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$2 even does seem a little steep for production. With a couple bucks over here in Asia for you can get quite far.

for 2 bucks:
- 8Gb Micro SD
- 2 pieces of silicone bumpers for the iPhone
- a two meter lightning cable (white) or 30Pin cables
- a lightning cable with woven cableprotector
- a small USB BT4.0 dongle
- a 4 port USB2.0 hub
- various models of cheap in-ear headphones including microphone and volume control
- 2 pieces of original-looking iPhone adaptors
- Screwdriver/plyers/... set for opening your iPhone
- various other USB hubs/adaptors/convertors/cables/etc

Let's be crazy and spend 5 bucks:
- USB 2.0 ethernet adapter (featuring a real Apple 'look')
- MBA neoprene carrying pouch.
- a original-looking iPad adaptor with 3 USB ports
- Better quality earphones (like the Xiaomi ones - not bad at all)
- 2 pieces of iPhone 5 earpods (they call it the 'OEM' version hahaha)
- Various iPad adaptors (VGA / DVI / cardreaders / sound etc) original looking
- Replacement battery for 4/4S/5/5S.


Granted, these are all Chinese knock-offs, but these are RETAIL end user prices in various malls. There's not much profit margin on these, but still, production costs are just a fraction of these $2 dollar items.

Watch out though, these 'original-looking' $1 iPhone adaptors are the ones which came in the news that caught fire last year.

sorry, you didn't explain how you knew the cost of the $79 adapter. but, if you're enjoying $2 or $5 earbuds... :rolleyes:
 
sorry, you didn't explain how you knew the cost of the $79 adapter. but, if you're enjoying $2 or $5 earbuds... :rolleyes:
I was not the OP, I just replied with my findings.
And I'm not enjoying $5 earbuds neither. I do enjoy those $1 silicone bumpers though. Best dollar spent!
The statement I wanted to make was that production costs are virtually nothing. And there's a huge market for them. 3rd party accessory production lines where started up during the keynote. They're coming!
 
Never been interested in an Air, they are too underpowered but a single port is ridiculous. The point of a laptop is mobility and carrying around a bunch of adapters hinders that.

The point of a laptop is mobility, and carrying around a bunch of peripherals to connect to it hinders that.

I smile at people who insist on trying to turn an iPad into a laptop - adding keyboard, decrying the lack of mouse (seriously!). Then you have those who use a laptop as desktop. External hard drives, mice. It's a portable device. If you want a workstation, get a workstation. For those who need a portable workstation, Apple offer other options. They are right there on the site with MagSafe, ports and more power. Choose one of those instead - you are not the target audience for the new MacBook.

£40 printers are wireless, Bluetooth earphones commonplace, wireless mice, graphics tablets and external trackpads (if you really need them). So all that leaves you is charging and maybe an external hard drive. I remember the furore when Apple introduced the wireless keyboard and everyone lost those two 'essential' extra USB ports in the ends of the keyboard.

Is it perfect? No, of course not - I'd imagine many of the users this device is targeted at will not be happy by the very low resolution facetime camera. Actually, no they won't because the average joe won't even notice.

It's a lightweight ultra portable with a battery life long enough for the working/school day, it looks pretty and its fit for the average users Facebook/web browsing, excel/word use and email, along with a little bit of a play on a pirated version of Photoshop.

It will be another sure fire hit, the same as every industry changer before it. Just bow to the inevitable and accept that Apple focusses the 'pro' line at professionals and pretty, dumbed down machines for everyone else.

The iMac was introduced - no floppy?! USB?!
The iPhone was introduced - guaranteed flop
The iPad - sounds like a panty liner, it's just a big iPhone, no ports!
Optical drives were dropped - Apple is Doomed (TM)
Apple watch and new MacBook - here we go again...
 
Needing an adapter to have power and an external monitor is just crazy.

Crazy? For a portable laptop computer... Hmmm. Portable = on the move (not plugged in) and laptop - on your lap.

Perhaps you're confusing this with a desktop workstation that doesn't have a battery or sit on your lap and therefore requires a desk, power and maybe an external monitor.

Let me clarify for you.

Phone
Tablet
Entry level laptop for ultra portability
Pro level laptop for work in the move with lots of ports
Entry/mid level desktop
High end pro work station.

Each of those have a target audience, and Apple appear to provide all of them.

In addition, Apple provide dongles if you want to adapt the devices to your specific use, alongside other manufacturer solutions.

I would imagine the next iteration of the pro devices will also include USB-C ports.

And for those who want other devices, other manufacturers are available.
 
I'm a road warrior and I see the hypocrisy in this laptop design. Accolades for being 2 pounds, but what's really needed is 5 additional pounds and the extra mass to have most essentials at hand for what normally would have been included in a normal laptop.

This new laptop is like the metrosexual going for a latte laptop. "Oh, look. It's only 2 pounds."


But by the same token, I remember Apple abandoning the small computer systems interface (SCSI) and I thought that was a step backward.
 
I'm worried at their plans for future MBPs. I love the MagSafe.... well the 1st gen one anyway. I've yanked my former PC notebooks too many times and loved the 1st gen magsafe. As someone who uses the laptop a lot on the lap (usually sitting in bed), it always stayed on and didn't get in the way. The 2nd gen too easily pops off if I nudge it, but at least I don't yank the whole thing to the floor, nor bend the fragile cord.

On my late-2013 MBP, I honestly rarely have both USB ports in use, but at times it would have been very annoying not to have. I frequently use 1 port, as I charge my iPad or iPod on it. Not that I'm in the market for the new MacBook, but if the 13-inch MBP goes this direction.... ouch!

I'm all for standardization and non-proprietary ports, but what's the point if I need to get adapters/hubs for everything? For someone who doesn't need the frequent use of periperhals, I rarely buy adapters. But with the limitations, I have had to sometimes use my old MBP (optical drive, ethernet, displayport) or use my good ol' desktop PC to do things. An annoyance, really. I get it for ultralights, but not for the workhorses.
 
Well the move is clear. Airs were powerful & light enough to "compete" against basic MBP's (13"), also much cheaper ($300). The only difference factor was the retina display. Now Apple releases a "consumer Macbook" with retina and less powerful than Airs to differentiate it from Pro's (which will converge or make Airs disappear).
Result: MBP's with same prices as before (except you are living outside U.S, then you are f*cked up), no competence for Pro gamma, and a much more expensive "casual ultrabook" and less cappable/powerful than MBA. So yeah,

Great Apple, you did it again!: more cash to pay for worse & less options (keep in mind that Airs will disappear soon).
 
MagSafe has saved many of my MacBook Pro's over the years and therefore I see no joy of not having one. Put in a MagSafe and USB-C and I'm not complaining.
 
Here's the dilemma... you can't have more than one charging port on a computer without running into potential problems. If you keep Magsafe, you can't allow charging through the USB-C port which defeats half the purpose of having it in the first place. Same can be said for having multiple USB-C ports. This is not to say there aren't potential work-arounds or safeguards that could be built into the Macbook but clearly Apple hasn't reached that point.

Who said there wasnt a solution for this. It has to be possible to mage the usbc connector (somehow) magsafe
 
So they're back to laptops landing on floors when pets and kids trip over cords. Awesome for repair revenue!

The upside is its a one plug dock solution

Power. usb going to a usb dock. Monitor. Unplug one plug and you're off. So I get it. It just should have been MagSafe capable before being released. I don't think Steve would have thought this was the right implementation
 
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I think we can all agree that cordless computing is the future, but for some people it's not the right choice at present.

Therefore: Apple should NEVER have included this machine in their lineup. The best way to reach the future is to embrace the past--forever! If anyone wants the future now, there should NOT be an option for them.

Apple was wrong to ditch floppy drives. They were wrong to make optical drives an external option. They were wrong when they first made USB standard while the rest of the industry was still embracing serial ports.

Now they are wrong to think people will be willing to use a laptop without a power cord attached. We MUST have a power cord, we MUST never change to a better USB port, and we MUST have multiple corded devices hanging off the smallest portable model.

Please, Apple, give us something like the old MacBook Air. Put a new processor in that, instead! The FUTURE is NEVER!

The first gen MBA was garbage . I would just like to thank all the early adopters who tested these machines for us, resulting what it a great MBA these days.

Did you get the first MBA? You must have , to lead us into the future ;)

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So they're back to laptops landing on floors when pets and kids trip over cords. Awesome for repair revenue!

The upside is its a one plug dock solution

Power usb going to a usb dock. Monitor. Unplug one plug and you're off. So I get it. T just should have been MagSafe capable before being released. I don't thinks twice would have thought this was the right implementation

One of the best things about apple laptops is the MagSafe. Disappointed apple dropped it.

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No Thnderbolt2????

Of course not, people have adapters that fit those ;) and the TB adapters are cheap compared to the USB-c
 
- a original-looking iPad adaptor with 3 USB ports
The fact it's "original-looking" doesn't mean it actually features the same internal safety features, which is kinda a big thing. I'd rather pay more for a safe product, rather than having a cheap counterpart burn down my house.
 
End of MagSafe

EU regulation

As a step to reduce the total number of chargers filling landfills, hardware manufacturers are required to conform to a standard. My guess is that ALL laptops will use USB-C for power, just like all phones have been required to use USB. Not sure how Apple got away with the lightning connection but i think the next iPhone will do away with it. People will critizise Apple for it but in the end it is better for everyone if everybody uses the same connectors. I assume some sort of USB-C-mini is in the works as the standard USB-C is way too large for a mobile phone.

Too bad about the MagSafe, the security it gave in not having your laptop crash to the floor was great. In my opinion, Apple should have rather given away a licence to enable the MagSafe feature to be combined with USB-C.

My 2 cents
 
Is this me or does this sound like a contradiction...

I don't think it's just you :confused:

- You two need to learn some logic.
It's not a contradiction. A product might very well add limitations in some respects, but open up opportunities in another.

Just like choosing to eat at McDonald's adds the limitation of not being able to have sushi (or whatever else they don't serve), but opens up the possibility of having french fries (or whatever else they do serve).

The following would be a contradiction:
"USB-C adds limitations and doesn't add limitations" (two contradicting statements saying exactly the opposite of one another).
 
less than intelligent laws...

I hate that I have to carry around my external cd drive I think most people givin the choice would prefer the cd drive. I'm not a fan of being forced to by movies and music on my iTunes account. I prefer to have the hard disc W/ digital copy

so rip it at home and have a digital copy on your computer... oh you're American. DMCA stops you... too bad. That is one stupid piece of legislation. It should be your right to (one you bought the DVD or BD) put ot on any device you own.
 
Now you can trip over the cable pulling your expensive new macbook down onto the solid concrete floor below...........just like the good old days!

Why does Apple solve problems, then improve them by making them worse? I swear to God, Apple is beginning to look more and more under Tim Cook like Microsoft did under Ballmer - Windows 8 - yeah that was an improvement!
 
So much for Apple backing their own I/O like Thunderbolt and Lighting in the pursuit of thinness.

I really hope that Apple doesn't gut the MacBook Pro along with their desktops and remove ports like Thunderbolt. Many of us still need the power and don't mind carrying an additional .10mm of thickness in our devices.
 
"USB-C is a brand new technology, but with Apple embracing it, it won't be long before we see tons of companies racing to produce USB-C compatible products."

Like Thunderbolt did?

In fact, USB-C / USB 3.1 means that anyone else thinking about Thunderbolt, has an almost as fast alternative as Thunderbolt, with affordable cables. USB-C with full USB 3.1 is 10Gb/s (Thunderbolt 1 speeds) with the convenience of the reversible connector.

Companies will embrace it, but perhaps not because of Apple.

There are a couple of corner cases such as external video cards where USB-C / USB 3.1 won't do the job, so perhaps Thunderbolt could live on to serve those niche markets.

The new Nokia N1 tablet will use the connector, even though it appears to use the slower USB-2.0 protocol. MSI will use it in their new gaming notebook and on motherboards.
http://www.cnet.com/news/usb-type-c-hands-on-its-here-and-its-great/

The reason for the somewhat crippled design on the new Macbook probably comes down to a number of design goals. Cutting down on the number of interfaces helps with thinness, power consumption and the fanless design. Plus they wanted to be one of the first to market, so they can claim that they led the way, even if everyone else was already heading in the same direction.
 
There are a couple of corner cases such as external video cards where USB-C / USB 3.1 won't do the job, so perhaps Thunderbolt could live on to serve those niche markets.

The reason for the somewhat crippled design on the new Macbook probably comes down to a number of design goals. Cutting down on interfaces helps with thinness, power consumption and the fanless design. Plus they wanted to be one of the first to market, so they can claim that they led the way, even if everyone else was already heading in the same direction.

thunderbolt = the new firewire.
none of the unibody MacBooks had it!

I thought everyone else was heading towards the laptop/tablet hybrids, not super-portable laptops.
 
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