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The new MacBook

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Re: The new MacBook

#261

Post by nkoren »

This is a beautiful machine. Once again, Apple excels at hardware.

But what the living hell is going wrong with Apple's desktop software? OS X and Apple's applications suite have been getting steadily worse with every release. Look at the App store: the latest releases of OS X, iPhoto, iMovie, Pages, and Numbers are (in stark contrast to earlier versins) all rated at 2.5/5 stars, with the plurality being 1-star reviews. People are LIVID -- and not just for trivial NOOB reasons, either: the quality of the work is frankly shoddy. Who's steering that part of the ship???

Re: The new MacBook

#262

Post by lsaferite »

archagon wrote: post #131
bane wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It just means we're going to stay stuck in dongle hell. When I'm on the road the minimalism of a Mac is nice, but at my desk, hooked up to everything I really need for heavy work, my desktop is a cluster-f of cables and adapters and wires.

I'm concerned about the feasibility of USB-powered hard drives with this setup. On my Macbook Pro, if I plug more than one of them into a hub (as opposed to separate USB ports), they start flaking out on account of lack of power, even if the hub is powered.

Well, if the hub has enough power, supports USB-PD, and the drive supports USB-PD, then it should be able to draw up to 100W of power.

Re: The new MacBook

#263

Post by rootbear »

DIVx0 wrote: post #90

I'm really sorry to see magsafe go. Between my dogs and kids I would have gone though a dozen macbooks without magsafe. I sincerely hope this no magsafe or single port thing goes into the MBPs as well.

Clearly what is needed is a Type-C to magsafe-style thingy and back. You stick a short pigtale Type-C -> magthing into the Macbook, then another magthing -> Type C onto that, so that you effectively have a magnetic safety catch in the middle of your Type-C cable. Or maybe the magnetic end would connect directly to a hub, since with just one USB port, you'll probably be using a hub a lot.

Re: The new MacBook

#264

Post by crystaln »

I've been considering upgrading from an Air to a Pro for the retina display and was waiting for this update. Now this has me a bit confused because the new MacBook has a retina display.

It seems like Pro may yet be the best choice for anyone doing demanding work, because the processor is 2x+ faster. While the 13" Pro may be a brick compared to this new MacBook, it's still incredibly light.

Re: The new MacBook

#265

Post by dntrkv »

jader201 wrote: post #210

Is the world really as obsessed with smallness as Apple thinks it is? From what I keep hearing (and this is anecdotal, of course), it seems that most people would prefer to (reasonably) maximize the battery life with the downside of adding a bit more heft. Of course, there's always a balance that has to be stricken, but it seems like Apple always pushes much more to the side of size over battery vs. what seems to be…

I see this more as an evolutionary step. They size the whole package down with lower battery life and lower performance, then as the technology catches up they will up the battery life and performance once it's possible. Same thing they did with the original Air and Pro. When the original Air came out people mocked it for giving up ports and optical drives for size, now it's the standard laptop that's recommended for most use cases.

Re: The new MacBook

#267

Post by stcredzero »

jfernandez wrote: post #102

Accidentally clipping the power cable is something I definitely got used to not worrying about anymore. I'm loving the single mother-of-all ports USB-C will provide but I highly appreciated the magnet component of MagSafe..

I wonder if someone can come up with a "mag-breakaway" adaptor for USB-C? It's a "null" adaptor -- it has USB-C female and USB-C male -- but it splits down the center and is held together by magnets. You can just put one on the end of your USB power adaptor. There you go: you have your Magsafe back again.

Re: The new MacBook

#268

Post by X-Istence »

archagon wrote: post #131
bane wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It just means we're going to stay stuck in dongle hell. When I'm on the road the minimalism of a Mac is nice, but at my desk, hooked up to everything I really need for heavy work, my desktop is a cluster-f of cables and adapters and wires.

I'm concerned about the feasibility of USB-powered hard drives with this setup. On my Macbook Pro, if I plug more than one of them into a hub (as opposed to separate USB ports), they start flaking out on account of lack of power, even if the hub is powered.

Then your hub is not doing a good job of providing the 500 mA that it supposed to give to devices, or your USB powered hard drive actually requires more than 500 mA to do its thing.

Re: The new MacBook

#269

Post by mahyarm »

colinramsay wrote: post #8

Are there things here where Apple is significantly further ahead than the competition? Innovating on keyboards, trackpad, battery life, power usage and form factor - there just seem to be innovating simultaneously on more levels than the competition. Another thing - that vibrating trackpad gizmo feels like a couple of innovations away from true touch feedback on an iPhone? Any thoughts?

They still have competitors that are doing interesting things. I think apple just talks about it as part of their keynote, while their competitors might not have keynotes going into the manufacturing details and innovations that they have done.

For example, the NEC LaVie Z HZ550 is 1.75lbs and the case is made out of a magnesium-lithium alloy. The keyboard is integrated into the case. It uses a processor that consumes more power (an i5), but they will probably release a new one in a while that will use the same 5W core M and get similar battery life. The laptop is a whole 3mm thicker than the new air, but you get ports as a result.

Re: The new MacBook

#270

Post by ghostly_s »

ghostly_s wrote: post #223
Grazester wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not going to happen. Apple licenses out the use of its connectors for docking stations and other accessory usage. If they just drop the lightening connector on the iphone this soon after implementing it, I dont think manufacturers of these accessories would very happy about that.

Why would Apple start giving a flying f about accessory manufacturers?

Apple has a long history of completely disregarding the needs or desires of accessory manufacturers, and only started the MFi program after years of categorically responding with cease-and-desist letters. The program is primarily in serving Apple's interests in a level of reliability in the accessory ecosystem; it's an absolutely insignificant revenue stream.
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