When did Apple get rid of the illuminated Apple logo on their MBP line (last year model)

[digimc]

So I tried searching for this but thought I would just make a quick post. When was the last year/model that Apple implemented the illuminated Apple logo on the back of their MBP's.

Also anybody interested in seeing the illuminated apple return?

 

[Falhófnir]

2015 was the last model year, the 2016 redesign of the MacBook Pro began removing it, using the design language from the MacBook released a year earlier (along with other controversial features like the butterfly keyboard) and the MacBook Air followed suit in 2018.

I would like to see it return personally, perhaps as a slightly more understated outline rather than the whole thing lighting up, I understand how they did it before by just letting the display's backlight shine through the casing wouldn't work with the mini LED displays on the current MacBook Pro, or the OLED displays they are rumoured to switch to across the line in the coming years, though, so I don't think it's on the cards unfortunately.

 

[digimc]

2015 was the last model year, the 2016 redesign of the MacBook Pro began removing it, using the design language from the MacBook released a year earlier (along with other controversial features like the butterfly keyboard) and the MacBook Air followed suit in 2018.

I would like to see it return personally, perhaps as a slightly more understated outline rather than the whole thing lighting up, I understand how they did it before by just letting the display's backlight shine through the casing wouldn't work with the mini LED displays on the current MacBook Pro, or the OLED displays they are rumoured to switch to across the line in the coming years, though, so I don't think it's on the cards unfortunately.

I like that idea of illuminating the border of the apple logo instead of the entire logo. That would be a nice touch.

 

[JPack]

It was needed when Apple was less popular and needed to stand out. Today, like 70% of campus students use Mac. Commercial and business customers probably couldn’t care less.

 

[kitKAC]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/will-macbooks-ever-get-the-glowing-logo-back.2432365/

 

[Mrbobb]

Somebody, anybody make a MOD out of this, yes I want it back, call it the 30 anniversary edition.

So classic, spot Macuser a mile away.

uTuber STRANGE PARTS made a backlit iPhone Mod.

 

[russell_314]

I would like to see it back but I don’t see that happening. It’s extra production costs with no clear benefit for Apple.

 

[jlc1978]

Was it neat? Sure, but mostly, IMHO, form over function that added unnecessary cost and complexity. I would not complain if it came back but don't miss it either.

 

[Achillias]

Couldn't care, I rather have the touch bar back. That was something I really found useful.

 

[Mrbobb]

Somebody said, "Men Don't Live By Bread Alone." Loosely translated by Steve Jobs as, "We paint the back of the fence because we know it's there." But of course, these days is all about stock valuation for Tim Cook. Don't you worry about Apple spending money on useless things from its 3 trillion bank account.

 

[smirking]

Couldn't care, I rather have the touch bar back. That was something I really found useful.

Once I had an escape key back, I liked the Touch Bar a lot more. I still had only minor uses for it, but it was cool to have a visual scrub bar for videos and slider for volume and brightness.

I actually miss the butterfly keyboard. I just got my wife a new M4 MBA so I get my old 2018 MBP with the butterfly keyboard back. Still not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I look forward to getting it back.

Regarding the glowing logo, wasn't there also an actual engineering reason why they removed it? I seem to remember something about it affecting the Retina displays.

 

[dmccloud]

Once I had an escape key back, I liked the Touch Bar a lot more. I still had only minor uses for it, but it was cool to have a visual scrub bar for videos and slider for volume and brightness.

I actually miss the butterfly keyboard. I just got my wife a new M4 MBA so I get my old 2018 MBP with the butterfly keyboard back. Still not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I look forward to getting it back.

Regarding the glowing logo, wasn't there also an actual engineering reason why they removed it? I seem to remember something about it affecting the Retina displays.

I think it actually created some light bleed-through when the display itself was set at a lower brightness.

 

[GMShadow]

I think it actually created some light bleed-through when the display itself was set at a lower brightness.

Correct, or just in bright sunlight conditions. I think I've seen one or two reports over the years of some display fading in that spot.

Once I had an escape key back, I liked the Touch Bar a lot more. I still had only minor uses for it, but it was cool to have a visual scrub bar for videos and slider for volume and brightness.

I actually miss the butterfly keyboard. I just got my wife a new M4 MBA so I get my old 2018 MBP with the butterfly keyboard back. Still not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I look forward to getting it back.

Regarding the glowing logo, wasn't there also an actual engineering reason why they removed it? I seem to remember something about it affecting the Retina displays.

It's mostly a mix of the display getting thinner by having fewer layers, allowing a thinner top case and making the pass-through impractical or even impossible to engineer into the housing. And now as others have noted, mini LED backlighting on the Pros wouldn't really let it work consistently either.

Here's what the 2010-2017 Air looked like, note the frame for the Apple logo. I think the current top case is too thin now.

 

[GMShadow]

Somebody said, "Men Don't Live By Bread Alone." Loosely translated by Steve Jobs as, "We paint the back of the fence because we know it's there." But of course, these days is all about stock valuation for Tim Cook. Don't you worry about Apple spending money on useless things from its 3 trillion bank account.

Steve also insisted on the upside down Apple logos on the G3 PowerBooks because he wanted it to look correct when you were looking at the laptop from the latch side with the screen closed. It took years to convince him to let them fix it for the G4 despite so many people pointing out how dumb the logo looked with the lid up, especially once they changed the display design to let it glow starting with the Lombard revision in 1999.

 

[FontGeek]

Steve also insisted on the upside down Apple logos on the G3 PowerBooks because he wanted it to look correct when you were looking at the laptop from the latch side with the screen closed. It took years to convince him to let them fix it for the G4 despite so many people pointing out how dumb the logo looked with the lid up, especially once they changed the display design to let it glow starting with the Lombard revision in 1999.

But what about how dumb the reflection in the glossy table looks?

 

[Arran]

But what about how dumb the reflection in the glossy table looks?

At least the bite is on the right side.

 

[BigBlur]

While it was cool, I don't see this coming back for several reasons...

• Screens are much thinner now than they were back then. Cutting a hole in the top case and the back of the LCD panel would probably weaken the structural integrity.
• Displays have dimming zones now (at least the MBPs do) to give us more contrast and deeper blacks. The Apple logo would no longer be lit uniformly depending on what's being displayed. (If you're looking at something dark in the middle of the screen, it probably wouldn't be lit up. If you were scrolling or watching a video, the Apple logo would probably be flickering.)
• Along with the above, it would introduce light bleed and affect the display quality. If light is shining through from the back, then you wouldn't have the color accuracy or deep blacks in the middle of your screen, making it pointless to put the XDR display in the MBPs.

Essentially, Apple was able to accomplish this back then by taking advantage of the display's backlight at no additional cost. To do something similar today, they would likely have to re-engineer the logo to be its own part, which adds cost for no benefit other than the novelty or nostalgia factor...which seems a bit un-Apple-like to me.

 

[arc of the universe]

a scene reminiscent of college classes across america not too long ago.

 

[uacd]

I would like to have it back but with possibility to turn off or to use as a flashlight, including changing hue from cool to warm tones and with very high beam. Would have made reading at night easier without additional light source

 

[theluggage]

Was it neat? Sure, but mostly, IMHO, form over function that added unnecessary cost and complexity. I would not complain if it came back but don't miss it either.

It was just a translucent window that let the display backlight shine through - an easy hack - and was possibly dropped because of changes to the design of display panels. Bringing it back - with modern Mini LED and future OLED displays - would involve the extra complexity of adding a light.

 

[Parowdy]

Sorry but what search engine is slower answering this than posting a thread? Even Duck Duck Go has a very passable AI chat.

 

[LionTeeth]

Somebody said, "Men Don't Live By Bread Alone." Loosely translated by Steve Jobs as, "We paint the back of the fence because we know it's there." But of course, these days is all about stock valuation for Tim Cook. Don't you worry about Apple spending money on useless things from its 3 trillion bank account.

This is the reason here plain and simple. Because it costs too much. Some bean counter somewhere told cook how much they'd save if they took it out.

 

[th0masp]

Another vote pro glowing logo.

What they have now looks cheap. Also (still) synonymous to me with the generation that introduced the butterfly keyboard and the touchstrip. First time I was all 'ewwwww' when trying out a brand new Macbook model in the store.

 

[Sippincider]

Also anybody interested in seeing the illuminated apple return?

I see this falling into one of two extremes:

1. A certain penny watcher making sure it never happens, and:

2. Apple spending billions to overthink and patent a $499 BTO "Magic Logo". Then dropping the whole thing after a couple years...

 

[weckart]

I'm more annoyed at the lack of a pulsating indicator light on the Mac Mini when it is in sleep mode to save tuppence ha'penny in parts. That actually did serve a purpose and having a solid light on all the time is pointless. Apple might as well have done away with it altogether.