Who wants to carry all that extra weight around?
The 11" MBA weighs almost 20% more than the 12" MB.
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John Gruber: Apple Invented USB Type C
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Who wants to carry all that extra weight around?
The 11" MBA weighs almost 20% more than the 12" MB.
I was actually replying to the far more snarky comment that you made.
You see, my comment made a point. Yours said 'rolleyes'.
Maybe grow up a little bit and argue a proper point instead of ill thought out, one sentence digs at people.
Once you get beyond a certain threshold, even huge changes made will become nigh unnoticeable. 2.4 pounds isn't substantially heavier than 2 pounds when it's being carried in a bag slung across your shoulder.
Just going to leave this here in case no one actually watched the keynote... John Gruber who?
"The technology behind this is a brand new standard called USB-C, and Apple along with a number of other companies have all worked together to create this new industry standard. And you're going to see it appear in more products. But first you see it here, on the new Macbook." - Phil Schiller.
"The technology behind this is a brand new standard called USB-C, and Apple along with a number of other companies have all worked together to create this new industry standard. And you're going to see it appear in more products. But first you see it here, on the new Macbook." - Phil Schiller.
This is true, to an extent, but there are two things regarding the 12" MB. First, with this design, you get more screen real estate than even the 13" Air, which weighs a full pound more, while occupying a significantly larger footprint.
Second, you really do have to think of the new MacBook as an iPad design brought to the laptop. Every little bit of space matters. The same for weight. This is intended to be a functional laptop stripped down to the bare minimum. Imagine how much the iPad design would be limited if they insisted on keeping a full-sized USB port on it. Let alone two.
Apple already has other computers that are fairly lightweight if you need or want a larger screen or more ports built in. I realize that people are frustrated that the existing Air lineup didn't get a screen update, but it seems fairly likely that Apple will update the rest of their laptop lineup in the not-to-distant future in a way that will clear up their overall strategy.
For now, if you want super-portable, buy the 12" MB and accept that you may need to keep a lightweight adapter in your bag. It's really not that big of a deal - it's similar to carrying around a usb stick! Also, because the charger should be considerably larger than those used by the Air, the overall weight loss should be at least half a pound. If you need something more powerful, get the 13" rMBP which is considerably smaller in overall footprint than the 13" Air, yet 'only' 1/2lb heavier.
I do, and I'm not complaining. I think the new MB is pretty decent. That said, I think with its arrival, we've now reached the point with laptops where any gains made to size and weight won't be worth the sacrifices to get there.
For example, in 3-4 years, it'll likely be possible to make a new Macbook about the size and weight an iPad Air 2, with the power of a current gen 13" MBA. But you wouldn't be able to do it without making huge sacrifices to the one major reason to get a Macbook over an iPad: the keyboard and trackpad. If you have to get rid of those just to shave off a few extra millimeters, why bother making a laptop at all?
Oh, believe me, as a keyboard geek, I know! It will be interesting to see how this new MacBook keyboard feels. And where they go from here in terms of the continued development of the laptop.
That is no longer true. Modern batteries have a useful life-expectancy of something like 3,000 charges before they lose significant charge-holding capacity. That is over eight years of daily cycling and is longer than most people will keep their laptops. You don't hear people clamor ins that their iPad batteries need replacing and that is exactly how most iPads are used.
From what I've read, it's pretty good. But I can't imagine how they could make it any smaller without killing key travel.
I wouldn't call myself a keyboard geek exactly, but I do like my clickiness. I wouldn't want to see Apple throw in something like those old membrane keyboards just for the sake of making their laptops a little thinner.
Well, the good news is that membranes don't seem to provide the ability to go particularly thinner than a scissor switch (the type cover for the Surface Pro uses scissor switches with ~1mm of travel). The limiting factor seems to be that key travel, and the feedback that the keys give. The fact that they were able to increase the key size looks like it might be a good thing, now I just want to try out what kind of feedback there is.
Sorry if this has been mentioned before, but John Gruber has responded to all the reporting of his USB-C comment here. He writes:
My comments on The Talk Show about Apples role in the creation of USB-C were somewhat hyperbolic. It was a brief aside. I certainly didnt mean to imply that no other companies contributed to the final spec. Only that from what Ive been told, Apple ought to be getting (and taking) credit as the leading company behind USB-Cs innovations. Not that they invented it, but that they basically invented it. I completely stand by that. But there are a lot of politics involved. One reason Apple isnt taking more public credit for their role: they truly want USB-C to see widespread adoption; a perception that its an Apple technology might slow that down.
Ill also point out that USB-C is a very Apple-like design. It is reversible and thin; because it can handle power, high-speed data transfer, and video, it (obviously, given the new MacBook) allows for a significant reduction in ports on a laptop. Every aspect of USB-C fits Apples design goals. You cant say that about any previous USB port.
Ill also point out that USB-C is a very Apple-like design. It is reversible and thin; because it can handle power, high-speed data transfer, and video, it (obviously, given the new MacBook) allows for a significant reduction in ports on a laptop. Every aspect of USB-C fits Apples design goals. You cant say that about any previous USB port.
I agree. You won't feel that weight difference, especially slung over your shoulder. I just don't want to see these laptops or other devices get so thin and svelt that their usability is compromised. That would defeat the purpose of the device in the first place.
By membrane keyboards, I'm talking about what you used to see on old computers back in the early '80's, such as the Atari 400 or ZX Spectrum. The modern equivalent of that would be a razor thin capacitance keyboard. You'd have the layout and basic functionality of a regular keyboard, sans haptic feedback. It's biggest advantage would merely be its thinness.
If Apple were to go that route to make a super thin Macbook, I wouldn't see many compelling reasons to get one over a PC tablet, a'la the Surface Pro 3. There's only so much you can do before you negate the advantages of the traditional laptop form factor.
True, thanks to MagSafe I always forget the charger is attached
Thanks to MagSafe my battery's always on red because it's never attached when I think it is.
Apple Engineer Interview
In case any of you have not yet watched it, here is the Apple Engineer Interview for USB-C.
In case any of you have not yet watched it, here is the Apple Engineer Interview for USB-C.
This Fireball character just stated that the need for an Apple Watch to tether to an Iphone is almost the same thing as an early Iphone and its need to sync with a Macbook for music and contacts.
This guy needs to read a dictionary.
http://daringfireball.net/linked/2015/03/13/economist-apple-watch
This guy needs to read a dictionary.
http://daringfireball.net/linked/2015/03/13/economist-apple-watch
so its gone from "apples invention" to the others fetched coffee and donuts.
the guy should know when there is absolutely nothing to be gained by releasing info that cant be verified.
this is an embarrassing even for him.
even though you needed to sync with a cable you could still create events and contacts on the phone. this however was solved with a software update ios3 (unless im misremembering). isnt the limitation with the watch because of hardware?
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I suppose they might find a way to add haptic feedback to keys with *no* movement and maintain a decent feel. Theyd have to make the haptic mechanism thinner than the movement it replaces.
Hmmm. So people trip over their MagSafe cable saving their laptop, but never seem to trip over a USB, DVI, FireWire, Thunderbolt.....hmmm. Quite a mystery.
Thank you! What Apple says, versus what people say or think Apple says, are sometimes totally different lol.
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The magsafe cable is pretty long. I've yanked my cable more than a few times. That cable is much longer than standard USB or DVI. The firewire cables I've owned weren't very long either. Never owned thunderbolt.
It's in the sense that, like the iPod and original iPhone, the Watch isn't a standalone connected client. They get their music, apps, and all kinds of other resources not from the source but though another device.
The Watch is tethered to a greater degree than the iPhone was but the teather is wireless, automatic, and available almost all he time.
The teather isn't ideal, but isn't anything close to a fatal flaw in the Apple Watch. It's on par with the water resistance: it's an issue in a few specific situations. The battery life seems like a bigger issue, where I think you want it to be more like 30 hours in medium-to-heavy usage. (18 hours is fine for most days, but if your Watch is letting you down 3-4 times a months, that's a lot. We all have our "whirlwind" days whether it's travel or social or parenting.)
Hahaha... the extreme fan boys are always fun to read. The Windows fan boy (can't recall his name) is sometimes very entertaining also.