MacBook Pro Touch Bar's T1 Chip Runs 'Variant' of watchOS, Also Secures Touch ID and FaceTime Camera [Updated]

[powertoold]

You can now feel colors??

No dude, say you're in Safari and want to finger scroll through your tabs, you already know where that is on the Touch Bar.

The Touch Bar will make it more of a joy to use what you already use, and it replaces function keys that aren't used much anyway, so it's a win win for user experience.

It also keeps your smudgey fingers away from the beautiful display. I always am disappointed to see a bunch of finger smudges on my iPad Pro, but I do nothing about it because I'm lazy. I know if I wiped away the smudge, my iPad would look even better.

 

[saxofunk]

This makes me think that an external touch bar is coming to iMac, Mac Mini, and Mac Pro. A touch bar with its own chip authenticating the touch ID could be a step in the peripheral territory. I could also see touch bar placed on the 'chin' of the iMac and Cinema Displays.

I would pay $200-300 for a more robust touch bar enabled Apple keyboard for my iMac 5k to use with Logic Pro as a controller. In combination with an iPad running Logic Remote, this could be pretty awesome for Pro Apps.

 

[Hanzu Lao]

This makes me think that an external touch bar is coming to iMac, Mac Mini, and Mac Pro. A touch bar with its own chip authenticating the touch ID could be a step in the peripheral territory. I could also see touch bar placed on the 'chin' of the iMac and Cinema Displays.

I would pay $200-300 for a more robust touch bar enabled Apple keyboard for my iMac 5k to use with Logic Pro as a controller. In combination with an iPad running Logic Remote, this could be pretty awesome for Pro Apps.

It's going to be on a keyboard.

 

[Rogifan]

I'm sorry but calling this an emoji bar is just a crap attempt at trolling.

 

[akbarali.ch]

It seems like Mac Rumors has been infested with trolls who only cry on and on about every little detail that they think sucks. I can't even read through here anymore to find any interesting posts talking about new features. If you don't like what Apple is doing then goodbye, go get a "faster better equipped", cheaper windows computer and enjoy that experience. It's really got to be mostly trolls, forums are horrible now.

Very nice reply. I don't understand why people keep doing this. If one thinks there's a better option elsewhere, then go for it. Why bother yourself everyone else.

I'm a mac user using iMac, and i think TouchBar is nice thought. Often i use photoshop and Autodesk Maya both are heavily reliant on function keys. If there are options to convert toucher to function keys for these apps, OR custom MEL and Python scripts in Maya or Photoshop, with custom icons, it would be God send, God, i'm going nuts over the possibilities. BUT SADLY, its not coming to Apple Keyboard, so i'm kind a jealous.

 

[BootsWalking]

Then the touch bar would have no purpose if it's on the display. Why do we have to raise our hand/arm to reach for those commands. That's uncomfortable.

Right, that was the crux of my argument - having a touchscreen instead of just a thin strip on the keyboard.

 

[jml1982]

Yeah, I can't believe I am more excited for Microsoft surfaces new line than I am about this. I'm sure Microsoft will have issues with firmware etc, like it did back in the day when I used it, but man, there system is starting to look beautiful, and that desktop, yes expensive, but stunning, and the functionality seems impressive!

 

[KALLT]

I want to know whether the Secure Enclave is or can be used for FileVault encryption.

 

[Thunderhawks]

Here's a con, the new laptops are expensive as ****, have **** hardware, and a little screen above the keyboard doesn't justify that.

Another con, just relating to this touch bar:

MBP is closed when hooked up to a monitor, so touch bar cannot be seen.

 

[Kaibelf]

Is it just me, or is the Touch ID not a huge selling point on this new MBP? Other Macs get Apple Pay without this feature by using an iPhone, which most mac users will have - so what is the big deal here?

Other than user switching, I guess.

Using it instead of a password to log in for all the Mac users who don't have an Apple Watch.

 

[jml1982]

I guess Apple wants to be a cellphone and smartwatch maker...

I'm more excited by Microsoft new stuff like the Surface Studio... that's a sign that something is really wrong with how Apple is managing the Mac.

Sadly, I couldn't agree more.

 

[cube]

Touch
Time
varianT

What happens when they run out of letters?

 

[jerry16]

Using it instead of a password to log in for all the Mac users who don't have an Apple Watch.

Fair enough. I have an Apple Watch and hadn't considered it!

 

[TMRJIJ]

I'm sorry but calling this an emoji bar is just a crap attempt at trolling.

Agreed. It also shows their low maturity.

 

[avanpelt]

Looking back at the demo of the Touch Bar yesterday, I have a hard time believing that many graphic artists are going to use the Touch Bar very often.

I can't think of a single graphic artist I've ever met who uses a touchpad on a laptop to do their work, as the lady on stage did yesterday. Most of them use a mouse and a few use a Wacom tablet with a stylus. To me, the graphic artist is not the target for the Touch Bar. It seems to me that using the Touch Bar would impede the natural workflow for a graphic artist because they have to look down at the smooth glass strip above the keyboard and take their eyes completely away from the screen.

Also, as far as making image adjustments and selecting tools to use, it seems to me that the mouse is also preferred for those things, as well. I can make very precise adjustments with a cursor as opposed to making those same adjustments on a smooth glass strip. That Touch Bar is probably going to give rise to a new Photoshop phenomenon: fat fingering filters.

 

[lincolntran]

Microsoft surface studio has a full screen touch bar. It runs "Variant of Windows 10" on Intel's i7 chip.

Nope. It's an attempt at being a touch screen. Most actions on that screen are still relying on mouse and keyboard. The majority of controls are still tiny and mouse oriented.

 

[powertoold]

Yeah, I can't believe I am more excited for Microsoft surfaces new line than I am about this. I'm sure Microsoft will have issues with firmware etc, like it did back in the day when I used it, but man, there system is starting to look beautiful, and that desktop, yes expensive, but stunning, and the functionality seems impressive!

No doubt, I love the way the Surface Studio looks, but when I look into why I like it, I find that the appeal is mostly in the screen size. Otherwise, it's basically a non-upgradeable AIO with a large touch screen. If the screen were like 15", I doubt anyone would be amazed by it.

The puck looks cool in the videos, but who is going to do rainbow colored lines? lol

 

[2457282]

I think Apple is being a bit over cautious with this. By this I mean that the article seems to intuit that this could be the beginning of the merging of iOS and macOS. I understand that Apple wants to make sure they deliver a great experience and do things right as compared to the mess that was Windows when they tried to blend desktop and tablet. Still I do believe that Apple is going a bit too slow.

Unless they are focusing on beefing up the ipad even further to reach what currently is only true in Tim's imagination - that the ipad is a laptop replacement.

 

[dumastudetto]

Over 90% of yesterday's comments were negative about the new MacBook Pros. Do you really think all those posters were trolls? Pethaps you're the one who should leave the forums if you can't handle objective discussion about the merits or lack thereof of an Apple product.

Some of the critics were even moderators of this site. I hope he isn't accusing the wonderful site staff on here of trolling us too?

 

[jmgregory1]

I don't know why Schiller doesn't just dump on how bad the real world use of touch-screens on laptops / desktops? MS championing this input and people supporting them by saying it gives you another input method (one that we've become used to), just doesn't take into account that physically, it's just a bad way to interact with a vertical computer screen.

Needing to hold your hands up to the screen, while attempting to maintain fine motor control over what is often very small on-screen elements, is something that is certainly not conducive to long work sessions, unless you're ok with the workout and fatigue this type of input causes.

Sure, the new MS Surface "drafting table screen computer" addresses part of the issue, but then will be the cause of a different kind of fatigue when people are bent over the screen for long periods of time.

My guess is that the best solution will be a computer where the keyboard is just another screen, that can be keys for typing, a drawing pad, or any other customizable input method, so that your hands can do what is natural - working on the flat horizontal plane in front of you, while your head and eyes stay upright and focused on a vertical screen.

Once Apple, or another manufacturer, gets a bit further with Force Touch to fool us into feeling like typing on a glass screen is more like a typical keyboard, this will likely be where things will go.

 

[wilhelmer]

I find it very interesting that from an engineering perspective, Apple devices like the MacBook Pro or the Watch are still absolutely marvelous. Also, the marketing for these devices is still almost perfect. What's missing is the perspective that goes beyond these two – call it the cultural, philosophical, or humanistic perspective. A perspective that Steve definitely had.

 

[recoil80]

Is it just me, or is the Touch ID not a huge selling point on this new MBP? Other Macs get Apple Pay without this feature by using an iPhone, which most mac users will have - so what is the big deal here?

Other than user switching, I guess.

If you own an Apple Watch you can already unlock the Mac without entering a password, and as you stated correctly Apple pay can already be used today with an iPhone.
Fast user switch is a nice feature and I'd love to have it on the iPad as well, but I agree on the fact that touchID is not a key feature of the new Macs

 

[zzLZHzz]

Is it just me, or is the Touch ID not a huge selling point on this new MBP? Other Macs get Apple Pay without this feature by using an iPhone, which most mac users will have - so what is the big deal here?

Other than user switching, I guess.

it helps in user login too. currently apple doesn't support user login via the iphone. I had to use MacID to do it.

but i guess it is not the most critical feature.

 

[gaximus]

LOL at Phil saying a touchscreen wouldn't be "particularly useful". Completely contradicts Apple's claim that the iPad Pro is a viable alternative to a notebook.

And if usefulness is the criterion for what gets included in a product then how did the touchbar slip through?

At first I thought the Touch Bar was a bit gimmicky, but after some thought, its pretty genius. Its a great solution to touch screen on a computer. Touch screens suck, most people forget they have them, you get fingerprints all over your screen, and the screen shakes and bounces with each tap.

The Touch Bar can put everything that you might need to tap on screen directly in front of you without even having to move your hands from the keyboard.

 

[Casiotone]

It seems like Mac Rumors has been infested with trolls who only cry on and on about every little detail that they think sucks. I can't even read through here anymore to find any interesting posts talking about new features. If you don't like what Apple is doing then goodbye, go get a "faster better equipped", cheaper windows computer and enjoy that experience. It's really got to be mostly trolls, forums are horrible now.

Unfortunately for us, trolls increase the activity on forums, and thus the advertising revenues.

When AppleInsider decided to get more strict and got rid of some notorious trolls (one or more of them ended up trolling here instead), the number of comments on articles decreased drastically.