Nah. I haven't used mice since 2009. Trackpad is all I need
Yuck. If it were an Apple bluetooth trackpad I could understand, but using the tiny trackpad on the macbook, no thanks. Mouse or bluetooth trackpad any day for every day desktop use.
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Retina MacBook as only main/only laptop? Who is with me!?
- Thread starter Geert76
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Yuck. If it were an Apple bluetooth trackpad I could understand, but using the tiny trackpad on the macbook, no thanks. Mouse or bluetooth trackpad any day for every day desktop use.
I'm with you! I sold my 2012 MacBook Pro and am using the 12" retina MacBook as my daily driver and only computer. I'm a student in college and its literally the perfect computer for me. Safari, email, and Microsoft word, PowerPoint, and Excel work wonderfully on the 1.1ghz base model. The MacBook and 6 Plus make a wonderful combo.
Good for you. I am as productive as I need to be using MacBook trackpad, and have been happily doing it for years.
Great photo. I was interested to see how clean a rMB/external monitor setup looks with Apple's adapter. I'm continuing to stay out of the external monitor game, at least for now.
I work in tech and this is going to be my only machine once my display adapter comes in (which will serve as my "dock"). I don't use an CPU intensive apps often, have access to virtual desktops if I need them, and only want one computer to maintain my settings and documents on. Work would buy me a 5k iMac for the desk, but I want my work environment to be seamless when I pick it up and go to meetings or out of town.
I do need some ports every once in a while, but I'm getting this Anker USB3 hub with a gigabit ethernet port, which should cover what I need on the go. I don't understand why the aversion to dongles in the tech community, considering how rarely I plug anything in already. My 11in MBA case has a pocket for that stuff and seems to fit really well for now. I'll be able to carry a couple dongles, eventually a USB-C battery pack with the laptop in less weight than a macbook pro. Most of the time I'll just be carrying the laptop around by itself, so for someone that is highly mobile, it fits all of my needs.
In my opinion, ports are overrated. You pay for it in size and weight, which makes me less likely to take my laptop with me at all. My only complaint would be the inability to drive a 4k display at 60hz, but I'm sure the next revision will be able to handle that.
I do need some ports every once in a while, but I'm getting this Anker USB3 hub with a gigabit ethernet port, which should cover what I need on the go. I don't understand why the aversion to dongles in the tech community, considering how rarely I plug anything in already. My 11in MBA case has a pocket for that stuff and seems to fit really well for now. I'll be able to carry a couple dongles, eventually a USB-C battery pack with the laptop in less weight than a macbook pro. Most of the time I'll just be carrying the laptop around by itself, so for someone that is highly mobile, it fits all of my needs.
In my opinion, ports are overrated. You pay for it in size and weight, which makes me less likely to take my laptop with me at all. My only complaint would be the inability to drive a 4k display at 60hz, but I'm sure the next revision will be able to handle that.
I agree with you 100% on the dongle. I myself am a comp sci major (currently undergrad) and I only use USB for data/charging. Nothing else. Besides using the built in hdmi port for few presentations once in a while, I haven't used SD card nor thunderbolt ports on my current rMBP 15". I'm willing to pay the premium for the extreme portability, USB-C (external battery charging and future proof is always a bonus,) and the retina display.
Glad to see like-minded people posting here.
My current, only computer is a mid-2011 11" i7 Macbook Air. I travel for work and pleasure more than 50 percent of the time, and over the years my notebook computers' screen sizes have shrunk from 17" to the current 11". (I still can't believe I lugged that 17" Mac notebook all over Europe all those years ago. I was younger, I guess.)
When I got my 11" Air four years ago I remember thinking, "This is it -- this is the computer I've always wanted but didn't realize it until now."
When my 1.3 Space Gray Retina Macbook arrives in a month or so, it will be an upgrade in nearly every way -- speed, power, screen size and resolution. Yes, the need for adapters will occasionally be a pain, but I rarely plug anything but power into my Air, other than an external screen when I'm at home.
I'm pretty sure I'll be quite satisfied.
My current, only computer is a mid-2011 11" i7 Macbook Air. I travel for work and pleasure more than 50 percent of the time, and over the years my notebook computers' screen sizes have shrunk from 17" to the current 11". (I still can't believe I lugged that 17" Mac notebook all over Europe all those years ago. I was younger, I guess.)
When I got my 11" Air four years ago I remember thinking, "This is it -- this is the computer I've always wanted but didn't realize it until now."
When my 1.3 Space Gray Retina Macbook arrives in a month or so, it will be an upgrade in nearly every way -- speed, power, screen size and resolution. Yes, the need for adapters will occasionally be a pain, but I rarely plug anything but power into my Air, other than an external screen when I'm at home.
I'm pretty sure I'll be quite satisfied.
I've been using MBA's as my only laptop, and primary computer ever since they came out (yes even that much maligned first model that most found slow and expensive). I travel a lot and mobility is extremely important to me. I'm hoping the rMB can serve in that capacity as well (likely wouldn't keep it if it couldn't).
My home office and primary work offices have "docking station" like setups with keyboard, mouse, ethernet, and large monitor for heavy productivity tasks. At home I have a Mac Mini I mostly use as a server but occasionally as a desktop for heavy media or data processing MBA's aren't up to (or the rMB wouldn't be up to).
Really looking forward to a smaller, lighter package with a much improved screen and non proprietary connectivity (eventually) to any device you could imagine.
My home office and primary work offices have "docking station" like setups with keyboard, mouse, ethernet, and large monitor for heavy productivity tasks. At home I have a Mac Mini I mostly use as a server but occasionally as a desktop for heavy media or data processing MBA's aren't up to (or the rMB wouldn't be up to).
Really looking forward to a smaller, lighter package with a much improved screen and non proprietary connectivity (eventually) to any device you could imagine.
I had purchased the rMB as I travel quite frequently thinking it could be my main travel machine, replacing carrying my current 13.3 rMBP and iPad combo, and then use the 13.3 rMBP as my "desktop" in-office machine.
But after using my 1.2/512 for almost two weeks now and having never gone back to the 13.3, I am confident it can be my main machine. In fact, I just wiped my rMBP this morning and will be selling it. In two weeks I have had an even mix of travel, work, play, and the rMB has handled every task with aplomb. I have no regrets and if anything the rMB has exceeded every expectation that i had.
The rMB will be my only laptop, but not my only computer. I have a beastly Windows desktop computer for any heavy duty tasks (gaming, video conversion, etc.). I wanted the new rMB primarily for its extreme portability as I am returning to college part time this fall. So far I have not had any issues with the MacBook for the tasks I'm performing.
I am a completely professional IT software engineer, architect and personal user and am having no issue at all using the new Retina Macbook to do any normal functions at all business or personal. I am able to do just about anything a normal IT worker would do including perl, ksh scripting, python and just about any general scripting possible. In addition, I have run 5-6 spaces and have no UI lag or other issues. Folks that are complaining about performance are either bored haters looking to make a stink or be entertained, professional photogs or they work for Industrial Light and Magic and need more power for the new Star Wars films. The rest just do not know how to properly use a computer very well and fail to realize that most all heavy computing is done server side in the cloud in today's world.
you would have to be fairly financially privileged to afford to personally own and maintain two computers right? For how many people is this a serious option?
This is my main computer. Before the rMB I used an iMac at work and a MBA for home and mobility. Both of them are gone and I only have the rMB. I use everything from MS office to Photoshop/Bridge to streaming video/music without any issues.
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Not to joke around, but owning two computer is not expensive. Between my wife and I we currently have 4 MacBook Airs, 1 rMB and 2 iMacs. This is an accumulation of the last five years. People who work, who have careers, have money. And, for me items I use everyday is not a waste of money at any means.
I look at an item's value in terms of how often it will be used. Car, phone, food, etc...all used daily (multiple times) so it's valued. I could care less about the couch in my living room that no one sits on.
I had the rMB for about 2 weeks since launch and I just kept going back to my rMBP 13 for most of the things. I really wanted to rely only on the rMB but I couldn't. It's not the single USB-C port; I really feel the rMB is not as smooth as the rMBP13, perhaps due to the CPU performance. I only use it for light duty stuff but there is still a difference.
I have been using my 1.3Ghz rMB for nearly a week, and it's just as fast as my 2014 i7/1.7Ghz Air. For light-duty stuff - there is certainly no difference.
My usage is very similar. Though I had a weird thing happen today. rMB was 100% charged, I left Safari open just three tabs. closed the lid. About 2 hours later I opened the lid and thought Wow this thing really warm, my AV adaptor was warm also . Activity monitor showed Safari was using 210% of CPU with Google News and kernel task using most. Machine was very sluggish with keyboard input delays of a couple of seconds. Closed safari but the google process stayed pegged, closed that in monitor and all is well.
Fracking Google, or actually flash .
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Ergo, not many real techs here that understand right tool for the job, not what the job might be, or wants to be, mostly just geez I like all those holes in my laptop.
Although I stated my main and only machine is now the RMB, I do have a Mac mini I used for a number of years which I purchased on eBay for $359. It still works great. I think comments like these that basically state that people commenting are either super rich or ultra poor are unnecessary and rather we each choose our own paths and make our own decisions along the way.
No, plenty of people have two or more computers. Of course, I doubt many people have 30
Agree with you on this ... in my house we have 1 MB Air, 1 rMBP, 1 (soon to be) rMB, 1 iMac, 1 Mac Mini, and 3 iPads ... They all serve their purpose and are all well utilized machines.
I switched from a 13" rMBP and haven't looked back since. It handles everything I need with ease and works great with my external 1080p second monitor. I'm wondering if it can handle the lg 34um95 with 3440x1440 resolution. Anyone have any ideas? I have the 1.1 256gb model. Thanks
I'm using the rMB as my primary Mac now. I sold (reluctantly) my rMBP 13". I couldn't really justify two laptops. Is the rMB slower and have less storage and memory than I would like? Yes, but it works pretty well most of the time. For normal tasks, it's not an issue. I do see it slower for processing in Lightroom but the rMBP was not as fast as a 15" or desktop either.
What sells me on this machine is the design. I love it. It's what I always wanted the Air to be. I moved from the Air to the rMBP to get the retina display, so do prefer small and lighter for a laptop.
I will see how it goes. I have an older iMac but this machine is already faster than it. I use a Mac mini as a home server. If I see too much performance problems I'll likely get an iMac 5K for bigger tasks or wait for the next rMBP redesign to see how much of the rMB goes into it.
What sells me on this machine is the design. I love it. It's what I always wanted the Air to be. I moved from the Air to the rMBP to get the retina display, so do prefer small and lighter for a laptop.
I will see how it goes. I have an older iMac but this machine is already faster than it. I use a Mac mini as a home server. If I see too much performance problems I'll likely get an iMac 5K for bigger tasks or wait for the next rMBP redesign to see how much of the rMB goes into it.
Silly question:
I've never used a MacBook in clamshell mode with an external display, but I am about to pull the trigger on the U2515H and Apple Multiport adaptor. If the rMB is closed/asleep, and I plug in the multiport adaptor will the display automatically power up? Or do I have to open the rMB, then plug in, then close?
I've never used a MacBook in clamshell mode with an external display, but I am about to pull the trigger on the U2515H and Apple Multiport adaptor. If the rMB is closed/asleep, and I plug in the multiport adaptor will the display automatically power up? Or do I have to open the rMB, then plug in, then close?
I just picked mine up yesterday and I am impressed so far. It will be my only laptop, but won't be my only computer. I will maintain my dual screen iMac setup for playing games and of course I'll have my work computer for heavy spreadsheet/powerpoint creation/editing, but my rMB will be an integral part of my lineup and will mostly replace my iPad.