Who actually is the 12" MacBook for?

[Dave245]

WWDC is a bit different, though, a much more generalized presentation than the annual specific iPhone event and keynote; at the latter, iPhone event, they usually spend time talking about iOS and all the wonderful new features and functionality the newest update will offer and they spend time talking about the iPhone and the various models, etc., plus there is always the statistical bit thrown in there, too, along with demos of software that will work nicely with the new iPhones (or iPads) and the latest version of iOS. Oh, and maybe a fun opening sequence video like they've been doing recently. This time iPad Pros will probably be part of the presentation, too, which they haven't done in the past, as they were updated at different times of the year. Just my thoughts on this. By the time they get through all that, really not enough time to talk about a new version of the MacBook Air! Of course I suppose they could toss it in there right at the end, pulling one of Steve's famous "....and One More Thing...."

That is true they will probably spend some of the time showing off new software features for the iPad Pro’s and iPhone’s, what those features will be we don’t know yet. The iPad Pro was introduced at the September keynote in 2015, last year it was WWDC and this year it will probably be at the September event, it does seem to be up and down.

This years iPad Pro is going to be a redesign as well with Face ID so it might take longer, you could be right and they might not announce the new Air or updated MacBook, they might hold an October event or even a silent update.

 

[Clix Pix]

I've been buying iPads since the very beginning and if I recall correctly, they started out being announced/released in the spring and then they shifted to late in the fall (November?) and then they've been bouncing around different time frames. Now with the distinct separation between the iPad 9.7 vs the iPad Pro models, it does seem that they will have announcements in the spring and in the fall again, and it makes sense to me that they would introduce the latest updates to the iPad Pros in September alongside the iPhone..... And, yes, with the redesign and the addition of Face ID and other features/functions it is likely that the discussion of the iPad Pro will take longer than a simple refresh would. That's what makes it pretty unlikely that they would introduce anything else into the mix at the iPhone/iOS event.

As I said, possibly the announcement would come in late September along with the release of Mojave, and that would make sense to me.....or, yes, later in the fall after the OS update and when things have settled down after that and the iPhone/iPad Pro releases. Press Event? Press release? Silent update? Hard to predict, really!!

Oh, I totally forgot about the Apple Watch....new stuff coming related to that as well, and it more than likely will be showcased during the iPhone Event, too. Even though it is not an iOS device it is closely related to the iPhone, of course.

 

[Dave245]

I don’t expect a MacBook announcement at the iPhone launch either.

it could go either way i think. In regards to the 13" new Air that is rumoured, do you think it will use higher specs than the 12" MacBook? now that my 2011 MacBook Pro has died i will HAVE to replace it at some point, however my usage is up and down, a few tabs open in Safari, Pages, Final Draft, iMovie, Netflix, Youtube (picture in picture most of the time) and the odd game with the most intensive one having the following specs:

MacOS 10.13
Processor: i5 3.4Ghz
Memory: 8GB Ram
Graphics: Radeon Pro 570
Storage? 5GB available space

I think if i could run that on a 13" Air or even an updated 12" MacBook it would save me having to get the MacBook Pro which is a nice machine but i don't think i need a Touch Bar or the quad core specs, it just seems a little over kill for my usage.

I've been buying iPads since the very beginning and if I recall correctly, they started out being announced/released in the spring and then they shifted to late in the fall (November?) and then they've been bouncing around different time frames. Now with the distinct separation between the iPad 9.7 vs the iPad Pro models, it does seem that they will have announcements in the spring and in the fall again, and it makes sense to me that they would introduce the latest updates to the iPad Pros in September alongside the iPhone..... And, yes, with the redesign and the addition of Face ID and other features/functions it is likely that the discussion of the iPad Pro will take longer than a simple refresh would. That's what makes it pretty unlikely that they would introduce anything else into the mix at the iPhone/iOS event.

As I said, possibly the announcement would come in late September along with the release of Mojave, and that would make sense to me.....or, yes, later in the fall after the OS update and when things have settled down after that and the iPhone/iPad Pro releases. Press Event? Press release? Silent update? Hard to predict, really!!

Oh, I totally forgot about the Apple Watch....new stuff coming related to that as well, and it more than likely will be showcased during the iPhone Event, too. Even though it is not an iOS device it is closely related to the iPhone, of course.

I started with iPad on the 3rd generation and then the Air 2, iPad Pro and now i'm on the 2017 iPad Pro 12.9" IF this years is a big upgrade as the reports and rumours suggest then i will be getting this years as well probably, my mum is due a new iPad so i will simply pass down my current Pro.

 

[Clix Pix]

Last fall I bought the 10.5 iPad Pro and the second-generation iPad Pro 12.9 (not at the same time!!) and have been very happy with both of them so don't feel any particular itch to get whatever is offered this year. Of course that could change.....

I find that I use the 12.9 the most around home, and that the 10.5 is great for carrying with me when I go out-and-about or on a trip. Also have the iPad Mini 4, which I got earlier this spring on sale for a specific use and it, too, is convenient for carrying in a purse when running around town. I much prefer the two larger devices to the Mini 4, though.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Last fall I bought the 10.5 iPad Pro and the second-generation iPad Pro 12.9 (not at the same time!!) and have been very happy with both of them so don't feel any particular itch to get whatever is offered this year. Of course that could change.....

I find that I use the 12.9 the most around home, and that the 10.5 is great for carrying with me when I go out-and-about or on a trip. Also have the iPad Mini 4, which I got earlier this spring on sale for a specific use and it, too, is convenient for carrying in a purse when running around town. I much prefer the two larger devices to the Mini 4, though.

What do you use your iPad mini for? I have an iPad mini 4. I love the size but sometimes find it hard to "fit in" between my iPhone X and iPad Pro 10.5. The only real use I can find for it is as a source to read the news on when at work in the office. I'd love Apple to upgrade the mini but can't see that happening. It's kind of died with the 4. Just curious what others use theirs for, especially those who also have other iPad's.

By the way, I have just got back from my trip (MacBook was sufficient (battery excellent at 50% on my return)) and took my mini but didn't use it once. iPhone X and MacBook was all I needed.

 

[Clix Pix]

I was going to be at the beach for a weekend and the hotel at which we would be staying was pretty far away so I would need to be carrying everything with me all day. I was already going to have camera gear and decided that something lighter and smaller than my iPad Pro 10.5 would be a good idea, as I still prefer an iPad to the iPhone for looking at email and forums, responding to email and participating in forum discussions.....so I left my Macs at home and my larger iPads and just took the iPad Mini 4. It did nicely, served my purpose, and now I’ve got it for other times when I want something smaller and lighter than my 10.5. At home, though, I use the 12.9 the most — on it right now sitting out on my deck with the iPad propped on a stand and a BT keyboard to make it easier and faster to type. I had had the first and second generations of the iPad Mini so knew what to expect. I’d pretty much deserted the iPad Mini 2 when I started using an iPhone 6 Plus. The iPad Mini 4 also is handy sometimes for reading in bed, but I still prefer to use one of the larger ones for that, too, actually.

 

[Y So Jelly]

So I returned my 2018 13" MBP touchbar for the base 2017 Macbook. This has everything I want, except for True Tone and the dustproof keyboard. Don't really care about the latest Intel M3 personally. Hope the refresh comes out soon!

 

[Dave245]

So I returned my 2018 13" MBP touchbar for the base 2017 Macbook. This has everything I want, except for True Tone and the dustproof keyboard. Don't really care about the latest Intel M3 personally. Hope the refresh comes out soon!

It could be that they add the 3rd gen keyboard to the updated MacBook. My guess would be 3rd gen butterfly keyboard and a spec update, how much faster these Macbook’s will be I don’t know. We will find out either this month or next (depends if they hold a Mac keynote in October).

 

[sosumi99]

It could be that they add the 3rd gen keyboard to the updated MacBook. My guess would be 3rd gen butterfly keyboard and a spec update, how much faster these Macbook’s will be I don’t know. We will find out either this month or next (depends if they hold a Mac keynote in October).

The keyboard alone would be a worthy upgrade. I have the 2016 version, and even after two years I can't stand the typing feel. I tried the 13 inch MacBook Pro, and it feels so much better -- to my mind as good as the old keyboard pre-butterfly days.

 

[Dave245]

The keyboard alone would be a worthy upgrade. I have the 2016 version, and even after two years I can't stand the typing feel. I tried the 13 inch MacBook Pro, and it feels so much better -- to my mind as good as the old keyboard pre-butterfly days.

Yea i'm hoping that we see the 3rd gen butterfly keyboard and a spec bum in the 12" MacBook this year, i visited a Curry's PC World on Monday and played around with all the devices, my thoughts have changed somewhat having had enough time to play around:

I won't be getting the 13" MacBook Pro, i played around with it in store for a while and the Touch Bar just didn't seem that good to me, i tested it in a couple of apps that they had installed on the machines like Pages, Numbers and Safari, it mostly did things that i can do with the mouse anyway so what's the point? the only thing i think it would be good for is in apps like Final Cut, which i don't use that much on a laptop anyway. So the 13" MacBook Pro with and without Touch Bar is out for me.

12" MacBook seems to be where it's at and WILL be the one that i buy IF Apple don't impress me with the new 2018 MacBook Air. It was small enough to just pick up with one hand (and so light) but also felt premium enough with the metal enclosure, i opened a few apps and they were snappy and worked well.

27" iMac 5K is something i'm also thinking about getting to upgrade from my current 2012 iMac, the 5K display was just astonishing to see in person, even looking at the wallpaper and watching a Youtube 4K video it showed the difference. So that's something i'm also looking at separately from my MacBook update.

It will also depend what Apple have planned update wise for the iMac this year, maybe a redesign? or a spec update.

Also and i know people will disagree with me here because it's not Apple but i did take a look at the Microsoft Surface Pro while i was in the store i played around with the Surface Pro and i have to say it wasn't slow, it didn't lag and even the Surface Pen worked well without any noticeable lag when drawing or taking notes. I have to say that Microsoft are producing some nice hardware with the Surface rang these days! Yes that's coming from and Apple fan

sorry about the long post, in general my decision has been narrowed down to the 12" MacBook or the MacBook Air 2018 IF Apple truly update it with latest specs, retina screen and less bezels, if not then i will be picking up a 12" MacBook once they have been updated!

 

[AVBeatMan]

Yea i'm hoping that we see the 3rd gen butterfly keyboard and a spec bum in the 12" MacBook this year, i vitiated a Curry's PC World on Monday and played around with all the devices, my thoughts have changed somewhat having had enough time to play around:

I won't be getting the 13" MacBook Pro, i played around with it in store for a while and the Touch Bar just didn't seem that good to me, i tested it in a couple of apps that they had installed on the machines like Pages, Numbers and Safari, it mostly did things that i can do with the mouse anyway so what's the point? the only thing i think it would be good for is in apps like Final Cut, which i don't use that much on a laptop anyway. So the 13" MacBook Pro with and without Touch Bar is out for me.

12" MacBook seems to be where it's at and WILL be the one that i buy IF Apple don't impress me with the new 2018 MacBook Air. It was small enough to just pick up with one hand (and so light) but also felt premium enough with the metal enclosure, i opened a few apps and they were snappy and worked well.

27" iMac 5K is something i'm also thinking about getting to upgrade from my current 2012 iMac, the 5K display was just astonishing to see in person, even looking at the wallpaper and watching a Youtube 4K video it showed the difference. So that's something i'm also looking at separately from my MacBook update.

It will also depend what Apple have planned update wise for the iMac this year, maybe a redesign? or a spec update.

Also and i know people will disagree with me here because it's not Apple but i did take a look at the Microsoft Surface Pro while i was in the store i played around with the Surface Pro and i have to say it wasn't slow, it didn't lag and even the Surface Pen worked well without any noticeable lag when drawing or taking notes. I have to say that Microsoft are producing some nice hardware with the Surface rang these days! Yes that's coming from and Apple fan

sorry about the long post, in general my decision has been narrowed down to the 12" MacBook or the MacBook Air 2018 IF Apple truly update it with latest specs, retina screen and less bezels, if not then i will be picking up a 12" MacBook once they have been updated!

I had a look at the touch bar on the pro's the other day and the only useful thing I found (in the short time I was in the store) was the predictive text. The predictive text on my iPhone X with iOS Beta 12 is pretty good and seems to get better all the time. I still don't think the the touch bar is a good enough reason to go for a Pro though.

 

[BODYBUILDERPAUL]

Yea i'm hoping that we see the 3rd gen butterfly keyboard and a spec bum in the 12" MacBook this year, i vitiated a Curry's PC World on Monday and played around with all the devices, my thoughts have changed somewhat having had enough time to play around:

I won't be getting the 13" MacBook Pro, i played around with it in store for a while and the Touch Bar just didn't seem that good to me, i tested it in a couple of apps that they had installed on the machines like Pages, Numbers and Safari, it mostly did things that i can do with the mouse anyway so what's the point? the only thing i think it would be good for is in apps like Final Cut, which i don't use that much on a laptop anyway. So the 13" MacBook Pro with and without Touch Bar is out for me.

12" MacBook seems to be where it's at and WILL be the one that i buy IF Apple don't impress me with the new 2018 MacBook Air. It was small enough to just pick up with one hand (and so light) but also felt premium enough with the metal enclosure, i opened a few apps and they were snappy and worked well.

27" iMac 5K is something i'm also thinking about getting to upgrade from my current 2012 iMac, the 5K display was just astonishing to see in person, even looking at the wallpaper and watching a Youtube 4K video it showed the difference. So that's something i'm also looking at separately from my MacBook update.

It will also depend what Apple have planned update wise for the iMac this year, maybe a redesign? or a spec update.

Also and i know people will disagree with me here because it's not Apple but i did take a look at the Microsoft Surface Pro while i was in the store i played around with the Surface Pro and i have to say it wasn't slow, it didn't lag and even the Surface Pen worked well without any noticeable lag when drawing or taking notes. I have to say that Microsoft are producing some nice hardware with the Surface rang these days! Yes that's coming from and Apple fan

sorry about the long post, in general my decision has been narrowed down to the 12" MacBook or the MacBook Air 2018 IF Apple truly update it with latest specs, retina screen and less bezels, if not then i will be picking up a 12" MacBook once they have been updated!

In all fairness, no brand new computer should lag in the shop. Try it one year one when it's full of apps and the SSD have 300+GB of stuff on it

 

[Dave245]

In all fairness, no brand new computer should lag in the shop. Try it one year one when it's full of apps and the SSD have 300+GB of stuff on it

That is true but they don't keep them that long with that much of a full hard drive i get you're point tho. All the devices i tried were very snappy in all fairness. It will be interesting to see if the 12" MacBook is still as snappy a year after buying one tho.

 

[sosumi99]

Also and i know people will disagree with me here because it's not Apple but i did take a look at the Microsoft Surface Pro while i was in the store i played around with the Surface Pro and i have to say it wasn't slow, it didn't lag and even the Surface Pen worked well without any noticeable lag when drawing or taking notes. I have to say that Microsoft are producing some nice hardware with the Surface rang these days! Yes that's coming from and Apple fan

I'm a fan of the Surface Pro (I have one), but it introduces problems of its own. The trackpad is awful -- I can't really use it without a mouse -- compared to the ones on Macs, and for pen-based stuff, the iPad with Pencil work much better for me. Agree that the performance is great, but as you probably know, Surface hardware has a history of reliability issues worse than Macs. Mine has problems auto-adjusting the screen brightness, and there are minor issues with Windows update every time I run it, forcing me to run the troubleshooter.

It's a good compromise if you want a two-in-one though.

Nothing on the market is perfect, unfortunately.
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That is true but they don't keep them that long with that much of a full hard drive i get you're point tho. All the devices i tried were very snappy in all fairness. It will be interesting to see if the 12" MacBook is still as snappy a year after buying one tho.

Probably! My little MacBook is still plenty snappy after two years, and it's my daily driver.

 

[Dave245]

I'm a fan of the Surface Pro (I have one), but it introduces problems of its own. The trackpad is awful -- I can't really use it without a mouse -- compared to the ones on Macs, and for pen-based stuff, the iPad with Pencil work much better for me. Agree that the performance is great, but as you probably know, Surface hardware has a history of reliability issues worse than Macs. Mine has problems auto-adjusting the screen brightness, and there are minor issues with Windows update every time I run it, forcing me to run the troubleshooter.

It's a good compromise if you want a two-in-one though.

Nothing on the market is perfect, unfortunately.
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Probably! My little MacBook is still plenty snappy after two years, and it's my daily driver.

Yea that’s my only issue with buying one, I’m so use to the MacOS and it just working without issues, I never have problems with updates (I just update from the Mac App Store and it’s done) I also find that MacOS doesn’t slow down over time, I don’t know why that is but in my experience it hasn’t. Before I switched to Mac (in 2011) Windows was always an issue with my computers slowing down, anti virus, bloatware crap and so on.

That’s great to hear it’s very encouraging, I’m very much leaning towards picking up a 2018 MacBook 12” when they get updated later this year. I think it will work well as my portable while my iMac can be my main desktop and iPad Pro my iOS drawing, note taking and annotation device.

 

[macintoshmac]

Yea that’s my only issue with buying one, I’m so use to the MacOS and it just working without issues, I never have problems with updates (I just update from the Mac App Store and it’s done) I also find that MacOS doesn’t slow down over time, I don’t know why that is but in my experience it hasn’t. Before I switched to Mac (in 2011) Windows was always an issue with my computers slowing down, anti virus, bloatware crap and so on.

That’s great to hear it’s very encouraging, I’m very much leaning towards picking up a 2018 MacBook 12” when they get updated later this year. I think it will work well as my portable while my iMac can be my main desktop and iPad Pro my iOS drawing, note taking and annotation device.

I have been thinking similarly now.

So, for my main needs: MacBook 12 and MacBook Pro 15 or iMac (covers travel and desk)
For other miscellaneous : iPhone and iPad (covers phone and others)

 

[dp_]

When can we expect quadcore CPU for the Macbook?

 

[macintoshmac]

When can we expect quadcore CPU for the Macbook?

Maybe when the TDP is still 5w, or when they are able to cool a quad core passively, or a solution that does not end up in a MacBook throttle gate sentiment all over again.

 

[newellj]

When can we expect quadcore CPU for the Macbook?

Maybe when the TDP is still 5w, or when they are able to cool a quad core passively, or a solution that does not end up in a MacBook throttle gate sentiment all over again.

Which, translated, means: not any time soon.

 

[macintoshmac]

Which, translated, means: not any time soon.

Exactly!

 

[Mike Boreham]

I had a look at the touch bar on the pro's the other day and the only useful thing I found (in the short time I was in the store) was the predictive text. The predictive text on my iPhone X with iOS Beta 12 is pretty good and seems to get better all the time. I still don't think the the touch bar is a good enough reason to go for a Pro though.

So no love for fingerprint unlocking then? I would pay the difference for the Touch Bar model even if there was no touch bar, just to have the fingerprint unlock. It's not just my user password but apps like 1Password can be unlocked with my fingerprint instead of my 13 character password.

I find myself really wishing my iMac could have finger print, and sometimes using my MBP in preference to the iMac because of this.

 

[AVBeatMan]

So no love for fingerprint unlocking then? I would pay the difference for the Touch Bar model even if there was no touch bar, just to have the fingerprint unlock. It's not just my user password but apps like 1Password can be unlocked with my fingerprint instead of my 13 character password.

I find myself really wishing my iMac could have finger print, and sometimes using my MBP in preference to the iMac because of this.

I didn't get to try the fingerprint unlocking but can imagine it to be a nice little feature. I personally love the way my MacBook unlocks with my Apple Watch.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love a fully spec'd MBP, 13 or 15 inch but think that if I had one, and this 12" MacBook, I'd reach for the 12" purely for ease of use.

On an other matter, I've never quite understood 1Password. I mean, do you have to access your apps, (Amazon, eBay etc) via 1Password every time you want to log in, or is it just for the first time. Not sure I'm making myself clear. If I want to open Amazon from my iPhone (for example) do I have to do so via 1Password or can I just click on the Amazon app? (Hope this makes sense!)

 

[Mike Boreham]

On an other matter, I've never quite understood 1Password. I mean, do you have to access your apps, (Amazon, eBay etc) via 1Password every time you want to log in, or is it just for the first time. Not sure I'm making myself clear. If I want to open Amazon from my iPhone (for example) do I have to do so via 1Password or can I just click on the Amazon app? (Hope this makes sense!)

Yes you can use 1P to log in on your phone to an app or website without going via the 1P app. You open the app and 1P asks if you want to fill in the login info. In practice on the phone Keychain is often faster. But I use 1P for much more than Keychain can do
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I didn't get to try the fingerprint unlocking but can imagine it to be a nice little feature. I personally love the way my MacBook unlocks with my Apple Watch.

I find watch unlocking a bit flaky....need to re-set it up from time to time and of course only works when you are waking the display up. It doesn't work the other 80% of times that you have to enter your user password, or for apps like 1Password.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Yes you can use 1P to log in on your phone to an app or website without going via the 1P app. You open the app and 1P asks if you want to fill in the login info. In practice on the phone Keychain is often faster. But I use 1P for much more than Keychain can do
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I find watch unlocking a bit flaky....need to re-set it up from time to time and of course only works when you are waking the display up. It doesn't work the other 80% of times that you have to enter your user password, or for apps like 1Password.

OK, so just to be clear, once you have entered the password for, say Amazon with 1P, you access Amazon via 1P and then you can just do so via the app?

 

[Mike Boreham]

OK, so just to be clear, once you have entered the password for, say Amazon with 1P, you access Amazon via 1P and then you can just do so via the app?

You don't have to go via the 1P app for either initial saving or logging in later. It offers to save a new login and it offers to log in with an already saved one. It stores the login web address so if you want to you can go to the 1P app and log in from there. However the process isn't perfect and sometimes I need to edit stuff in 1P for it to work properly. As I said for everyday logins Keychain is usually quicker, and what I use to log in most of the time. My main use of 1P is serial numbers and other personal info.