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Stolen MacBook Pro Schematics Confirm Apple's Plans to Add More Ports and Remove Touch Bar
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In previous history, each TB controller was used to drive 2 ports, giving a maximum of 2 DisplayPort streams between both ports - and without support for DisplayPort 1.4, each 5K display needed 2 streams, so, no.
Starting with the M1 Air/Mini/13” MBP, each TB port has had its own controller - the new M1 machines actually have twice the TB bandwidth of the 2 port machines they replaced. The display limitations are now simply because the M1 GPU only supports 2 displays (and one of those is hardwired because laptops need that for an internal display) - if it supported more then each TB port could drive a 5K Ultrafine.
If the M1X/M2/whatever GPU can’t drive more displays than the M1 then that’s gonna suck, and be a huge downgrade for the 16”MBP and 5k iMac, but it would be a failing of Apple’s SoC choices, not down to the number of ports. Bear in mind that there’s no point physically supporting 4-5 displays if the GPU doesn’t have the grunt to drive them smoothly (including the scaled modes that MacOS needs to get sensible real-estate on UHD screens).
NB: I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that the third “Thunderbolt“ port is actually just a USB port, as per the new iMac. So we might be looking at a downgrade to 2 TB3/4 ports - mitigated by those being full-bandwidth ports with independent controllers and that (a) you can now get TB hubs with multiple downstream TB ports, to take advantage of those double-bandwidth ports and (b) going forward, new displays will be using DP 1.4 so you won’t need two streams to drive better-than 4K displays. Not that anybody is making 5k displays at the moment...
I think a new MBP would use the same connector as the iMac. Probably a way to cleanly support 10GB ethernet as well? Although they don't call the magnetic connector on the iMac 'magsafe'.
For now, yes.
Just like there were people carrying around USB floppy drives in 1998 and external DVD drives in 2008. That didn't make it a good reason to bring back those ancient technologies then, and this doesn't now.
The industry needs to move on, and bringing back legacy ports will just make the transition longer and more painful.
HDMI will disappear from conference rooms sooner or later, and end up where it belongs, alongside VGA and DVI.
Clearly no one ever tripped over your charging cable.
Except with the M1 machines each TB3 port now has its own controller - whereas the Intel models shared 1 controller between 2 ports. So even an Air now has the same TB3 bandwidth as the old 4-port MBPs and they now support TB4 hubs with multiple downstream TB ports, so just hang your TB SSDs and Ethernet off one of those (they’re not going to use more than 40GB/s between them) and plug your display into port 2. If it’s only a 4K or lower display, hang everything off the hub and enjoy single-cable docking.
That leaves you a free TB port (although I suspect that might be a USB-only port, as per the new iMac).
I‘d suggest placing old 5.25” floppy write-protect stickers over the HDMI and SD ports as a neat life-hack to stop their presence from offending you. I’m sure the guys who made the HomePod coasters will sell them at a reasonable $15 each.
Sure, 4 TB3 ports would be better than 2 or 3, everything else being equal, and the new M1X/M2 needs to support more displays than the M1 - but if you don’t get that it will be because Apple have cheaped out on the SoC and not given it enough TB controllers or (switchable) DisplayPort streams, not because of the evil presence SD and HDMI ports (which use a fraction of the resources of an extra TB port).
You know what else would keep those other 3 usbC ports free? a 4th USBC port instead of MagSafe. I have zero interest in a proprietary charging device to carry around when my USBC charger can charge my current laptop, iPad Pro, and iPhone.
Never once. I rather do the smart thing and have my charging cable carefully placed versus replying on MagSafe.
These have got to be sarcastic responses. This is MacRumors. All they do is take in "rumored" leaked information and post it.
That is weird as throughput wise USB-C should be able to handle it but I have issue with my USB-a mouse on my 2013 iMac (it will stop responding for a while and then wake up) so this may be due to something else.
While I agree it doesn't happen often, everyone I work with that went from MagSafe to USB-C has complained.
The Touch Bar was never really used by anyone, but only a few complained. Taking out the row of keys was the main issue. Add the Touch Bar, but don't remove buttons.
Can’t believe all of the people commenting on “posting stolen information”. Are you guys f***ing serious? This is a RUMOR site. Do you understand the nature of rumors? Most of the stuff posted on here is either stolen or a breach of someone’s NDA.
Apple probably has no intention of paying regardless of how it’s being circulated, otherwise they would have already done so before any files leaked. Circulating the info is not going to “add pressure to Apple”. If these are genuine schematics and the leaker has more, Apple likely knows what they have and has calculated the risk.
Apple probably has no intention of paying regardless of how it’s being circulated, otherwise they would have already done so before any files leaked. Circulating the info is not going to “add pressure to Apple”. If these are genuine schematics and the leaker has more, Apple likely knows what they have and has calculated the risk.
I was pretty disappointed they didn't manage to get the inverted-T arrow key layout back in. They did it on the newer MacBook keyboards and touted it as an improvement.
When it was suggested that to use HDMI devices with a pure-TB3 machine, you could just use a <checks notes> $25 bus powered USB-C hub with HDMI out and even your precious SD card and USB type-A ports, or a $11 USB-C to HDMI adapter, or a $13 USB-C to HDMI cable, this was considered "too hard".
Yet now you're happy to suggest that those who actually have use for those USB-C ports, should use a USB4 hub, to regain said ports. The cheapest USB4 hub I've seen is $220, and every one I've seen requires AC power.
But let's ignore all that. You keep making this argument that because it's 1 controller per port a hub "is fine" because it's "the same bandwidth" as the previous generation. But this ignores how thunderbolt works: the controller is fed X lanes of PCIe, and Y DisplayPort streams. So if you have a ~2016-2020 MBP15/16, and plug two PCIe devices into one side, they shared the 4 lanes. This is what you're referring to.
But if you were to say, plug a DisplayPort display into one port and a PCIe device into the other, on one side: there's no contention, there's no competition for bandwidth.
In a 2-TB4 port laptop you lose that, because the moment you go externally to a Hub, you're forcing it to multiplex the two.
You also seem to be very picky about which actions by Apple you consider indicative of any new model. The M1 Mini has hardwired HDMI - but you continually dismiss the idea that a MBP would do this. But then you also keep insisting that because the current M1 Macs have 1 TB controller per port, all future M-whatever Macs will also have 1 controller per port. It's almost like you're cherry picking facts that support your argument and dismissing those that don't.
I downvoted your post because it’s clearly not an additional option. Instead, a single use port replaces a multiple-choice port!
Apologies if this has already been noted on this thread and I have missed it but I was particularly pleased to see Whamola included in the leaked documents, complete with MagSafe.
As someone who appreciates real ethernet rather than wifi alone, or a TB3-stealing dongle, the return of a physical ethernet port is most welcome. Being included via the charging brick and with the added bonus of being used with the MagSafe connector is a genius move.
Well, I'm happy anyway. Now back to the MR bickering...
As someone who appreciates real ethernet rather than wifi alone, or a TB3-stealing dongle, the return of a physical ethernet port is most welcome. Being included via the charging brick and with the added bonus of being used with the MagSafe connector is a genius move.
Well, I'm happy anyway. Now back to the MR bickering...
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Apple may be annoyed not to surprise people when these are finally released, but the product itself seems really good. A more powerful CPU than M1, a new design, the return of key ports and ditching the Touch Bar (sorry Touch Bar fans!).
The only surprise at this point would be if it didn't sell like hot cakes.
The only surprise at this point would be if it didn't sell like hot cakes.
These machines better still support Thunderbolt/USB-C charging or there are going to be a lot of people with Thunderbolt and USB-C docks, including myself, that are going to be pissed that we no longer have a one cable docking option (and that we can't keep using our current docks)
I'll be following this closely as it will be interesting to see how Apple handles it.
Oh let’s not pretend you haven’t been “creative” on your taxes so you can get off your Anti-Apple moral ground. (provided you receive an income.). Avoiding ways to pay taxes is not illegal or unethical. You’re confusing ethics with legalities. Hardly the same. I just love how some people here have the audacity to crap on Apple about paying taxes when no doubt more than 50% of the people here required to pay taxes find ways not to pay, for example by requesting their payer to give them funds under the table, and often not even filing.