Professional Mac Users' Complaints List Grows After 'Disappointing' Apple Event

[duffman9000]

I think the developers just don't want to face reality. This has been ongoing for years now. The proof has been evident for years now, but y'all just don't to accept it. Apple doesn't cater to professionals anymore. Apple cares much more about non-power users and prosumers. Just look at the Mac. Who does that cater to? Not the people who need as much CPU and RAM as possible.

 

[tallscot]

I really have no clue why they haven't sold off their pro line of software and axed the "pro" hardware. Their support for the pros is horrible. How is it we see Microsoft getting the adulations from the creative community after their announcement and Apple is getting panned? Wow.

Here I am with a 2013 Mac Pro that cost me $6K and it's slower than the latest $2K iMac and there is nothing I can do about it, except buy the $2K iMac.

Apple announced a partnership with LG and a 5K monitor that requires Thunderbolt 3. They update their editing app to support wide color gamut. And they announce the Thunderbolt 3 Mac Pro but it can only have 16 gigs of RAM. That's a joke and they need to fix it.

 

[iShater]

A lot of these people are living in the past. We are where Steve Jobs predicted we'd be, living in a post-PC era where the market for high-end traditional computer products is a niche within an already tiny niche.

What Tim and Apple are doing is absolutely right for the company. Those complaining and hating on Apple and Tim are broadly speaking living in the dark ages.

Buddy, we don't all use computers as toys. We actually use them to get real work done, including writing the apps that you play with on your iPad/iPhone, and the software that powers the backend, and the graphics that make them look pretty, and the commercials that you see for them.

They want to have laptops that are for people who just want the comfort of a an under-powered laptop then that is fine, that is what the MacBook is for. The MacBook "Pro" is supposed to address the needs of people who need a real computer to do real things.

The latest incarnation of the MBP is NOT going in the right direction for that. Last I checked, Dell, Lenovo, HP and everybody else is making "high-end traditional computers" and it is not a niche.

 

[dumastudetto]

If Tim & Co want anyone to dev apps for iOS and tvOS (and yes, macOS), they better get off their butts and make some mac hardware that has traction with people. Or release xcode for windows, or open macOS to deployment on hardware of choice and get out of the hardware business. Because it's all well and good to say we don't live in a PC world any more, but there's only one product in the world that can be used to create content for the beloved app store, and it ain't iOS. If Apple still wants people to make apps, they need to sell compelling computer hardware or lose developers to other platforms.

I don't think the current hardware offerings are going to limit the creativity of iOS devs very much. These new MacBook Pros are very powerful machines certainly good enough for almost all kinds of iOS software development.

 

[pika2000]

So....with Phil Schiller stating Apple has gotten their highest number of pre-orders ever for Macbook Pros....can we admit that most of the outrage is from nerd rage forum dwellers? Seems like the "Pros" who aren't tech enthusiasts (and instead....just do their work) aren't all that discouraged. Or, perhaps, the MBP's main user base is consumers who aren't bothered either?

It's basically the same trend with any Apple product, fueled by the tech "bloggers" wanting page hits.
Just watch on any impending release of new iPhone. Everybody always hated new iPhones, and suddenly everybody is talking about their pre-orders. It's kinda hilarious.

 

[8692574]

OK so the definition of pro in 2016 is 32GB RAM. Good to know. Then the base model Surface Studio which has a core i5 and 8GB dGPU for $3,000 is not a pro machine. Neither is the core i7 16BB dGPU model at $3,500. If you want a pro Surface Studio you need to spend $4,200 for the 32GB model.

No the ram does not make a product pro or not by itself, but as you suggest, you can up ram on the Surface if you need to, unfortunatly you cannot on the MacBook Pro......

They did not call it Surface Studio Pro

PS.
You compare the base model of one with the top of the line of the other.......(wich aren't comparable anyway, one is a desktop, the other a laptop anyway)

 

[Srtlewis]

iPad Pro, because who needs a computer?

I do for one

 

[NT1440]

It's basically the same trend with any Apple product, fueled by the tech "bloggers" wanting page hits.
Just watch on any impending release of new iPhone. Everybody always hated new iPhones, and suddenly everybody is talking about their pre-orders. It's kinda hilarious.

It's such a predictable cycle it strikes me as odd that people haven't figured it out yet.

 

[Rogifan]

"16GB should be enough for everyone" - Tim Cook, 2016.

Steve Jobs shipped the original iPad with 256MB RAM. Even the second gen only had 512MB RAM.

 

[ugahairydawgs]

Here is the part that I don't get. The MBP being capped at 16GB on RAM is not something new. None of the previous models supported 32GB and we never heard any of the complaining that we are seeing now. If that means you are spec'd out of this particular laptop, then fine. Go buy an iMac. Go buy a Mac Pro (if you absolutely must). Or go buy a Windows machine. If you need a new computer, buy the one that helps you do your job the best. Right now, if you need something with 32GB of RAM and a bunch of legacy peripherals connected, this might not be the laptop for you. Perhaps when Intel gets their act together supplies Apple with a chip that can properly run 32GB on mobile then you can get one.

Until then, just buy what works. The meme out there that "Apple doesn't care" is just garbage. If they could release a laptop with 32GB of RAM they would (believe me....they'd love to gouge you on the up-sell).

 

[dumastudetto]

Agreed - but also think it's a chicken/egg thing. I think that if Apple really did concentrate on their computer line, it could be more profitable and grow marketshare. It's just never really been their thing. Naturally they like to make certain margins on all of their devices and services. That's great but also a leash.

They are definitely losing out on some sales by holding back new hardware. Hell, I'd buy a new Mac Mini if they offered one, possibly even a Mac Pro capable of driving multiple large 5k displays. So even personally speaking I can see they are leaving some money on the table. But overall I doubt it's enough to make any real impact on Apple's earnings to worry them. And that explains why they are taking a very lazy approach to Mac hardware refreshes.

 

[wood1208]

Don't care what Tsai thinks about lightness of new Macbook. Most of us complaining are not from a group of millions of college students who EVERYDAY carrying macbook pro along with heavy backpack from class to class in different building. Performance/TDP/RAM support of Macbook is not everything in Appe's hand as Intel makes processors.

 

[CmdrLaForge]

Glad they released what they released. Really zero interest in these new MBPs and I can keep mine for another 4 years. Lets wait for the next real refresh.

The lack of ports and what they choose here really takes courage.

What I would like is a more powerful machine aka 4 cores in my 13". One day Intel will have such a CPU and hopefully Apple will put it in a 13" machine.

 

[HappyMacGuy]

For the ram issue, it's becoming increasingly clear that intel has to share some of the blame. The processors that will allow for 32 gb of lpddr4 ram simply aren't available yet, and Apple made a conscious decision to limit us to lpddr3 ram instead of the more power-hungry ddr4 ram. Not everyone is going to agree with the choices that Apple has made here, but at least it's clear this wasn't done to cut costs or some other cynical reason. After all, if Apple was as mercenary as people made it out to be, why would Apple pass up the chance to charge people for more ram?

MagSafe is amazing, I agree. But all other things equal, you are looking at dedicated a slot to either MagSafe or another USB C port. When I am not charging my laptop, it's not like I can retroactively turn that MagSafe charging port into a USB or display port. I am stuck with MagSafe whether I need it or not. USB C is more versatile and given a choice, I would be willing to give up MagSafe for USB C.

But that's just me.

So all the other high end laptop makers are using DDR4 because its faster and can address 64GB of ram (lenovo, dell, hp, etc). The processors are there. Feel free to visit other laptop makers websites and build one for yourself. Don;t just take Apple's word for it.

I would say that power consumption is a lesser priority for a PRO laptop. That's why people are mad. So why did APPLE do it then? If not for profit, pride in releasing the most powerful machine possible, or to merely just compete spec wise with other companies?

Just because Apple said so... That coupled with neglecting the rest of their "computer" lines hasn't helped.

 

[544263]

Have you used the new MacBook? Is the software performance lacking because of RAM? Or is the software optimized for the hardware in such a way that it is efficient? I ask because tech sites usually get caught up with specs when actual performance matters more.

are you really asking this?

it's probably hard for someone who never ran into the problem of not having enough ram, but i will give it a try: it doesn't matter how fast your CPU or your system is, it may be 10x as fast as the previous CPU, but if the data the CPU is supposed to work on is not available in RAM and therefore has to be loaded/saved from disk all the time (even if it's a SSD) it may quickly become magnitudes slower than on a system with enough RAM. the CPU is fast but will be waiting all the time for data to be loaded, then it can be processed, and then it needs to be saved to disk again to make space for the next data.

16 GB sounds like a lot of RAM, and it is, for "normal" tasks. - But as soon as you are doing memory intensive tasks like video editing or multi-track music production memory is mattering even more than your CPU. for many tasks i'd rather take a 2011 macbook with 16GB of ram then the latest, shiniest, fastest macbook pro from 2016 with 8GB. why? CPU difference is 20%, but the difference with enough RAM might be 10x (=1000%).

what hurts the pro's even more is, that RAM actually is considered cheap (normally).

not sure if this makes sense to you, but at least i've tried it.

 

[maflynn]

Read through this thread from 2008. Not much different than now.

The link in the story shows how many non-Macrumor members are complaining, in years prior we saw some complaints in the blogsphere and other positives

Even Gruber has stated as much

I can’t recall an Apple event that generated such a negative reaction from hard-core Mac users.

That's interesting, I am actually polar opposite on that piece of tech.

Yeah, I hate it, but maybe because I only tolerate the touch pads in general.

Most of them were already dismayed going into the event (for example, Marco Arment). They are dismayed because they think Apple is focusing too much attention on the stuff that is making them the most money, and not enough on the stuff that is still a very nice side business for them.

Perhaps and that's been the complaints as well, i.e., Apple is focusing on the iPhone and ignoring the mac.

Regardless, you have a high number of core Mac users upset, do you want to continue to upset your customers, because they won't be your customers very long

 

[Rogifan]

No the ram does not make a product pro or not by itself, but as you suggest, you can up ram on the Surface if you need to, unfortunatly you cannot on the MacBook Pro......

They did not call it Surface Studio Pro

PS.
You compare the base model of one with the top of the line of the other.......(wich aren't comparable anyway, one is a desktop, the other a laptop anyway)

I'm not comparing it to any Apple product. I'm judgmental saying the entry and mid-level Surface Studios apparently aren't for pros since they don't have 32GB RAM. $3,000 is a lot for a non-pro device.

 

[pika2000]

No the ram does not make a product pro or not by itself, but as you suggest, you can up ram on the Surface if you need to, unfortunatly you cannot on the MacBook Pro......

They did not call it Surface Studio Pro

PS.
You compare the base model of one with the top of the line of the other.......(wich aren't comparable anyway, one is a desktop, the other a laptop anyway)

The Surface Pro is maxed out at 16GB, has core m for baseline, and only has USB3 as its fastest i/o. Just saying.

 

[Andres Cantu]

He's right about the other Macs part. It's ridiculous that the Mac mini hasn't seen an update in over 2 years and even more so with the Mac Pro over 3 years.

A price cut for these two should have happened a long time ago, or at least include a fusion drive in the base model Mac mini to keep things interesting.

 

[pedzsan]

The thing that bothers me the most and has bothered me for several years is the Mac is not part of the Apple synergy. Take for example "TV" that was announced in the same talk. Its available on Apple TV and Apple iOS -- but not the Mac. There are countless examples of this. Time and time again, features are on iOS and other Apple products but not on the Mac. It appears as if they really don't think about the Mac at all.

My problem is, I'm stuck. I need a platform that can run Adobe tools or suffer the pain of switching to Linux and switching to all open source tools. While for programming (my real job), that's easy; for photography and video, I really doubt I can find equivalent tools that compare to Adobe's. (I hate Adobe; especially "Flash" but... they have some very advanced tools.)

And, as the article says, right now, I haven't jumped up and bought a MBP even though my current one is going on 6 years old because I want see if other Mac products get updates: iMac, Mac mini, and Mac Pro. I'm curious about all of them.

 

[AdonisSMU]

So....with Phil Schiller stating Apple has gotten their highest number of pre-orders ever for Macbook Pros....can we admit that most of the outrage is from nerd rage forum dwellers? Seems like the "Pros" who aren't tech enthusiasts (and instead....just do their work) aren't all that discouraged. Or, perhaps, the MBP's main user base is consumers who aren't bothered either?

Thank you. I'm a software engineer and I use Xcode, Docker, VMware on my 16GB mac and I am able to do work with out any hiccups at all. I'm not sure where all the hate is coming from.

 

[sracer]

A vocal minority is whining on the internet like they do after every Apple release. Yawn.

That vocal minority translates into a significant number of lost customers. And when sales figure are released that show downward trends in iPads, Macs, etc. the same people who "yawn" and the vocal minority, excuse the downward trend as "people don't upgrade as often", "the market is saturated", and other "no worries, all is well" dismissive explanations.

Maybe the vocal minority has some valid points. That is difficult to discern when any criticism is equated to the most hyperbolic complaint.

Dismiss the vocal minority at your own risk.

 

[69650]

A vocal minority is whining on the internet like they do after every Apple release. Yawn.

I don't think it is a minority. I think most Mac users are unhappy with the current situation. To dismiss their views with a "yawn" comment is very condescending.

 

[8692574]

The Surface Pro is maxed out at 16GB, has core m for baseline, and only has USB3 as its fastest i/o. Just saying.

Again...BASE!!

 

[TurboPGT!]

How can you sell a "pro" that you can not plug the wire that comes with iPhone especially the 7 without buying another damn dongle.

What does Pro have to do with connecting your iPhone?
These days I hardly ever connect my iPhone to my Mac with a cable. Why would I? Syncing is a thing of the past. Charging is better plugged into the wall. Need my ports for other more common things.

A good 90% of iPhone users will never connect their iPhone to a Mac, because they don't own a Mac.

By all means though, invent some more non-issues to pass off as criticism of the product you can't afford, but wish you could.