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MacBook Pro? No

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Re: MacBook Pro? No

#221

Post by eecc »

AstralStorm wrote: post #151
Meekro wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The 2015 Macbook Pro included an SSD, 2x Thunderbolt 2, 2x USB3, HDMI, and an SD card slot. It had 9 hours of battery life. Are you saying Intel chipsets actually regressed since then? If not, then it seems like Apple is the one who has regressed here.

Apple choose the low voltage CPU, weaker GPU and super slim case at the expense of ports and computational power. Also 9 instead of say 6 hour battery life. The only thing "Pro" in MacBook Pro is the price. At the same price points you can get Lenovo, Dell or HP workstation class laptops.

Sorry, but that’s not entirely true. Mobile workstations (say a p15 or p17) can even equip a Xeon but they’re either throttled, have humorously short battery or a grotesque power supply and are still gimped somewhere (USBc, NVMe, GPU).

Apple made a mess of their PB but it’s not entirely their own fault, other vendors can’t offer great alternatives either l

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#222

Post by nimish »

coryfklein wrote: post #212
nimish wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a professional computer toucher, I definitely value battery life because a dead laptop doesn't let me get work done

The "Professional" moniker signals improved workload capabilities more than it does mobility/battery life. Essentially, Apple needs to change "MacBook Pro" to "MacBook On-The-Go" and just admit they don't have a Professional device. When you think of a person with the title "computing professional", is your first thought, "Gee, I bet this guy spends very little time around power outlets"? No. While that may be true i…

Professional means that I use it in the context of my profession. For me, the new touch bar pro is fundamentally better than the old for what I do because I need more battery life but I also don't want to pay a weight or size penalty for it. I get paid to get work done with my computer, so in that context I am a professional.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#223

Post by kbob »

I want an eight pound MacBook. (3.6 kg)

That's enough for an honest 12 hours' battery life, a CPU+chipset that supports 32 GB of RAM, full-travel, full sized keys, a chassis thick enough to support all the ports, and an escape key. (And I want it to run OS X.)

Every time Apple moves away from the eight pound point, they compromise something I care about for something I don't: thinness and lightness.

So let me be perfectly clear: I want it heavy, thick, and powerful.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#224

Post by brandonmenc »

AstralStorm wrote: post #152
brandonmenc wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Apple’s only homemade blunders are the asinine keyboard and the silly half assed attempt at touch-but-not-screen. The keyboard rules. Can confirm. Also some content creation apps I use (ex: Ableton) are starting to get useful treatment in the Touch Bar. > Oh and the stupid obsession with thin The thinner the laptop, the more stuff I can cram in my carry on. ymmv

This means you're probably not using the laptop as a workstation. Say, graphics, CAD, CAM, video or audio authoring. To do these you might want extra ports for say audio interface, specialized controller, digitizer... And a video output to present the results perhaps. Instead you get to carry that and an interface box. More disk space and RAM are major assets too.

I do use it as a music workstation - external monitor, audio interface, a bunch of midi devices, external disks, ethernet, etc.

I plug all of this into the laptop with a single cable, via a thunderbolt dock, and it's the greatest thing ever.

If I'm carrying around a bunch of equipment for work on the go, throwing in one or two small usb hubs [0] is no big deal.

[0] https://www.anker.com/products/variant/USB-C-to-4-Port-USB-3...

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#225

Post by brandonmenc »

tjoff wrote: post #180
brandonmenc wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Apple’s only homemade blunders are the asinine keyboard and the silly half assed attempt at touch-but-not-screen. The keyboard rules. Can confirm. Also some content creation apps I use (ex: Ableton) are starting to get useful treatment in the Touch Bar. > Oh and the stupid obsession with thin The thinner the laptop, the more stuff I can cram in my carry on. ymmv

> The thinner the laptop, the more stuff I can cram in my carry on. ymmv This is important. Because all those adapters do take up space.

A couple USB-C pigtail adapters take up nearly zero space, and everything will be USB-C in the near future.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#226

Post by coryfklein »

nimish wrote: post #222
coryfklein wrote: post #212

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The "Professional" moniker signals improved workload capabilities more than it does mobility/battery life. Essentially, Apple needs to change "MacBook Pro" to "MacBook On-The-Go" and just admit they don't have a Professional device. When you think of a person with the title "computing professional", is your first thought, "Gee, I bet this guy spends very little time around power outlets"? No. While that may be true i…

Professional means that I use it in the context of my profession. For me, the new touch bar pro is fundamentally better than the old for what I do because I need more battery life but I also don't want to pay a weight or size penalty for it. I get paid to get work done with my computer, so in that context I am a professional.

Historically the "Pro" in the MacBook line has referred to a device that is optimized for professional computer work. A journalist can certainly _be_ a "professional" and use their computer to get work done without requiring anything beyond a glorified tablet.

The kind of device required for a video rendering, database engineering, software development, or some other _computer_ based profession is inherently different and has stricter requirements on the capability of the device beyond mere portability and being able to pause Spotify with dynamic function keys.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#227

Post by riffraff »

brandonmenc wrote: post #225
tjoff wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The thinner the laptop, the more stuff I can cram in my carry on. ymmv This is important. Because all those adapters do take up space.

A couple USB-C pigtail adapters take up nearly zero space, and everything will be USB-C in the near future.

But so do a couple millimetres of extra depth.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#228

Post by stevewillows »

With any luck I will die before my late 2013 15" MBP. The cost of the new ones is criminal, and the reviews are even worse.

I picked up a Toshiba Chromebook 2 and run GalliumOS (a mod of Xubuntu). I use the former-Chromebook for anything outside of the house -- unless its a meeting where I will specifically require Creative Suite. It's basically my 'if someone robs me, take this and I won't blink twice' laptop.

With every new MBP released over the past few years, it makes me wonder what happened to the people who were working in the various design teams during the Jobs era. I can't imagine that these flaws are the result of a single leader.

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#229

Post by alt_f4 »

dexterbt1 wrote: post #193
alt_f4 wrote: post #168

I completely agree. The post-2015 Macbook Pros are a disaster. - The touchbar is a useless gimmick that is outright harmful to developers like me that use the function keys a lot. I hate that there isn't a 15" Macbook without a touchbar. - The keyboard typing experience is poor and the key mechanism is extremely fragile, making it super expensive to own and repair - Missing useful ports. I like USB-C, but I also like…

They're still selling th 15in rMBP w/out touchbar. https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro/15-inch But then again, this has the same specs as a 2015 machine: with all the function keys and ports, has an older processor, no discrete graphics, and starts at a smaller storage 256GB SSD. If only they'll offer one with discrete GPU.

I know, I meant up-to-date specs and no touchbar

Re: MacBook Pro? No

#230

Post by andrewprock »

coryfklein wrote: post #212
nimish wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a professional computer toucher, I definitely value battery life because a dead laptop doesn't let me get work done

The "Professional" moniker signals improved workload capabilities more than it does mobility/battery life. Essentially, Apple needs to change "MacBook Pro" to "MacBook On-The-Go" and just admit they don't have a Professional device. When you think of a person with the title "computing professional", is your first thought, "Gee, I bet this guy spends very little time around power outlets"? No. While that may be true i…

The battery life on my touch bar pro is horrendous.
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