Only an extreme level wally would think the escape key and function keys aren't on the Touch Bar. Not only are they there but you can configure it to be exactly the same as before.
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notebook review up.."Apple MacBook Pro Review (2016): Touch of Class and Not Much Else"
- Thread starter magbarn
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Only an extreme level wally would think the escape key and function keys aren't on the Touch Bar. Not only are they there but you can configure it to be exactly the same as before.
There is if you fling it over to windows. Thats my point. Adobe never optimized ever for OSX. They tried for a hot second with CUDA on windows.
I know this but people can not seem to understand Nvidia was a power hungry grab right now for laptops.
I bet you these people used boot camp and used the CUDA drivers for windows. To get a marginal boost.
How about actually reading what I wrote instead of a personal attack based on your comprehension skills ?
There is ZERO support for CUDA in Mercury on either platform. My desktop workstation is a custom built Windows machine with over clocked Skylake and Pascal hardware.
I'm also the main guy on the Mac Pro forum who has been testing the whole of Creative Suite on macOS and Windows. I have benched and tested the hell out of these apps using Nvidia cards and different APIs for Media Encoder rendering. Results were:
CUDA and OpenCL based rendering in Media Encoder are basically the same.
When it came to CPU only rendering, yes Media Encoder is noticeably faster on Windows/Bootcamp. But that depends which codec is chosen for video. If you work with ProRes, that's basically dead now on Windows.
FCP outrenders Media Encoder (on any platform) and is purely OpenCL based so Mac users aren't missing much. DaVinci Resolve works well too and can output direct to FCP.
How about reading what I actually wrote instead of a personal attack based on your lack of comprehension skills?
Nice. Yeah I do not know what the deal is with people angry about AMD.
I have found the card to be perfectly ok for my needs though they are not video or audio.
I could live with out the card I am sure.
We both agree something must be done about the UI LAG that is OSX. What gives apple. The hardware is not the one causing the vomiting of slowness in your draw request you are.
But that is another thread and another day.
Thanks for the battle info. I seem to run into these CUDA people all over.
I think the only short comings for the Mac for me are the lack of battery life due to the shrunk battery and the fact that they refuse to put 3 ports on the junior 13.
Sierra is new. Give it some updates. People forget all early macOS systems need updates before it feels mature.
But in general I do feel Mavericks was apple's last decent OS. I was using it today on someone's 2011 MBP and it is faster than Sierra on a new computer. I hope to see Sierra tighten up by 10.12.5
I actually use the function keys in macros, so having the physical button there is a win , in my case . Having to look at the TB is not efficient , with a physical button you know where it is and can keep your eyes on the screen at all times.
It's like having a touch screen keyboard, counter productive in my opinion
I agree. I would go so far as to say snow leopard was my last great feel OS. The OS was fluid and stable as bed rock.
How things have changed. Why must we go through these cycles with so little change feature set wise. They really do need to just go ok this year folks zero new feature 100% bug fix. They used to do that. The time before the platform was just a after thought la grand sigh
I think they should have stayed with Mavericks longer and just keep updating the drivers and APIs (which includes support for new hardware features). Apple's habit of trying to create a new OS every year or two doesn't have advantages if they don't run smooth as they should.
In a light, portable laptop that will also give you a full day of battery life? Where? Stuff that performs similar or better than the MBP also costs the same.
Really? I don't mind mine, but I've already forgotten the dongle(s) at home at several occasions and it's a tad embarrassing when I need to present shots to the customers and I can't use the card reader. It's an ok laptop with a great screen, that's about it. It's not noticeably faster than the previous model, and it's noticeably slower than last year's 5K iMac. I still like it, but I believe I could have gone with a Surface Book instead and probably would have gotten more bang for the buck.
The problem with the minority of haters is that they rarely articulate how their specific needs are impacted by some deficiency in the new models.
As a writer and photographer, I can see ways to make the system a bit better, but overall I can't find any design issues that actually have a negative impact on what I do for a living.
So I just don't see the haters with much in way of ANY valid view warranting respect.
Fellow doing heavy 4K video could make use of 32 GB memory on a Mac? VALID COMPLAINT
Fellow didn't like the keyboard after using it briefly? STUPID COMPLAINT
Fellow would like faster processor for 3D rendering and texturing? VALID COMPLAINT
Fellow wants legacy ports put back on MBP? RIDICULOUS COMPLAINT
MOST people don't need 8GB and won't need it 4 years from now. Beyond a few oddballs, the keyboard is BETTER period. These new units are faster. The port situation is a NON ISSUE. I have everything connected and USB-C is EASIER and more versatile.
Got a REAL issue with the MBP? I'm all ears and some people really have valid complaints...but we don't hear many here!
Robert
As a writer and photographer, I can see ways to make the system a bit better, but overall I can't find any design issues that actually have a negative impact on what I do for a living.
So I just don't see the haters with much in way of ANY valid view warranting respect.
Fellow doing heavy 4K video could make use of 32 GB memory on a Mac? VALID COMPLAINT
Fellow didn't like the keyboard after using it briefly? STUPID COMPLAINT
Fellow would like faster processor for 3D rendering and texturing? VALID COMPLAINT
Fellow wants legacy ports put back on MBP? RIDICULOUS COMPLAINT
MOST people don't need 8GB and won't need it 4 years from now. Beyond a few oddballs, the keyboard is BETTER period. These new units are faster. The port situation is a NON ISSUE. I have everything connected and USB-C is EASIER and more versatile.
Got a REAL issue with the MBP? I'm all ears and some people really have valid complaints...but we don't hear many here!
Robert
It must be a great feeling to know that your opinions accurately reflect those of the entire world.
And yours do? Smartass comments like this is what wears on people like me. @CaptRB explained his first person experience and haters come back with these kind of baseless comments. It gets annoying and this is the result. I've read legitimate complaints about how this new MBP negatively affects certain people. That is valid. People try to help the issues or suggest returning if it's not the right machine. No one should pay this much for something that doesn't meet their needs. Making baseless comments with no first hand experience, repeatedly, is trolling if I've ever seen it.
Exactly. Very well said!
Tell us how the MacBook actually has a negative impact on your workflow and you've got something to talk about.
I was worried about the keyboard because of what I read. No need to worry, because it's fine and the responses from most owners prove it's an UPGRADE.
I was worried about the processing power. No need to worry. At this very moment I'm streaming 4K video, while typing this and I have Lightroom open with 8 or 9 massive files in progress. This thing is quick and this is the 8GB 13" touchbar. The 15" is even faster!
I was worried about the ports because of what I read. No need to worry, because everything works flawlessly and it turned out to be a lot of noise over nothing. Printers are wireless, so no USB adapter needed there. I put a 5 dollar adapter on my 1TB external drive and my new Dell 4K 27" monitor is awesome (DP to USB-C).
I was worried about no MagSafe power connection because of what I read. No need to worry because the USB-C connector works better. The Magsafe sometimes wouldn't be charging if it got nudged and it was always on the wrong side of the notebook! USB-C can use right or left side AND you can charge from a power bank!
Man, if you have a 2015 MBP, you have a nice machine, but you're lying to yourself if you claim these new machines aren't better across the board.
R.
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Yeah! What he said!
Let's stick to the "I used the keyboard for 3 minutes at the Apple Store and it broke my wrist!" and the ever popular "I have 20 grand invested in external USB thumb drives, but I can't buy a 5 dollar adapter!" and the not to be missed "I'm running Notes and iTunes and I need quad core i7 and 128 GB of RAM or I can't live!
Just the facts!
R.
It used to belong here sadly.
I would be more than happy to have 32 gigs of ram in my laptop. I think every one would be. The issue is the hardware is just not mature yet. That day will come soon. I do no think apple was shirking it.
They shed battery to save weight and that is already pushing the envelope. I could disable the touch bar and still be at a lower avg usage time than before and that is all due to a lower power state and that most applications are using just enough power to keep the CPU above the throttle point. If the machine does not throttle down then the cpu is still vacuuming up power just like before. So we need a second hit of that frequency grouping we got a few years ago.
Yep just checked dell has ddr4 in the XPS 15 and whats that only 8 gigs of ram now. I can not find a way for dell to sell me more than 8 gigs of DDR4.
So ddr4 is in the infancy.
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You are preaching to the choir. If I wasn't clear, I understand the tradeoffs that were made, and all things being considered, I'm more than fine with it. I've never had more than 8gb of RAM myself until this year. I have not felt RAM pressure since I had 4gb with my old MBP before upgrading to 8gb. It used to be a huge deal with just doing big Excel calcs back in the day, but it looks like we've come to a point where cpu, RAM usage, and prices have come to a pretty stable place. I don't think hardware/price limitations affect most of us too much anymore. Of course, there are the vocal fringe that actually "needs" more than 16gb in a laptop. But in reality that's not most of us.It used to belong here sadly.
I would be more than happy to have 32 gigs of ram in my laptop. I think every one would be. The issue is the hardware is just not mature yet. That day will come soon. I do no think apple was shirking it.
They shed battery to save weight and that is already pushing the envelope. I could disable the touch bar and still be at a lower avg usage time than before and that is all due to a lower power state and that most applications are using just enough power to keep the CPU above the throttle point. If the machine does not throttle down then the cpu is still vacuuming up power just like before. So we need a second hit of that frequency grouping we got a few years ago.
I know but the fact I can not easily find an alternative that these machines are being compared to. I just can not drudge up the machines to trot out with all this ram and battery life with the i7 chips. I just can not find them with such ease the apparently every one on Mac rumors can.
I need about 12 gigs of ram. I need just a tiny bit more to be at no page outs.
I'm not a "hater" by any means. I've been doing motion graphics professionally for almost 18 years and have had most iterations of Apple pro laptops along the way. For years my Powerbooks and MacBook Pros were nicer than anything anyone else offered. I was capturing video via firewire on my Powerbook "Pismo" when PC desktops didn't even have that ability.
Anyway, I used past projects to benchmark a decked out 15" 2016 up against a 2012 MBP, a 2013 Mac Pro, a hot-rodded 2009 Mac Pro, and an HP z820 (although my main concern was advantages over my 2012).
In After Effects, I saw a modest improvement; as little as 5% and as much as 16%. Media Encoder was about the same. Cinema 4D was 17% slower than my 2012 on average. Those benchmarks along with instability, lack of a keyboard that I could use well without looking at, requiring 3 dongles for day-to-day work where my 2012 needed none, and never getting more than 2 hours out of my battery, I just couldn't personally justify the need for this computer. The Apple Store was awesome about the return of the computer and all the dongles, coming in at $5,100.
It simply wasn't a computer I felt like I needed for my motion design work or the college classes I teach. Not hating. Maybe next time!
Anyway, I used past projects to benchmark a decked out 15" 2016 up against a 2012 MBP, a 2013 Mac Pro, a hot-rodded 2009 Mac Pro, and an HP z820 (although my main concern was advantages over my 2012).
In After Effects, I saw a modest improvement; as little as 5% and as much as 16%. Media Encoder was about the same. Cinema 4D was 17% slower than my 2012 on average. Those benchmarks along with instability, lack of a keyboard that I could use well without looking at, requiring 3 dongles for day-to-day work where my 2012 needed none, and never getting more than 2 hours out of my battery, I just couldn't personally justify the need for this computer. The Apple Store was awesome about the return of the computer and all the dongles, coming in at $5,100.
It simply wasn't a computer I felt like I needed for my motion design work or the college classes I teach. Not hating. Maybe next time!
I think you have hit the issue square. The processor advancement has hit a very hard wall. The dongles would go away over time. The keyboard is a kinda love it or hate it I get that. But if your expecting huge CPU gains your out of luck. The cpu has not gained much in terms of raw compute power in a several years. The finding of about 20% is right on the money with what this machine brings to the table over the old machine. This new machine does that same compute more efficiently but we are talking modestly. The same said 20%. This is all in relates to the battery life as well. They banked on you using it on battery with more CPU rest time than before. The frequency clustering is not working like I would have hopped to bring in the battery life we were lead to believe was achievable.
I get about 8 hours of use with email and web. I think that is still off the mark. I just can not find a good alternative since I like the keyboard.
I can either go smaller with the 13 or I can just suck it up and hope for the best.
I am not going back to the chicklet keys. They conversion for me is complete.
I didn't personally like the keyboard at all. I really couldn't differentiate the arrow keys much better than the function keys on the Touch Bar. There were several times where I was hitting Cmd-RightArrow to go frame by frame down the timeline in After Effects. When it wasn't responding I would look down to find I was "clicking" on the body of the computer rather than the right arrow key. Without looking I couldn't tell the difference with the incredibly close spacing of the keys.
I also switch to a desktop with the full-sized Apple keyboard frequently which I believe also hindered my transition to the 2016 keyboard over 2 weeks, even at 8+ hours a day. I just really struggled and made SO many mistakes and even sent a few incomplete emails somehow. I've got chiclets engrained in my brain!
But I'm glad others are getting good use out of it. I think individual tasks and workflow are the big deciders here.
I also switch to a desktop with the full-sized Apple keyboard frequently which I believe also hindered my transition to the 2016 keyboard over 2 weeks, even at 8+ hours a day. I just really struggled and made SO many mistakes and even sent a few incomplete emails somehow. I've got chiclets engrained in my brain!
But I'm glad others are getting good use out of it. I think individual tasks and workflow are the big deciders here.
Unlike Apple Dell doesn't foolishly solder in their memory on their xps 15It used to belong here sadly.
I would be more than happy to have 32 gigs of ram in my laptop. I think every one would be. The issue is the hardware is just not mature yet. That day will come soon. I do no think apple was shirking it.
They shed battery to save weight and that is already pushing the envelope. I could disable the touch bar and still be at a lower avg usage time than before and that is all due to a lower power state and that most applications are using just enough power to keep the CPU above the throttle point. If the machine does not throttle down then the cpu is still vacuuming up power just like before. So we need a second hit of that frequency grouping we got a few years ago.
Yep just checked dell has ddr4 in the XPS 15 and whats that only 8 gigs of ram now. I can not find a way for dell to sell me more than 8 gigs of DDR4.
So ddr4 is in the infancy.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820236067
Works perfectly fine on the xps 15 for less than greedy Apple charges to upgrade a rmbp 13 to 16 gb!
So you don't use the ESC key either?
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This want always true. Was a time when the MBP was considered one of the best laptops to use for Windows.
Sadly, those times have long since past.