So what exactly makes these not "Pro"?

[aristobrat]

Again, I ask for what purpose? Black text on white background, a timeline app and possibly an app that holds their notes and image or audio clips that were taken for research purposes. They're not exactly running multiple Virtual Machines or digital instruments like music or software development professionals.

You're seriously making the point that someone who looks at their screen full-time for their job should get a MacBook Air instead of a machine that has a Retina display?

Did your head explode at the part of the keynote when Phil Schiller referred that the new entry-level MacBook Pro 13" was being targeted to the existing MacBook Air crowd?

 

[Ethosik]

At this point "pro" is mostly a marketing term, however I think one thing we can all agree on is that, for a "pro" user - time is money. If you're happy encoding an eight hour video in, say, three hours than good for you, but for quite a lot of other "pro" users they'd rather do it twice as fast, or process two files simultaniously, and have a thicker machine.

If your time isn't that constrained, or important, than obviously your milage may vary.

Actually, my 2013 rMBP does encode faster than my 2010 Mac Pro.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

So if 'Pro' only really refers to professional video editor, then I can honestly say I've rarely met one that uses a notebook computer. I've met a few freelancers using MacBooks, as a portable device from site to site, but never a fixed position.

Usually, editors live in little sealed off bays behind glass windows. Because everyone else in the office doesn't want to hear the same 5 seconds of audio every 5 seconds... So they live in their little room, surrounded by HDDs, and occasionally get a visit from a client who sits at the back. They, like every other 'Pro' would use a desktop computer with pretty high specs. Because there is absolutely no need to have a portable edit bay.

When editors are using notebooks, it's usually for onsite edits when something like a Vox Pop is required during a show. In these cases, they use high end notebooks for the portability. And it is usually a MacBook as they use Mac Pros back at the office (So same OS/Software).

No Pro worth their salt is going to use a notebook as their main rig (Freelancers are different, but most places have a spare desktop). And instead only use these as portable devices where top specs are less important than portability and battery life.

So these new MBPs fill their niche very well, a reasonably powerful device that's portable and good battery life. If they start putting Xeon processors and desktop GPUs in notebooks, whilst still somehow making the thing portable, it'd be different. But then when people sit at a desk all day long, why would you need a notebook?

 

[richpjr]

It's telling that even when posed directly with this question, no one has been able to tell OP why the 2016 MacBook Pro is not a computer for "professionals."

Scattered over all of the various threads on this topic people have pointed out what they felt was lacking for their "pro" uses only to have people jump on them because their needs are different. Maybe if we called them power users instead of pros people would not be so annoyed by it. What am I thinking - in this day and age people will be butt hurt by anything!

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I guess not! I guess people here consider even gamers "professional" over lawyers or video training producers. Yeah, so why do I need to make my video training videos 4K exactly?

You don t need to and what's more ridiculous is that all of apples current computers are perfectly capable of editing 4K video....

 

[spacebro]

Clearly it is the LPDDR3 that disqualifies this machine from "pro". A lot of people who run VMs or other big tools have been waiting years for a ram limit increase. Now we are forced to look at windows machines that use DDR4.

 

[Ethosik]

Clearly it is the LPDDR3 that disqualifies this machine from "pro". A lot of people who run VMs or other big tools have been waiting years for a ram limit increase. Now we are forced to look at windows machines that use DDR4.

Not everyone needs to run dozens of VMs on a laptop. I certainly don't. But that is the ONLY classification as a pro user?

 

[protoxx]

Previous generation 15" had 7 usable ports. 2 USB-A, 2 Thunderbolt, 1 HDMI, 1 power, 1 SDcard
Current generation 15" has 4 usable ports. 4 USB-C

Net decrease to power user of 3 ports.

 

[Ethosik]

Previous generation 15" had 7 usable ports. 2 USB-A, 2 Thunderbolt, 1 HDMI, 1 power, 1 SDcard
Current generation 15" has 4 usable ports. 4 USB-C

Net decrease to power user of 3 ports.

1 port turns into 8 ports: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/usb-c/owc/usb-c-dock

Plus, these ports are no longer single-use ports. They can be whatever you want them to be!

 

[NT1440]

1 port turns into 8 ports: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/usb-c/owc/usb-c-dock

Plus, these ports are no longer single-use ports. They can be whatever you want them to be!

But I clearly need to travel with 7 peripheral devices and can't be bothered to lug a 2 pound dock around with my 3 27" displays, 2 external hard drives, and wired keyboard and mouse! That dock just makes it too much to do!

 

[protoxx]

1 port turns into 8 ports: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/usb-c/owc/usb-c-dock

Plus, these ports are no longer single-use ports. They can be whatever you want them to be!

Strawman

1 port turns into 17 ports
Thunderbolt 2 doc
https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/Thunderbolt/Dock/OWC/Thunderbolt2-Dock/
Turns both Thunderbolt docs into 17 ports each

Not to mention USB-A hubs turning each into at least 10 ports.

 

[Pootmatoot]

This new line that the "Pro" just meant you have a profession - so a professional ballerina is the core target for MacBook Pros? - is just plain bizarre.

"Pro" means that you have computing needs that require grunt and substance. Trying to convince people that we've all been mistaken for 10 years, and Pro is all about job title... it not going to work.

 

[protoxx]

This new line that the "Pro" just meant you have a profession - so a professional ballerina is the core target for MacBook Pros? - is just plain bizarre.

"Pro" means that you have computing needs that require grunt and substance. Trying to convince people that we've all been mistaken for 10 years, and Pro is all about job title... it not going to work.

Like those Turbo Glasses and Atomic Flashlight I see on infomercials.

 

[MarcBou]

I am just very curious how I am no longer classified as a pro user. Do I need to make my videos for 4K to be considered a professional? What is the benefit of having training videos at 4K resolution? Don't you dare tell me I am not a professional. I find everyone here insulting stating that we are not really professionals.

Dude, you are just talking nonsense. A teacher is a professional, a lawyer is a profesional, a chef is a professional, but they are not high computer performance related.

You make some training 720p videos for youtube, great, you are a profesional, but when we talk about a pro computer is meant for people who uses them for heavy stuff. I work on films, TV, advertising, etc. And I do edit 4k very long videos. That's an example of pro computers related, and there's so many others.

That said, IMO the new MBP is a pro computer, but i could be better.

 

[Ethosik]

Dude, you are just talking nonsense. A teacher is a professional, a lawyer is a profesional, a chef is a professional, but they are not high computer performance related.

You make some training 720p videos for youtube, great, you are a profesional, but when we talk about a pro computer is meant for people who uses them for heavy stuff. I work on films, TV, advertising, etc. And I do edit 4k very long videos. That's an example of pro computers related, and there's so many others.

Then the Macbook Pro was NEVER a professional system with that logic. It needs a Quadro card for that.

 

[NT1440]

Dude, you are just talking nonsense. A teacher is a professional, a lawyer is a profesional, a chef is a professional, but they are not high computer performance related.

You make some training 720p videos for youtube, great, you are a profesional, but when we talk about a pro computer is meant for people who uses them for heavy stuff. I work on films, TV, advertising, etc. And I do edit 4k very long videos. That's an example of pro computers related, and there's so many others.

ESPN here, Macbook Pros everywhere in the editing suites and Mac Pros as well.

Guess we're not pro enough without 32GB of RAM in each of our machines. It sucks that we thought putting out thousands of hours of programming a year was professional but I guess not. I guess we'll never be able to get any work done until the 84000 core 1 TB of RAM machines finally get here.

 

[MarcBou]

ESPN here, Macbook Pros everywhere in the editing suites and Mac Pros as well.

Guess we're not pro enough without 32GB of RAM in each of our machines. It sucks that we thought putting out thousands of hours of programming a year was professional but I guess not. I guess we'll never be able to get any work done until the 84000 core 1 TB of RAM machines finally get here.

I edited my post before you quoted it, for me the MBP are pro computers, I work with them. My post was just about who this "pro" was refered to, not saying that MBP is not a pro machine.

 

[Pootmatoot]

Then the Macbook Pro was NEVER a professional system with that logic. It needs a Quadro card for that.

The 2006-2013 covered the professional-lite bracket. Not people who require Dell mobile workstations (ie people dealing with raw cinematic footage etc) but the very large group who are just a tier below that, but above the normal consumer needs (ie students learning CAD).

The new MacBook Pro is shooting below that market - it's the ultraportable market. That's why those sort of people are now looking at things like the XPS15 - that aimed at the sort of needs and usage that the previous Pro machines were aimed at

 

[NT1440]

I edited my post before you quoted it, for me the MBP are pro computers, I work with them. My post was just about who this "pro" was refered to not saying that MBP is not a pro machine.

I was using your post as a springboard towards the odd arguments that people are making that the MBP's they've been using for the last 4+ years have apparently been non-operational as they insist that they could never work at all (rather than faster) with anything less than 32GB RAM.

I think you'll agree the logic (or lack thereof) on these board from some people is simply astounding.

 

[Ethosik]

The 2006-2013 covered the professional-lite bracket. Not people who require Dell mobile workstations (ie people dealing with raw cinematic footage etc) but the very large group who are just a tier below that, but above the normal consumer needs (ie students learning CAD).

The new MacBook Pro is shooting below that market - it's the ultraportable market. That's why those sort of people are now looking at things like the XPS15 - that aimed at the sort of needs and usage that the previous Pro machines were aimed at

How? My 2013 rMBP is suddenly better than these?

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

Guys.

Pro simply refers to the device, not the user. They make a MacBook, and a MacBook Pro, the Pro being their top end. It's just a moniker, not a lifestyle choice! I think a lot of the hurt has come from these 'Pro' devices being priced at the professional end, so a lot of none professional users who wanted a high end laptop for hobby/casual use have been priced out. Simple.

 

[fox10078]

As someone whose pro work revolves around thunderbolt this new machine is an absolute dream. Going from 2 20 Gbps ports to 4 40Gbps is a huge a increase in my workflow.

 

[Tanax]

I think people need to realize this is a LAPTOP, even if it's labelled as "Pro". Get a desktop if you need more power.

Granted, Apple haven't really released any work machines in a while so that's another issue. But still.

 

[zhenya]

It's been somewhat covered here but again, what people are asking for here - professional workstation replacements - is just not something that Apple has ever built. I get that there is probably a small minority of people for whom the lack of 32GB is an issue - but honestly speaking - how many of the complex workflows described here would benefit from the extra ram, but not be hung up by the processor and GPU limitations of a mobile device? None of these devices - whether the MBP or the true workstation replacements that Dell/Lenovo/HP, etc make are any good at sustained workloads - they all throttle. The intersection of those people who need 32GB of RAM but can make do with mobile processors and >50W TDP graphics cards has to be very small. The vast majority of people with that kind of serious workload will do their primary work on a proper workstation - and many of those people - if they supplement with a MBP - will want it to be light and mobile.

Apple doesn't cater to every niche. They focus on a couple of ranges and try to produce the best combination of factors that appeals to the widest number of users. Take a look at the threads that are popping up now of people who have looked for a Windows alternative and come to the realization that they all have some rather unappealing downsides. Apple continues to do what they do best - put together a cohesive package that won't be perfect - but has a smaller number of serious downsides than most anything else on the market.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

Yup that's what I've been saying! It just isn't really a solution to pair RAM with these CPUs, and focus only on the RAM as the most important factor. You want a Xeon processor and a Quadro if you're talking 32GB of RAM really.

On a side note on all this 'Pro' moniker nonsense that people seem to get hung up on. Do we think there's a similar debate over on the PS4 'Pro' forums? Are there 'Professional Gamers' crying because they need more RAM and stuff? Or again, have they labeled it as 'Pro' to just denote it as the top end machine they make?