And so will the rMB be in a generation or 2 so you either wait, use an air or a pro or buy something else, the tech will catch up with apples design sooner or later as it did with the air.
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Why is there no Retina display?
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And so will the rMB be in a generation or 2 so you either wait, use an air or a pro or buy something else, the tech will catch up with apples design sooner or later as it did with the air.
There is a difference between a few different models and what Apple had in the 90s believe me.
It has ports so that its actually a useful computer that you can charge + use a port on. The Air is truly a general purpose laptop and the rMB is not.
OSX is a great operating system, and Windows does not compete.
Hahha yeah there are a lot of annoyed Apple customers at the moment, mainly prosumers and pro users. Apple was also huge in the 80s but they went down. Consumers have very little brand loyalty, and Apple is building them around consumers who will switch to a competitor very easily, while pro summers and pro users are far more brand loyal.
Thats not to say they should abandon the consumer. Its not hard to simply make products for both. It is only a benefit to all involved to cater for a wider range of people.
Mindless acceptance of what anyone or any company does is not a good thing.
Until they make it usable by allowing charing and port usage then it won't catch up to the Air.
I don't accept anything mindlessly, I accept things with a lot and thought and understanding, apple have no reason to change their path, they are the richest company in the world and going strong. I can accept that and that their decisions are driven by their current success with the path they are on, they have no reason to change anything and I accept that because it makes complete sense for a business.
Yep there we go - business sense driving their every move is another big mistake they made in the 90s.
Why would you be more interested in Apple making the money than them making great products for a range of people?
Because they make a great range of products and fulfill all of my computing needs and as long as they are successful they will continue pouring their efforts into the devices I want.
They won't be pouring any money and resources into outdated finicky nonsense that people won't let go of and I get the new better faster sleeker devices I want.
Is this selfish?? Yes. Is it the most sensible way to run a business?? Yes. Is that more likely to keep me happy?? Yes.
Oh yes outdated finicky nonsense like ports. Much better to have to carry adaptors so you can charge and do anything else at the same time. Faster?? Haha the New Macbook has 2011 specs.
You know what is finicky? Port adaptors to allow for the most basic of functions. The easiest way to transfer from one computer to another is drag onto a usb and drag off at the other end. Especially considering that most people don't have Macs. Transferring stuff over wifi is finicky.
Again, Its not like I'm asking them to stop making products that satisfy your needs, more I'm asking them to continue to Mac computers that serve a few different purposes. How is that unreasonable. Your needs and my needs are not representative of the wider community. Most of my clients for my Apple centric computer consultancy are basic users and find ports the easiest way to do things.
They currently make a good range, but when they cut the range (if they do) that will cease to be the case.
Apple's business side should not be a concern of the user. I don't see why it matters at all as long as they're not going bankrupt.
This is the epitome of a first world problem. Apple makes a bunch of different computers, all of which are very similar, with only a few small differences that make very little practical difference. Really, the screen on one model is ONE INCH bigger than the screen of another model. One laptop weighs about a pound more than another laptop. One screen is somewhat shaper than another screen.
If you were on a desert island, you'd be overjoyed to have any laptop Apple currently makes.
But here we are and people are upset that Apple doesn't make a laptop with all the exact little particular qualities they way.
Ports...how far back shall we go? I tell you honestly that this weekend I was using a cable with a DB9 connector on it (with adapters, obviously). How about parallel ports? Or less ridiculously, why not ethernet ports? Optical drives?
Look at the handwriting on the wall. We're arguing about ports...ports are the smallest part of what's going on in the tech industry. In the next 10 years it is possible that notebook computers will be a rare, niche product, replaced by highly mobile devices, wearables and (hold your breath) implantables.
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An embarrassingly ignorant assertion. Windows 8.1 is fast, light and stable. If 10 improves the UI and does nothing else, Windows 10 will be a real killer OS. OS X is nice, but it doesn't dominate OS-dom. In fact, given Apple's control of hardware, OS and software, what's shocking is that the OS X and various hardware forums here are as full of problems as they are - with that degree of control, things should "just work," and lots of times they don't.
So just asking them to continue making a nice range of laptops is a first world problem but people complaining that the rPro and Air are too outdated and thick isn't?
Lets hope. They made the original air a good laptop by re-adding ports and performance.
Or how about they don't remove any more for the moment from the Pro. With the rMB thats fine, but leave them on the pro laptops. One port is the hight of stupidity. Or merge the Air and the rPro into one and put the Pro's power and screen inside a Air typed chassis and update the non retina pro with broad well and a fusion drive.
This is why we have and should have a range of products to suite different needs. The rPro is for the pro user, the cPro is for the legacy/pc switcher/enthusiast user the Air is for your average consumer and the rMB is for the ultra portable users.
Just like we had the Shuffle, Nano, Touch and Classic. All for different purposes and users.
I use Windows very frequently. I use Windows 7, 8.1 and Windows 10. 8.1 has been far from stable in my experience and it has a terrible UI, that is utterly hopeless on the desktop. I use it most days so yeah. Windows 10 is getting there but I find OS X to just be a better Operating system all around. That being said Windows 8 is nice on a tablet.
I will say that I don't really see either the logical marketing structure or future product development direction when I look at the current Apple lineup. Presumably that's because there is a lot of change and uncertainty in the tech market as a whole. Proving that I'm actually closer to where you seem to be at than you'd guess from my posts, part of the reason I have a new 13" rMBP is because I really am not sure I'm going to be happy with the next refresh. (The other part is because I came to the reluctant conclusion that I really would be better off with a larger SSD and, of course, recent vintage MBPs don't have readily available replacement SSDs [eBay doesn't count]).
It confusing market structure as well. I do think though that each model has its Niche. For example the Non Retina Pro apparently still sells in volumes to PC switchers and others.
My main machine is a Mid 2012 Macbook Pro Non Retina, bought September 2012, as my specific requires are for an Optical drive, a large HD on a budget, ethernet and firewire. I also like upgrading my computer myself, and have done so many times, saving myself huge amounts of money. I also like the battery status indicator and the sleep light
I think they just need to realign the names and the niches.
The Macbook should be the current 13 Inch Air
The Macbook Classic should be an upgraded (Fusion drive and haswell) Classic Macbook Pro
The Macbook Air should be the current rMacbook
The Macbook Pro should be the current Macbook Pro Retina
I am all for moving forward, but my idea of moving forward is different from others. I find the Classic Pro's form factor to be perfect and would love if they just continued to make it more powerful.
I cling onto the belief that Apple will leave the Retina Pro alone for the moment. I'd be more than happy for the Thunderbolt to be replaced with the combo USB-C and thunderbolt, as long as they leave the other port and especially the magsafe adaptor.
I do not really understand why the cMBP is still in the line, especially with a HDD...upgrade or let it fade...
Right now I really don't think I have much of a clue what to expect from Apple, and they aren't really asking me. At least not directly...just along for the ride.
Right now I really don't think I have much of a clue what to expect from Apple, and they aren't really asking me.
At least not directly...just along for the ride.cMBP is still in the line up as people still buy it. I hope there is an upgraded model. It serves those who needs optical drives (yes tgey are still in use), people who need large amounts of storage, budget customers (buy nw upgrade the RAM and HD later) and people who need a range of ports.I do not really understand why the cMBP is still in the line, especially with a HDD...upgrade or let it fade...
Right now I really don't think I have much of a clue what to expect from Apple, and they aren't really asking me.
Don't forget that the Mac Mini and the iMac also both have HDDs. Apple should just give the cMBP haswel or broadwell + standardise fusion drives on everything that currently has a HDD and that would improve their lineup so much.
I highly doubt Apple will discontinue the MacBook Air yet. Until they can drive the cost down of the 12" rMB the MacBook Air's will stay in the lineup to meet the 899 and 999 pricepoint. A 1299 entry level MacBook pricepoint isn't in their best interests. While the MBA is powerful, has flash storage, thin, 9-12 hour battery life. It's not going anywhere for a while yet.
On the price issue, I think you're completely correct. I expect rMB prices to fall significantly over the next year.
Oldmacs, you're right about the HDDs, but doesn't it seem that Apple could - should - be using SSDs across their whole line at this point? (Edited)
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No they should not. Fusion drives should be standard, or SSDs and have HDDs as an BTO option. 5400Rpm drives are just too slow for OS X to run nicely. I have a 7200rpm drive in my Macbook as I can't afford a 1 TB SSD and it's usable but not exactly fast.
That news truly excited me for the future of the MacBook & MacBook Air. I think the Air is still going away in the next few years, but I think the MacBook will be much more capable and a worthy successor to the Air in both name and Functionality.
This development means that the "original" vision of Thunderbolt in general (and as it exists in the TBD) can finally come true: a one-cord docking solution for Macs.
That's assuming, of course, that the subsequent revisions of the MacBook gain TB3 functionality. I'd like to think that Apple knew this was coming and already plans to adopt it.
It won't be a functional replacement for the Air until it has a separate magsafe port and more than one other port.
Magsafe is going to be phased out. I'll bet anything that the skylake rMBP's will be redesigned and with a usb-c port.
I won't argue the utility of the invention of MagSafe, but I will say that for certain machines it makes more sense than for others.
What I mean is that the reasoning behind MagSafe is great. We had portable Macs that were more in the category of desktop replacements. Before the Intel transition, we were lucky to get a couple hours at most from PowerBooks and iBooks. Tripping over the power cord is a real possibility when you have to be tethered to the wall to keep working, and MagSafe was, and is, a great solution.
But technology has come a long way in 8 years. We have laptops that can run for 9+ hours on a single charge, and many people don't need to be tethered to the wall anymore. For some subset of users, power management will always be an issue, and for a large majority of those users, absolute performance is also critical. I believe that the Pro line could continue with MagSafe because higher-powered components (like Quad-Core CPU and dedicated GPU) will draw more power and require the user to be tethered more often. But a growing set of users (myself included) can get by charging their laptops once a day.