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MacBook Pro Lineup Set For 'Most Significant Overhaul in Over 4 Years'
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All valid, but if you need to pass files to an app you have to do it Apples way.
Also if I need to take some files somewhere it is a pain getting them on to a drive. Also a pain getting files from a drive.
Why would I use a glorified overpriced tablet when I have an ipad for its apps and can buy a surface pro (or hell Surface 3) which the ipad pro stole its design (not as good btw according to most reviews) and using a FULL FEATURED DESKTOP OS (Not mobile sized blown up into tablet mode) made for touch as well.
The rest of us (350 or so million....and probably at leas a 1/3rd of them have a touchscreen computer) will us touch screen AND trackpads together with an OS made for it and a product that isn't overpriced for what it does.
Nextl
This is like all 90's Apple commentary merged into one! Amazing.
One option is they will get rid of the Air and drop the price of the rMacbook to become the new low end 12" laptop. The new MacBook Pros will then fill the 13" and 15" options. That gives a very minimal selection. I don't know if having only 3 models is broad enough? Perhaps it is.
Why do you think every single product from every single company should be tailored to your needs? Different people have different needs.
You were attacking Apple for ignoring the minority who want touch screens. I was saying that Apple isn't ignoring that minority, they're pushing the iPP as a computer replacement for that crowd.
I agree with you a surface fills that niche better than the iPP, but a surface also fills that nice better than an MBP with touchscreen would.
The MBP is better without a touchscreen. If you want a touchscreen, Apple wants you to buy an iPP, and as you say the surface is a better alternative.
For sure--you do have to get used to using the share sheet or the in-app options for moving files around, but I don't find that to be slower or faster than having a file system. It's just different and takes a few days of getting used to. And I don't keep anything on USB drives because I have all my stuff either in iCloud or Office 365. (Sometimes Dropbox, but only in case someone I'm collaborating with on something insists on using Dropbox.) I do have all the adapters and all that for hooking up other devices, but have never once needed any of them.
Everyone has his/her own workflow, but I feel like "But it doesn't have a file system!" Is kind of a weird thing to hold against iOS. I get it though--using the file system to move stuff around is a paradigm that has been around a long time. Oddly enough, when I was doing all my stuff primarily on a MacBook Pro, I didn't use the file system on that either. I was using Office 365, iCloud Drive, and Dropbox just like I'm doing now on my iPad Pro. To me, the act of moving things around was an arbitrary adjustment to make and feels like second nature now.
Well, just looking at the edges of mine, if they make the body ANY thinner, then HDMI, USB3, and thunderbolt are all going to go. Especially for the first two, their physical dimensions take them right to the edge of the case.
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Where would you put the front-facing camera, then?
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The Retina Macbook Pro came under Tim's watch.
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Rose gold. THBFFT! Call it what it is: PINK!
Ok, thanks for clarifying your statement. A long thin touchscreen that replaces the top row of keys... obviously you are right and I cannot be certain of its intended purpose until/if it is produced. But a best guess is it would serve as an interface of some kind. But why would this be better than always accessible keys to control system-wide functions like screen/keyboard brightness, volume, etc? Sure, the interface could change depending on what program(s) are running... but why would this be better than the existing paradigm? It does not seem advantageous compared with program specific settings controlled on screen using the much more precise interfaces enabled by mouse/touchpad (where presumably one hand would already be). I'm sorry, it just screams gimmick... akin to an entirely touchscreen keyboard for a desktop. Sure, it would look cool but would not be more fit for purpose than a physical keyboard.
Work at ESPN, our Mac Pro's are getting the job quite nicely as all the the super heavy lifting is done on the servers, where they should be done.
If you're talking about indie "pros" then yea, maybe it's not an ideal fit, but most modern companies run on leasing models anyway so they couldn't give a rats ass about upgrade ability. Our workers don't know a processsor from a toaster, they just work.
you missed the entirety of my point because you were looking for an argument i wasn't making.
I didn't say that "pro" is defined by what the user does. A professional can be someone who write novels by hand on pad and paper.
I defined "Pro" by what the hardware's capable off. And defined it by being 1> Expandible, 2> Scalable, 3> Reliable.
the way you describe your useres, they don't need "pro" hardware. They just need terminals. There's nothing wrong with that. But there are many more users out there who are looking for those capabilities in something that claims to be "pro".
if you're just going to base the branding of "pro" based on the end users activities, Then you could thoeretically call the new MacBook a "pro", or the ipad mini a pro, or anything, because again basing "pro" off of just the end user being able to do "work", then there's no distinction. anything and everything can be "pro"
But most of us in the tech world, who have been using computers for 20-30 years. Apple products during those years as well as other products. Putting "Pro" badge on your hardware implies certain things. So Apple calling the Mac Book Pro, or Mac Pro, "Pro" implies it's meant for a lot more than just their standard other products.
Pro does not mean expandable, scalable and reliable. That's just what you made up.
It's a simple marketing term. Pro is used to show its the top of the range. Air is used to show its light. But now somehow a MacBook is lighter than a MacBook Air! So it's clear they are not literal terms.
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The answer is USB-C w/Thunderbolt 3, which can and will handle all the aforementioned "dropped" connectors with a thinner universal.
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I get it... but every time I glance at my F4 key with the Dashboard icon (which I've disabled and is clearly going away soon), which on newer models has been replaced by the Launchpad icon (which I also never use), and the Mission Control icon on F3 which I don't use (I use a hot corner), it does occur to me why this may be useful at least on a fairly simplistic level of being able to customize those for system-wide functions. As far as 3rd party software, we'll see, but as someone who works in design software on a regular basis, I use keyboard shortcuts all the time over on-screen toolbars, etc.
My main point is Apple doesn't generally advance hardware in the name of gimmicks. I think it'll be genuinely useful to some degree...I just think people are maybe overthinking the downsides to something we haven't seen implemented yet. If it ends up being solely for the purpose of an Emoji keyboard for Messages to tie in with all the iOS Messages features and serves no other purpose, then yes I will admit that it's a gimmick.
I also think more importantly that it's setting the groundwork for an eventual shift to all-dynamic keyboard/control surface as shown in multiple Apple patents. That's coming eventually, and what better way to start down that path without messing with the main part of the keyboard?
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The Air is a dead man walking. It's only around for its lower price point until they can bring the MB tech down to that level (remember, the Air debuted at a much higher price than it leveled off at).
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The answer is USB-C w/Thunderbolt 3, which can and will handle all the aforementioned "dropped" connectors with a thinner universal.
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I get it... but every time I glance at my F4 key with the Dashboard icon (which I've disabled and is clearly going away soon), which on newer models has been replaced by the Launchpad icon (which I also never use), and the Mission Control icon on F3 which I don't use (I use a hot corner), it does occur to me why this may be useful at least on a fairly simplistic level of being able to customize those for system-wide functions. As far as 3rd party software, we'll see, but as someone who works in design software on a regular basis, I use keyboard shortcuts all the time over on-screen toolbars, etc.
My main point is Apple doesn't generally advance hardware in the name of gimmicks. I think it'll be genuinely useful to some degree...I just think people are maybe overthinking the downsides to something we haven't seen implemented yet. If it ends up being solely for the purpose of an Emoji keyboard for Messages to tie in with all the iOS Messages features and serves no other purpose, then yes I will admit that it's a gimmick.
I also think more importantly that it's setting the groundwork for an eventual shift to all-dynamic keyboard/control surface as shown in multiple Apple patents. That's coming eventually, and what better way to start down that path without messing with the main part of the keyboard?
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The Air is a dead man walking. It's only around for its lower price point until they can bring the MB tech down to that level (remember, the Air debuted at a much higher price than it leveled off at).
Yes, I also like keyboard shortcuts. Yet they would not be as nice on a flat touchscreen.
Agreed, it looks like Apple is going to EOL the Air. Shame, because it was supposed to be the ultraportable while the MacBook was the consumer version of the Pro. Now I have no idea what line is supposed to be. None of them seem designed for any purpose in mind.
Having the ability to customise labels makes the shortcuts more easily used if operating multiple apps.
The MacBook is the ultraportable now. It's lighter, thinner and smaller than the Airs with a more lightweight power adapter. And with the Retina display the only reason for the Air to exist is price.
The MacBooks purpose is pretty clear. To be as light and portable as possible.
The problem with customizing the virtual keys is two-fold. It goes against Apple's own UI philosophy and a touch strip will lack the tactile sense that physicals offer. I do not deny that perhaps Apple designers have some other purpose for such a feature. However it is still constrained by existing technology and there are few reasonable variations that a narrow touch sensitive strip could have.
I understand that Apple is positioning the MacBook to supplant the Air. However the naming convention no longer makes any sense. The MacBook is now not a general purpose computer for consumers. It is far too compromised... it should have been the new Air. The existing Air is more closely aligned with what a MacBook should be. And the Pro is too out of date and lacks serviceable HD/RAM and weak GPU considering how much the GPU is utilized by the OS and programs. The entire product lineup is confused and confused products confuse buyers.
What general purpose applications can a MacBook not undertake? It works for me everyday using Office Suite, email and web browsing, Photoshop and Indesign. The MacBook is a perfect general purpose computer...though it's a few hundred bucks too expensive imo.
The only thing I need my MacBook Pro for now is Cubase and Logic X. But that is not general purpose software.
I don' t see the problem.
MacBook is for general portable use. For people that really want MacOs, trackpad, keyboard , filemanagement, and some usb connectivity.
iPad Pro is for people that just want Internet, social media, media consumption, light games, etc.
MacBook Pro is for people for which the iPad Pro or MacBook isn' t enough, more usb connections, cup/gpu power, bigger screen, etc.
MacBook is for general portable use. For people that really want MacOs, trackpad, keyboard , filemanagement, and some usb connectivity.
iPad Pro is for people that just want Internet, social media, media consumption, light games, etc.
MacBook Pro is for people for which the iPad Pro or MacBook isn' t enough, more usb connections, cup/gpu power, bigger screen, etc.
Totally makes sense. Every low-cost taiwanese laptop released 15 years ago came with a top row of application-specific programmable function buttons and LED's at the top, so naturally Apple is - as always - anxious to pick up the cue from low-end PC manufacturers and to ride along on their success of anticipating what the end users really want. I believe all of this because I want to.
@SuperHamster whilst I applaud you for holding firm beliefs, please also be aware of 2001 things such as keyboard controls and programmable function keys with the original 15" PowerBook G4.