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New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

ichilton.co.uk

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Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#11

Post by its_so_on »

The real news is that they could shave as much of the macbook off as they actually did. Did you see the video? The screen display is now 'attached directly' to the unibody with no 'glass layer'. What does that even mean? Whatever it means, it's obviously not user-serviceable.

I was amazed at how much they got off the macbook in size and weight - EDIT: everywhere, off the whole machine - and they're idiots for not putting this right next to the "retina display" in the tagline announcing it -- e.g. at www.apple.com now -- The headlines (here and elsewhere) didn't even emphasize the new sleek lightweight form factor.

This shows Apple doesn't currently remember what Apple is. Apple makes, and should make, a big deal out of even a marginal reduction in weight or thickness. What this is is a miracle.

we've just seen a miracle of engineering and Apple doesn't even think it worth mentioning on the front page. idiocy.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#12

Post by campnic »

nicksergeant wrote: post #3

How is this news? I think it's well known that the new Retina-MBPs have made some hardware-upgradeability sacrifices in exchange for portability.

I'd only read about not being able to replace the HDD, but permanent memory modules? I'd say this is news, since I haven't heard of this situation in any other computer in recent memory.

Of course now i read that Mac Airs do the same, so i feel silly. (Edit)

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#13

Post by nicksergeant »

culturestate wrote: post #10
uzero wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My thoughts exactly. But I do think that if I would put over $2000 to a laptop I wouldn't like the fact that I'm not able to upgrade memory after few years. It's ok with devices like iPad but $2000 laptop is a device that you expect to use a bit longer.

You can max it out with 16GB of RAM for an additional $200. I'm not sure I can see myself putting more than that into a laptop during its useful life.

Exactly, and although similar statements have been made in the past, I think 16GB shall be sufficient for at least 5 years out.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#14

Post by LinXitoW »

nicksergeant wrote: post #3

How is this news? I think it's well known that the new Retina-MBPs have made some hardware-upgradeability sacrifices in exchange for portability.

Personally, while I understand why thinness might be great for some, I don't understand how they can sacrifice essential features(exchangeable components and ports(GigE)) for a few mms or grams on a laptop that is clearly marked "Pro". I'd think that exactly pros would be the ones that would make use of these features the most.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#15

Post by tryp »

jurre wrote: post #2

I kind of expected this as the Airs have the same, can anyone that knows a bit more about hardware maybe tell if this is because of space concerns?

Soldering DRAMs to the board saves height and improves ruggedness. It can also improve memory power a tiny bit because you can dial down the signal drive strength and dial up the termination impedance since you don't have reflections at the socket connector. If you only have 1 rank, you can also improve memory latency by maybe a cycle by virtue of not having to accommodate parts at different distances from the memory controller. These additional benefits assume that Apple is one of the half-dozen or so companies with whom Intel is willing to open their memory controller documentation.

The counter-intuitive thing to me about using memory-down (at scale orders of magnitude smaller than Apple) is that it can end up being way more expensive over the lifetime of the product. Module vendors can constantly shop and swap between DRAM manufacturers in order to lower their costs and module competition is fierce.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#16

Post by loceng »

its_so_on wrote: post #11

The real news is that they could shave as much of the macbook off as they actually did. Did you see the video? The screen display is now 'attached directly' to the unibody with no 'glass layer'. What does that even mean? Whatever it means, it's obviously not user-serviceable. I was amazed at how much they got off the macbook in size and weight - EDIT: everywhere, off the whole machine - and they're idiots for not put…

They continue to clamp down on their controlled ecosystem business model. Benefits do come from standardization and not allowing users or unqualified service providers screwing around trying to fix things, though it increases costs then - and I am unsure which is worst. Standardization can exist without a controlled ecosystem.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#17

Post by tryp »

smcl wrote: post #9
jlouis wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would guess it is due to a couple of factors: RAM can now be tested in one package on the motherboard and people can't accidentally change it. In the long run it may open some abilities w.r.t using RAM for other things since you know its exact clocking. The production is cheaper since the MB does not need an extra "install ram" step which is probably a human. You can probably win some height space by a couple of mi…

>> The production is cheaper since the MB does not need an extra "install ram" step which is probably a human. I suspect that's not true. I reckon it's more likely they're changing a "slot RAM into place" step with a "solder RAM into place" step. That said they'll probably be able to simplify the case and design the mainboard however they place, since they'll no longer need to provide easy access to the RAM slots.

The "solder RAM into place" step is handled by the pick-and-place machine at board manufacture time. Human hands are required only to load the machine.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#18

Post by LinXitoW »

its_so_on wrote: post #11

The real news is that they could shave as much of the macbook off as they actually did. Did you see the video? The screen display is now 'attached directly' to the unibody with no 'glass layer'. What does that even mean? Whatever it means, it's obviously not user-serviceable. I was amazed at how much they got off the macbook in size and weight - EDIT: everywhere, off the whole machine - and they're idiots for not put…

It is impressive, but considering the obvious compromises(replaceable components and ports) and the probable compromises(harder serviceability) i wouldn't quite call it a miracle. I also don't understand what the rationale is behind sacrificing Pro features for size on a laptop marked "Pro".

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#19

Post by jman1 »

uzero wrote: post #7
nicksergeant wrote: post #3

How is this news? I think it's well known that the new Retina-MBPs have made some hardware-upgradeability sacrifices in exchange for portability.

My thoughts exactly. But I do think that if I would put over $2000 to a laptop I wouldn't like the fact that I'm not able to upgrade memory after few years. It's ok with devices like iPad but $2000 laptop is a device that you expect to use a bit longer.

More and more os x and the Mac "platform" is moving towards a becoming a crystal prison. They are still the undisputed leader when it comes to quality hardware. But locking down the os and hardware is not going to he good in the long run. I knew this was. I in that's why I got the 17 inch mbp in feb. figured I can have it last for a few more years as can upgrade the ram an hdd to a ssd giving it more life. If the os becomes restrictive then I can always install Linux or windows on the quality hardware.

Re: New Apple Macbook Pro RAM is soldered to the motherboard | Ian Chilton

#20

Post by mtgx »

its_so_on wrote: post #11

The real news is that they could shave as much of the macbook off as they actually did. Did you see the video? The screen display is now 'attached directly' to the unibody with no 'glass layer'. What does that even mean? Whatever it means, it's obviously not user-serviceable. I was amazed at how much they got off the macbook in size and weight - EDIT: everywhere, off the whole machine - and they're idiots for not put…

It probably means that the "display" is the "glass". We already have that from high-end phones like Samsung's Galaxy S series, HTC One X, iPhone 4/4s, etc. It saves space and it makes the text pop on the screen, like it's painted on in.
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