I will never understand this complaint. It is such a modest workflow change and is so much smarter than a touch screen, which is annoying beyond belief to me for multiple reasons e.g. finger prints on my screen, making the much more cumbersome move from the keyboard to the screen then back down again. A Touch Bar is a demonstrably simpler, more efficient move as your hands are already on the keyboard.
And calling this a step backward is absurd. You've taken a static physical key set - which, from what I've read, you can still set the Touch Bar up to be if you like - and given it dynamic functionality. You don't have to like it, but conceptually it is a logical step forward not backwards. It is undeniably a richer experience.
The only question I have about this is the actual implementation from Apple. I am hoping they allow you to turn off or blunt certain functions (e.g. emojis, which I could care less about and I agree compromise the "Pro" image from a marketing standpoint). If Apple over-anticipates and pushes things on me, I won't care for that. But even then, theoretically one can just ignore it the same way you do the physical function keys now.
Overall, I think this is a smart move by Apple. It acknowledges the desire for the dynamic touch experience we are all now use to and enjoy, while maintaining respect for the real differences between using a touch device and a traditional computer.
