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Not making excuses for apple, but is that all surprising. They were less then pleased when the people rolled out SSD upgrades to the MBA. So I'm sure they redesigned them in a way that will prevent someone else from doing the same (at least legally)

Actually I read that the design was changed to accommodate a different bus bandwidth and that the third party people were already working on a solution. I doubt seriously it was designed JUST to thwart current third party upgrades, although no doubt that is considered a side benefit to Apple. Keep in mind Apple has been working on this design for a long time.

Apple's 'defense' against third party upgrades will stay the same, it voids the warranty. And with these machines being harder to fix, that means a lot.
 
Anyone else think "Retina MacBook Pro" is going to start being too much of a mouthful?

How about "Retina Book"? We already call the iPod Touch the "iTouch".


Edit: Wow -10. Looks like I angered the Macrumor gods
 
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8g should be suffient for most NOW its in the future problems could occur. Best thing for Apple is that PROS might add extra ram making more money for Apple. Main thing is to purchase AppleCare anyway. Most PROS or money people will upgrade within the 3 year period.

For such an expensive product it's a shame but that's the price you pay for wanting thin laptops/desktops
 
It still amazes me how much power is packed into that tiny logic board. Oh well, as long as Apple keeps the old MacBook Pro conventional design for a little while longer then that will satisfy some customers.
 
I know I am shocked. Just shocked. I will definitely leave Apple now to find something much bigger and heavier that I can take apart with my walmart screw drivers.

Or I could just enjoy using a lighter machine with a beautiful display.

Classic.
 
People want faster, premium performance in increasingly smaller form factors. When that happens, the way things are put together has to change. Apple did an amazing job of cramming everything into that tiny, thin case. It's not surprising that they had to use custom parts in order to do it. If there's a piece that prevents you from fitting everything together, would you rather have them say, "Nope, we can't do it. It just won't fit, we have to make the case thicker" or would you rather have them come up with a solution? Custom parts are the solution, because they can be made to whatever size is needed.

This is definitely a strong reason to purchase Applecare. I generally think it's a good idea for all laptops, but I'd say it's a necessity for this one.
 
Doesn't cover wear and tear.

re apple care...

and what does? do you want to swap out the body to replace 'wear and tear'? or do you mean you want to be able to replace parts if you drop the machine? There is a program to swap batteries on the unibody (the part that can wear out). There is less wear and tear with flash drives. Not sure what wear and tear you think should be covered by Apple Care that is a real concern.
 
Necessary to push the industry forward, I think.

One day, these kinds of laptops will be able to be repair-friendly. Until then, if you want a great machine in a small package you'll have to deal with it.

I think it's a fine tradeoff, even though it's not exactly desirable to possibly have to replace a large part of or the entire machine to replace one part.
 
Anyone else think "Retina MacBook Pro" is going to start being too much of a mouthful?

How about "Retina Book"? We already call the iPod Touch the "iTouch".

MacBook Pro Pro or Pro Pro for short. Kidding aside, I remember seeing hi-res pro a lot here in the past months so maybe that will stick.
 
The fact that it's completely solid state is very helpful though. You shouldn't have any problems unless it's simply a lemon. The two most common failures on older laptops are the hard disk and the DVD drive. Apple's batteries are a lot better than they used to be too.
 
The only thing I hate about this is the battery. If the battery dies you can't replace it yourself.
I find that awful, too. The only problems I've ever had with my MacBooks/Powerbooks have been the batteries. They always die. ALWAYS. I've had to replace the battery in every machine I've used since 1999.

What happens when this MBP I'm using right now (Late 2011) loses all reasonable battery function? It's going to suck because I'm not really ifixit-compatible. Not that many people are -- in the grand scheme.
 
What annoys me isn't so much the non user friendly thing, but the fact that they have built this thing as if nothing is to ever go wrong with it. A battery or trackpad replacement on this is gonna be a real bitch. Technicians are gonna hate it.
 
What can we expect when the battery dies? Very expensive battery change by Apple? replace Macbook?

Batteries still have a max loading cycles. On my current Macbook Pro I had to replace the battery just after two years of use.
 
Doesn't cover wear and tear.

You can stretch Applecare. They often offer discounted replacement costs if they can't fix he wear and tear. Also, if the damage can somehow threaten anyone's safety, they will make exceptions. Applecare is the best warranty out there.

Examples:

-Water on laptop, fried the board. Took it to Apple, they said it would cost $700 to replace since it wasn't a manufacturing defect. However, they still couldn't fix it, so they sent back a brand new laptop. A newer laptop for $700.

-Flayed power cord. Apple said they couldn't replace it. Got manager on the phone, explained safety issues, they replaced it for free.

-Not to mention all the phones I've seen replaced over the years.
 
Is Ram interchangeable in the MBPR?

Sure!

5038-1.jpg
 
Glue?

I don't really care that the RAM is soldered in and that the SSD is a new proprietary piece. I came to terms with that kind of thing with my MBA. The battery though. I just can't bring myself to buy a computer with a non-replaceable battery. No way. I've spent the last couple days talking myself into selling my Air and buying this machine. Not now.
 
The only thing I hate about this is the battery. If the battery dies you can't replace it yourself.
And if a brick falls on you while you're not wearing a helmet, you'll die.

Some risks are worth taking and not thinking about.

If you don't want to, Apple still sells the thick non-Retina MBP. Enjoy.
 
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