New 13-inch MacBook Pro • Hacker News Board

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#241

Post by bambataa » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:05 PM UTC

pbnjay wrote: post #228

Only two USB-C ports?!? That's really disappointing, I always have a yubikey in one so that only leaves one free. Seeing this, I'm actually more inclined to get the Air since it has faster ram, a newer processor, and no touch bar. (I'd love 32gb but at Apple prices I could VPN to a custom built rig and still be under budget)

Last time I complained about this on HN I just got told that I should have bought a higher specced version. Guess my £1800 wasn’t enough for more than two ports on a “Pro” device, thanks fanboys!

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#242

Post by criddell » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:05 PM UTC

alexggordon wrote: post #125

I was curious how the 13 inch was priced so I compared it to a new Dell XPS 13. Dell has a better processor (maybe, [2]) , but I couldn't find the option to upgrade the Dell to 4TB internal SSD, so I compared both with the 2 TB option. Ram is the same at 32GB. Dell came out to $2399[0] USD and Apple came out to $2999[1] USD. Dell Pros: * Row of function buttons (I've used BTT to customize my touch-bar to the point wh…

One reason I'll recommend an Apple product over any PC to friends is the Apple Store. Aside from being able to see and play with the hardware, Apple's support experience is better than any PC maker's.

Why doesn't Dell open a store in every neighborhood that has an Apple store? They should be able to match the Apple consumer experience, but more importantly (to Dell), they could run business support operations from those stores.

I'd be a lot more likely to buy the XPS machine you mentioned if I could take it someplace when the coil whine becomes apparent.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#243

Post by whywhywhywhy » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:06 PM UTC

Jonnax wrote: post #172

rvz wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. Now just avoid running those poor Electron apps which actually impact battery life on all laptops. No user shouldn't need to get a laptop with a i7 CPU with 16GB to 32GB of RAM and a high end GPU to run your over-engineered chat app. I get this all the time with my MacBook that I use for development. Run 1 or 2 of them is fine, but 10 or more at the same time and it will run the machine down to the ground.

Okay. So today most desktop apps are electron. The advantage is that it allows people to make windows, Mac and Linux apps with ease. They're not going to go anywhere unless there is a better alternative. Coding native is a waste of money in most cases. Especially for a chat app. Hardware manufactures sell computers. The computers they sell need to be able to perform well on the applications that exist today. There's…

They're not going anywhere and it's only going to get more prevalent when Apple moves to ARM. Can't see Catalyst apps being a compelling alternative to the benefits of Electron to any team who has to answer to a budget.

I don't agree with it ideologically because I moved to mac because I loved how Cocoa apps felt, but honestly Microsoft has the right idea in just embracing it because it isn't going anyway any time soon so best just to make sure they run well on your platform.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#244

Post by corey_moncure » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:06 PM UTC

geerlingguy wrote: post #203

martinvol wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously are you missing optical?

I can count on one hand the number of times I've had to use an optical drive in the past 5 years. I'm guessing most of us are in a similar situation. For those instances, I pull out an old external USB blu-ray player.

Optical audio I/O. Many people might not know this, but you could actually plug in an optical S/PDIF cable into your Macbook Pro, on both the "microphone" input and "headphones" output line, to get digital audio in and out.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#245

Post by HelloFellowDevs » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:07 PM UTC

Tepix wrote: post #158

Funny anecdote: Apple offers a trade-in when buying a new Macbook. I decided to have a look. I entered the serial number of my Macbook Air 11" (Late 2010). I confirmed that it boots up, has no defects, has no optical faults and that I will include the power supply. Apple offered 10€ ($12). Yay?! PS: This ancient notebook runs macOS High Sierra with the current 2020-2 security patch and sells for an astonishing 200€ o…

Mid 2012 500gb Macbook Pro 13" (Mojave) here, $90! I think I'll experiment with it more instead of trading it in.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#246

Post by dpau » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:07 PM UTC

infecto wrote: post #170

alexggordon wrote: post #125

I was curious how the 13 inch was priced so I compared it to a new Dell XPS 13. Dell has a better processor (maybe, [2]) , but I couldn't find the option to upgrade the Dell to 4TB internal SSD, so I compared both with the 2 TB option. Ram is the same at 32GB. Dell came out to $2399[0] USD and Apple came out to $2999[1] USD. Dell Pros: * Row of function buttons (I've used BTT to customize my touch-bar to the point wh…

I cannot agree more. At least for myself i would add MacOS as a huge plus over any other laptop. I know many people work in Linux but I just for the life of me cannot make it as comfortable as MacOS.

Yeah, I'm sorry but the idea of dealing with linux compatibility on a laptop or running Windows is a complete dealbreaker for me. despite how bad the macbook pros get i just can't switch.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#247

Post by lewiscollard » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:08 PM UTC

alexggordon wrote: post #213

tw04 wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After several years I can unequivocally say I still hate the touch bar. I love touch ID, but the bar needs to go. USB-C was all about standardizing. I'm still not sure how I feel about it, I did love magsafe, but I also love that in theory someday I'll have one cable to rule them all. And I'll be able to charge my headphones/laptop/phone/random device with a usb-c cable instead of needing 8 of them.

The best way I can sell Thunderbolt 3/USB-C to myself is that at Apple's size, they need to be able to sell (to consumers, courts, governments) that they aren't being anti-competitive, so by switching to designs that are open and standardized (Thunderbolt 3 is a spec, not a patent) they can better sell their market dominance as not driven by patents and lawyers.

"Market dominance" might overstate the case.

Apple makes up for a small percentage of all laptops sold, even if you compare manufacturers (rather than "Apple" vs "Windows machine"). They have a smaller share of laptop sales than HP, Dell, or Lenovo, and very close to the same (depending on when you look) as Acer and ASUS:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/818439/global-notebook-c...

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#248

Post by laurentdc » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:08 PM UTC

jfkebwjsbx wrote: post #77

tsar9x wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, competitors are still behind Apple. They offer worse touchpad, worse screens (it's either 16:9 or weird resolution), no macOS, worse speakers, worse microphone, worse battery.

Let's ignore no 120/144/240 Hz screens, no good GPU (or any dedicated GPU in most models), no CUDA, no Zen2, no workstation CPUs, no high-capacity RAM, finicky keyboard, bad warranty, no Linux support, bad Windows support, no proper OpenGL, no Vulkan, no Direct3D, no 32-bit software, no Ethernet, no FireWire, no USB-A, no optical drive, no HDMI, no DP, no VGA... Definitely all advantages! Let's also ignore all vendor…

High refresh rate screen is the only thing I'd want from that list. I'll upgrade my 2017 MBP when/if a model with >120Hz display comes out. For me it's been the greatest thing in consumer space since HDD to SSD upgrades. Having made the switch on desktop, going back to 60 Hz makes all motions (even scrolling a web page) appear incredibly choppy and distracting for a hour or two until my eyes readapt.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#249

Post by btbuildem » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:09 PM UTC

Wake me up when the new Macbook has more ports and better cooling.. the other improvements seem a little superficial.

Re: New 13-inch MacBook Pro

#250

Post by jki275 » Mon, May 04, 2020, 2:09 PM UTC

ikeboy wrote: post #116

Tenoke wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All OSs have their issues. I use Windows and Ubuntu daily and have had work macbooks. In a lot of cases it does come down to what you are used to, as there are design differences that aren't necessarily worse or better but when you get used to one the other feels janky. At any rate, in Ubuntu's case things like display support are worse - especially multiple different DPI screens (yes, there are workarounds). UI is l…

I've seen this mentioned a few times now on HN as a drawback of Ubuntu. Are multiple monitors really that much of a benefit that so many people use them?

Crucial.

I've got an entire monitor (really a 55" 4k TV) devoted to all the chat windows and communications I'm running for my team, another 4k monitor that I actually use to code, and then my laptop sits to the side as an auxiliary monitor where I can look things up and what not.