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Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

notes.alinpanaitiu.com

31–40 of 82 posts

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#31
This “every single pixel” stuff reminds me of how many people will work at a tube of toothpaste for a minute just to squeeze out one more drop. It’s not really about getting more toothpaste, because you could easily just buy more. It’s also not really about getting the most toothpaste for your money, because you’re likely not also focusing on cheap tubes, bulk buys, etc. It’s certainly not about getting the most toothpaste for your time. It’s loss aversion: because you believe you should have this thing, you’re willing to accept a much higher cost to obtain it. Similarly, people doing this “every single pixel” thing aren’t necessarily also getting the biggest screens or the thinnest bezels, it’s about it feeling “wrong” to not use these particular pixels.

The problem goes away if you mentally reframe: you don’t have a 16.1″ screen with a piece missing, you have a 15.6″-ish screen, the same size as before the notch, and also a horizontal strip above it that’s only good for sensors, the menu bar, and extended backgrounds.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#33

My 16" MBP would be a perfect device if they could either put the webcam/sensor array behind the glass or just get rid of it. If I want to FaceTime I can use an iPad or iPhone as a peripheral attachment. At this point, virtually perfect hardware is being ruined by a notch. :( It's a reminder every time that there are still design limitations to overcome and engineering feats to be achieved for the next 1,000 years. 8…

you really don't notice it after a few days

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#34

This “every single pixel” stuff reminds me of how many people will work at a tube of toothpaste for a minute just to squeeze out one more drop. It’s not really about getting more toothpaste, because you could easily just buy more. It’s also not really about getting the most toothpaste for your money, because you’re likely not also focusing on cheap tubes, bulk buys, etc. It’s certainly not about getting the most toot…

Author here! I agree, I don’t like the “squeeze every drop” approach either, and I get to meet it daily from people asking for not-so-needed features from my apps.

For me it wasn’t about wanting to use every single pixel. I just really prefer the look of a single app filling the screen completely.

I don’t know why, it just looks good to my eyes and I seek that instead of the large black top bar look.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#35

I've actually been debating getting a 14 MBP M1 for about $1500 on open box stores etc (woot), or on sale or what not but cannot justify spending 1.5k on a laptop lol. I have a desktop and a Thinkpad T430 if I need to go somewhere. Also have a tablet and such. I definitely do need a "better" laptop but my justification is that I'm not outside the house often enough for me to buy the MBP. Which, realistically, is true…

If you're price-sensitive and not already doing so, include the M2 MBA (or, hell, even the M1 MBA) in your calculations. Great machines, way more than sufficient for most. Though there are some nice, fun luxury (again, for most) features on the MBPs, too.

I’ve been doing ReactJS development with both the M1 and now the M2 MacBook Air for a year now. My app’s transpiler production build takes about 5 seconds and any development incremental is essentially instantaneous.

I can’t imagine most developers work even stressing an M2 unless you are compiling chrome or something.

Best thing as a contractor I don’t even bother to bring a power adapter. I work for 8 hours and leave with 20%-40% remaining every day.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#36
post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More applications on my screen at a time?

So you say space isn't important, because you look at a small portion of the screen at a time, yet having a larger screen is useful to have more space to place apps? So, in the end you're saying screen real estate is important? Or not? You have to pick one to be logically consistent.

I’m not OP, but I don’t see an inconsistency about what they actually said. They didn’t say screen real estate doesn’t matter at all, only that the specific space under discussion isn’t a concern to them. I imagine many Mac users can relate, especially long time Mac users who remember when the menubar couldn’t even be hidden.

As far as the value of larger versus smaller screens, I can also relate to OP. When I’m sitting with my laptop on my actual lap, I definitely have fewer things on screen at any given time than when I’m using my comically large 43” desk monitor. I’m generally not looking at more things on that monstrosity at any given time! But being able to “switch” to them without interacting with a mouse/keyboard is a convenience that the larger screen affords. Even if I don’t care about trying to shove more of my active focus into the top few pixels of either screen.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#37

Just got an M2 MBA and it's such a fantastic upgrade from my old intel MBP, but the notch is a bit more distracting than I'd like. It's awkwardly large, and the corner rounding is a lot worse than the notched iPhones imo. Its saving grace is that the screen is 16:10, and all pixels where the notch lives are bonus pixels, so it's still a net win in usable screen space vs 16:9 laptops. Still, this is a nice workaround!

If you're anything like almost everyone else I've ever met, then as long as you just tolerate it being a minor annoyance for a few weeks you'll completely forget the notch exists.

Except for once a month or so when you suddenly notice it and it creates an unpleasant unscratchable itch in your brain for a minute, like when you're suddenly aware of your own breathing or how much space your tongue takes up in your mouth.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#38

This “every single pixel” stuff reminds me of how many people will work at a tube of toothpaste for a minute just to squeeze out one more drop. It’s not really about getting more toothpaste, because you could easily just buy more. It’s also not really about getting the most toothpaste for your money, because you’re likely not also focusing on cheap tubes, bulk buys, etc. It’s certainly not about getting the most toot…

For whatever reason, the oval “notch” on the 14 bothers me a lot less than the actually notch on my prior phone.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#39

This “every single pixel” stuff reminds me of how many people will work at a tube of toothpaste for a minute just to squeeze out one more drop. It’s not really about getting more toothpaste, because you could easily just buy more. It’s also not really about getting the most toothpaste for your money, because you’re likely not also focusing on cheap tubes, bulk buys, etc. It’s certainly not about getting the most toot…

I'm not sure the toothpaste thing is really about loss aversion so much as it's about minimizing effort. Throwing a tube away, opening the box of a new one, unscrewing the new cap, putting it down, and fiddling with the the aluminum or plastic cover on the new tube so you can take it off while your hand is wet is so much more effort than just squeezing the old one a bit more so you can get on with your night and go to sleep.

Re: Fullscreen apps above the MacBook notch

#40

This “every single pixel” stuff reminds me of how many people will work at a tube of toothpaste for a minute just to squeeze out one more drop. It’s not really about getting more toothpaste, because you could easily just buy more. It’s also not really about getting the most toothpaste for your money, because you’re likely not also focusing on cheap tubes, bulk buys, etc. It’s certainly not about getting the most toot…

I'm not sure the toothpaste thing is really about loss aversion so much as it's about minimizing effort. Throwing a tube away, opening the box of a new one, unscrewing the new cap, putting it down, and fiddling with the the aluminum or plastic cover on the new tube so you can take it off while your hand is wet is so much more effort than just squeezing the old one a bit more so you can get on with your night and go t…

You described about 9 more steps than it takes me to open a new tube of toothpaste
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