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2018 MacBook Pro Review

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Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#221

Post by drusepth »

jryan49 wrote: post #110
pteredactyl wrote: post #28

Cons: Keyboard, Touch bar, lack of ports, cost Pro: Great display. Build quality. MacOS It's too bad all the cons except cost are new to the latest generation ( post-2015 ) MBP.

I always hear people tout the build quality of Macs, but from my experience I see just as much failure with Mac books and normal PCs.

I used to see a lot of software failures on old versions of Mac OS, but it hasn't been as bad in the past year. I am, however, on my third MBP in 10 months due to hardware issues mostly around the keyboard/touchpad and the chassis.

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#222

Post by MarkusAllen »

derefr wrote: post #212
bodas wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd go further and say that Apple isn't basing their hardware strategy on the needs of any real person. It's a laptop with only USB-C ports (and the 13-inch only has two of them). You can't even plug a USB stick into it. The only people who asked for a laptop like that are working at Apple.

> You can't even plug a USB stick into it. You mean a USB-A stick. There are USB-C sticks!

We can get a 256 GB USB-C stick for about $70 here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XC1WGQR/ref=twister_B01IKC9ZW8?...

That is a heck of a lot less than purchasing for storage space when buying this laptop.

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#223

Post by arvinsim »

not_kurt_godel wrote: post #141
scarface74 wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not suggesting using a company laptop for personal projects. But with an IDE up, a web browser for development, a shell, etc. working on just a laptop monitor is painful. I can’t imagine developing an iPad app on a 15 inch laptop.

Agreed, development on a single monitor is grossly inefficient for me if I'm doing any sort of serious work. It drives me nuts when I have to pair program with someone who doesn't use multiple monitors, or doesn't utilize multiple monitors effectively. Every time you switch a screen from one app to the other adds friction to your workflow in the form of keypresses and mentally keeping track of context. The more of yo…

I used to love multiple monitors. But I discovered I got work done better on a single, big monitor. A big screen real estate is really what I need.

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#224

Post by derefr »

Stratoscope wrote: post #179
bodas wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd go further and say that Apple isn't basing their hardware strategy on the needs of any real person. It's a laptop with only USB-C ports (and the 13-inch only has two of them). You can't even plug a USB stick into it. The only people who asked for a laptop like that are working at Apple.

Lately I've been working at a company that uses YubiKeys for 2FA. You can use a traditional YubiKey, but the YubiKey Nano is especially popular because you can put it in your laptop and leave it there. It barely sticks out at all, just enough that you can touch it and activate the touch sensor. [1] I started noticing people in meetings with their new MacBook Pros and six inch cords sticking out the side, and on close…

That's even more funny, because the MBP's touch-bar is essentially the same type of device as the YubiKey—an isolated offboard CPU with its own TPM that can be unlocked with a fingerprint and then asked to encrypt secrets for the host/parent PC. The touch-bar just has more screen.

I'm surprised nobody's hacked the YubiKey app into making use of the touch-bar as the YubiKey "device."

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#225

Post by sumedh »

TheOtherHobbes wrote: post #173
chrisseaton wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can't even plug a USB stick into it. I don't think I've used, or seen anyone else use, a USB stick in about a decade. We can't just keep these legacy ports around forever, cluttering up our devices.

USB dongles are absolutely standard in pro audio. Products made by Steinberg, Avid, and many plug-in shops will not work without a USB dongle. Aside from a few high-end audio interfaces, most music hardware - including licensing dongles - is USB-A. Of course you can buy the inevitable wart-on-a-cable adaptor from Apple. But it's both fragile and ugly, and when you have an iLok with thousands of dollars of software on…

> USB dongles are absolutely standard in pro audio.

That is like saying everyone is using floppy disks, why did Apple remove floppy disk drive. You will need to use dongle for a while but everyone moving to USB C/wireless is a good thing.

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#226

Post by sheeshkebab »

notadoc wrote: post #22

Touch Bar kills it. I am a touch typer. I use the escape key constantly. I use the function keys frequently. Like every other touch typer I know, none of us want to look at our fingers to type anything, let alone to look down and navigate around a microscopic touch screen menu that requires you to not only look at your fingers but to move your hands away from the micro-screen to see what you're trying to tap on. I ha…

Touchbar can be mostly turned off in macOS settings - I left only Esc button on left, and moved sound and brightness all the way to the right, with nothing in between left and right areas. And function keys only show up when I press fn button.

It’s really not too bad (although kind of stupid expensive gimmicky waste if you ask me).

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#227

Post by manigandham »

georgebarnett wrote: post #206
manigandham wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You didn't answer the question. It doesn't need to be so dysfunctionally thin and light to travel between work and home sometimes. Nobody is going to suffer from an extra pound of weight.

He did answer the question, only with reasons that you don't seem to agree with. I also mostly use my MBP plugged in and yet still want my laptop to be as light and thin as possible for when I'm carrying it around during the day/commuting. An extra pound of weight makes a huge difference to me walking home.

> An extra pound of weight makes a huge difference to me walking home.

That's hard to believe. Are you walking 50 miles? How would you notice an extra pound? What about the rest of the stuff you carry, your clothes, your shoes? Is everything else already optimized?

Why does the (likely) most expensive full-size computing device need to lose weight vs everything else, especially when it's infringing on the actual user experience of working with it?

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#228

Post by sumedh »

josephg wrote: post #170
chrisseaton wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can't even plug a USB stick into it. I don't think I've used, or seen anyone else use, a USB stick in about a decade. We can't just keep these legacy ports around forever, cluttering up our devices.

I use USB sticks semi regularly and I have a USB-c MacBook Pro. I picked up a few USB sticks with dual A and C plugs on them. They work a treat.

> I use USB sticks semi regularly

What do you use it for, is it something dropbox or others cannot do?

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#229

Post by ntSean »

inopinatus wrote: post #194
georgewfraser wrote: post #186

The touchbar is such an FU to developers. It still hasn't found any real use. They're not rolling it out to other models. Basically, it's a little fun "experiment" that they've imposed on all their PRO users, thus demonstrating they no longer really care about this user group. Personally, I'm waiting for the next generation of Surface devices to come out, and I'm going to see if I can make WSL work for me.

Without an Escape key I'm doomed. The touchbar doesn't cut it. I tried a 2017 model and could only adapt with the daggy workaround of remapping Caps Lock to Escape. Unfortunately that is therefore in the "wrong" location for muscle memory for every other keyboard I use. Sadly I have such a strong preference for OSX that it seems I'll be using the limping 2012 Retina MBP on which I'm typing until it dies completely, a…

I also remap caps lock to escape; for a button used so regularly, it just makes sense. Heck, who in their right mind is using caps lock more frequently than Escape!

Re: 2018 MacBook Pro Review

#230

Post by prolikewh0a »

MrMorden wrote: post #154
prolikewh0a wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

XPS 13 9370 has been the best purchase I've made in years, and Dells customer support really isn't too bad considering they don't have stores in every city like Apple does. MBP's have their own sets of issues, and aren't flawless either.

Dell and Lenovo both come to you if you choose the right warranty plan. It beats the heck out of the Genius Bar.

We do have Lenovo on site! Sometimes they're there same day, or next business day. It's pretty awesome.
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