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Will the next MBP contain legacy ports?

A

andrewtm

macrumors regular
Original poster
Sep 9, 2012
162
18
I've been using a mid-2009 MBP waiting to upgrade for years. I waited about 3 years for the redesigned/next gen MacBook Pro and I've just been disappointed. My 2009 is getting unbearably slow and I'm in urgent need of an upgrade.

The main thing stopping me from getting the new MBP, besides the price, is the fact that there are no USB/Magsafe ports. Do you think Apple will listen to their customers and put them back in the next model?

Other than that, I would get the 2015 model now but if I did that I'd just feel like I wasted time waiting for the 2016 model
 
Literally zero chance of them adding the ports back on the next MBP.

I think a lot of people, myself included, who actually use the new MBP in the day-to-day, haven't really found the port situation to be that big a deal.
 
No chance. USB-C is only going to get more widespread in a year, not less. The demand for "legacy" ports will decline over time.
 
Not a hope of getting the ports back. A 2015 model would be a big leap from the 2009 and so a fair upgrade. If you have a spinning HD in your current machine fitting a SSD and maxing out the RAM would make a huge difference.
 
andrewtm said:
The main thing stopping me from getting the new MBP, besides the price, is the fact that there are no USB/Magsafe ports. Do you think Apple will listen to their customers and put them back in the next model?
Click to expand...

Categorically no.

In my experience, adding an SSD and RAM to a 2009 MBP will have limited returns. The weak CPU/GPU is being constantly pushed hard if you're using any recent version of macOS. I have a 2009 MBP with a SSD and it just runs the fans full blast almost constantly.

I turned mine into an Apple TV/media device for our bedroom TV for a while, but now it just sits boxed up under our bed, essentially dead to the world. Bit of a shame - it's in absolutely perfect condition!
 
andy9l said:
In my experience, adding an SSD and RAM to a 2009 MBP will have limited returns. The weak CPU/GPU is being constantly pushed hard if you're using any recent version of macOS. I have a 2009 MBP with a SSD and it just runs the fans full blast almost constantly.
Click to expand...

That has not been my experience with a couple of older MBPs and they have had a usefully extended life as a result.
 
ssmed said:
That has not been my experience with a couple of older MBPs and they have had a usefully extended life as a result.
Click to expand...

Depends what year/spec. Mine is a top-spec (non-BTO) 2009 15" MBP. You could probably boil water on the case!

Sure, it boots up in 10 seconds but the CPU/GPU performance is poor 7 years on.
 
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OP wrote:
"Other than that, I would get the 2015 model now but if I did that I'd just feel like I wasted time waiting for the 2016 model"

I don't think we're going to see either MagSafe or USB-a ports again on Apple Macbooks.

If you want one with those features (and the other legacy ports), buy a 2015.
They can be found for good prices IF you're willing to shop carefully.

I wanted the legacy ports, too.
So I bought a 2015 MBPro 13 last December to replace my 2010 model.
Works for me.
 
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I think it is unlikely, unless USB-C were to fail, which seems extremely unlikely given it's USB. The lack of ports is more of an annoyance than it is a dealbreaker for most, and those wanting the other ports still have the option of the venerable 2015 models, which will likely be sold as refurbs for at least another year or so. By the time the 2015 models are completely phased out (bear in mind Apple still sells the 2012 MacBook Pro 13 as refurbs and only stopped selling it new several months ago), USB-C will have become more common.

If there is anything they would add back in, I think it would be a SD or microSD slot, given inexpensive cameras capable of reliable wireless transfers of over 300 MB/s still seem a ways a way (my very not good camera does about 1-3 MB/s.)
 
Probably not.

These days, as soon as Apple get criticized, Timmy/Ive immediately go back and double down on stupid.
 
I don't see the missing ports coming back on the MacBook Pro next year. Having said that, I've really not missed the missing ports as much as I thought I might; I've used my 2016 for around ten days now. Sure, it's a nuisance having to get an adapter out for some tasks, but it's not like I need to do that several times a day, so it's no big deal for me.
 
Sanpete said:
Or, in this case, smart, if maximizing the power and flexibility of the ports matters. I'm sure Steve Jobs would have brought back the superdrive in response to criticism. Oh wait.
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The difference is that the use of the optical drive was in steep decline anyway.

This is not the case for USB, HDMI, etc.
 
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Awjvail said:
Literally zero chance of them adding the ports back on the next MBP.

I think a lot of people, myself included, who actually use the new MBP in the day-to-day, haven't really found the port situation to be that big a deal.
Click to expand...

I use a new MBPtb every day and I find the port situation to be a major pain in the rear. I have 4 separate dongles or adapter cables sticking out of my MB, waiting for the TB3 docks to be released.
 
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Sanpete said:
Not according to the howls of protest at the time. Similarly, Jobs never budged on Blue-ray, despite the widespread use of the format. But, ah, the good old days are always best.
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Blu-ray was never widely adopted. In fact, it is more of a stillborn.
 
tubeexperience said:
Blu-ray was never widely adopted. In fact, it is more of a stillborn.
Click to expand...

It was the leading way to get higher definition video for years. PCs all had ways to play Blu-ray. Jobs refused to accept it despite loud protests about how backward Macs had become. People have short memories.
 
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There is a very slight possibility of the SD card slot coming back (like 1% chance) in the same way that the FireWire port which disappeared in the 2008 unibody MacBook refresh came back in 2009. But regular USB-A ports? Absolutely zero chance. Long term it wouldn't make sense. Apple would just have to remove them again in a couple more years.

I've learned from experience never to hope for that minor change to an existing Apple product that will make it perfect for you. For example, I had a 2009 MBP 13". Great laptop but I hated the glossy screen the entire time I owned it. Apple offered a matte screen on the larger 15" MBP and I waited every minor update hoping for a matte screen to come to the 13" model. Never happened even though it was obviously well within Apple's ability to do so. The point is if Apple doesn't offer what you want either learn to live with what they do offer or buy another computer. But don't wait, hoping that they will come around. It almost never happens.
 
I use a new MBPtb every day and I find the port situation to be a major pain in the rear. I have 4 separate dongles or adapter cables sticking out of my MB, waiting for the TB3 docks to be released.
Click to expand...

You know if any of those have have modular cables [that plug in on both sides] you can get a USB C to Micro-B, or micro USB, or w/e fairly cheap on amazon... or get a single USB 4 port hub and just use ONE C to A adapter...
 
Not a chance.

The majority of people that buy the MBP aren't even pros and only use ports to charge.
 
Sanpete said:
It was the leading way to get higher definition video for years. PCs all had ways to play Blu-ray. Jobs refused to accept it despite loud protests about how backward Macs had become. People have short memories.
Click to expand...

It was the leading way to get higher definition video, but most people didn't bother adopting higher definition video at all until it became widespread on streaming services. Hell, to this day, more people buy DVDs than Blu-rays.
 
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It was the leading way to get higher definition video, but most people didn't bother adopting higher definition video at all until it became widespread on streaming services. Hell, to this day, more people buy DVDs than Blu-rays.
Click to expand...

Actually, it was the MPAA's ever bungling attempt to find better DRM. . . as was 4k video, 3DTV, and now the horrible draconian Kaby lake 4k decoding implementation.
 
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