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Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

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201–210 of 872 posts

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#201
post #12

Genuine question: Who cares? I love design, and I love the engineering Apple has done, but, I've got to believe that Apple keep their aesthetic without keeping the same exact people. I think I would count this as a win for Apple - an opportunity to change the guard and give permission for some new designers to give a critical eye to the products they make. I would love to see them take maybe 1 or 2 steps back from mi…

It's not minimalism, it's poor minimalism. IMO Watch is just plain unattractive as a design object. Tinkering with the crown colour or the strap choices hasn't changed that. I keep waiting for it to be refined, so far not. I'm also not sold on the new(ish) font and flat UI style. They work, more or less, but there's something very bland about them. The big hits were game changers and were anything but bland - the ori…

I tend to agree with you - at some point the whole "take everything away that you can do without" became "do without". my MacBook pro is great, but I would love more ports. I don't care as much about weight, I'd happily do with more battery, and more keyboard travel.

Generally, when I think of "Pro" I'm thinking of more features, not just the same features but more powerful. I would think that pros actually have different needs, and that their tools would have different functions to suit.

As you said, we'll see.

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#202
post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That they removed MagSafe boggles the mind. The usability was objectively better than the replacement. You could easily plug it in even if blindfolded. And no problem when the cord got unexpectedly pulled or tripped on. Every time I plug in my new macbook I miss it.

USB-C is infinitely better than Magsafe. You can use any charger, use battery packs and any third party cable which means far more reliability and quality.

Can't we have USB-C with magsafe?

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#203
post #94
post #42

Given his penchant for thinness over function, I hope this means we can have a thicker pro laptop again, with all the ports back and a more robust keyboard.

It’d be interesting to see the results of a survey on this I think, I and I know many of my peers are of the exact opposite opinion. I like the move to usb-c, I like the new keyboard, I don’t mind (but also don’t really use) the Touch Bar but I can’t live without Touch ID at this point. The big trackpad is magical to me, and the thickness and weight of the 13” is just right. I have an older MBP as well, 2013 maybe, a…

Yes, it's definitely divisive. In my case, I do need a reliable keyboard, I do not have a single USB-C device around me that I can connect (while having literally tens of USB-A devices), I do not need or want the touchbar, I want the function keys, and I don't mind the extra thickness. The new macbooks make all the wrong compromises for me.

So, if it is divisive, why not make both kinds? Why does there need to be a single compromise across the entire line?

I hate the fact that I am reduced to living in fear of what will be taken away the next time they present a computer. I find it bizarre that we have pretty much accepted that we need to give something up for the "new thin and light", and we just wonder what it's going to be and explain to ourselves how we didn't really need all those USB ports or headphone ports after all.

Also, magsafe saved my bacon many times, and I'm looking at a USB-C connector on my wife's laptop and its so worn out that the plug is almost falling out. Magsafe was a much better solution.

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#204

I haven’t forgiven this guy for the latest “thin at any cost” 4th gen MacBook Pro we’ve had since 2016. He ruined the best programer’s laptop on the market. Maybe with him and his ego gone, they can fix the next generation and salvage the product line.

This exactly. I don't know if it's Ive or Cook, but I'm really wondering what I'm doing to do when my older Apple devices kick the bucket. Apple, if you're listening, bring back real keyboards and the headphone jack!

Thinkpads are nice

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#205
post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That they removed MagSafe boggles the mind. The usability was objectively better than the replacement. You could easily plug it in even if blindfolded. And no problem when the cord got unexpectedly pulled or tripped on. Every time I plug in my new macbook I miss it.

USB-C is infinitely better than Magsafe. You can use any charger, use battery packs and any third party cable which means far more reliability and quality.

I think the argument for using universal chargers or battery packs makes sense for phones, where it is certainly understandable that you'd find yourself somewhere with a phone but without means to charge it - most people carry their phones in a pocket, where a charger battery might not fit or be comfortable to carry.

Moments where you'd find yourself with a laptop but without a charger are far harder to imagine for me... If you're carrying around your laptop it means you're using some sort of bag or backpack, at which point there's no reason not carry a charger in it too.

Magsafe's main function (safety against falls), on the other hand, has saved my 2013 MBP more times than I can count. It is a godsend, specially for people that live around small children or pets.

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nothing wrong with USB-C and the big trackpad is fine too, and I would love to have touchID on my 2015MBP. But getting rid of mag power and the USB-A ports, HDMI port, and SD card slot was a big step back. Maybe you don't ever need to present anything from your laptop, but if you talk to anyone who does, they will tell you how awful it is to not have an HDMI port. The USB-C to HDMI is the worst adapter I've ever seen…

> Maybe you don't ever need to present anything from your laptop I present all the time, but I can't remember the last time I had to plug in. The problem with trying to plug in is that the other side could be anything from VGA to DP. Should VGA ports be stuck back onto the MBP? > And if you're a semi-pro photographer, the lack of an SD card slot is terrible. What about the CF, XQD, or mini-SD slot? I'm an enthusiast…

> Mag safe was nice, but I recently took a trip where I needed a single power brick and cable for my MBP and iPad. Once the iPhone goes USB-C it will make traveling even that much easier.

I didn’t even realize how much this would matter to me until I went traveling. All of a sudden I don’t even need anything but the brick, because I’ll just either hook it up to my phone directly with a ubs-c to lightning cable (and it charges crazy fast) or I’ll use the laptop as a hub. I still carry a sugar cube with me just in case, but I never use it really.

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#208
post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That they removed MagSafe boggles the mind. The usability was objectively better than the replacement. You could easily plug it in even if blindfolded. And no problem when the cord got unexpectedly pulled or tripped on. Every time I plug in my new macbook I miss it.

USB-C is infinitely better than Magsafe. You can use any charger, use battery packs and any third party cable which means far more reliability and quality.

They could have done both. Microsoft managed to put a MagSafe charger port and a USB-C PD charger port, on their ~$399 Surface Go.

Apple's laptops are 3x to 5x that price. There's no reason why Apple couldn't have just done both MagSafe and USB-C.

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#209

Apple used to be known for their amazing designs. That was when Steve was running the company. Since his death Apple has been in a free fall in the design space. Most of the comments here seem to be about their awful hardware design. Yes, the thin macbook is not very usable, and the Homepod which is shaped like an amorphous blob is uglier than any Bose speaker. But what about their software? Their UI design is super…

Is the UI super unusable, or does it have some flaws?

Re: Jony Ive to form independent design company with Apple as client

#210
post #127
post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’d be interesting to see the results of a survey on this I think, I and I know many of my peers are of the exact opposite opinion. I like the move to usb-c, I like the new keyboard, I don’t mind (but also don’t really use) the Touch Bar but I can’t live without Touch ID at this point. The big trackpad is magical to me, and the thickness and weight of the 13” is just right. I have an older MBP as well, 2013 maybe, a…

The new Macbook Air actually has TouchID without the touch bar. I actually mind the touch bar, because I like having actual keys for brightness adjusment, keyboard backlight, and volume.

That’s cool, I wouldn’t mind that either because there’s nothing killer about the Touch Bar. It’s not useless either though. I use zoom daily, and the ability to just tap mute on the Touch Bar is pretty nice. Not can’t live without it nice like Touch ID, but not negligible either. There are a number of little features like that in apps that make the Touch Bar a net positive for me.
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