion, gets overblown praise.

Aside from skeuomorphic nostalgia, there’s no reason to like the former aqua interface over the Yosemite and Big Sur redesigns.

I know this is a controversial opinion, being that Snow Leopard is something of a sacred cow here.

 

[SuperCachetes]

The raised feet can be annoying at times when they snag things, I wish the edges were more rounded.

I had not thought of that (my newest MBP is only a 2017) but until now the unibody Macs all had the black plastic domes which barely raised it off the worksurface, but made it so the notebook could easily be slipped into a bag. I can only judge from pictures and a few anecdotes from owners, but I can see how the new MBP's sharp-edged feet could be an issue when on the go.

Raised feet - I think you're referring to how the feet are now a flat base rather than concave? An improvement since the surface area is larger, which will result in less wear over time and more stability.

Technically they were convex, i.e. rounded "bumps" on the bottom of the case. They slid smoothly into bags etc, but on the other hand, when they broke or the adhesive failed (likely due to the Intel heating element inside) you were left with little to no elevation off the worksurface, and a nasty looking socket in the unibody. Pic is an older one, but it seems like it was basically the same part number on the MBP and MBA for over a decade:

 

[Technerd108]

First off I really hate branding that is in my face. Having MacBook Pro on my screen really irritated me. It is like wanting a Porsche and it says on the Steering wheel Toyota Supra high performance racing vehicle on your tercel to make you feel like you have a serious machine. I loved the Toyota Supra BTW. lol

I really like the new design language for the most part. The notch is not my favorite but you get used to it pretty quickly so it is not a big deal.

The rest of the design decisions at least for the new MacBook Pro's is what I have been waiting for, since prehistoric times!! I plugged my tv into my Mac using an HDMI cable and no dongle-pure heaven!! The design favors performance over looks which as a "Pro" model they should have been doing years ago.

However, I am really happy that Apple listened to what customers wanted and delivered.

I do not see how the new MacBook Pro's look generic at all. There is literally no notebook that it looks like. It has a shape similar to a Surface laptop and I really like that. It will be retro blocky for a while.

Of course you are not wrong!! You are entitled to your opinion!! Maybe you should get a 13" MBP or 13" air with M1 instead of the 14 or 16" because those are the last laptops with the old design language and M1 chip?

I really think if you were to get a new air with m2 or new MBP with M1 Pro/Max you might see things differently if you had one.

In every possible metric besides gaming these laptops are the best thing Apple has made in a long time! I think the future looks very bright for Apple Silicon!!

 

[Hobbes44]

I'm on a 2017 15" MBP and I can't wait to get shot of it. It's currently my desktop and laptop - using it docked to two monitors, keyboard and mouse when at home, and using the god awful butterfly keyboard (which is on it' way out again) when on the go...can't wait to finally place an order for a new 14" - just waiting to save up some cash and also see if I can fit a Mac mini into the budget. I do like the new designs...I missed out on the powerbooks - my first was a 2008 MBP (with removable cover at the bottom to upgrade RAM, HDD and battery!!) but the new designs look very nice, and I\m kind of used to the notch because my external webcam causes one on my monitor anyway.

 

[clevins]

It looks like the M2 Air is probably going to get a similar redesign as the MBP.

I’m just not a fan of this design direction personally. I don’t like the “raised” feet, the notch, removal of the Mac logo from the screen, or single-tone keyboard (black keys with black base/underside).

I think all these changes make Mac look more like a generic laptop and have muddied the distinctiveness of the brand.

Agree? Disagree? Am I just wrong?

WRON... Wait..

I think the feet are to help flow and cooling. I can see them being removed from the Air. The notch is the price of having the camera assembly they have and narrow bezels. Its presence also is distinctive but I don't see that as the reason it's there.

I'd like the logo on the back of the screen to stay. I don't really care about the name of the model below the screen one way or the other.

If they square off the bottom of the new Air, I'd hope we get some benefit, assuming it brings extra volume. Maybe a bit larger battery, etc.

 

[clevins]

I can live with all the ”more robust” looking changes, but I’m not a fan of the embossed MacBook on the underside.

Somehow looks cheap to me and seems more like a “do something different” type of change.

But at least it’s on the underside, out of view 99.9% of the time.

SERIOUSLY? I mean, fine but come on, it's on the bottom. It feels like some of you will complain about the tiniest thing.

 

[kevcube]

Don't care. As long as it's not too ugly, which it isn't. My computer is a tool, not a fashion statement.

if you haven't yet noticed, design impacts the usefulness of a tool.

 

[Technerd108]

I can live with all the ”more robust” looking changes, but I’m not a fan of the embossed MacBook on the underside.

Somehow looks cheap to me and seems more like a “do something different” type of change.

But at least it’s on the underside, out of view 99.9% of the time.

I completely disagree-no offense. I love the engraved MacBook Pro on the bottom. Looks a lot more classy than a white printed MacBook Pro on the black part of the screen!! It is much more subdued but also a lot more costly. I love to rub my fingers along the words. I don't know there is just something to me that feels cool/quality about a laptop with its name engraved on the bottom of the device!!

I love the engraved MacBook Pro on the bottom as one of the very nice aesthetic changes!!

Funny how people can diverge so greatly on opinions. Lol

 

[Tozovac]

SERIOUSLY? I mean, fine but come on, it's on the bottom. It feels like some of you will complain about the tiniest thing.

Um, the subject of this thread is “not a fan of,” not “a fan of.”

It feels like some of you will complain about the tiniest things that some of us complain about.

 

[msackey]

It looks like the M2 Air is probably going to get a similar redesign as the MBP.

I’m just not a fan of this design direction personally. I don’t like the “raised” feet, the notch, removal of the Mac logo from the screen, or single-tone keyboard (black keys with black base/underside).

I think all these changes make Mac look more like a generic laptop and have muddied the distinctiveness of the brand.

Agree? Disagree? Am I just wrong?

I don’t mind the removal of the Mac logo. I think I could get used to the black keyboard with black base. But, I don’t like the raised feet. They look ugly and tacked on.

 

[EntropyQ3]

if you haven't yet noticed, design impacts the usefulness of a tool.

Yes. It can make it worse.

 

[mr_roboto]

Speaking of things that shouldn't have been removed or changed: the MBP wordmark should have remained below the screen (there's enough space and it creates an emotional connection with the product); the illuminated Apple logo (it's a brilliant piece that was absolutely distinctive, shaving off a millimetre or two wasn't worth losing it).

Losing the glowing logo wasn't about shaving off a millimeter, but to understand why you have to bear with me as I describe LCD backlight construction... trust me, it's relevant.

For a long time, Apple used edge-lit LCDs. The backlight was a long, thin source (CCFL lamp or a string of LEDs) firing sideways into a diffuser layer. The diffuser spread the light evenly over the 2D plane.

Diffusers scatter light in all directions, so some of it exits the diffuser in the wrong direction, out the back of the display rather than forwards towards the viewer. To improve backlight efficiency, the diffuser is always backed with reflective foil.

This foil layer is where we finally come back to the logo: to light it up, Apple simply punched a hole in the foil behind the logo. The only other change required was to make the logo a translucent plastic insert.

So getting rid of it didn't save them much (if any) thickness. The real reason was that it always caused a dark spot in the middle of the screen. Most people never perceived this, but it had to go when Apple started getting serious about the color accuracy and uniformity of their displays. You can't market on near-pro-grade uniformity if you always have a dark spot screwing up the measurements.

It's even less possible to go back now that they've started using mini LED backlighting. Instead of LEDs firing into the edge of a diffuser layer, there's an array of them firing forwards. There's no good way to let some light escape out the back.

 

[crazy dave]

Losing the glowing logo wasn't about shaving off a millimeter, but to understand why you have to bear with me as I describe LCD backlight construction... trust me, it's relevant.

For a long time, Apple used edge-lit LCDs. The backlight was a long, thin source (CCFL lamp or a string of LEDs) firing sideways into a diffuser layer. The diffuser spread the light evenly over the 2D plane.

Diffusers scatter light in all directions, so some of it exits the diffuser in the wrong direction, out the back of the display rather than forwards towards the viewer. To improve backlight efficiency, the diffuser is always backed with reflective foil.

This foil layer is where we finally come back to the logo: to light it up, Apple simply punched a hole in the foil behind the logo. The only other change required was to make the logo a translucent plastic insert.

So getting rid of it didn't save them much (if any) thickness. The real reason was that it always caused a dark spot in the middle of the screen. Most people never perceived this, but it had to go when Apple started getting serious about the color accuracy and uniformity of their displays. You can't market on near-pro-grade uniformity if you always have a dark spot screwing up the measurements.

It's even less possible to go back now that they've started using mini LED backlighting. Instead of LEDs firing into the edge of a diffuser layer, there's an array of them firing forwards. There's no good way to let some light escape out the back.

I never knew this, cheers!

 

[superiormacintosh]

My guess is Apple decided to let the MBP grow a little bit to accommodate better cooling. The old M1 13" MBP didn't really offer much of an improvement for the cost. I imagine we'll see the Air stretch its wings a a bit more when it gets redesigned.

As for coolness factor, the PowerBook 500 series was pretty awesome back in the day.

I couldn't disagree more.

 

[ian87w]

Losing the glowing logo wasn't about shaving off a millimeter, but to understand why you have to bear with me as I describe LCD backlight construction... trust me, it's relevant.

For a long time, Apple used edge-lit LCDs. The backlight was a long, thin source (CCFL lamp or a string of LEDs) firing sideways into a diffuser layer. The diffuser spread the light evenly over the 2D plane.

Diffusers scatter light in all directions, so some of it exits the diffuser in the wrong direction, out the back of the display rather than forwards towards the viewer. To improve backlight efficiency, the diffuser is always backed with reflective foil.

This foil layer is where we finally come back to the logo: to light it up, Apple simply punched a hole in the foil behind the logo. The only other change required was to make the logo a translucent plastic insert.

So getting rid of it didn't save them much (if any) thickness. The real reason was that it always caused a dark spot in the middle of the screen. Most people never perceived this, but it had to go when Apple started getting serious about the color accuracy and uniformity of their displays. You can't market on near-pro-grade uniformity if you always have a dark spot screwing up the measurements.

It's even less possible to go back now that they've started using mini LED backlighting. Instead of LEDs firing into the edge of a diffuser layer, there's an array of them firing forwards. There's no good way to let some light escape out the back.

Wow, learn something new. Thanks for the explanation.

 

[ian87w]

Personally, I don't really like the Macbook Pro designs, even before Apple Silicon. I prefer the slanted/wedge shaped Macbook Air design. Feels better ergonomic wise since the keyboard is slanted, vs the flat surface of all the Macbook Pros. Even Jobs pointed this out when they announced the unibody Macbook Air.

But seems like we're going back into flat again, from the rumors of the redesigned Macbook Air. From manufacturing perspective, it's easier for designing the internals vs a wedge design. Is it the end of the wedge design? I mean as ergonomic as it is (and the fact that Macbook Air base design is copied by literally every PC OEM), when Apple does something different, everybody else will copy.

 

[CasualFanboy]

I'm 100% with you regarding the interface. For me, Snow Leopard was the summit of Aqua, and a piece of art. It's been pretty much consistently downhill since then. As a matter of fact, I still use Catalina as I am incapable of tolerating the post Big Sur interface — and I only reluctantly upgraded to Catalina in the first place, but thankfully could customize it with Aqua icons, window control buttons, Snow Leopard like dock, coloured Finder sidebar icons, etc.

I'm very concerned for the future. There's no end in sight for the Yosemite-Big Sur madness. I've been a Mac user for 20 years, and I don't know where that leaves me in the foreseeable future...

I use Linux very often for work stuff. My work computer of course came with Windows but I dual boot Linux on it and that's the only thing I use on that computer. It's still really nice to customize that thing, and I do that a lot.

However, sometimes I have to admit, there's just no replacing a good Mac. I thought about ditching it on my last purchase, but ultimately I'm still here, hoping for a trend reversal in the interface at some point...