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Introducing the next generation of Mac

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Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#561
post #140

Apple mentioned in the event that these Macs will have hardware verified secure boot. Since I’m not very knowledgeable in this area, can someone explain (or even try to guess) what this would/could mean for running Linux on these? I use Macs way beyond Apple’s support timeframe with OS X/macOS, and Linux is the one that runs on some of the older Macs and provides adequate security and security related software update…

i personally prefer secure hardware at the expense of not being able to play around with other OSes - i am sure i am not alone

I also prefer secure hardware, but I find macOS completely useless for work.

While I can appreciate that some see other-OSs as something of a curiosity, for many of us it's a big deal-breaker, and it's a shame Apple is not willing to provide their hardware to so many potential clients who simply don't want their software.

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#562
post #409

I'll be sticking with my 2015 Macbook Pro Retina 13". Great machine, not too thin, heavy enough, no stupid touch screen, usb ports, great keyboard. Everything apple has done since hasn't compared.

The only bad thing about the current 16" is the Touch Bar. There is a lot to like about the rest though.

I agree here. I really don't understand some of the bashing that happens every single time the Macbook Pros come up in HN comments.

I was a longtime happy owner of a 2015 15" MBP until earlier this year when I decided it was time to upgrade to a refurbished 2019 16" MBP. I was a bit nervous at first but I have to say that I have no major complaints, other than the fact that I wish I had F keys instead of the touchbar. Contrary to everyone else, I really like the keyboard.

As for solving the touchpad issue, I use Pock [1] which I read about on HN. It removes the need for using a slider every time I want to adjust the volume or brightness and lets me control Spotify and see what song is currently playing.

I also have a 2018 15" MBP for work. If you believed the comments here you'd think that I am unable to type or use the damn thing. Honestly, after 1 week of use I'm already used to the keyboard. Not having an escape key kind of sucked, but I have rebound caps lock to escape on all of my Macbooks and enjoy that even more than having an escape key.

My other complaint is that the trackpad is a bit too large - I find myself accidentally hitting it sometimes and it just seems excessive. Finally, it's a shame that you can't mess with the battery/RAM/SSD yourself but unfortunately that's more of a trend for the industry than just Apple.

Overall I'm a totally happy user on both the 2018 and 2019 Macbook Pros. I was quite nervous about the possibility of having to use a Windows PC for work when I started my new job. And don't even get me started on having to use a Pixelbook at Google.

[1] https://pock.dev/

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#564

Straw poll: I need a new development machine, price is not an object but it has to be a Mac. Should I buy this new M1 or go with the Intel 16 inch MBP? My gut says there’s going to be a year or two of cross-compilation nightmares. I do a lot of Docker-based development. Wondering what everyone else thinks?

> but it has to be a Mac.

Bummer. I just paid $3200 for a lower end Lenovo P620 (only 12 cores), and similarly spec'd Apple machines were running almost $8k, and benchmarks say the Macs are technically slower. These were desktop workstations, though.

I know it doesn't help your decision, but I'm still excited about the new computer

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#565

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you use function keys for? I was thinking about this, and I don't think I've used a function key in years.

Step Over/Into/Out shortcuts in Xcode (F6/F7/F8) are the really obvious ones which I hit many times per day. Play/pause/etc. with the Fn key are easier to hit without looking than the touchbar.

I prefer that they change labels in a context-sensitive way. For keys that I don't use that often the icon is a better trade-off than a tactile response. Sliders are useful as well.

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#568
post #506

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chrome?

I don’t do any tab-hoarding in Chrome (that’s the job of Safari on my machine), but I’m pretty sure that it will suspend tabs long before you run out of RAM. 8 GB is still plenty for web browsing.

I started surfing the net in the 90s with 8MB. :D

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#569

I don't understand the pricing of the MacBook Air vs the 13" Pro. The Air ($1249) vs 13" Pro ($1299), you get: - same CPU - same GPU - same Neural chip - same RAM (8gb) - More storage for the Air (512gb vs 256gb with 13" Pro) - You get Touch Bar with 13" Pro So if you don't care about the Touch Bar, you actually get with the Air: - better specs - smaller device footprint - and $50 cheaper. Am I missing something?

They might both be an M1, but only the Pro has a cooling fan.

The Air is going a more iPad route; totally silent and more than enough performance for typical tasks, but under sustained load it's going to throttle hard.

Re: Introducing the next generation of Mac

#570

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The median Macbook user is not a developer. A web browser and videocalling are the only two from that list you'd expect the median user to be doing with a Macbook.

Also Office. Lots of open Word documents. My "typical Mac user" in this case, is my wife. Her 8GB MBP is holding up very well.

Google Docs and Slides browser tabs can take a decent amount of resources too.
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