Your thoughts on new MBP form factor.

[CrysisDeu]

Same for the new iMac, looks like a Windows copycat. It loses a lot of details that could be better designed.
Not a fan of new Apple products.

iPhone: the glass design on the back looks nice, but the phone is way too thick, I went back to hold an iPhone6, feels like a phone from the future.
AirPods Pro: The hinge is a lot less premium in its design.

 

[CrysisDeu]

Just chiming in on behalf of those who appreciate thin designs, this MBP although packed with awesomeness is too thick for me and the feet look kind of old school from images. The ideal MBP for me would be this one but a lot thinner, no old ports (helps keep it thinner) and I'd pay more for a TB option if it were available.

First time for me with M1, the Air is powerful enough and it has a design that's good for me, this year's M1 MBPs won't bring me back. I'm now thinking my next Mac will likely be an upcoming redesign of the Air with hopefully a similar screen as new MBP without the thickness and old ports.

Too bad they will give it white bezels and no 120hz displays. I want a thinner pro.

 

[tastylemon]

Too bad they will give it white bezels and no 120hz displays. I want a thinner pro.

Imagine what a future 15" MacBook Air would look like. It would look sooooooooo thin.

I use the M1 Air and it keeps up with everything I used to use my 15" 2018 pro for. I mainly don't like the small screen size.

 

[CrysisDeu]

Imagine what a future 15" MacBook Air would look like. It would look sooooooooo thin.

I use the M1 Air and it keeps up with everything I used to use my 15" 2018 pro for. I mainly don't like the small screen size.

I find the old 15/16 pro to perfectly fit my need, with just enough power, maybe a bit more battery life, and 4 TB4 ports.

What I was looking for was about the same screen size (I don't mind the notch at all). A bit better performance, a bit better battery life, maybe 6 TB4 ports, and a slightly thinner laptop due to the switch of ARM chips, and I will be happy.

Too bad this is what they have. I might be looking for Airs in the future.
But still, I will need an M2 or later 15 inch Air with at least 4 TB4 ports, and a 120hz display, mini led is okay to not be there.
I don't think it will ever happen.

I am really disappointed with this refresh. I feel Apple has lost something.

 

[CrysisDeu]

Imagine what a future 15" MacBook Air would look like. It would look sooooooooo thin.

I use the M1 Air and it keeps up with everything I used to use my 15" 2018 pro for. I mainly don't like the small screen size.

Ah, I also couldn't imaging the dent(s) I will have on my legs after using this new pro due to the new feet design

 

[tastylemon]

Ah, I also couldn't imaging the dent(s) I will have on my legs after using this new pro due to the new feet design

That's a great point. I never considered this. A bar would have been more better if they really wanted to make extra room for air

 

[leman]

It’s a fantastic return to function over form.

It’s the same firm and the same function… you just trade one universal port for a built-in USB-C hub.

Really, people should lay off that “form vs. function” thing. Apples approach to firm and function did not change in the last 15 years.

 

[James3000]

I'm trying to reserve judgement until I've seen it in person but from what I've seen in pictures I don't like the new design. I think the rounded corners just look a bit ugly to be honest.

 

[yegon]

It’s the same firm and the same function… you just trade one universal port for a built-in USB-C hub.

Really, people should lay off that “form vs. function” thing. Apples approach to firm and function did not change in the last 15 years.

It’s thicker and heavier, to allow better cooling, better performance and better battery life.

The keyboard has returned (like the last couple of iterations) to the tried and trusted scissor switch, unlike the 2016’s sleeker, thinner and unreliable butterfly switches.

It has more ports, with the SD card slot and HDMI now inbuilt.

MagSafe has returned.

The Touchbar which gained zero features/added support since release has been removed with, I would suggest, very little outcry beyond a tiny minority of vocal advocates. Replaced by the return of function keys, a mainstay of every computer keyboard for decades, besides the Touchbar models.

I mean, if none of this speaks of function over form….I really don’t know what to tell you.

 

[Mikael H]

I've been comparing these machines to my older 2010 and 2013 MBPs, and I have to say I really enjoy this modern take on the pre-touchbar design.

 

[DNichter]

I like the design, definitely a throwback. I was hoping for more of a two iPad Pro's with a hinge look, but that isn't realistic for a Pro machine. I expect that is what the new Air's will look like. If you want the thinnest/sleakest design, you go Air. If you need performance, you go Pro. Is what it is.

 

[PeterJP]

The thing is a little husky.

Can’t deny it. ?

While the new 16" is officially just a tiny bit thicker, the side-by-side shot is misleading in the thickness department. The new one goes straight down all the way to the bottom. The old one goes straight down halfway, then tapers. So of course, the new one will look extremely thick. Best way to actually compare them is to put them closed, on the screen, then to put a ruler on top of them. As the feet won't interfere when carrying it or putting it in a sleeve, they don't really matter when comparing thickness. They might help in cooling, though, by allowing the air to pass under the machine better.

Anyway, I have ordered a 14" myself. It will be closer to the late 2013 13" I used until 2020 than to the 16" I used since then. Which is, for me, the main thing. But I have to admit I really like the new design. The straight, chunky sides and the black keyboard really make it look retro.

 

[leman]

It’s thicker and heavier, to allow better cooling, better performance and better battery life.

I suspect the only reason why it's thicker and heavier is because of a PR-move aka. Apple telling us "we do care about the pro market". They could probably make these things thinner than the last 16" and still have massively better thermals than Intel versions.

Regardless, increase in size and weight are minimal over the last gen, display size is much appreciated and higher cooling capacity is nothing to complain about especially if you are getting the M1 Max.

With all that "thickness and weight" though these are still some of the smallest laptops on the market.

I mean, if none of this speaks of function over form….I really don’t know what to tell you.

This is not "function over form", this is "functional form", as Apple always did. Regarding keyboard and Touch Bar, well, mistakes happen. You try to innovate, something doesn't work out. If the butterfly keyboard did not have that fatal reliability flow, there is a good chance that everyone would be praising the fourth gen. butterfly keyboard instead.

Ports... as I said before, you trade one unversal port for a built in limited-functionality switch. For some people, this is more function (e.g. if you use the card reader frequently). For some others (like me), we now need to buy a dongle to connect our peripherals since we have port port less. MagSafe, well that is certainly form over function because it does not provide any additional function. Why do you need a charging port when USB-C provides charging? The only reason why MagSafe is back is because Apple is on the "blast to the past golden age" trip with these machines (notice how they resemble the old unibody models) and of course to appease the MagSafe fanbase. In fact, Apple did a great move here: they save money (no need to put additional PCIe lanes or Thunderbolt controllers), make money (proprietary MagSafe cables) and make the pro fanbase happy. Look how much the former critics are renouncing for a 1mm ticker chassis and MagSafe, it's funny, really.

Personally, I would trade magSafe for the fourth USB port any time of the day, but I'm fine with the changes. The limited ports on the new models are a bit of an annoyance for my workflows, but I can adapt, and having HDMI can be occasionally useful when I am giving talks.

 

[Mikael H]

MagSafe, well that is certainly form over function because it does not provide any additional function. Why do you need a charging port when USB-C provides charging?

I read your post and see a person without children or crowded meeting rooms in their life. Lack of MagSafe was one of the things that worried me with the last generation of MacBook Pros.

 

[leman]

I read your post and see a person without children or crowded meeting rooms in their life. Lack of MagSafe was one of the things that worried me with the last generation of MacBook Pros.

I don't have children, but I do have bunch of crazy cats that love running around and stumbling over cables. In my experience the weight of the laptop combined with the low force required to unplug USB-C make universal charging as efficient as MagSafe in practice.

 

[alee]

I don't have children, but I do have bunch of crazy cats that love running around and stumbling over cables. In my experience the weight of the laptop combined with the low force required to unplug USB-C make universal charging as efficient as MagSafe in practice.

Definitely not in my experience. I've sent my laptop flying quite a few times. The USB-C does not detach depending on the angle it's pulled at. My MBP15 has seen much better days. Cannot wait for my MagSafe.

 

[dingobiatch]

I don't have children, but I do have bunch of crazy cats that love running around and stumbling over cables. In my experience the weight of the laptop combined with the low force required to unplug USB-C make universal charging as efficient as MagSafe in practice.

My family dog knocked over my dad’s non-MagSafe laptop years ago and the cable being in the laptop caused the entire motherboard to crack. Soooo. Yeah. We have MagSafe and TB4 now and I think that’s a really good thing.

 

[Camarillo Brillo]

I don't have children, but I do have bunch of crazy cats that love running around and stumbling over cables. In my experience the weight of the laptop combined with the low force required to unplug USB-C make universal charging as efficient as MagSafe in practice.

Maybe if it gets pulled straight out

If it’s at any angle the computer is coming with it

 

[Cape Dave]

Given everything I first heard about Apple Silicon, I was actually expecting more of the same form factor.

Thank God we did not get that Cooling was becoming IMPOSSIBLE.

 

[thadoggfather]

I'm happy for the 14" to get a little more heft; had a 13" MBA and hated how light it was. The added heft makes me hesitant on the 16" as a student, but it makes the 14" seem llike it will be perfect.

you hate how light a laptop is? that is a bit of a first

 

[Mikael H]

you hate how light a laptop is? that is a bit of a first

Self-defence. Blunt force trauma. ?