Waiting for the 2018 MBP

[Ener Ji]

I hope Apple adds the True Depth Camera with Face ID to next years MacBook Pro. If they do, they already have a buyer.

Same here. However I would prefer a classy 12” macbook with face id to the pro with face id.

Personally, I think we're at least a couple of years away from Face ID showing up on any Macs, and at least three years before it's widely available on Macs.

Apple first needs to roll it out across all its mobile devices which can benefit the most from it. Just my $.02, for what it's worth.

 

[scorpio187]

I hope Apple adds the True Depth Camera with Face ID to next years MacBook Pro. If they do, they already have a buyer.

No chance. They've only recently introduced Touch ID on MBP, so I'd say it's gonna take a while before they move on to TDC. Maybe on their 5th Gen.

 

[0186279]

Just my $.02, for what it's worth.

It's worth $.02.

 

[crabman9]

Not much you can do on the hardware side. But do you run the most current version of Excel for Mac? I recently switched from the 2011 version to the current one, and it's MUCH faster! If you are, a clean reinstall of OS X might help.

Current Excel not much faster and in some ways more annoying as it won't multitask as well as 2011. I'm dumping as much stuff as I can onto an external drive and will reinstall OSX. What month do the new Macbooks usually come out, any idea?
[doublepost=1509871563][/doublepost]

I recall doing a spreadsheet test on a Mac CX verses an IBM 486 25Mhz computer. The mac did it in about 8 minutes. The gang ho super fast IBM cost I think $14,000 in maybe the early 1990s, did it in 14 minutes. I tested that spreadsheet again a couple of years later, and the results were about the same - around 14 minutes. The version of Excel changed, and MS slowed the newer Mac version down.

Anyhow - I don't know what part of the CPU effects Excel and filtering. Maybe ask microsoft whether Excel supports multi cored CPUs, or whether Excel can use a GPU. If Excel doesn't benefit from multi threading, then dual core fast clock rate would be better. If it benefits from a GPU, then a seperate GPU would help. If the spreadsheet is very large, perhaps its hitting memory limits and then its have to use virtual memory, where the memory available gets shared with much much slower disk space. Check the performance indicators on OS X go see how much RAM your spreadsheet uses ... Try some Excel site to find out what you need.

Thanks for this. The processor does appear to peak out and I get a lot of hanging and a spinning icon until the task is complete. Will investigate Excel threads.

 

[canhaz]

I don't even care about 8th gen chips honestly - I just want:

1. Fix keyboard reliability (and make it quieter if possible)
2. Make TouchBar optional across the lines (or kill it altogether)
3. Smaller request, but on the 15", please make the trackpad the size of 13" one.
4. Can we please have a USB-A, HDMI & SD port on the 15" models again?

I realize 3 & 4 will probably never happen, but I sure hope 1 & 2 do.

Speaking of things that will never happen.. still clutching that trusty 2012 MBP with matte screen. Regrettably, I just can't get used to productivity loss and stress of using glossy displays even after forcing myself to try like it.

Pretty sure it comes down to physiology. You know how some people detest animations or are bothered by faint annoying humming sounds, whilst everyone else says 'meh whats the big deal - it's in your head'.

Sensitive people are probably are a very small minority and not a concern when contemplating supply chain / SKU efficiency.

 

[The Mercurian]

Speaking of things that will never happen.. still clutching that trusty 2012 MBP with matte screen. Regrettably, I just can't get used to productivity loss and stress of using glossy displays even after forcing myself to try like it.

Pretty sure it comes down to physiology. You know how some people detest animations or are bothered by faint annoying humming sounds, whilst everyone else says 'meh whats the big deal - it's in your head'.

Sensitive people are probably are a very small minority and not a concern when contemplating supply chain / SKU efficiency.

I had one of those but upgraded to a retina and don't regret it. The increased resolution >> loss of matt screen

 

[turbineseaplane]

I also miss the Matte screens.

No reason at all we can't have Retina Matte - they simply chose to force it to optimize on their end (ahem--all USB-C) and make the colors pop more.

 

[Queen6]

I hope Apple adds the True Depth Camera with Face ID to next years MacBook Pro. If they do, they already have a buyer.

I hope Apple just fix's the current problems and applies some common sense to the MBP line up, another pointlessly thin toy I don't need...

As for automatically unlocking your notebook it can be very much a double edged sword, as such features can work against you. Personally once engaged on an project I disabled Windows auto face recognition, as I want to control with deliberation when the screen unlocks, not at the casual glance.

Q-6

 

[0837990]

I hope Apple just fix's the current problems and applies some common sense to the MBP line up, another pointlessly thin toy I don't need...

As for automatically unlocking your notebook it can be very much a double edged sword, as such features can work against you. Personally once engaged on an project I disabled Windows auto face recognition, as I want to control with deliberation when the screen unlocks, not at the casual glance.

Q-6

Exactly. I've disabled Windows Hello from my work laptop for this reason. I don't want my laptop to be unlocked and logged in just because I'm sitting in front of my computer! TouchID is more suitable for a laptop in my opinion, and it works great on the MBP2016/2017.

 

[Uni Grad]

No chance. They've only recently introduced Touch ID on MBP, so I'd say it's gonna take a while before they move on to TDC. Maybe on their 5th Gen.

Agreed. Though I hope they bring Touch ID to the MacBook Pros that don't have a touchbar. Imo it would be a great addition, and I'm sure at this point, it wouldn't cost them too much. They could fit it right into the power button, and it would not disturb the visual harmony of the MBP's design.

 

[gadgetfreaky]

Agreed. Though I hope they bring Touch ID to the MacBook Pros that don't have a touchbar. Imo it would be a great addition, and I'm sure at this point, it wouldn't cost them too much. They could fit it right into the power button, and it would not disturb the visual harmony of the MBP's design.

Apple doesn't sell near as many units in laptops as it does phones. Face ID should be a lot easier to pull off then it was to reach the scale for iphone.

Also guys did you see this new annoucnment about Intel/AMD- Thing and light full power graphics in a super thin footprint. Coffee Lake 6 cores + these GPUs= no graphics compromises.
https://www.pcworld.com/article/323...md-ship-a-core-chip-with-radeon-graphics.html

What I want in next MBP

- Coffee Lake + Improved GPU
- Reduce Bezels for more screen!!!
- Face ID

 

[Poki]

Wow ... just wow! As Gadgetfreaky already mentioned, Intel CPUs with integrated AMD GPUs actually seem to be a reality! Is it April Fool's yet?

Since a Vega 10 can - in some circumstances - already rival a Radeon Pro 450, just imagine a high-end, quad-core i7 using a Vega 12 or 16! Damn, I absolutely need that 13" MBP.


Edit: Damn, H-series chips only it seems - this probably rules out the 13“ MBP.

 

[turbineseaplane]

That Intel+AMD announcement could be simply huge for the 15" MBP.

If you can wait to see what 2018 brings for the MBP line, I certainly would at this point.

 

[Falhófnir]

That Intel+AMD announcement could be simply huge for the 15" MBP.

If you can wait to see what 2018 brings for the MBP line, I certainly would at this point.

That is interesting, maybe this will be in lieu of Intel having to maintain/ develop their Iris/ Iris plus graphics technology?

 

[Alakagom]

That is interesting, maybe this will be in lieu of Intel having to maintain/ develop their Iris/ Iris plus graphics technology?

The Iris graphics technology had hardly any development, they sucked. AMD gpus blow it out of water.

 

[Falhófnir]

The Iris graphics technology had hardly any development, they sucked. AMD gpus blow it out of water.

Exactly, why keep throwing good money after bad developing iris which has never been as competitive as they hoped?

 

[Poki]

Soo ... what about the 13" MBP? Will it be stuck with the Intel UHD 620? That would certainly suck, especially since that would mean losing a ton of performance compared to the current model. Even if the 28W chips keep the Iris Plus, that's still kinda sad ...

Considering AMD is able to put a Vega 10 inside their 15W Ryzen Mobile, doing the same or even going one step further on a 28W chip has to be possible. And considering that 28W TDP chips usually go into smaller performance-oriented notebooks, it would certainly make sense to use a more powerful GPU there. Come on, Intel, please, go one step further.

 

[Melbourne Park]

I saw some speed stats on the 13" with Iris + or something - the inside the processor GPU was quite quick ... and its only a twin CPU. Apple don't put the fast GPUs into their notebooks though. But I'd have thought eventually with 6 core CPUs inside the chip GPUs could get better. Unless Intel bought a GPU maker of course ...

 

[Poki]

I saw some speed stats on the 13" with Iris + or something - the inside the processor GPU was quite quick ... and its only a twin CPU. Apple don't put the fast GPUs into their notebooks though. But I'd have thought eventually with 6 core CPUs inside the chip GPUs could get better. Unless Intel bought a GPU maker of course ...

While the Iris iGPUs aren't as bad as people sometimes seem to think, they're also not nearly as good as they could be when comparing them to the competition. Also, there hasn't been any progress on Intels iGPUs since the first Iris Pro in 2014 - that's four years when the next MacBook Pro generation launches. I don't know about you, but I expect a notebook I buy in 2018 to have more GPU power than the one I bought in 2014.

Apple indeed does use the highest end graphics they can in their notebooks (as long as increasing the TDP or using a slower CPU is not an option). The Iris Plus 640 / 650 are indeed the fastest iGPUs Intel is offering in the 15W / 28W CPU classes, respectively.

A faster CPU does improve the performance of the iGPU, but not by much. At least not by nearly enough to compete against AMDs new offerings.

So, what are the options for the smaller MBP? Using the same Iris Plus 650? Hoping for a slightly improved version of that iGPU? I hope Apple, Intel and AMD sit together and do something seriously cool, otherwise, the update will be quite lackluster on the GPU front.

 

[Falhófnir]

While the Iris iGPUs aren't as bad as people sometimes seem to think, they're also not nearly as good as they could be when comparing them to the competition. Also, there hasn't been any progress on Intels iGPUs since the first Iris Pro in 2014 - that's four years when the next MacBook Pro generation launches. I don't know about you, but I expect a notebook I buy in 2018 to have more GPU power than the one I bought in 2014.

Apple indeed does use the highest end graphics they can in their notebooks (as long as increasing the TDP or using a slower CPU is not an option). The Iris Plus 640 / 650 are indeed the fastest iGPUs Intel is offering in the 15W / 28W CPU classes, respectively.

A faster CPU does improve the performance of the iGPU, but not by much. At least not by nearly enough to compete against AMDs new offerings.

So, what are the options for the smaller MBP? Using the same Iris Plus 650? Hoping for a slightly improved version of that iGPU? I hope Apple, Intel and AMD sit together and do something seriously cool, otherwise, the update will be quite lackluster on the GPU front.

I believe Intel's aim with top-end Iris was to get it to being competitive with the bottom rung of dGPUs, but for significantly less and it's just never happened...

for the 13" pro ntb I don't see any imperative to increase graphic performance if it's a base machine that's meant to replace the air (I'm thinking it was actually introduced more to cushion the blow of the price increase on the 13" machines than replace the air but that's getting a bit off topic) the Touch Bar model seems to be a bit stuck for options in it's current design.

 

[Naimfan]

What problem does face id solve?

 

[Falhófnir]

What problem does face id solve?

perceived lack of innovation?

 

[gadgetfreaky]

What problem does face id solve?

you dont ever have to to ID verification to have high security.

 

[Naimfan]

you dont ever have to to ID verification to have high security.

What?

 

[Hater]

While the Iris iGPUs aren't as bad as people sometimes seem to think, they're also not nearly as good as they could be when comparing them to the competition. Also, there hasn't been any progress on Intels iGPUs since the first Iris Pro in 2014 - that's four years when the next MacBook Pro generation launches. I don't know about you, but I expect a notebook I buy in 2018 to have more GPU power than the one I bought in 2014.

Apple indeed does use the highest end graphics they can in their notebooks (as long as increasing the TDP or using a slower CPU is not an option). The Iris Plus 640 / 650 are indeed the fastest iGPUs Intel is offering in the 15W / 28W CPU classes, respectively.

A faster CPU does improve the performance of the iGPU, but not by much. At least not by nearly enough to compete against AMDs new offerings.

So, what are the options for the smaller MBP? Using the same Iris Plus 650? Hoping for a slightly improved version of that iGPU? I hope Apple, Intel and AMD sit together and do something seriously cool, otherwise, the update will be quite lackluster on the GPU front.

Aren't Intel partnering with AMD to make Core chips with ATi graphics onboard?

Anyway, it's a Pro model, leave your gimmicky FaceID and Touchbar at the door. Leave me with something seriously powerful, the PowerBook G4 Aluminium keyboard and the option of no iSight whatsoever, saves me from voiding the warranty by removing it.

Most places where "High Security" is mandatory are also places where all cameras are not allowed.