What they really shouldn’t do is ship hybrid SSHD drives. Well the fusion drives since they use an external 128GB SSD I believe. They should charge $100 more for the base 5K iMac with a 256GB SSD. I get that since it’s a desktop people obviously want more storage but a HDD ruins what is otherwise a decent machine.
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Popular Mac Developer Slams Apple for 'Sad State of Macintosh Hardware'
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What they really shouldn’t do is ship hybrid SSHD drives. Well the fusion drives since they use an external 128GB SSD I believe. They should charge $100 more for the base 5K iMac with a 256GB SSD. I get that since it’s a desktop people obviously want more storage but a HDD ruins what is otherwise a decent machine.
But do they even want to succeed with their Macs anymore? Financially speaking, they don't need to. And that's what's scaring us.
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They no longer use 128G SSD, I think they use something like 16G (!) only..
Computers are lasting a lot longer and aren’t being bought as much as they were. I’m betting they’re going to shift all macs to a 4-6 year cycle, iPads will be on a 2-3 year cycle and iPhones will continue to be on a 1 year cycle for at least 3-5 years until some kind of innovation wall has been hit, or something different comes along. It’s hard to see the future but it does make sense why the macs haven’t been updated for a while. Be ready to buy because the next update may actually end up being the last.
But you would use a full workstation in those cases. Notebooks have never been as capable as desktops and it will always be this way. A notebook is simply for being productive outside of the home or office. They can do more than ever now but nothing can really replace a desktop.
Despite the lack of updates they're all still good machines, just not great machines like they should be. Apple needs to do many more incremental updates to remain ahead, as technology improves it's competitors eat them up.
The latest developments are in 6 core machines with full on GPUs. Apple has NOTHING to offer here. I do hope despite the lack of profits in the area they stop being obsessed money and make some progress. Their reputation relies upon the MAC and without it, they're only one bad iPhone away from a catastrophic year! If I were Apple, I'd be panicking right now trying to diversify income rev with new MacOS models being a key part. I think it's time for MacOS to become installable on recommended hardware from other manufacturers if they can't keep up with the pace, it's so disappointing to be stuck in a vicious upgrade cycle that is constantly pushing you away from the key product you want all your apple champions to be using!
The latest developments are in 6 core machines with full on GPUs. Apple has NOTHING to offer here. I do hope despite the lack of profits in the area they stop being obsessed money and make some progress. Their reputation relies upon the MAC and without it, they're only one bad iPhone away from a catastrophic year! If I were Apple, I'd be panicking right now trying to diversify income rev with new MacOS models being a key part. I think it's time for MacOS to become installable on recommended hardware from other manufacturers if they can't keep up with the pace, it's so disappointing to be stuck in a vicious upgrade cycle that is constantly pushing you away from the key product you want all your apple champions to be using!
Overreaction. And if the 'Mac' no longer works for you, go buy a Dell and enjoy. Yes, Apple needs to continue to develop Macs, but when you look at what the Mac brings in - no, I don't expect them to make it their first priority anymore. The iMac Pro is a beast. Solid and fast. I switched to an iPad Pro and have left my Laptop at home now for 2 years. I understand that not everyone can make that switch. But honestly, if you do have to buy a PC at some point for whatever reason, that's fine, and you can get something that will work for a year or two for next to nothing. If some point later on you want to - you can buy a Mac again. It's not like once you buy a PC or a Mac you can never buy anything else ever. We have both here. Honestly I haven't booted up my Windows machine in at least 16 or 18 months, and then it was for a game.
Redesigned Mac Mini is coming this fall.
iMac is great now. A redesign comes next year or 2020.
New Mac Pro next year.
MacBook and Pros will get new or better keyboards this fall or next year for sure.
Right this very moment I agree there are issues. But by this fall things will be better and for sure 2019 is a huge year for the Mac.
iMac is great now. A redesign comes next year or 2020.
New Mac Pro next year.
MacBook and Pros will get new or better keyboards this fall or next year for sure.
Right this very moment I agree there are issues. But by this fall things will be better and for sure 2019 is a huge year for the Mac.
I don't like the fact that the article called out Intel. The iMac and MacBooks are still using 7th gen Intel processors. Intel released the 8th gen processors almost year ago. Sure, it might not be leaps and bounds better but it's not Intel's fault. Dell, Lenovo, and even the Surface products have been updated for the 8th gen. Why can't Apple?
What's going wrong at Apple that they can't even turn out a simple processor revision?
What's going wrong at Apple that they can't even turn out a simple processor revision?
Well... Sometimes you need to work on the go. Don't you?
If you consider 42 young, then thanks! I switched from Windows to Apple back when Apple still sold eMacs. I'm familiar with Apple of the 1990s and it's plethora of mediocre Macs. I switched back to Windows 2 years ago when I wasn't about to replace my 2010 Mac mini with 2 year old technology then and pay Apple for the privilege of owning an old computer. That Apple hasn't updated the desktop line in so long should tell you all you need to know about how Apple really feels about it. What doesn't make sense is to continue to pay full retail price for a machine that is now going on 4 years old.
Biggest computer company in the world and they can't get this right. It really is pathetic.
I think you misunderstand Tim’s role at Apple.
He was never intended to be the visionary at the company. That role belongs to Jony Ive and his team of product designers, who determine the user experience the products ought to have. Essentially, they hold all the power in Apple in this regard.
Tim is, and always has been, the operations guy. That’s what he was appointed to do, and that’s what he has done marvellously, considering how much Apple has grown in these few years.
And if the price to be paid for that is the languishing of the Mac line, well, I guess you win some and you lose some.
Debian isn't really meant for that. Mint and Ubuntu (especially with Xfce) would be great, if only the software were there.
Preach, Mr. Carnicelli. Preach. I used to think Apple was only abandoning the pro users, but now tt appears Apple has abandoned everyone but those willing to spend $5,000 for a computer.
And if you want a laptop, be prepared to buy extra ports (hubs), an extra keyboard, a larger screen, an eGPU, an external RAID drive (so you can have some half decent, affordable storage), and an external disc drive.
I wish I was kidding, or using hyperbole. Sadly, however, that's the state of Tim Cook's mobile Mac unit.
And if you want a laptop, be prepared to buy extra ports (hubs), an extra keyboard, a larger screen, an eGPU, an external RAID drive (so you can have some half decent, affordable storage), and an external disc drive.
I wish I was kidding, or using hyperbole. Sadly, however, that's the state of Tim Cook's mobile Mac unit.
This is tech we're talking about, better everything comes along every 3-6 months. Not updating a TINY selection of computers with the latest and greatest is poor judgement. If Apple can't build computers flexible enough to accommodate updates, maybe they shouldn't be making computers anymore. The war chest of cash and talent is going untapped.
If the US customers think that Apple's prices are high... How about the rest of the world? You have CHEAP MacBooks even now, compared to any other part of the world. See German prices for instance.
MacBooks are NOT okay!
For desktops - instantly. Laptops ... (nearly) impossible (unfortunately I lack the skills of Dr. Rodney McKay).
Really? Calendar, contacts, email are all standard (CalDAV, CardDAV, IMAP); they work out of the box on pretty much any machine. I put the URL, username, password in and... viola! ... I have my stuff.
Messaging I don't really use. Terminal I use all the time for system admin stuff and coding (in vim). I use either Prompt on my iPad or Terminal on the desktop machines.
Web browsers are likewise the same. On Linux I don't get Safari.. no biggie. I can have Firefox or Chrome.. Either work.
As for the rest of the setup.. To be honest, everything has just worked for me. It recognizes my network printer/scanner all-in-one, network shares mount, LibreOffice works for docs and spreadsheets, etc.
Absolutely this system would not work for everyone. For me it works just fine and setup has been pretty easy.
Platform-specific applications would obviously be a barrier for some. (That's true with Windows vs. Mac, too.)
Apple is killing the mac line by ignoring it and it every conference without an update it gets more and more intentional.
The only thing keeping me in the iPhone lineup is iMessage on my mac. Without my Mac, i'd get an andriod.
The only thing keeping me in the iPhone lineup is iMessage on my mac. Without my Mac, i'd get an andriod.
The iMac and MacBook Pro will be updated this year, just like every other year for the past decade (with one single exception). The year’s not even halfway over, no need to panic. I’m hopeful the keyboard and touch bar will be improved.
Mac Pro is the biggest hole in the lineup, the new platform coming next year should have been released a year or two ago. Even though market share is low, it’s an important model.
Mini is adequate for its target audience but newer processors and TB3 are overdue. We’ll either get an update, probably including quad core again (or it’ll be canceled) this year or next. It will never be a popular model, even if mini fans had their dream machine. (Because it would be Apple-priced, and users overwhelmingly prefer laptops or iMacs.)
12” MacBook updates will be driven by Intel Y-series CPU availability. Maybe no update this year. Will be the first model to run ARM-based macOS, if Apple chooses to go in that direction.
MacBook Air is sold at a price point and doesn’t need, and will never get, a yearly update. But it’s due to be updated or perhaps replaced with a different platform. MBA could also go ARM at some point.
iMac Pro won’t be updated yearly because Intel won’t be updating Xeon W-series every year. Same with Mac Pro, when it’s released next year. Like macOS, the rumors of the death of Mac hardware have been greatly exaggerated. If Apple wasn’t all-in on the Mac/macOS, they wouldn’t have released the iMac Pro last year or be developing a new Mac Pro platform.
But sure, let’s hear all the concern about Mac hardware, while Apple continues to increase market share against PCs in a shrinking market. Updates will come; of course waiting is really, really hard—especially when updates are imminent.
Mac Pro is the biggest hole in the lineup, the new platform coming next year should have been released a year or two ago. Even though market share is low, it’s an important model.
Mini is adequate for its target audience but newer processors and TB3 are overdue. We’ll either get an update, probably including quad core again (or it’ll be canceled) this year or next. It will never be a popular model, even if mini fans had their dream machine. (Because it would be Apple-priced, and users overwhelmingly prefer laptops or iMacs.)
12” MacBook updates will be driven by Intel Y-series CPU availability. Maybe no update this year. Will be the first model to run ARM-based macOS, if Apple chooses to go in that direction.
MacBook Air is sold at a price point and doesn’t need, and will never get, a yearly update. But it’s due to be updated or perhaps replaced with a different platform. MBA could also go ARM at some point.
iMac Pro won’t be updated yearly because Intel won’t be updating Xeon W-series every year. Same with Mac Pro, when it’s released next year. Like macOS, the rumors of the death of Mac hardware have been greatly exaggerated. If Apple wasn’t all-in on the Mac/macOS, they wouldn’t have released the iMac Pro last year or be developing a new Mac Pro platform.
But sure, let’s hear all the concern about Mac hardware, while Apple continues to increase market share against PCs in a shrinking market. Updates will come; of course waiting is really, really hard—especially when updates are imminent.
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