Sold my macbook - adapter reason

Sportscar: Form factor means everything, sexy design prioritized over utility.

RMB: Form factor means everything, sexy design prioritized over utility.

Minivan: Designed to handle it all, tremendously configurable, large size, large capacity.

Air/Pro: Designed to handle it all, tremendously configurable, large size, large capacity.

BJ

Hm, when I define sportscar in Google it says:
"a low-built car designed for performance at high speeds"

"Sportscar" really isn't the word that comes to my mind for the MacBook.

Even with an Air/Pro you'll struggle to "handle it all". None of Apple's laptops are geared for truly heavy duty processing tasks.

"Tremendously configurable", I don't think that describes any of the products in Apple's notebook range. Maybe somewhat configurable at the time of purchase, but after that much more difficult.

I would also argue that for most people requiring "capacity", the MacBook works out more cost effective at least than the Pro, 256GB for the base model. Whereas with the MacBook Pro, the base model has been prioritised for cost over "utility" by offering 128GB.
 
Agreed, but I think the issue is timing. The writing was on the wall for the optical drive. Apple definitely jumped the gun with USB-C, as there was absolutely no usb-c devices, cables or adapters - other then their obscenely priced dongle.
Given that it took nearly a year for other dongles to come out, and they are priced similarly if they have pass-through charging, I don't think Apple's pricing was unreasonable.

The first iMac was released before there were any USB peripherals, as well. At least USB-C had adapters available at all.
I think it was a good idea to go with USB-C. It got a lot of projects going, and is a big reason why there were lots of USB-C peripherals at CES. Intel opting to use USB-C for Thunderbolt (and the USB committee deciding to allow alternate modes) helped, as well.

It's not as if Apple abandoned USB-A all at once. Heck, the rest of the Mac line doesn't even have USB-C ports (though I expect that will be changing as they roll out Skylake).
 
Given that it took nearly a year for other dongles to come out, and they are priced similarly if they have pass-through charging, I don't think Apple's pricing was unreasonable.
To each his own, I think its gouging, but that's just my personal opinion :)
 
To each his own, I think its gouging, but that's just my personal opinion :)

It`s primarily due to the additional complexity of USB C, the Apple multiport adapters need to have "logic" onboard to negotiate the varying data Tx/Rx, AV & power transmission, admittedly there is always the Apple tax, however in this case Apple`s margins are likely to be far less.

Q-6
 
Whoa, I make a few posts and don't fall back to the site for a month and miss a bunch!

To answer a few questions related to the original post:

1. I bought it knowing it needed adapters, and was ok with the idea. Unfortunately, the reality of unplugging/plugging, forgetting things ,etc made it unbearable. I wanted it to be perfect for me and it was but it got old quick. At home I work on a 27 monitor so I needed that $80 adapter. It just became too annoying for me.
2. My apple "blame" is related to making this perfect little thing with this one large flaw (in my eyes). It made me buy it and try it and want it to work for me so bad. But, in the end I still lost.
3. Some of these analogies in this thread are off. Comparing the 2 seater car rental for a family of 4 thing makes no sense for what you are comparing. A more fair analogy is me looking at a 2 door corvette with no backseat and loving it. Wanting it so bad and thinking "I can live without all that extra space, etc". Then after purchasing the car me realizing that its just too much of a headache dealing with not having that space. I purchased this item knowing about this and hoping/assuming it wouldn't be an issue for me. After use, I realized I was wrong. Fairly simple.
4. Yes I still have an external hard drive. After purchasing the mbr I did sign up for dropbox to go to cloud hosting. However, to begin using that I still needed the USB drive to transfer things. It took forever and by the time I returned it I still was nowhere done. The other stuff was my iPhone charger, my monitor at home, and printer setup.
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To each his own, I think its gouging, but that's just my personal opinion :)
I agree. Thats my other issue. You cannot tell me that thing cost that much.
 
3. Some of these analogies in this thread are off. Comparing the 2 seater car rental for a family of 4 thing makes no sense for what you are comparing. A more fair analogy is me looking at a 2 door corvette with no backseat and loving it. Wanting it so bad and thinking "I can live without all that extra space, etc". Then after purchasing the car me realizing that its just too much of a headache dealing with not having that space. I purchased this item knowing about this and hoping/assuming it wouldn't be an issue for me. After use, I realized I was wrong. Fairly simple.

The tone of your original post was pointing the finger of blame at Apple, not yourself.

Just as you wouldn't blame Chevrolet for making their 2-seater weekend sportscar a 2-seater weekend sportscar, you shouldn't blame Apple for making their ultra-portable cable-free notebook an ultra-portable cable-free notebook.

You made a mistake, used your imagination to make the RMB into something it wasn't meant to be, it happens. Three weeks until the keynote, perhaps a new MacBook Pro will emerge that will suit you properly.

BJ
 
The tone of your original post was pointing the finger of blame at Apple, not yourself.

Just as you wouldn't blame Chevrolet for making their 2-seater weekend sportscar a 2-seater weekend sportscar, you shouldn't blame Apple for making their ultra-portable cable-free notebook an ultra-portable cable-free notebook.

You made a mistake, used your imagination to make the RMB into something it wasn't meant to be, it happens. Three weeks until the keynote, perhaps a new MacBook Pro will emerge that will suit you properly.

BJ
Hoping so!
 
Have had the rMB since last August and have used an adapter only once. Love this little beauty :)
 
(Sorry for long ramble ahead of time, my first Mac laptop since the PB140, and having just gotten this one). Think I have the best of all possible worlds in the rMB. Still settling in after 3 weeks. I was using Mac Pro 2006 w/ Lion and needed something new. Family members like their MBA's and iMac.

rMB with its trackpad and 3D Touch, "Gestures" seems somewhat similar to my MS Surface that I abandoned.

I have though is an addiction to backups, clone, and annoyed at how slow and cumbersome cloud based uploads for backup and storage has been (Amazon, OneDrive, Google) having 30Mb download but only 2.5Mb upload capability.

I can do a lot with iPhone, iPad or any tablet. I have 7" for reading ebooks, 8" was awkward and too wide and heavy, 10" also (with pen), and the Surface. Plus iPad Mini4. The rMB fills a slot, a need.

I bought Magic Mouse 2 along with Apple keyboard which is same size as rMB. Logitech MX2 feels right at home and makes me more productive. Call it a crutch but even with a MBP I would want a full size desktop experience and 24" monitor and never an iMac, or a larger laptop. Pick up rMB and take it from my home "office" room to the living room, or to doctor's appointment where it's excellent battery life thanks to how it sips power (and issues with MBP battery is a think of the past).

A mag power connector was and is not perfect. The Surface has had one.

Remember the docking station that you could slide your Powerbook into and would connect to monitor etc? Then slide it out and take it to work? One computer-laptop. My setup isn't or won't be much different.

OWC has a rMB dock coming out for those that want that convenience that plugs into the one USB-C port.

The design of the MacBook held me off until now. Now I am amazed at its specs, design, and performance.

Sometimes you can sit on the fence but eventually have to take a chance and live with and experience as far as first hand experience.

I await OWC 10-port dock. I have the best of portable and desktop. And I get to decide, choose, and configure.
 
Sportscar: Form factor means everything, sexy design prioritized over utility.

RMB: Form factor means everything, sexy design prioritized over utility.

In my experience with both, the rMB is not equiv to a sportscar. Sportscars prioritize performance first and foremost. I love my rMB, but it is more like a "Smart" car than an Aston, in that regard.
 
It's a very misunderstood device. And it's probably the best piece of hardware Apple has ever created.

BJ

Misunderstood? Sure. If you live wirelessly, the port isn't a problem.

Best device Apple ever created? Sorry but no. It's very much a version 1 product.

Newer CPUs and GPUs will help it. The quality of the web cam is inexcusable. There are far better cameras on Apple's phones.
 
Misunderstood? Sure. If you live wirelessly, the port isn't a problem.

Best device Apple ever created? Sorry but no. It's very much a version 1 product.

Newer CPUs and GPUs will help it. The quality of the web cam is inexcusable. There are far better cameras on Apple's phones.

Exactly, it's a forward-thinking cloud-supported notebook so if you have a USB external drive or a CD burner or VGA projectors, the RMB isn't for you.

The RMB is the best device Apple has ever created because they took everything that's great in their notebooks and combined it with the knowledge and design of the very best of their iOS devices and showed the world what the future looks like and what's possible.

RMB customers don't care about CPU's and GPU's and so no help is necessary. Apple would be best to spend their time in the notebook division on the Air and the Pro which are so old they're practically ready for retirement.

BJ
 
The tone of your original post was pointing the finger of blame at Apple, not yourself.

Just as you wouldn't blame Chevrolet for making their 2-seater weekend sportscar a 2-seater weekend sportscar, you shouldn't blame Apple for making their ultra-portable cable-free notebook an ultra-portable cable-free notebook.

You made a mistake, used your imagination to make the RMB into something it wasn't meant to be, it happens. Three weeks until the keynote, perhaps a new MacBook Pro will emerge that will suit you properly.

BJ

Oh hardly. Some people are just too uptight and too ready to jump down someone's throat if they feel Apple is being criticised. I did not interpret the OP's post as an outrageous slight on Apple, it was more a 'musing out loud'.
 
Exactly, it's a forward-thinking cloud-supported notebook so if you have a USB external drive or a CD burner or VGA projectors, the RMB isn't for you.

The RMB is the best device Apple has ever created because they took everything that's great in their notebooks and combined it with the knowledge and design of the very best of their iOS devices and showed the world what the future looks like and what's possible.

RMB customers don't care about CPU's and GPU's and so no help is necessary. Apple would be best to spend their time in the notebook division on the Air and the Pro which are so old they're practically ready for retirement.

BJ

the Retina macbook could, and should have had a better webcam.
the new skylake onwards CPUs will be far more suitable to its form factor.

Apple did what they could, other than the webcam, but like the original Macbook Air, it is a machine that was put out a little while before the technology was really ready.

USB C is another example of this - one port is all well and good, but if its a port with literally zero peripherals on the market, it's pretty useless.

I know why apple did it - they want to push standards to become accepted but from an end user perspective it's most certainly NOT the best product apple has put out in my opinion.

For me, the "best" products apple have made would be

- the iPhone 4-S
- The 2011 Macbook Airs

At the time they came out they were real winners - best in class (at the time) without anywhere near as much compromise.

The rMB is just a smaller retina macbook with no ports. Which is fine if thats what you want, but best product ever? Come on... The keyboard is very polarising for a start and a lot of people hate it.
 
The rmb has one port, that is a fact. All other comments about that fact being an issue, a mistake, a timing problem, ... are just opinions. If this laptop does not work for you, just buy another one, there is plenty of choice.

Actually it has two ports. A multi-function USB-C and a single function 3.5mm audio jack.

If they add a second USB C port on the next iteration, doesnt that make most of this irrelevant then?

It's unlikely Apple will replace the 3.5mm Jack with a 2nd USB-C port, especially if Apple drops the 3.5mm Jack on the iPhone 7 as rumored. If Apple does move to Lightning for wired mobile audio connections, then they will replace the 3.5mm Jack on the rMB with a Lightning 2 port, for cross platform compatibility with Lightning audio connections.

The up side of this is that there will be a second multi-function port capable of USB 3.0 speeds, and not just a single function, redundant audio port. The down side is that to use it with anything other than a Lightning accessory, it will require an adapter, which was the OPs problem to begin with.

Now to be fair, your assumption that replacing the 3.5mm Jack with a 2nd USB-C will improve the OPs situation, but it won't, since it doesn't solve the adapter problem, only the pass-through charging issue, and multiple device at once use. And it will require yet another adapter to plug in a set of headphones.
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When I need a USB flash drive, Sandisk's dual USB has been a big help. No dongle required, and this will only increase as USB C starts to take off.

When is that going to happen exactly? The rMB is a year old now.

I carry my adaptor, along with my charging block and phone cord in my purse...

..maybe you needed a purse.

I carry my adapters, cables, and chargers in my backpack, along with my MacBook.

1. I bought it knowing it needed adapters, and was ok with the idea. Unfortunately, the reality of unplugging/plugging, forgetting things ,etc made it unbearable. I wanted it to be perfect for me and it was but it got old quick. At home I work on a 27 monitor so I needed that $80 adapter. It just became too annoying for me.

4. Yes I still have an external hard drive. After purchasing the mbr I did sign up for dropbox to go to cloud hosting. However, to begin using that I still needed the USB drive to transfer things. It took forever and by the time I returned it I still was nowhere done. The other stuff was my iPhone charger, my monitor at home, and printer setup.

I had to laugh at the suggestion that the solution to your core problem of using adapters to charge your phone, could be solved by leaving behind the adapter, which weighs nothing, and instead carry a charging cube!

Do you know how many charging cubes I've lost over the years? I had to start buying them by the dozen (literally $10/5 cheap Chinese knock-offs -- and they work great).

But I will say this, home is one thing, on the go is another. I have a MacBook Pro, which requires an adaptor for Ethernet! Apple doesn't make a MacBook with a built-in Ethernet port anymore. So working on a professional campus where the secure network can only be accessed by Ethernet is a real PITA. So the adapter thing is a little nuts, when I can't buy a pro notebook with an Ethernet port.

One of the selling points of the rMB is the exceptional battery life, making it the perfect charging port when on the go without carrying yet another thing. Normally, I would suggest you buy a USB-C to Lightning cable to eliminate the adapter problem, but of course the problem with that is Apple doesn't make one. In fact I'd suggest that and update your power bricks at home with adapters (that way you won't have to keep track of them, and you'll just have one cord for them all still). But then Apple doesn't make the cord, so ...

In the end, it seems like the biggest issue is needing all those adapters in the first place, which of course aren't cheap.

I do appreciate the post, since it highlights one of those things people often don't think about when buying the latest and greatest technology.
 
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the Retina macbook could, and should have had a better webcam.
the new skylake onwards CPUs will be far more suitable to its form factor.

Apple did what they could, other than the webcam, but like the original Macbook Air, it is a machine that was put out a little while before the technology was really ready.

USB C is another example of this - one port is all well and good, but if its a port with literally zero peripherals on the market, it's pretty useless.

I know why apple did it - they want to push standards to become accepted but from an end user perspective it's most certainly NOT the best product apple has put out in my opinion.

For me, the "best" products apple have made would be

- the iPhone 4-S
- The 2011 Macbook Airs

At the time they came out they were real winners - best in class (at the time) without anywhere near as much compromise.

The rMB is just a smaller retina macbook with no ports. Which is fine if thats what you want, but best product ever? Come on... The keyboard is very polarising for a start and a lot of people hate it.

Most think the reason the RMB is such a revolutionary product is because of its form-factor, and in many ways that a good answer.

But dig deeper and the real reason the RMB is the best product Apple has ever made is because it admits to itself that it's only going to carry that which its customers truly need and its not going to encumber us with that which we won't. It's a complete breath of fresh air in that regard. RMB owners don't need hot processors as we don't push our notebooks to the limit. So they gave us one that's more than suitable and allows for a fanless design which is more important. RMB owners don't use peripherals when we travel. So they gave us a notebook without the customary boilerplate Swiss Army knife of 20 year old ports which reduces thickness, weight, and battery drain which is fare more important. Over and over, Apple simply said "no" to these balls and chains that we carried around for decades for no reason.

As for the keyboard, you're dead wrong. Apple's notebooks have these strange keys that look like little squares of gum and are spaced too far apart. The rest of the world uses a normal keyboard without the strange spacing, I can type much better on my RMB than my son's Pro any day of the week.

Some people don't like change. That's why Apple makes the Air. Some people embrace change. That's why Apple finally introduced a product like the RMB. The good news is that Apple makes a lot of notebooks that can satisfy a lot of people. That's a good thing.

BJ
 
As for the keyboard, you're dead wrong. Apple's notebooks have these strange keys that look like little squares of gum and are spaced too far apart.

And I say (tongue in cheek) "you're wrong". Some people can't deal with the rMB keyboard. My ex being one of them. Loved her 2010 Air, hated the keyboard on the rMB (she bought one). I've tried it, don't like it either. The internet is full of people hating on it. Yes, some love it. But a lot don't.

I'm not actually saying "you're wrong" though. I'm saying that it is a polarising feature, and apple has immediately alienated a bunch of users with it.

Also, you might want to look at what "the rest of the world" is doing, because for the past 5 years every HP notebook my company has bought (elite book 8560 onwards, and 2560 onwards) has had keys like the Macbook Pro. My Surface Pro 4 type cover has keys like the macbook pro.

I agree with you on what Apple was trying to do with the rMB, and that's fine. It certainly doesn't make it the best apple product ever though. Maybe your favourite, but it's certainly not universally loved, and a lot of Apple's customers actually dislike many aspects of it.
 
And I say (tongue in cheek) "you're wrong". Some people can't deal with the rMB keyboard. My ex being one of them. Loved her 2010 Air, hated the keyboard on the rMB (she bought one). I've tried it, don't like it either. The internet is full of people hating on it. Yes, some love it. But a lot don't.

You will always find more people hating something on the internet compared to loving it. So "Yes, some love it. But a lot don't", doesn't mean a damn thing.
 
And I say (tongue in cheek) "you're wrong". Some people can't deal with the rMB keyboard. My ex being one of them. Loved her 2010 Air, hated the keyboard on the rMB (she bought one). I've tried it, don't like it either. The internet is full of people hating on it. Yes, some love it. But a lot don't.

I'm not actually saying "you're wrong" though. I'm saying that it is a polarising feature, and apple has immediately alienated a bunch of users with it.

Also, you might want to look at what "the rest of the world" is doing, because for the past 5 years every HP notebook my company has bought (elite book 8560 onwards, and 2560 onwards) has had keys like the Macbook Pro. My Surface Pro 4 type cover has keys like the macbook pro.

I agree with you on what Apple was trying to do with the rMB, and that's fine. It certainly doesn't make it the best apple product ever though. Maybe your favourite, but it's certainly not universally loved, and a lot of Apple's customers actually dislike many aspects of it.


What tends to amuse me about these kinds of conversations is that we're talking about an expensive piece of consumer electronics, and one that's easily experienced in scores of stores around the world and reviewed ad infinitum in print, on websites, and on video. It's not like someone ordered a $15 meal at a restaurant, expects Chicken Francese to taste a certain way, and was disappointed. Not like there's some secret chef at Apple sneaking out products you can only taste once you've committed to pay. These are $1,500 devices reviewed everywhere and able to be experienced everywhere. If your ex doesn't like her RMB's keyboard, that's on her, not Apple. Apple makes a lot of other notebooks with keyboards she might like.

The RMB is a polarizing notebook only because there are too many people who cannot use their imaginations to understand what life is like for the silent majority who are forced to lug around huge notebooks full of ports they don't need, features they'll never use, and processing horsepower they have no purpose for. This is the first notebook designed for a common user who is willing to pay a premium price for style and portability. The people who cry out "What a stupid notebook! It doesn't have ports and it's processor is a decade old!" just don't get it. Those aren't downsides; those are features. I must have dragged SD card slots and their height and their weight and their battery drain over a million miles around the world and never used them once. Apple gets this, their customers get this too.

BJ
 
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