What to Expect From Apple in 2017: iPhone 8, 10-Inch iPad Pro, Refreshed iMacs, and More

[alfredotomato]

Just go ahead and say it: there will never be a new Mac Pro or Mac Mini.

Tearing off the band-aid is better than dragging things out.

I kinda like my Mac Mini. It is a solid machine and suits my needs. I am on SSI, so my budget doesn't stretch far. The price of an iMac will buy me a new sliding door to my deck.

 

[Abazigal]

Let's play devil's advocate then and discuss why Apple did not do so.

It's an interesting way to put it. On the other hand, Apple has more money sitting in there vault than any other publicly traded company. They have plenty of money to work on multiple products at a time.
Think about the complaint and how a single immune wage employee could solve it:
- Put a magsafe back on the MBP: Belkin created a USB-C version of this, why can't Apple.

That belkin MagSafe charger requires an unsightly dongle to extend from the laptop. Do you see Apple doing such a thing?

- Don't make the MBP 1 mm thinner, killing battery life.

Meaning a thicker, heavier device for everyone.

- Include a free USB and HDMI dongle with the new MBP since 99% of customer devices don't use USB-C yet.

I am reminded back when I joined my school. We had these interactive whiteboards installed in the classrooms, and to get teachers to use them, the principal made sure that there were no visualisers in any of the classrooms. This would discourage the teachers from being too lazy with their teaching and incentivize us to actively create our own teaching resources using the smartboard software.

It was irritating, inconvenient and I absolutely agreed that it had to be done.

The irony is that this would in turn prompt me to "boycott" the smartboard and turn to the Apple TV and iPad. But that is another story for another time, and my point is that more times than not, the tides of change must be forced. Left to their own devices, most people simply won't bother (changing). You need someone to take the first step and lead the way.

The point here is precisely to get consumers to jump on board USB C or at least figure out alternative workarounds.

So you could get a USB C monitor, with the ability to run a 5K display, connect multiple USB 3 external hard drives, and connect to the internet via ethernet all with one single cable. This is the future of computing: impressive power in a thin and light package that can tether to an ultra-powerful rig when needed.

Or you could get an Apple TV and mirror your display wirelessly.

Get creative.

See, I wasn't even paid to help Apple, but I just solve a large part of the MBP problem. Why couldn't Apple think of this?

You didn't solve anything. You simply chose inaction. The old "if I don't do anything, I can't be blamed for doing anything wrong" mentality.

And that's why we are here debating in forums and not drawing million dollar wages at Apple.

 

[I7guy]

But then your being selfish because other people want Apple to make a product like they used to. Mac Pro being a case on point, it was powerful in 2013 and now can't cope.
Also your not a teenager?

Are you giving me the product I want for free? When you are, come back and post nonsense like this. Otherwise this is hyperbole with an insult thrown in.

 

[Labeno]

That belkin MagSafe charger requires an unsightly dongle to extend from the laptop. Do you see Apple doing such a thing?

I fully agree, it's ugly as heck. The point is Belkin probably only has a super tiny design budget. Apple has billions. Apple could design a USB-C magsafe that looks just like a miniature version of the original magsafe.

 

[bengi]

Mac Pro, but a true one with big case and room for boards, HDs. I don't want to end up with an hackintosh or a Windows PC.

 

[Workerbee Redux]

This whole topic is proof that generation slowflake exists. These snowflakes are like "We expect Apple to do this and we will be butthurt if Apple do not conform to our exact wishes". Apple is not perfect. Apple will do it's best. Just hope for what you want and see if it comes true.

Expecting the largest corporation in the world to bow down to your specific expectations is silly and very first world problematic. This generation, these snowflakes can't handle the fact that something might just not go their way. They don't hope for a better future. They just expect it and complain when it does not go the way they thought it would.

Guys like you crack me up. What happened to customer choice? Why is it unreasonable to expect the richest corporation in the world to have more than three computer lines under active development?

Apple is not a faith or religion or even political party that can reasonably expect their followers to stick with them through bad times. If Apple chooses not to listen to customer feedback, they better be good at anticipating what customers want. Which currently, they are not good at. No one asked for the removal of the headphone jack, no one asked for sub-par battery life. No pro customer asked for letting the Mac Pro die a disgraceful death.

 

[navaira]

What if the price of having your Macs updated on time meant no Apple Pencil? No Airpods? No 4th gen Apple TV? No Apple Watch? So you might be happy because you have a shiny new Mac Pro. Someone else would be unhappy because a product they didn't care about was updated, in favour of a product that they were enthusiastic about.

Sorry. You are completely correct. It's easy to forget sometimes that Apple is five people working from a garage and there is only so much they can do at once

 

[Count Blah]

I don't care what Apple did yesterday, last year or 10 years ago. If I want a product and Apple has what I'm looking for, I'll buy it. If not I'll move on to the next manufacturer.

Another manufacturer with MacOS?

Please point us in that direction.

Until then, people will be complaining about the lack of current hardware choices that USED to exist, under Apple.

 

[I7guy]

Another manufacturer with MacOS?

Please point is in that direction.

Until then, people will be complaining about the lack of current hardware choices that USED to exist, under Apple.

No another o/s different hardware. I can do my work under Ubuntu, windows or mac o/s.

 

[sracer]

This whole topic is proof that generation slowflake exists. These snowflakes are like "We expect Apple to do this and we will be butthurt if Apple do not conform to our exact wishes". Apple is not perfect. Apple will do it's best. Just hope for what you want and see if it comes true.

Expecting the largest corporation in the world to bow down to your specific expectations is silly and very first world problematic. This generation, these snowflakes can't handle the fact that something might just not go their way. They don't hope for a better future. They just expect it and complain when it does not go the way they thought it would.

That's quite a rant, and quite misplaced. You set up a strawman, "Apple must conform to our exact wishes" (which no one here has said or implied) and proceed to knock it down.

Customers are not slave to corporations. Customers express their needs and desires and a company can choose to respond to any, all, or none of those things. That's how it works. "Hoping for what you want" is silly in the context of consumer choice. Make your want known. If the company does not provide what you want, then you know that the want was not high on their priority lists.

Seems to me that if there are any special snowflakes here they are those who don't like to hear any criticism of the object of their affection, Apple. Super-duper special snowflake status is granted to those who believe "wishing makes it so".

 

[PictorGuy]

With the launch of the iPhone 7 and MacBook Pro, 2016 has been a mixed year for Apple. The iPhone 7 was released without a headphone jack, an unpopular choice that's now been somewhat ameliorated by the launch of the AirPods, and the MacBook Pro has been plagued by battery issues...

​

Yes, battery issues. Give me back my battery life on my iPhone. Seems MBP, AirPods, and iOS releases are plagued with battery issues. No more apple products until this is fixed.​

 

[democracyrules]

If you want Apple to be like Samsung and spam the market with a dozen minor variations of the same product, then sure.

But if you want Apple to take the time to refine the small details and get it just right, it will take lots of resources and importantly, time.

Look at the 2016 MBP. For all its flaws, does it look like a minor update that Apple crapped out overnight? Just about every aspect of it was dramatically revamped, and I can only imagine the sheer number of man hours that went into making all this possible.

The touchbar takes time. Force touch takes time. Touch ID takes time. Doing something differently and better takes time. Especially for a mature product like the Mac, where incremental improvements require ever-increasing amounts of R&D.

So yes, if you want Apple to do it all at the same time, then quality will suffer because they won't be able to devote as much time to each product.

And the disparity in design and quality shows.


As I mentioned above, some things, such as innovation just can't be rushed.

It's not as though this hasn't happened before. Apple delayed OS X tiger to concentrate on the iPhone. The people claiming that Steve Jobs would never let this happen clearly don't know their history very well.

Very wise and excellent comments. Happy new year!!

 

[marcelvelky]

i am not expecting any major changes in current lineup. There will be modifications for sure, but after already released products, where was no big deal in listening to customers and instead of effective listening what customers really need we got products, which led to disappointments. I will be pleased and surprised, if apple will change its direction to more more customer driven and effective applied inovation.

 

[apolloa]

Let's say Apple updated their Mac Pro every year how many of you would buy one every year? Don't forget a "Pro" costs from around $4000 to $10000 US. So will a very small improvement in WIFI, Bluetooth, SSD drive size/speed, 4K - 5K, or whatever, make you fork out nearly the price of a small car every year?

Apple's biggest danger is the mature market that now exists in both portable and desktop devices.

It's the lack of power the machine has, every year new CPU and graphics cards are launched, Pros expect them because for them time is money, they want a powerful fast editing machine etc, but some currently can't use the Mac Pro ecause it can't handle what they do, note I said some and not all.
Their is literally no excuse for a corporation the size of Apple with the number of employees it has and the billions and billions in its bank account for them to not update a computer for over THREE YEARS.
[doublepost=1483287629][/doublepost]

Are you giving me the product I want for free? When you are, come back and post nonsense like this. Otherwise this is hyperbole with an insult thrown in.

Your the one posting selfish nonsense. I want this I want that but damn what everyone else wants... yeah what a wonderful attitude.

 

[Martyimac]

Let's play devil's advocate then and discuss why Apple did not do so.


That belkin MagSafe charger requires an unsightly dongle to extend from the laptop. Do you see Apple doing such a thing?
Belkin was filling a need/want, something Apple no longer seems to care about

Meaning a thicker, heavier device for everyone.
And to go back to the point of the post, meaning a smaller battery, less run time, more time searching for a plug.

I am reminded back when I joined my school. We had these interactive whiteboards installed in the classrooms, and to get teachers to use them, the principal made sure that there were no visualisers in any of the classrooms. This would discourage the teachers from being too lazy with their teaching and incentivize us to actively create our own teaching resources using the smartboard software.

It was irritating, inconvenient and I absolutely agreed that it had to be done.
And it's interesting to note that those "smartboards" are not a standard in schools today. So what is your analogy again?

The irony is that this would in turn prompt me to "boycott" the smartboard and turn to the Apple TV and iPad. But that is another story for another time, and my point is that more times than not, the tides of change must be forced. Left to their own devices, most people simply won't bother (changing). You need someone to take the first step and lead the way.
Leading the way is great, I applaud any company that does it. But in our particular case here, Apple led the way with "improvements" that nobody wanted or needed or asked for. Leading, in Apples case, has turned into arrogance. Think "our way or the highway". And I am hearing a LOT of folks looking for the offramp, a lot more than I have ever seen in my 9 years here on MR or my getting into Apple when I bought my first Apple, a IIe, back in 1981
The point here is precisely to get consumers to jump on board USB C or at least figure out alternative workarounds.
And what is the big thing about USB C? And why do I have to buy dongles for equipment that works just fine on my older machine through its "out of date port" (and won't operate any better through the new dongle on a USB C only machine). Boy that's a real selling point. NOT!
So you could get a USB C monitor, with the ability to run a 5K display, connect multiple USB 3 external hard drives, and connect to the internet via ethernet all with one single cable. This is the future of computing: impressive power in a thin and light package that can tether to an ultra-powerful rig when needed.
You may well be 100% correct. But Apple has "Jumped the Shark" here with their recent releases. OBTW, wasn't the lightning port supposed to do the same thing you are touting as USB C doing?
Or you could get an Apple TV and mirror your display wirelessly.

Get creative.


You didn't solve anything. You simply chose inaction. The old "if I don't do anything, I can't be blamed for doing anything wrong" mentality.Nothing wrong with that mentality. If nothing actually had to be done. See the difference is, I didn't see Apple solving ANYTHING that needed solving. (If it ain't broke, don't fix it).

And that's why we are here debating in forums and not drawing million dollar wages at Apple.
I can't speak for anybody else here, just myself. But my thoughts do echo a lot of posts I have read here and other places. Apple is, as far as I am concerned, struggling to reach the Jobs level of excitement and they don't have the new "one more thing" to do that. So they try to raise excitement with improvements that are not improvements in many of our eyes. And one other thing, go back and look at forums and really read and understand what folks want. The want more power, more equipment upgrades (think MacPro or Mac Mini) more upgradability capability, and less cost or at least no major price increases. Apple has failed to live up to EVERY ONE of those expectations. But hey, they are building a really cool gee whiz spaceship. Whoopy.

 

[apolloa]

If you want Apple to be like Samsung and spam the market with a dozen minor variations of the same product, then sure.

But if you want Apple to take the time to refine the small details and get it just right, it will take lots of resources and importantly, time.

Look at the 2016 MBP. For all its flaws, does it look like a minor update that Apple crapped out overnight? Just about every aspect of it was dramatically revamped, and I can only imagine the sheer number of man hours that went into making all this possible.

The touchbar takes time. Force touch takes time. Touch ID takes time. Doing something differently and better takes time. Especially for a mature product like the Mac, where incremental improvements require ever-increasing amounts of R&D.

So yes, if you want Apple to do it all at the same time, then quality will suffer because they won't be able to devote as much time to each product.

And the disparity in design and quality shows.


As I mentioned above, some things, such as innovation just can't be rushed.

It's not as though this hasn't happened before. Apple delayed OS X tiger to concentrate on the iPhone. The people claiming that Steve Jobs would never let this happen clearly don't know their history very well.

You DO realise that things like force touch and Touch ID were other people's inventions the Apple just brought right? It's hardly a massive R&D project that took years and years to develop, they aren't building a rocket ship to get man to Mars!
Your apologetic comments are quite hilarious actually, I mean quality will suffer if they made too many products? Hahahaha... perhaps we should question all those expensive Swiss Watch manufactures with more products then Apple has how do they do it, or what about all those car manufactures, perhaps Apple should visit Rolls Royce to learn how to have endless options for your cars interior without losing any quality, and they don't mass produce products in Chinese sweat shops and have tiny budgets compared to Apple!

 

[9081094]

Apple are by all intense purposes a large company with more resources and more cash than probably any company on the planet. Are you seriously suggesting that Apple cannot make a laptop and other products at the same time?

Take a look at Samsung or any other massive manufacturer out there making every product under the sun.
Take a look at Elon, making rockets, cars and the like.
Apple can make decisions to work on many products at once. They have the cash and resources to do so.

You should expect a company the size of Apple being able to keep those small products range top notch all over the entire line. For a premium brand for above premium prices it's the least you can expect. But somehow it feels like they've 2 engineers, 1 programmer and 99.001 people working in marketing and sales.
[doublepost=1483290571][/doublepost]

If you want Apple to be like Samsung and spam the market with a dozen minor variations of the same product, then sure.

But if you want Apple to take the time to refine the small details and get it just right, it will take lots of resources and importantly, time.

Look at the 2016 MBP. For all its flaws, does it look like a minor update that Apple crapped out overnight? Just about every aspect of it was dramatically revamped, and I can only imagine the sheer number of man hours that went into making all this possible.

The touchbar takes time. Force touch takes time. Touch ID takes time. Doing something differently and better takes time. Especially for a mature product like the Mac, where incremental improvements require ever-increasing amounts of R&D.

So yes, if you want Apple to do it all at the same time, then quality will suffer because they won't be able to devote as much time to each product.

And the disparity in design and quality shows.


As I mentioned above, some things, such as innovation just can't be rushed.

It's not as though this hasn't happened before. Apple delayed OS X tiger to concentrate on the iPhone. The people claiming that Steve Jobs would never let this happen clearly don't know their history very well.

Lol, it was probably apple's luck Samsung ran into trouble with their notes. Imagine what would have happened when they didn't. This year Apple will be using Samsung oled screens like the Samsung 7 edge. More then 1,5 years later than the 7 edge... I'm wondering what the soon to be introduced Samsung 8 edge will look like compared to the fabled iPhone 8 . I think Apple has already lost the mobile phone race and is scrambling to seek new areas for profit.

 

[I7guy]

It's the lack of power the machine has, every year new CPU and graphics cards are launched, Pros expect them because for them time is money, they want a powerful fast editing machine etc, but some currently can't use the Mac Pro ecause it can't handle what they do, note I said some and not all.
Their is literally no excuse for a corporation the size of Apple with the number of employees it has and the billions and billions in its bank account for them to not update a computer for over THREE YEARS.
[doublepost=1483287629][/doublepost]

Your the one posting selfish nonsense. I want this I want that but damn what everyone else wants... yeah what a wonderful attitude.

My requirements do not have to be the same as yours. And if Apple doesn't fit the bill for your computer requirements there are alternatives, thankfully.

 

[Hank Carter]

I want a 18 inch iPad, I love my 12.9, I couldn't ever go back to 9.7, but I want the screen to be even bigger.

Buy a Surface Studio.

 

[I7guy]

You should expect a company the size of Apple being able to keep those small products range top notch all over the entire line. For a premium brand for above premium prices it's the least you can expect. But somehow it feels like they've 2 engineers, 1 programmer and 99.001 people working in marketing and sales.
[doublepost=1483290571][/doublepost]

Lol, it was probably apple's luck Samsung ran into trouble with their notes. Imagine what would have happened when they didn't. This year Apple will be using Samsung oled screens like the Samsung 7 edge. More then 1,5 years later than the 7 edge... I'm wondering what the soon to be introduced Samsung 8 edge will look like compared to the fabeled iPhone 8 . I think Apple has already lost the mobile phone race and is scrambling to seek new areas for profit.

Apple still wins the overall mobile race, at least for me. The fabled Samsung s8 is going to have to be in another universe to interest me. That won't happen and it will be more of the same. And this year Samsung also lost the mobile phone race.

So if the two biggest lost the phone race, who won?

 

[ocnitsa]

Let's say Apple updated their Mac Pro every year how many of you would buy one every year? Don't forget a "Pro" costs from around $4000 to $10000 US. So will a very small improvement in WIFI, Bluetooth, SSD drive size/speed, 4K - 5K, or whatever, make you fork out nearly the price of a small car every year?

Apple's biggest danger is the mature market that now exists in both portable and desktop devices.

This would be so true if Apple was selling current lines with hardware so maxed they couldn't possibly upgrade anything.

If Razer can do it, Apple could do it better.

 

[StevieD100]

I'm wondering what the soon to be introduced Samsung 8 edge will look like compared to the fabeled iPhone 8 . I think Apple has already lost the mobile phone race and is scrambling to seek new areas for profit.

From talking with a good number of iPhone users who happen to be Photographers, the move to OLED is not a 'yeah I just gotta have that or I'll jump ship to Samsug' thing.
It really isn't.

They (and me) care more about usability than anything. The current iPhone 7 screens are pretty good. Yes a couple of our members have Samsung OLED devices but honestly for us (A limited sample that is for sure) it really does not matter. If we want to see images properly, they are projected using a calibrated projector in HD quality. 4K projectors are still pretty expensive at the moment.
I use a Dell 4K monitor for my photo editing. It is calibrated so the colours are pretty accurate. That is more impotant to me than vibrancy and over saturation which even the Samsung owners complain about with their Galaxy's.

Jut anothe POV. YMMV

 

[rain1ny]

Lets see what 2017 brings, I have faith it will be a good year.



Hope we get less whiners/trolls/trolling posts next year!

You just whined

 

[9081094]

Apple still wins the overall mobile race, at least for me. The fabled Samsung s8 is going to have to be in another universe to interest me. That won't happen and it will be more of the same. And this year Samsung also lost the mobile phone race.

So if the two biggest lost the phone race, who won?

The companies like oppo, Huawei and other Chinese brands won big time. Maybe they're not in the USA yet, but in Europe they're making big inroads and people start to notice that they're well built, deliver above average, cheap to buy and offer a lot of bang for the buck.

 

[Count Blah]

No another o/s different hardware. I can do my work under Ubuntu, windows or mac o/s.

Want a cookie?

Some WANT to stay in MacOS, and bcausof this, there are precious few choices, thanks to Apple.
[doublepost=1483294877][/doublepost]N

Are you giving me the product I want for free? When you are, come back and post nonsense like this. Otherwise this is hyperbole with an insult thrown in.

Non sequitur much?

Your response does not match the post you are responding to.