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Warming-up for the all-new redesigned retina 2014 (2015?) MacBook Air

Yes, I am an idiot because I am one of millions of people who use a phrase in a different way than Wikipedia defines it :D This is too funny.

I'm power using the crap out of my iPad right now typing these posts.

Documentation, coding, video chat, oh my!
 
Hacks said:
Yes, I am an idiot because I am one of millions of people who use a phrase in a different way than Wikipedia defines it :D This is too funny.
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I am sorry to break it to you - but if you use the terms contrary to the way they are defined in an encyclopedia.. And after their proper use has been explained to you.. That does make you an idiot.
 
ctyrider said:
I am sorry to break it to you - but if you use the terms contrary to the way they are defined in an encyclopedia.. And after their proper use has been explained to you.. That does make you an idiot.
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And he thinks "millions" of people are using the phrase a certain way and then doesn't understand when people get confused when he uses it that way.
 
To me, the term 'power user' makes me think of someone who has to spend a majority of their time waiting for his/her computer to finish a task (catch up) on a low end machine. I picture them as being frustrated with the 11" MBA compared to a 15" MBP.

That said, I own a 11" MBA and do have to wait for my computer to finish an assigned task for some of the work that I must do. This lack of power is acceptable to me because it is worth it for the portability that my 11" MBA brings me.

Thus, am I power user? Not in general, but some days I am because my 11" MBA wastes my time making me wait.
 
The underlying argument here to me is, how much you need an OS like OS X and its capabilities including APIs/softwares; the hardware capabilities and limiting aspects of a form factor are another debate.
This could bring us back to the discussion that occurred on page 25 about an hypothetical iBook Air that could both occupy the low-end of prices (with an iOS/OS X division around $1k for notebooks) and represent a new attractive way for mainstream users to join the Apple ecosystem.
 
chleuasme said:
The underlying argument here to me is, how much you need an OS like OS X and its capabilities including APIs/softwares; the hardware capabilities and limiting aspects of a form factor are another debate.
This could bring us back to the discussion that occurred on page 25 about an hypothetical iBook Air that could both occupy the low-end of prices (with an iOS/OS X division around $1k for notebooks) and represent a new attractive way for mainstream users to join the Apple ecosystem.
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Regardless of anything else, if the new 12" MBA comes with an ARM processor, I won't buy it.
 
iRun26.2 said:
Regardless of anything else, if the new 12" MBA comes with an ARM processor, I won't buy it.
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Although after even the briefest rational consideration it should be clear to everyone that an ARM processor in a Macbook is a terrible, terrible idea. They are nowhere near Intel processor performance and it would break virtually any software compatibility if i'm not mistaken.
 
iRun26.2 said:
Regardless of anything else, if the new 12" MBA comes with an ARM processor, I won't buy it.
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Who's talking about an ARM-based MBA?
With what you've been describing in the thread, needing desktop OSes and x86 chips performances, you indeed wouldn't be the target for an iOS notebook.
Can't you guys read?
 
qcmacmini said:
Low cost leader with what specs?
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At $899 (base price MBA11 with no upgrades), you buy a machine with solid quality construction that is less expensive than a lot of ultra books on the market. I did not mean to use "low cost leader" in a negative way. It is impressive to me that Apple is selling this machine at the low price they are.
 
Hacks said:
Yes, I am an idiot because I am one of millions of people who use a phrase in a different way than Wikipedia defines it :D This is too funny.



I'm power using the crap out of my iPad right now typing these posts.



Documentation, coding, video chat, oh my!
Click to expand...


So you are making a lot of fun out of other people, yet you still haven't defined what makes a user a power user? Come on then, spill the beans.
 
Warming-up for the all-new redesigned retina 2014 (2015?) MacBook Air

A power user to me is someone who couldn't be happy with a MBA because whatever profession or hobby they have is too strenuous for the the machine. No matter what delusions of grandeur you have because you are a network admin, and bang out some occasional code it does not necessarily make you a power user.

My GF has to use a ton of Auto cad, GIS, maya, and solid works for work. If she attempted to run them on even the most maxed out MBA it would explode into a million pieces.

Even running a lot of the creative suite on MBA brings it to a crawl. I use it as my hobby and can afford to wait, but if I were a creative professional on a deadline the MBA wouldn't be my first, second, or third choice for a computer.

I have heard people refer to iPhone power users, and pc power users in the context of just simply being masters of the technology. I guess in that sense you would be one. In my mind when I think power user it is someone pushing the limits of the hardware though.
 
Yet for many, say a i7 8GB 512SSD 13" MBA outperforms by so much the 15" MBP it has replaced. Still provides the same on the go screen resolution and in a much much lighter package. Heck it is also much faster than a HP workstation class laptop I had.

I find this whole label branding that certain users possibly could be using a MBA and if they do they can't be power users.

They come in many shapes and sizes.
 
mellofello said:
...
My GF has to use a ton of Auto cad, GIS, maya, and solid works for work. If she attempted to run them on even the most maxed out MBA it would explode into a million pieces.
...
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Sounds impressive.

Then again, I know people who use their MacBooks to send off jobs to supercomputers that would literally take days or maybe weeks to finish if they tried to run them on a personal computer.

If you told these people that they weren't "power users," they might raise an eyebrow.
 
cyb3rdud3 said:
Yet for many, say a i7 8GB 512SSD 13" MBA outperforms by so much the 15" MBP it has replaced. Still provides the same on the go screen resolution and in a much much lighter package. Heck it is also much faster than a HP workstation class laptop I had.

I find this whole label branding that certain users possibly could be using a MBA and if they do they can't be power users.

They come in many shapes and sizes.
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Great point. Power users from just a few years ago (using the top of the line MBP) can now perform the same tasks on their MBA (and probably faster). It seems like certain users like to classify themselves as being elite (power users) and that using a MBA is significantly inferior.
 
Power user in a corporate and IT sense, has always meant someone who uses applications or computing functions in a way that is far more advanced that the average user. You can be an enterprise database power user for example, using a web portal on a MBA.

It has nothing to do with CPU computing power, screen resolution, or even how much RAM you need.

It seems if you own an Apple these days it always turns into a measuring contest for some.

To be honest, I find that PCs provide a lot more grunt if that's what you're after. Maybe certain users should stop using Apple and build a powerful PC to suit their 'power user' requirements.
 
iRun26.2 said:
Great point. Power users from just a few years ago (using the top of the line MBP) can now perform the same tasks on their MBA (and probably faster). It seems like certain users like to classify themselves as being elite (power users) and that using a MBA is significantly inferior.
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I would have considered myself a power user a few years ago. Cloud computing has changed the workload on my machine. I have an 2011 13" Macbook pro with the i7, 16GB of ram, and a SSD. I've been itching to upgrade to the rMBP but holding out for Broadwell to try to justify the upgrade since my current machine is meeting my needs most of the time (encoding is slow but something I rarely do anymore). My girl friend's sister has an 11" MBA and seeing it in use instead of the store really made me appreciate how portable and sexy it is. The Multi-core Geekbench score of my computer is about 6000, while the 2014 13" Macbook Air is 5400. Close enough. I'll be getting the rMBA when it's released. My only concern is that the Core M will be too significant of a decrease in performance over the current i7.

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I read on another site that the reversibility of USB-C would make it so that the lightning cable couldn't be reversed. I don't know how accurate that is because I don't know much about either; if I had to guess I'd say it wasn't true. Does anyone more knowledgable have anymore insight?

If true, I can't imagine that apple would release a Mac that didn't support the cable to connect current iOS devices. That also got me thinking, I can't imagine that Apple would release a Mac that you couldn't directly connect an iOS product to as they are still shipping with USB 2.0 cables, at least not at this time when iTunes is still required to perform some tasks on iOS devices. That makes me really question the accuracy of the one USB-C rumor.
 
copa said:
Although after even the briefest rational consideration it should be clear to everyone that an ARM processor in a Macbook is a terrible, terrible idea. They are nowhere near Intel processor performance and it would break virtually any software compatibility if i'm not mistaken.
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An ARM mobile phone processor would be terrible in a Macbook, just as an Intel mobile phone processor would be.

Both are designed within very tight thermal and power requirements. Their potential capabilities are very different without those limits. I don't judge the suitability of Intel for my rMBP because of what I see in a Motorola phone. I don't judge what an ARM processor could be capable of because of what I see in my iPhone.

ARM was originally for desktop. An ARM chip developed for OS X could be a very different thing to what you see in iOS.

I'm sure Apple are developing ARM for desktop, but it may never see the light of day, just like many of their patent applications. It would be worth it just as a bargaining chip with Intel.

A transition to ARM would indeed cause compatibility issues. Apple would have to have good reasons for both themselves and their customers to make the switch.

The slowing rate of Intel development, Intel's pushing of Windows PC manufacturers to copy Apple (such as their promotion of the Ultrabook platform), and the cost of their chips will all contribute to any potential ARM switch.

This mail isn't about wanting the switch, or expecting it. I am saying not to dismiss the idea after a brief rational consideration.
 
Moonjumper said:
The slowing rate of Intel development
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Intel missed the mark on Broadwell, but says its on track for Skylake. I Don't think that's really evidence of slowing development, but rather delays with one line. Apple/ARM would have to catch and far surpass where intel currently is before that switch could be warranted. Intel is so far out in front of everyone else there is almost no competition for them.
 
Vanilla Face said:
Intel is so far out in front of everyone else there is almost no competition for them.
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That's the most hilarious/annoying part about the ARM circlejerk. In Q4/2014, you could either have Intel's delayed 14nm process or... nothing.

So yeah, better hurry up and switch to someone who can deliver their chips on schedule!!!
 
Moonjumper said:
A transition to ARM would indeed cause compatibility issues. Apple would have to have good reasons for both themselves and their customers to make the switch.
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You are correct of course. I would add to that the fact that Apple only came to employ Intel after switching from PowerPc chips. Intel gained them a whole lot features. Broader software compatibility was probably the biggest. Switching to ARM would again break that which they gained through Intel and render virtually all software currently running on a Mac obsolete. On top of that it would also break Windows compatibility (an even VMs? not too sure) which is probably a big fat deal for a greater number of people than we can fathom.

I just can't see it being a good idea to put an ARM chip in a MBA. You simply lose too much.
 
nksk said:
That's the most hilarious/annoying part about the ARM circlejerk. In Q4/2014, you could either have Intel's delayed 14nm process or... nothing.

So yeah, better hurry up and switch to someone who can deliver their chips on schedule!!!
Click to expand...

Even Intel not being able to keep its schedule, it is still ahead of everyone else in terms of performance. Intel's schedule is aggressive, and AMD, for instance, cannot keep up.

ARM may eventually pass Intel. But, as of now, I don't believe there would be any benefit in switching to ARM. And Macs would lose compatibility with existing software and with Windows.

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copa said:
You are correct of course. I would add to that the fact that Apple only came to employ Intel after switching from PowerPc chips. Intel gained them a whole lot features. Broader software compatibility was probably the biggest. Switching to ARM would again break that which they gained through Intel and render virtually all software currently running on a Mac obsolete. On top of that it would also break Windows compatibility (an even VMs? not too sure) which is probably a big fat deal for a greater number of people than we can fathom.

I just can't see it being a good idea to put an ARM chip in a MBA. You simply lose too much.
Click to expand...

Exactly.

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Vanilla Face said:
Intel missed the mark on Broadwell, but says its on track for Skylake. I Don't think that's really evidence of slowing development, but rather delays with one line. Apple/ARM would have to catch and far surpass where intel currently is before that switch could be warranted. Intel is so far out in front of everyone else there is almost no competition for them.
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Yes, it is delayed. I think the original schedule was as follows:

Sandy Bridge: Early 2011
Ivy Bridge: Early 2012
Haswell: Early 2013
Broadwell: Early 2014
Skylake: Early 2015

If this is the planned schedule (and I guess it is), then Skylake is late, as development of previous processors will necessarily delay it as well.
 
Wow, it's almost finally here! Sorry, I used to participate in this thread back in the early days and haven't really been on MacRumors lately.

I have the Haswell rMBP and am thinking about jumping ship. I had the Air before that. I love my rMBP...it's a beast, beautifully designed, and I think it's the perfect 13-inch laptop.

But I don't really use the full capabilities of my rMBP, and I'm a writer so I'd definitely value a lighter/smaller machine. I love the 13-inch size on laptops, but 12 inches shouldn't be too bad.

I'll definitely purchase on day one if it has everything I'm looking for. From reading this thread, it seems many of you are in the same boat. Hopefully Apple gives us what we want and doesn't let us down.
 
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