$1199 for top end. $999 for middle. $799 for entry. one more port.
well, see this trollhattanite knows it all. he's the next apple ceo.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, much appreciated.
Tell you though, and I'm fully aware I've said it before, so apologies if you've already discarded this as irrelevant, but if Apple had offered the new MB in an entry level 4GB RAM and a 128GB SSD, it would have started at $999, which is $100 more than the similar base model 11" MBA and the same price as the base model 13" MBA.
So while I appreciate that you really, really, really think that the MB is not worth the money (and have this extremely mysterious and hell bent grudge against any screen with a higher than 1080p resolution) the only way the MB will go down in price is if they do actually reduce RAM and storage for the entry level model.
And...if you look at it from this perspective, you are paying $100 more for these objective pros and cons comparing the 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD 11" MBA and the new entry level MB:
Pros
- Larger physical screen size
- Better screen quality (contrast, color gamut, viewing angles, resolution)
- Larger screen real estate
- Brand new, thinner, lighter design
- Fan-less chassis
- Force Touch, haptic feedback trackpad technology
Cons
- Less built in wired connectivity
- Lower performance processor
About the same/subjective
- Battery life
- Keyboard
- Footprint
So depending on where your own personal priorities lie you make your decision, and you also let others make theirs.
You obviously value price higher than any of the things listed here, so you base your decision upon that, and then want to defend that reasoning by saying everything in the pros list above is either irrelevant or a lie, triple emphasise the cons items, and then try to move the subjective items into the cons list to rationalise your purchasing decision.
The reality is that everyone has different priorities. Were you aware that there are actually people that are not price sensitive at all in this segment? It actually doesn't really enter into their decision making process at all? This could be for various reasons, such as it will be a company issued/paid for machine, or perhaps they are early adopters by nature or computer/Apple enthusiasts. Indeed there are even some people who just have enough cash around that $800 vs $1300 isn't a big deal at all, and they don't care. Others may have a price sensitivity, but it ranks lower than some or all of the items on the pros list above. Just as you rationalise your purchasing decision based almost solely on price, others here base it solely on a combination of portability/high resolution, high quality display, and are willing to pay a premium for that alone.
You shouldn't be so adamant that everyone should share your priorities and preferences that you deem them all idiots and treat them with disrespect.
Back on topic, IMHO I don't think Apple with ever offer a MB model with less than 8GB RAM and/or 256GB SSD's. I think we're seeing what the new base models will come with on the upcoming redesigns of the MBP...and the eventual extinction of the MBA line.
The more I think about it though, they might just keep the base model 13" MBA around, much as they do the 13" cMBP - just to have something at that $999 price.
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Not necessarily. This reminds me a lot of the original MacBook Air. That has one USB port and a port for an external display. By the time it went mainstream they added a second USB port. Skylake will bring Thunderbolt support native to the chipset, and Thunderbolt can operate over a USB-C port, so conceivably it could sport a single Thunderbolt/USB-C port, or perhaps one of each. That said, I would not be surprised if Skylake is the only update in the second generation. It might not be until the third or fourth generation that Apple makes it their mainstream notebook.
Really? Can the upcoming TB3 run through a USB-C port? I've not read or heard that before, it actually makes me a little bit excited. Do you have a source I can read to learn more?
You do make a fair point regarding the original MBA and a second USB port - however, I have the exact same number of adapters for my MB as I do for my MBA (1 for HDMI and 1 for Ethernet + 3 USB-A ports), which says something about wired connectivity. I think consumers and the industry are now ready for one port, something that just wasn't the case 7 years ago.
However, I could be totally wrong!
