What to expect from 2017 MBP?

[doitdada]

I'm sorta thinking Apple is about ready to take the keyboard out and make it an optional extra, because they're pretty aggressively pushing the idea that keyboards aren't that important, keys aren't that important, and so on. We'll see, I guess?

That would actually be the next step. Localised haptic feedback and touchscreen keyboard. Everybody gets magically used to new keyboards all the time, it would be stupid to stop now.

Also of interest
http://www.computerworld.com/articl...rosoft-surface-book-are-trumping-tablets.html

 

[jerryk]

Possibly. We really don't know, though.

We never know for certain until the announcement. But with Samsung announcing in October 2016 and delivering engineering samples, Fall 2017 sounds like enough lead time.

 

[Sanpete]

We never know for certain until the announcement. But with Samsung announcing in October 2016 and delivering engineering samples, Fall 2017 sounds like enough lead time.

As I understand it, there need to be new CPU chips to accept them, and various other factors can affect that. Those in the business of watching those things have been pretty sketchy about when it will happen.

 

[ThisBougieLife]

That would actually be the next step. Localised haptic feedback and touchscreen keyboard. Everybody gets magically used to new keyboards all the time, it would be stupid to stop now.

Also of interest
http://www.computerworld.com/articl...rosoft-surface-book-are-trumping-tablets.html

It's true though, when was the last time a company went back on a keyboard? If Apple created a haptic "touchscreen keyboard" it would be "the greatest keyboard ever" and no one would ever want to look back. It might sound hard to believe now, but I wouldn't be surprised.

 

[therealseebs]

That would actually be the next step. Localised haptic feedback and touchscreen keyboard. Everybody gets magically used to new keyboards all the time, it would be stupid to stop now.

It might well be, but there are reasons for which people sometimes prefer physical keys to haptic feedback.

It's weird, because there was a time when Apple was the company with the reputation for UI and ergonomics. And now they seem to pretty much ignore a whole lot of ergonomics research and considerations...

 

[macmee]

Today I was offered a new, 2016 Macbook Pro 15" as a birthday gift (in a couple of weeks)

Damn that's not a cheap present. You could always go for a 2015 model?

 

[doitdada]

It might well be, but there are reasons for which people sometimes prefer physical keys to haptic feedback.

It's weird, because there was a time when Apple was the company with the reputation for UI and ergonomics. And now they seem to pretty much ignore a whole lot of ergonomics research and considerations...

My problem is that I didn't grow up with the touch screen, so I am always going back to my legacy habits. Call it nostalgia or just call me old fashioned. Every time I try to switch to an iPad or even migrate to Windows, I miss stuff from macOS along with a full numpad keyboard and a upper tier third party mouse. Even though Steve Jobs intended desktop class applications on iOS, the development ten years later is nowhere near that promise. The small things though, that was painful to do quick on desktop and laptop became easier, but the more complex work is still reserved for legacy laptops or desktops.

 

[OS X Dude]

The limit on the RAM is in fact not due to any belief that people can't use more. Apple has clearly explained that it's due to the unavailability of low-power RAM for laptop CPUs. That will remain the case through 2017, it appears, as Kaby Lake doesn't accept LPDDR4 either.

This is well-publicised, yet I guarantee 'pro users' will b*tch and lay the blame at Apple's door.

 

[doitdada]

This is well-publicised, yet I guarantee 'pro users' will b*tch and lay the blame at Apple's door.

Dell XPS 15 released a computer with 32GB memory. It went on sale yesterday.
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/xps-15-9560-laptop
8GB DDR4-2400MHz; up to 32GB

The world’s only 15.6-inch InfinityEdge display: The virtually borderless display maximizes screen space by accommodating a 15.6-inch display inside a laptop closer to the size of a 14-inch, thanks to a bezel measuring just 5.7mm.

One-of-a-kind design: Measuring in at a slim 11-17mm and starting at just 4 pounds (1.8 kg) with a solid state drive, the XPS 15 is the world’s lightest 15-inch performance-class laptop.

 

[OS X Dude]

Dell XPS 15 released a computer with 32GB memory. It went on sale yesterday.
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/xps-15-9560-laptop
8GB DDR4-2400MHz; up to 32GB

The world’s only 15.6-inch InfinityEdge display: The virtually borderless display maximizes screen space by accommodating a 15.6-inch display inside a laptop closer to the size of a 14-inch, thanks to a bezel measuring just 5.7mm.

One-of-a-kind design: Measuring in at a slim 11-17mm and starting at just 4 pounds (1.8 kg) with a solid state drive, the XPS 15 is the world’s lightest 15-inch performance-class laptop.

Poor comparison. It doesn't use LP-DDR4 (low power modules), because they're not yet supported by Skylake and won't be by Kaby Lake. Apple could have used regular DDR4, but they said something about them using 85% more power versus the LP modules so they didn't in the interests of battery life.

Also: Kaby Lake has more efficient decoding of h.265. Some have complained of poor battery life or high processor usage when using the codec to steam 4K footage on Skylake processors.

 

[Sanpete]

Dell XPS 15 released a computer with 32GB memory. It went on sale yesterday.
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/xps-15-9560-laptop
8GB DDR4-2400MHz; up to 32GB

The world’s only 15.6-inch InfinityEdge display: The virtually borderless display maximizes screen space by accommodating a 15.6-inch display inside a laptop closer to the size of a 14-inch, thanks to a bezel measuring just 5.7mm.

One-of-a-kind design: Measuring in at a slim 11-17mm and starting at just 4 pounds (1.8 kg) with a solid state drive, the XPS 15 is the world’s lightest 15-inch performance-class laptop.

To add a bit to what OS X Dude said, the Dell XPS has offered 32 GB RAM since 2015. But that requires using desktop RAM, and the battery life suffers as a result. It will continue to do so.

 

[doitdada]

Yes, but I mostly used it connected to a screen along with a dock. For portable computing, a 12" is much more convenient.

I tried to find data on power usage, but nothing in clear text popped up, in regards to actual percentage loss in real battery life.

The Dell XPS 15 is reported to have around 5 hours. Half of the advertised battery capacity of the MacBook Pro 15.

 

[Sanpete]

Yes, but I mostly used it connected to a screen along with a dock. For portable computing, a 12" is much more convenient.

I tried to find data on power usage, but nothing in clear text popped up, in regards to actual percentage loss in real battery life.

The Dell XPS 15 is reported to have around 5 hours. Half of the advertised battery capacity of the MacBook Pro 15.

Not sure what kind of data you're looking for, but I've got some links and some calculations in the latter part of the third (last) comment to the review at this link, and some battery life comparisons in the first part of the comment. The links not given there are at the start of the second comment.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R27MBWO99H5LZJ/

I figure, very roughly, a loss of 5 to 84 watt-hours over ten hours for 32 GB DDR4 vs 16 GB LPDDR3, and a loss of 2.4 to 18 watt-hours for 16 GB DDR4 vs 16 LPDDR3, depending on how much you use the RAM, of course. That mayor may not cover what happens in sleep, as the sources are vague about what idle states are at issue.

 

[doitdada]

https://www.amazon.com/review/R27MBWO99H5LZJ/

Excellent info!

 

[azpekt]

I expect even more topics on MR, about how lousy MBP became and how greedy Apple is.

Seriously though, I don't expect serious updates. And by serious I mean something like OLED or 32/64 gb RAM. They'll fix bugs with battery and other first-gen issues, but that's it.

 

[chriscrk]

Damn that's not a cheap present. You could always go for a 2015 model?

I think I'll wait a bit more, push my 2011 model for another year more, I think I can take it.

My dad got the 13 inch Touch Bar model and I've been using it a bit and find it amazing. The keyboard is actually really nice, I got used to the trackpad immediately, and the touchbar I could see myself getting used to quite easily.

So I'll just wait; might as well get the newer model that leaves out ports I never even use anyway!