Redesigned Macbook Air 13" = rMB killer?

[toddzrx]

Ethernet, firewire, display-port, etc are all connectivity for a by-gone era; USB-A/B are gradually being eliminated from most of the industry as well. I literally have not used any of the first three in a few years, and USB probably only to charge some other device. Each to his/her own, but it just isn't needed by vast majority of the population any more. I can see a rMB with zero ports pretty soon, when wireless charging matures enough to charge with very high reliability and efficiency.

I think you're leaning a little too far forward here. While your personal use is reflected here, my own and my observation of plenty of other computer users at work and home says otherwise. Ethernet and USB-A at least will be with us for quite a while longer, because not everyone wants to be on wireless for speed, security, or reliability reasons. USB-A will be with us for a very long time, simply because there are billions of USB-A devices out there that will remain very usable for year into the future. Simple example: my full size Apple keyboard.

What's your definition of "pretty soon"? I'd be willing to bet a sizable chunk of change that we will not see a "port-less" computer for at least 5 years. iPhone will be first, but wireless charging will have to be perfected and it's not there yet. Followed by iPad, and then laptops.

 

[Trey M]

I think you're leaning a little too far forward here. While your personal use is reflected here, my own and my observation of plenty of other computer users at work and home says otherwise. Ethernet and USB-A at least will be with us for quite a while longer, because not everyone wants to be on wireless for speed, security, or reliability reasons. USB-A will be with us for a very long time, simply because there are billions of USB-A devices out there that will remain very usable for year into the future. Simple example: my full size Apple keyboard.

What's your definition of "pretty soon"? I'd be willing to bet a sizable chunk of change that we will not see a "port-less" computer for at least 5 years. iPhone will be first, but wireless charging will have to be perfected and it's not there yet. Followed by iPad, and then laptops.

Totally disagree with your post. A very, very small number of people are actually using wired ethernet connections (for notebooks) these days. Just because you use it doesn't mean everyone needs it. I obviously have no statistics but I'd bet it's less than 10% of users use ethernet at all, if not less than that.

As for the 'requirement' for USB-A, a simple adapter can solve this issue. Adding a USB-C to USB-A adapter on your Apple Wired keyboard makes the cable 6 inches longer....is that really that big of an issue?

FYI, I personally utilize an ethernet connection at work alongside an Apple Wired keyboard, lol.

 

[SteveJUAE]

I think you're leaning a little too far forward here. While your personal use is reflected here, my own and my observation of plenty of other computer users at work and home says otherwise. Ethernet and USB-A at least will be with us for quite a while longer, because not everyone wants to be on wireless for speed, security, or reliability reasons. USB-A will be with us for a very long time, simply because there are billions of USB-A devices out there that will remain very usable for year into the future. Simple example: my full size Apple keyboard.

What's your definition of "pretty soon"? I'd be willing to bet a sizable chunk of change that we will not see a "port-less" computer for at least 5 years. iPhone will be first, but wireless charging will have to be perfected and it's not there yet. Followed by iPad, and then laptops.

Whilst I can see both points I think many base thier observations on RL and certainly in more western countries the phasing or usability of these extra ports etc are rapidly in decline.

Step in to Asia and other countries and see how many obtain there music, games video's etc the lack of subscription services etc and cost means for some it's essential it remains for sometime yet

For business travelers and even tourist that end up in odd locations Ethernet connections are often the only choice or the preferred in some hotels/resorts

I recently bought a laptop from the USA which came bundled with some free software, it came on a DVD, not a memstick or DL link, so my little superdrive got a dusting off

 

[Ulenspiegel]

@SteveJUAE
+1.
And one more point. Professionals use - for instance - an Ethernet cable to measure the download and upload speed. And by no means the wireless connection because of obvious reasons.

 

[HardBall]

I think you're leaning a little too far forward here. While your personal use is reflected here, my own and my observation of plenty of other computer users at work and home says otherwise. Ethernet and USB-A at least will be with us for quite a while longer, because not everyone wants to be on wireless for speed, security, or reliability reasons. USB-A will be with us for a very long time, simply because there are billions of USB-A devices out there that will remain very usable for year into the future. Simple example: my full size Apple keyboard.

Possibly, but I don't think that ethernet is a standard part of most people's work or life any more. Sure, desktops on corporate networks may still use them to some extent, but all portable machines (those that are not desktops or desktop replacements) today more or less have been designed with wireless connectivity in mind. I would be very surprised if there is more than 1 percent of the people who use their laptops with wired networking on a regular basis. It has been that way since about 2008, it's probably time for the remaining people to let go.

What's your definition of "pretty soon"? I'd be willing to bet a sizable chunk of change that we will not see a "port-less" computer for at least 5 years. iPhone will be first, but wireless charging will have to be perfected and it's not there yet. Followed by iPad, and then laptops.

Intel, for example, is already working on pushing wireless charging for laptops to the main stream:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2979127/hardware/intel-preps-wireless-power-laptop-tech-for-2016.html

In the next couple of years, expect them to be included in some of their portable platforms. Apple likely will be one of their first customers on that front. The days of wired charging of ultra-portable machines are probably numbered. By 2020 we should see most MBA class or lighter laptops come without any ports.

 

[Trey M]

@SteveJUAE
+1.
And one more point. Professionals use - for instance - an Ethernet cable to measure the download and upload speed. And by no means the wireless connection because of obvious reasons.

You gotta realize though this machine wasn't designed to be the swiss army knife as far as ports and such. It's obviously designed as a minimalist device with minimum fuss; the focus is just the screen, keyboard, and trackpad. There are many solutions if you need ethernet connections. You can actually buy an Apple branded USB to ethernet on Amazon that was built for the MBA a few years back.

And I'd argue these circumstances being thrown around are less than 10 times a year. For the other 355 days, Apple did a great job of designing a minimalist device, and plenty of people (>90%) would not list ethernet as a fault on this machine

 

[Ulenspiegel]

@Trey M
I don't think it was referred to as a fault. Some of us had an intention to emphasize that Ethernet is far from being obsolete for the reasons mentioned in previous posts.

 

[SteveJUAE]

@Trey M
I don't think it was referred to as a fault. Some of us had an intention to emphasize that Ethernet is far from being obsolete for the reasons mentioned in previous posts.

Yep spoil alert but not everyone drives a F150, spends $1000 a year on their smart phone data plan and buys a MAC to see their sms's on the screen .

Many around the world rely on legacy ports etc and others still have needs that the latest and greatest miss

 

[Trey M]

Yep spoil alert but not everyone drives a F150, spends $1000 a year on their smart phone data plan and buys a MAC to see their sms's on the screen .

Not sure what point you were trying to make here but it was either very unintelligent or very childish. Not sure which.

Many around the world rely on legacy ports etc and others still have needs that the latest and greatest miss

I totally agree. I use ethernet everyday at work for the reliability as well as the increased throughput. But the rMB is not designed for the 'many around the world' you're alluding to. It's designed for users who use wireless internet and don't need a bunch of ports, etc. to make them happy. There's a million Windows solutions better suited to the needs of the wordly users you're alluding to. To try to project your personal wishes on a device completely unsuited for your use-case is silly.
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@Trey M
I don't think it was referred to as a fault. Some of us had an intention to emphasize that Ethernet is far from being obsolete for the reasons mentioned in previous posts.

Agreed there. IMO ethernet, or a similar variation, may never disappear as network reliability becomes even more critical in everyday life

 

[SteveJUAE]

Not sure what point you were trying to make here but it was either very unintelligent or very childish. Not sure which.

I totally agree. I use ethernet everyday at work for the reliability as well as the increased throughput. But the rMB is not designed for the 'many around the world' you're alluding to. It's designed for users who use wireless internet and don't need a bunch of ports, etc. to make them happy. There's a million Windows solutions better suited to the needs of the wordly users you're alluding to. To try to project your personal wishes on a device completely unsuited for your use-case is silly.
[doublepost=1466654628][/doublepost]

Agreed there. IMO ethernet, or a similar variation, may never disappear as network reliability becomes even more critical in everyday life

I am totally agreeing with you nor am I imposing any of my own personal requirements on the rMB

Due to the high % of US users here many translate their own RL experiences and user cases as if it was common place throughout the world, it's simply not is my point. Many enjoy high tech devices that may simply be acquired 2nd hand (all those traded in smartphones/laptops have to go somewhere) but they do not have the same level of household budget to run them (eg data plans/streaming accounts etc etc) To them legacy ports are essential aid in staying current via different/cheaper methods we generally in the west take for granted.

I work with many well paid Asian engineers who all have smartphones but very few actually have data plans and use pre-paid not post paid accounts, they use free WiFi for their dailies, most do not have cars or satellite/cable TV but use home Wifi and new but cheap Windows laptops and obtain native language DVD's

These millions of Asian and far Easterns are not technology lacking they just have a different allocation of household budgets and so more reliant on legacy ports etc, agreed a rMB may well not be the best choice for this group but there is a strong market to supply them with ports etc for the foreseeable

 

[decio]

IMHO I think it would have been a refreshing change for Apple to actually listen to what customers want and give them the best user experience with an MBA with a higher res screen. Considering how they shrunk the motherboard for the MB 12, it would have been easy to add more tiered batteries to deal with the "retina" screen and still have enough power for everything else

 

[BeatCrazy]

IMHO I think it would have been a refreshing change for Apple to actually listen to what customers want and give them the best user experience with an MBA with a higher res screen. Considering how they shrunk the motherboard for the MB 12, it would have been easy to add more tiered batteries to deal with the "retina" screen and still have enough power for everything else

After using the rMB for a week, there's no way I'd consider going back to a MBA, even with a retina screen. Go all out with the MBP, or keep it thin and light like the rMB. MBA is the out-out-place middle child.

 

[jclardy]

After using the rMB for a week, there's no way I'd consider going back to a MBA, even with a retina screen. Go all out with the MBP, or keep it thin and light like the rMB. MBA is the out-out-place middle child.

If the 13" rMBP is adopting all USB-C ports, then yeah, the MBA will be out of a job. In that case I'd expect the 12" rMB to get a price drop with its next upgrade (Maybe $1099 starting) then they will release a larger 14" rMB at the current $1299 base price, and the ~13" rMBP will continue up into the high end.

The air right now is just around because without it the rMB is priced too high for entry level.

 

[decio]

P

After using the rMB for a week, there's no way I'd consider going back to a MBA, even with a retina screen. Go all out with the MBP, or keep it thin and light like the rMB. MBA is the out-out-place middle child.

Point taken, yet I still find it hard to fathom that they would also ditch the "air" moniker and raise the price on their best of both worlds model. I bought an mba 2014 bto 8gb ram for 900€ and then the price went crazy the next year! They definitely need to drop the price on the rmb!

 

[Queen6]

IMHO I think it would have been a refreshing change for Apple to actually listen to what customers want and give them the best user experience with an MBA with a higher res screen. Considering how they shrunk the motherboard for the MB 12, it would have been easy to add more tiered batteries to deal with the "retina" screen and still have enough power for everything else

Unfortunately today Apple only serves Apple, only way to change this trend is vote with your $$$$. My logic is very simple, if Apple do not produce hardware/software that meets my need, I will look elsewhere as there is no shortage of well designed premium hardware available, albeit on another platform.

Latest system I purchased is Windows based on the reasons stated above, as time passes I am finding that Apple is becoming far less relevant...

Q-6