Would you ever buy a one port Macbook with a tiny-travel keyboard??

[bill-p]

I don't think having to plug in mouse + external storage + whatever else whenever you sit down is minimalistic.

Whenever I sit down with my MacBook, I just plug one cable into my display, which carries power, 4K signal, and USB hub. And my keyboard and mouse are wireless. That's minimalistic.

 

[maerz001]

I don't think having to plug in mouse + external storage + whatever else whenever you sit down is minimalistic.

Whenever I sit down with my MacBook, I just plug one cable into my display, which carries power, 4K signal, and USB hub. And my keyboard and mouse are wireless. That's minimalistic.

Now take this: whenever I sit down with my MB, I plug in nothing and just use it

 

[tobefirst ⚽️]

To answer the title question. Yes, and I have. And it is my second favorite Mac ever, behind my G4 iMac. I love it.

 

[mj_]

Because with my current windows laptop is minimalist : I plug my usb mouse in, my external hard drive and my charger all at the same time with room to spare for sd card and hdmi all without needing dongles. So my desk isn't cluttered. I'm not saying I don't understand Apple wanting to be ahead of the curve and future proof.

How is that being a minimalist? And what does being a minimalist have to do with an uncluttered desk?

Anyhow.... if you were a real minimalist you wouldn't need a USB mouse or an external hard drive. Instead, you would be either using a USB-C dock with a single cable going from your MacBook to said dock or you would be using a Bluetooth mouse (not necessarily Apple's Magic Mouse but any Bluetooth mouse really) and a network storage for your files with a single cable going from your MacBook to the charger.

How is a Windows laptop with a total of three cables more minimalistic than a MacBook with just one?

Anyhow, to answer your initial question: the MacBook was not designed for extended usage on computer desks. Yes, it can do that but it's now what it was designed for. It's an ultra-portable small lightweight computer for road warriors who appreciate the simplicity of a compact and featherlight design. Still, it can be the perfect minimalist computer if you do it right. And regarding the keyboard: I know plenty of people who prefer old-style mechanical keyboards with half a foot of key travel and just as many who prefer newer rubber dome keyboards with less travel. When it comes to keyboards there is no "one size fits all" recipe. If you hate the new Butterfly switches that's absolutely fine, you're in good company. If you love them that's also great. Don't judge others based on your personal opinions though. I am actually faster on my MacBook's Butterfly keyboard than with my iMacs Magic Keyboard: more than 600 keystrokes and around 180 words per minute on the butterfly keyboard vs. around 550 keystrokes and 120-130 words per minute on the Magic Keyboard. All it took was some getting used to, the human brain is surprisingly capable at that.

 

[ixxx69]

So the OP is complaining that Apples ultra portable laptop is a bad design because it's not a great desktop computer with a bunch of peripherals attached to it?

 

[mj_]

Does that surprise you? This guy is trying to figure out whether a 21" iMac might be better than a 27" iMac because he can take it on the plane when traveling...

 

[shaunp]

I get the part about minimalist, and then complaining about 1 port - you end up with a dock of some sort to replace the ports you would have used. It always strikes me as ironic for a company that is supposed to be all about simplicity that you need to add dongles just to do anything useful with their products. It's almost as if Apple just want you to look at their laptops and not have you actually use it. And they are right, they are very pretty to look at. Just not that good to use.

My personal view of Apples current Mac line up is they are the most compromised designs the company has ever produced. In the quest to find the slimmest laptop ever they seem to have forgotten about usability. There's no ports, all the screens are now glossy, the keyboards have no travel and fail all the time, there isn't enough RAM and if it fails good look fixing it when it is out of warranty. They are designed not to be serviced.

It's such a shame to see Apple now making such mediocre products. The only Apple product I would actually buy now is an iPad simply because it is the best tablet on the market. That they did get right. Until they decide to drop the headphone jack on that too....

 

[newellj]

Yeah I'll change the title. I appreciate all your input - Bodybuilderpaul - can you type for a long time without fatigue on such little travel?

I still think 1 port is too few but the MBPs have 2 at least. Hope they update the air even if renamed (and the mini!)

However I see a pattern here: Macbooks have 1 port, mbps 2, imacs 2 (usb c) and imac pros 4 usbc ports. That's just silly. Giving ppl more ports for more money. No. Stop it.

BTW/FWIW, I completely agree, at least in theory. Back in 2015 I had a lot to say about how stupid (and inconsistent) it was to retain a 3.5mm analog audio jack when you could use that space for another USB-C connector. In 2017 it's even stupider (IMO).

But...

...in real life, with a small and relatively cheap hub, I can get 2x USB-A, HDMI and pass-through charging. So in practical terms it's not a big deal, but YMMV.
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Cool. Can you recommend a good hub?

Satechi slim aluminum multi-port. Lovin' it. Amazon link.
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That's all u need for a hub: 3xUSBa, SD, HDMI and Charging for $29

https://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Adapter-Charging-MacBook-Chromebook/dp/B019R9ILTG

and IMHO with a MB you won't need a mouse cos the touchpad just works better

Totally agree, especially with the ForceTouch trackpad that they introduced on the early 2015 rMBP. I fell in love with that so fast I replaced a perfectly good 2013 rMBP. I absolutely love the evenness of this trackpad - no more issues with the differences caused by the hinge in the earlier trackpads.

 

[Future-Proof]

Does that surprise you? This guy is trying to figure out whether a 21" iMac might be better than a 27" iMac because he can take it on the plane when traveling...

That's a different user.

 

[mj_]

I know. Never said it was you
I was just using him as an example.

 

[iPodClassic1]

I don't think having to plug in mouse + external storage + whatever else whenever you sit down is minimalistic.

Whenever I sit down with my MacBook, I just plug one cable into my display, which carries power, 4K signal, and USB hub. And my keyboard and mouse are wireless. That's minimalistic.

Exactly my toughts . And I take it even further.

When I sit down with my macbook, I can have a full day of work, with many different apps and websites, without having to use anything else other than my, er, macbook. That's minimalistic.

 

[simonmet]

A USB-C on each side would be ideal. And a 14” version!

 

[svendobbelaere]

I don't see why I would ever buy a one port Macbook with a keyboard that clicks in a tiny amount (travel)

Use case : usb mouse, external hard drive AND charging at the same time.

I'm a minimalist. WHY would I ever even consider a desk CLUTTERED with dongles. Could I even charge the computer and use the above mentioned peripherals at the same time?

Why would I ever want to use a keyboard that doesn't even click properly? And I hate old school keyboards that travelled too much but this is too little, surely.

Am I the only one that thinks this computer is a bad design?

I have a current-gen MacBook, and I absolutely adore it. I use it together with a touch bar MacBook Pro.

+ light weight
+ fanless design
+ nice screen & keyboard (especially compared to the screen & keyboard of the 11" MacBook Air we've also got, although a lot of people seem to prefer the Air keyboard. I don't).
+ USB-C to charge is great, I have a 5-port Anker charger that can charge the MacBook and 4 other devices at the same time. Only one charger needed for travelling. Another plus is that the cable from the charger brick that ships with the MacBook can be removed, instead of the magsafe charger where the cable often frayed at the brick.

I also have a USB-C satechi hub that's been mentioned before, works just fine. Then again, I never got the dongle complaints, I've been using adapters on my laptops ever since I switched from a Pismo to a G3 iBook.

To make it absolutely perfect, I personally would want an USB-C port on each side (the flexibility to charge from either side is great on my MacBook Pro). Actually, I'd love 2 x USB-C / thunderbolt 3 ports on it in a future rev. And an option to have more than 512 GB of SSD space maybe (but not at the prices Apple commands).

Anyways, it's all about choices.

 

[bill-p]

The 2nd USB-C port may not happen any time soon because Apple is still keeping the headphone jack around.

And they can't let go of the jack because the engineers know they are not supporting the latest wireless audio tech (Bluetooth codecs) in the Macs. Had this exact discussion over in the iPhone place discussing the merits of the removal of the headphone jack. And honestly, there is just none, aside from maybe forcing people to go with the more convenient wireless tech but it's not like people couldn't make that choice with a device that still has the tech.

I think... if Apple can just be a bit less stubborn and adopt the latest Bluetooth tech then it'd make sense for them to phase out the headphone jack and add the 2nd USB-C port. But their engineers obviously think otherwise at this point.

 

[newellj]

The 2nd USB-C port may not happen any time soon because Apple is still keeping the headphone jack around.

And they can't let go of the jack because the engineers know they are not supporting the latest wireless audio tech (Bluetooth codecs) in the Macs. Had this exact discussion over in the iPhone place discussing the merits of the removal of the headphone jack. And honestly, there is just none, aside from maybe forcing people to go with the more convenient wireless tech but it's not like people couldn't make that choice with a device that still has the tech.

I think... if Apple can just be a bit less stubborn and adopt the latest Bluetooth tech then it'd make sense for them to phase out the headphone jack and add the 2nd USB-C port. But their engineers obviously think otherwise at this point.

This is such a head-banger for me and has been for over two years, since they rolled out the first rMB.

Over on the iPhone side, they've killed the 3.5mm audio jack and are really pushing us to wireless. AirPods are so good that this is ok - as long as you can spring $160 for the AirPods.

So (I mean this politely, at least as far as you are concerned), please explain to me the logic of leaving a very antique audio interface in these laptops???

Nutty.

 

[Future-Proof]

Now take this: whenever I sit down with my MB, I plug in nothing and just use it

Why is the trackpad so big on mb/mbp’s?

Why does it take taking off half the computer to replace a few keys?

Why is the keyboard so prone to fail on laptops that cost twice as much as decent windows alternatives?

 

[Altis]

So (I mean this politely, at least as far as you are concerned), please explain to me the logic of leaving a very antique audio interface in these laptops???

Nutty.

Because some people actually do things with their laptops other than listen to music and watch TV/movies.

 

[newellj]

Because some people actually do things with their laptops other than listen to music and watch TV/movies.

My point exactly (and was two years ago). Dump the 3.5mm audio and give us another USB-C. If you need music or audio for a movie, go BT.

 

[Altis]

My point exactly (and was two years ago). Dump the 3.5mm audio and give us another USB-C. If you need music or audio for a movie, go BT.

There's absolutely tons of stuff (the overwhelming majority) that you can connect to that still makes use of the 3.5mm stereo connector.

Might as well keep it on there.

 

[maerz001]

Why is the trackpad so big on mb/mbp’s?

Why does it take taking off half the computer to replace a few keys?

Why is the keyboard so prone to fail on laptops that cost twice as much as decent windows alternatives?

1)So that u don't have to use an external mouse

2)please explain what u mean

3)well that's a different story. Yes it sucks that it fails but I prefer the low travel over the old design

 

[Future-Proof]

1)So that u don't have to use an external mouse

2)please explain what u mean

3)well that's a different story. Yes it sucks that it fails but I prefer the low travel over the old design

2. In order to replace the keyboard or a few keys Apple have to remove the top half of the computer due to the way it’s put together. People on this forum have mentioned it can cost around $700 to get it fixed. I think they mentioned something about it being glued to the battery etc

 

[newellj]

3)well that's a different story. Yes it sucks that it fails but I prefer the low travel over the old design

I am going back and forth on this. The original version that was introduced with the 2015 rMB was IMO unusable. It was IMO worse than typing on a piece of glass, and typing IME was slow and very inaccurate.

Right now I'm using both a 2017 rMB and my 2015 rMBP. The rMB feels short and sounds louder. The rMBP feels sloppy and sounds quieter or maybe just sounds the way I'm used to hearing keyboards. I'd have a hard time saying I prefer one over the other right now, which is actually a very positive statement from me about the gen2 butterfly keyboard.
[doublepost=1526643916][/doublepost]

There's absolutely tons of stuff (the overwhelming majority) that you can connect to that still makes use of the 3.5mm stereo connector.

Might as well keep it on there.

I must have missed that stuff. I've been using computers since the original IBM PC. What am I missing?

 

[maerz001]

2. In order to replace the keyboard or a few keys Apple have to remove the top half of the computer due to the way it’s put together. People on this forum have mentioned it can cost around $700 to get it fixed. I think they mentioned something about it being glued to the battery etc

Ah yes. This keyboard riveted to the aluminum body.
That's why they need to change the whole thing. It's cheap to assemble but only one way

Yes for a customer a bad design choice. I have seen a repair video on the Air which uses the similar technique and u have to break it if u want to replace it.

We can only hope that their engineers will find a solution

 

[Altis]

I must have missed that stuff. I've been using computers since the original IBM PC. What am I missing?

I can't even tell if you're being serious with this. Bluetooth won't work for everything.

How many computers since your original IBM PC have had 3.5mm audio connectors? How many other audio devices of any kind also have had this since then and to date?

It's the universal standard for interfacing an audio source to an amplifier. It's on everything. Computers, phones, home theatre, computer speakers, TVs, cars, guitar amps, meeting rooms, auditoriums and any other venue setup, most headphones (including my wireless pair), etc...

Apple seems to want to avoid standards so they can find ways to lock users down to their "ecosystem."

 

[Future-Proof]

Apple seems to want to avoid standards so they can find ways to lock users down to their "ecosystem."

How could that be, seeing as someone could just as easily buy bluetooth earbuds from one of any other company? Also, along the same lines, why do they offer iTunes for Windows and iCloud for Windows too? And Apple Music is now available on Android.