Gelsinger called Apple a "Lifestyle Company" and was indignant that they'd be competing with Intel. I assume that he was rallying the troops but Apple is a dangerous company. They keep things secret and then they just drop it on you like a load of bricks. I wonder if the M1X is going to have a similar impact when it comes out.
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Kuo: New MacBook Pro Models to Feature Flat-Edged Design, MagSafe, No Touch Bar and More Ports
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Gelsinger called Apple a "Lifestyle Company" and was indignant that they'd be competing with Intel. I assume that he was rallying the troops but Apple is a dangerous company. They keep things secret and then they just drop it on you like a load of bricks. I wonder if the M1X is going to have a similar impact when it comes out.
Exactly. To just plug in one cable from the display to the MBP and everything from charging to data to audio/video is taken care of is perfect. Also to use the same charger with the same cable for MBP and iPad is great.
I do like the good old MagSafe. But I also hope at the same time that it doesn't take away the convenience of the new ports.
Once you know it it becomes quite intuitive to be honest. And I like the fact that it gives you the possibility to select exactly what you want to screenshot.
Old camera? Try any camera. Nobody who carries around a DSLR or whatever is going to carry around a USB-C to micro-USB 3 B cable with them just in case they happen to need to copy photos to somebody else's device, and copying photos over Wi-Fi is typically unusably slow because cameras don't have the extra MIMO antennas to be a real base station (and are usually capped by the speed of the camera hardware at way-slower-than-ac speeds.
Now imagine how those of us who shoot with real cameras feel. I've always loved the Mac platform until these new touchbar Macs came out, but unfortunately, the theft of my camera gear and previous laptop forced me to "upgrade" to one of these things, and now it's all I can do to not try to find another platform. There are times while doing video streaming when the four USB-C ports have just barely been enough, even using multifunction adapters, thanks to the lack of basic functionality like HDMI output for connecting to external monitors/TVs, Ethernet for connecting to the camera network, etc. Two external monitors, either two Ethernet adapters (multiple independent networks) or Ethernet + FireWire adapter (for the more direct connection configuration), power supply, external keyboard and mouse.... It is seriously unpleasant trying to use these current Macs because they are so sorely lacking in hardware resources.
The reason they dropped the SD card slot is, I suspect, that everybody gave up waiting for them to update it, and started using external readers. It was still an old UHS-I reader all the way up until the day they dropped support. That might be fast enough for taking the photos one at a time, but it's ploddingly slow when importing them all at once.
Sadly, not rare. I can get really tiny USB thumb drives that are easy to carry around in a screw-together container on my keychain. USB-C, not so much. The ones I've tried are horrible (major performance problems, with write performance measured in megabytes per minute).
The bigger pain in the backside is hotels. You can often borrow an HDMI cable if you don't have one, and if you forget, you can pick one up locally. But picking up a USB-C-to-HDMI adapter is more problematic.
But for presentations, the story is even worse, because most of the USB-C adapters have problems. The Apple adapters work reasonably well, but a lot of third-party adapters don't support monitors with non-TV resolutions at all. The monitors just don't ever show up.
I think two USB-A ports is probably more reasonable, simply because I've had many occasions where I need two (usually for interfacing with multiple hard drives), and zero occasions where I've needed more than that. But I acknowledge that I'm a rare exception in that regard, and that I can deal with adapters in the cases where I need them.
I mostly agree about the old Thunderbolt cables. I'd much rather Apple update their Thunderbolt-based adapters to use the new port standards. I mean, they switched connectors more than four years ago, and we still don't have an updated version of their FireWire or Ethernet adapter that doesn't require a second adapter. And for those of us dealing with FireWire 400 gear, it's even more fun, because you have a FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 adapter plugged into a FireWire 800 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter, which in turn is plugged into a Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter, which in turn is plugged into the Mac. Even at your desk, this configuration is highly unreliable, because there are just too many connectors, and it is too easy to knock one of them loose.
If I were running their hardware team, I'd task one engineer with updating the FireWire adapter to Thunderbolt 3 and simultaneously reconfiguring its output to provide two FireWire 800 ports and a FireWire 400 port. Other than the cost of the connectors themselves, a three-port dongle shouldn't cost any more to build than the current design does (the current dongle already contains a three-port PHY; they just didn't bother to connect the other two ports), but would be a LOT more user-friendly.
Of course, I'd also task them with updating the Ethernet dongle for 10GBASE-T and Thunderbolt 3. After all, even when USB 4 comes out (which would at least theoretically be able to run 10GBASE-T at full speed), hanging such a fast network adapter off of a USB bus has at least historically been a recipe for performance problems (CPU overhead in particular). Of course, if they're going to put Ethernet back, it probably isn't worth bothering with that one; just make 10GBASE-T an option.
But either way, please, please, please ether upgrade the FireWire dongle or get a competent third party (not Belkin) to do it.
I have a desktop cluster with two macOS systems and a Windows system. It would be nice to hit the same key for screen capture.
Magsafe making a return sounds like common sense making a return. 
HDMI also would seem like a logical choice for a machine you might need to connect to beamers and whatnot.
I trust there's still going to be a need for dongles though. They are not going to include older style USB or SD ports I am sure. How well do these Ethernet adaptors work anyway?
Oh well, while I'm happy to read these rumours which indeed sound like a forum user wishlist I'd totally support at the same time I am 99,99% sure my next laptop will be running Linux instead. These Apple devices have become too much of a closed-off world for my taste. I would wish for 2011-era Apple to return. Pretty please.
HDMI also would seem like a logical choice for a machine you might need to connect to beamers and whatnot.I trust there's still going to be a need for dongles though. They are not going to include older style USB or SD ports I am sure. How well do these Ethernet adaptors work anyway?
Oh well, while I'm happy to read these rumours which indeed sound like a forum user wishlist I'd totally support at the same time I am 99,99% sure my next laptop will be running Linux instead. These Apple devices have become too much of a closed-off world for my taste. I would wish for 2011-era Apple to return. Pretty please.
Magsafe making a return sounds like common sense making a return.
I trust there's still going to be a need for dongles though. They are not going to include older style USB or SD ports I am sure. How well do these Ethernet adaptors work anyway?
Oh well, while I'm happy to read these rumours which indeed sound like a forum user wishlist I'd totally support at the same time I am 99,99% sure my next laptop will be running Linux instead. These Apple devices have become too much of a closed-off world for my taste. I would wish for 2011-era Apple to return. Pretty please.
You need an Ethernet dongle on the 2015s as the Ethernet port is too thick for the 2015s. At the moment, my 2015 has MagSafe, MiniDisplayPort to external monitor, USB-A to monitor with port hub and mouse, keyboard and ethernet connected to the monitor hub. I will sometimes use the HDMI port instead of the MDP for external video depending on which side of the monitor the laptop is on.
I'm aware, yes. I was told these adaptors have an issue where the network doesn't reconnect when you wake the computer from sleep. Is that so?
On some PC laptops I saw half-height network plugs. Apparently you need a special cable or an adaptor that clips onto the regular Ethernet cable to make use of them, sidestepping the need for some network-over-USB solution (or whatever that is).
I have no problems with wake from sleep. The laptop is in clamshell mode in a vertical stand. The laptop is actually controlled using Synergy from a Late 2009 iMac via Ethernet. I just move the mouse from the iMad screen to the MacBook screen and it all just works. The mouse showing up on the MacBook Pro screen implies that the network works as they are not otherwise connected.
I do as well though I could always just buy self-adhesive feet. It's nice to have a little room underneath to make it easier to pick it up off the table.
God. I love the Touch Bar and really want them to release an external keyboard with one, but macrumours (still) regularly loses its **** on the fact wireless keyboards exist. Or there no number pad. There is a post on this very thread complaining that there is no number pad on Apple laptops. If they put a Touch Bar on it then that would be 10 posters creating a 1000+ thread complaining about it.
Just as easy as a print screen button surely. Macs have never had one. If you know macs, you know this. If you come from windows, Google the Mac method. I fail to see the huge issue here. Or create a hot key. Or stay on windows for this *absurd* complaint.
Damn you Apple!! First the iPhone 12, now a MacBook with ports. It's almost as if you have no concern for our wallets!
Jokes aside, gimme, quickly
Jokes aside, gimme, quickly
swingerofbirch
macrumors 68040
Make Macs Computers Again!
As long as we're going out there with implausible wish lists:
1) USB-A
2) SD Card reader
3) HDMI
4) Removable battery
5) Replaceable SSD with industry standard connector
6) 32-bit support for old Intel apps (I did say implausible)
As long as we're going out there with implausible wish lists:
1) USB-A
2) SD Card reader
3) HDMI
4) Removable battery
5) Replaceable SSD with industry standard connector
6) 32-bit support for old Intel apps (I did say implausible)
Sounds like they're finally listening to pro users. The task bar ... I just don't use it and find it more cumbersome than function keys. If I really want this kind of functionality I'd use an iPhone, iPad app or a Stream Deck. Pros want a versatile, reliable and fast machine that allows us to make our own customizations and decisions. Sell that. I'll buy that.
These would totally keep me on board.
But I think you forgot native Windows/Bootcamp support on your list.
Removal of the Touch Bar will be a decadence. People that complains about the Touchbar uses separate keyboards and extra monitors, not even use as a MacBook. If Apple do not have as optional and just remove, will show how bias can be that “researches” and how they are looking for few screamers and forgetting the loyal customers that just want the new tech and not the “attachment” to classic things like Functions Buttons (gasp) and analog headphones ports.
I'm assuming they mean making the corners less round so that they can reduce the (currently huge) screen bezels.
The only way to fix the touch bar is to move it farther away from the keyboard. The false trigger rate is so high that using computers with the Touch Bar in many apps is maddening unless you disable the Touch Bar outright.
If you're going to add touch support to Macs, it should be either in the form of a full touchscreen on the main display or a full touchscreen on the trackpad, with at least minimal force touch support in either case (no haptics needed) so that it can tell the difference between accidentally brushing it and intentionally tapping or whatever, with configurable pressure sensitivity, similar to the current trackpad.
Sure. That's one entirely reasonable way to move it away from the keys that people actually use, thus reducing the false triggering. I would have no objection to that design. Unfortunately, I suspect there might not be enough room for the hinge and inverter board and whatever else they have crammed into the top part of the case if they made the keyboard taller. But I could be wrong.
Actually, that's the problem. From a security perspective, USB-C charging is a disaster because it carries data. Providing a charging-only connector would go a long way towards making the platform more secure. And the number of times I've pulled my current laptop off the bed because of no MagSafe... well, I'm lucky I haven't lost it yet. Let's put it that way.
Dropping MagSafe was inarguably the worst design mistake in Apple's history — even worse than the Touch Bar.
See above for why that would be a terrible idea. There are already magnetic detachable USB-C adapters. They're problematic for the same reason that charging over USB-C is problematic (plus several others, such as an apparent inability to make the magnets strong enough to stay connected).
And this would be an even worse idea. Inductive charging loses 25% of the power. Apple already uses 96W power supplies. If we assume that future pro laptops will have higher-end CPUs and GPUs and will use a similar power budget, this means you would need a 128W power supply, which exceeds the limits of the USB-C specification (20V at 5A, or 100W). And this means your computer could, under heavy use, burn as much as 280 kWh more power (which is over $100 per year in some parts of California).
The old MagSafe design worked reasonably well, and isn't a green energy nightmare. (Though to be fair, MagSafe 1 was decidedly better than MagSafe 2. I hope they will make the magnets a little bit stronger this time to fix that deficiency.)
Also, as an aside, with Apple already basically maxing out USB-C's power delivery capabilities, going back to a MagSafe connector would likely give them flexibility to provide even higher-power power delivery without waiting for the USB-C PD spec to be revised.
I kind of doubt it. That curvature is there for a reason. The arch makes the case more resistant to compression, which (among other things) helps protect the display when someone drops the machine or pulls it off a table with the non-MagSafe USB-C charge cord.
No, but seriously, you can get away with a flat back on something like an iPhone, because the screen is tiny. The larger the screen, the more critical it is to make the case resist compression while people are carrying it. A flat back would likely put the screen under too much stress even in day-to-day use unless they make the shell out of carbon fiber or something.
Ooh. Start the carbon fiber rumors.
Which one? The popular version (B) that's form-factor-compatible with XQD, the not-as-popular version (A) that's form-factor-compatible with SD (and thus might actually fit inside an Apple laptop) or the version that nobody uses because it is too big (C), but offers faster transfer speeds?
CFExpress is a great example of how not to do things. Contrast with SD Express (which runs NVMe and PCI express over SD card contacts, and is entirely backwards-compatible in both directions, albeit only at UHS-I speeds).
AFAIK, there's nothing inherently preventing Apple from saying "You can connect four TB3 displays or three TB3 displays and one HDMI display". I mean, you can add an HDMI controller hanging off a USB-C bus to existing computers, and if a USB-C device isn't in use, there's no reason you can't just shut it off like you can any other USB-C device. And the same would be true for DisplayPort (not that I see a particularly good reason to add that back) unless you tried to also make it a Thunderbolt 2 port.
I mean yes, if they removed existing ports to make room for the HDMI port (why?), then you'd have fewer TB3 displays, but wouldn't be a great idea in general.
Yes, please. There are already crude USB-C to MagSafe cables being manufactured by third parties. (I'm not really sure whether they set the voltage correctly, or whether old MagSafe 1 devices can handle 20V, so I don't trust them, but they exist.) If Apple built one, they could probably make it universal (compatible with both MagSafe 1 and 2), or if not, they could make two slightly different versions of the cable. By doing so, they could massively simplify their power supply lineup, ditching ALL of the MagSafe 1 and MagSafe 2 chargers and replacing them with replaceable cables that attach to any of their USB-C charger bricks.
This would end up being much cheaper for Apple than the current situation, where Apple still makes three different MagSafe power supplies and three different MagSafe 2 power supplies on top of the three USB-C power supplies for their current lineup. They could stop building six different power supplies (or, arguably, 8) if they moved to that design.
Such a design would also eliminate the major problem that the MagSafe and MagSafe 2 power supplies had, where the power supply still worked, but the cable frayed, shorted, and melted, because with a removable cable, you could just replace the cable. It would be cheaper for consumers as well as being cheaper for Apple, and would be better for the environment, too.
Eww. A thousand times, eww. And also, do you know how thick the screen would have to be?
Ironically, if they had put 3D Touch into the Touch Bar, it would actually have been usable, because you wouldn't get false triggering from accidental touches because it is too close to the number row.
On the flip side, other than HDMI, it's probably the second-most-requested port, thanks to 99.99% of thumb drives not working with Macs unless you happen to have an adapter with you.
While true, making it thicker would improve cooling and could allow for a larger battery, which a lot of pros would like. So I wouldn't discount the possibility outright.
We can dream, can't we?
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There’s nothing inherently stopping Apple from shipping a floppy drive either.
In the 2018-2020 Mac mini (the only non-card based hdmi port in a Mac now) hdmi gets a dedicated stream.
I see no reason to believe it would be different on a MacBook Pro designed for the whiners.