14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack • Hacker News Board

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#101

Post by jimmont » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:17 PM UTC

moneywoes wrote: post #2

Do ARM compatibility issues still exist?

they're largely resolved--my air no longer panics and I cannot recall when it last did, though it did panic frequently the first several point-releases;

my web development is largely unaffected since around the 2nd quarter of 2021 and actively developed software either has a release for apple silicon and when that's not the case it mostly works with occasional crashes (eg inkscape); obviously this will depend on what applications you use however homebrew, node modules, deno, rust, etc all are working well in various long-lists of items that are less relevant beyond my generalization here; I intend to use applications running in windows and qemu but haven't taken time yet

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#102

Post by ghshephard » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:17 PM UTC

wyldfire wrote: post #99

kgermino wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting input from the ai, but reduced is definitely intended to apply to both "key travel" and "keyboard reliability" in that sentence.

So it is a subtle joke? What was the intent of the butterfly design change, then? Just reduced key travel?

I thought the joke was pretty explicit as I read it, and pretty funny.

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#103

Post by seanalltogether » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:18 PM UTC

cjbconnor wrote: post #84

seanalltogether wrote: post #74

Can anyone recommend a good thunderbolt dock they've been using. Ideally I would like a dock that at least provides for displayport, ethernet, audio, and 1 or 2 usb-a ports. I'm fine with using the magsafe if power through the dock is not available.

I've been using the Caldigit TS3+ for the last ~year, and it's pretty good. The only real issue with it I have is the fact that it only supports DisplayPort 1.2, so I have to run another cable for my 4k 120hz display.

What version of displayport is needed to support that? I thought that 2560x1440 was the highest resolution you could run over displayport with 120hz or 144hz

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#104

Post by kgermino » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:18 PM UTC

wyldfire wrote: post #99

kgermino wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting input from the ai, but reduced is definitely intended to apply to both "key travel" and "keyboard reliability" in that sentence.

So it is a subtle joke? What was the intent of the butterfly design change, then? Just reduced key travel?

Yep I think the writer intended it as a joke, or at least a comment on how bad the butterfly keys were. The butterfly keyboards didn’t do much except help make a laptops a bit thinner. That had the effect of reduced key travel (often seen as a negative) and massive reliability problems (universally bad).

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#105

Post by nitins_jakta » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:19 PM UTC

Apple still won't take some accessibility issues seriously, which is unfortunate given they are a leader in this space. They don't test their devices on people with binocular vision dysfunction, although I've asked them to.

There is a whole community of people on LEDStrain.org who suffer from severe eyestrain, vertigo, headaches and migraines to the point where these devices are unusable for a minority of people.

One possible cause is temporal dithering which can be seen as the dancing pixels on a slow e-ink display: https://youtu.be/0y-I3hqQgCQ. Windows also uses this technique, but Apple's causes more strain for some reason.

It would be great if apple could look into this.

Some of us are desperate and will gladly pay for help. I am at risk of losing my IT job cause of these companies. I have a binocular vision dysfunction but treatment is not working well.

Any ideas from the community as the technical root cause?

Edit: not sure why I am being downvoted. Please have some empathy!

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#106

Post by Hamuko » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:20 PM UTC

mortenjorck wrote: post #91

zlsa wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because the 140W charging adapter supports USB-C EPR (extended power range) [0], which allows compatible USB-C chargers, cables, and devices to work at up to 240W. (Obviously Apple's 140W charger only supports up to 140W.) However, the spec is so new that there's currently no USB-C to USB-C cable that supports 140W. I don't think we know yet if the MacBooks can charge at 140W with an EPR USB-C cable, not least becaus…

That's really good news. 140W charging on the 16" had me worried that Apple was using a proprietary/non-conforming extension to USB-C, just like Nintendo did for the Switch. The reports of bricked Switches from standard USB-C chargers was an unfortunate demonstration of why this is a bad idea, and why it's important that Apple is using a standard (even if it's very new) method of increasing power delivery.

I really doubt that Apple would have gone out of their way to invent their own power profiles for the 16-inch MacBook Pro if one didn't already exist.

The 16-inch MacBook Pro certainly doesn't need 140 W to run. The Intel i9 MacBook Pro comes with a "measly" 96 W charger and it tops up just fine. The 140 W is there for fast charging and if they had to stick to 100 W, they could've made a professional machine just fine. It's not like the most common complaint about the MacBooks between 2016 and 2021 was "it charges up too slow".

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#107

Post by neonscribe » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:20 PM UTC

If I had to choose between an SD card slot and a USB-A port, I definitely would have chosen a USB-A port. I would take both, if possible. I would even give up a USB-C port for a USB-A port, but that might be a little backward-thinking. The USB-A to USB-C adapter is small and inexpensive, but it is still something I will need, mainly for the occasional flash drive.

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#108

Post by avojak » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:20 PM UTC

seanalltogether wrote: post #74

Can anyone recommend a good thunderbolt dock they've been using. Ideally I would like a dock that at least provides for displayport, ethernet, audio, and 1 or 2 usb-a ports. I'm fine with using the magsafe if power through the dock is not available.

Another +1 from me for the CalDigit TS3+ dock. I've been using it for about 1 1/2 years now with dual 4K UHD @ 60Hz displays, and haven't had any issues whatsoever. I also use it for a wired network connection and several USB peripherals at the same time. I really appreciate its layout where most ports are rear-facing so that you don't have cables on your desk coming out towards you and then looping back. The additional front-facing ports are great for popping in the occasional flash drive when needed. For some people the 87W output may not be enough, but it's never been a problem for me.

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#109

Post by deergomoo » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:20 PM UTC

losvedir wrote: post #69

I ordered mine on release day and am eagerly awaiting its delivery. Glad to hear that about the notch. I couldn't for the life of me think why it mattered. When the presentation showed it, I looked at the very display of the Mac laptop I was watching it on and sure enough, there was a gap in the menu bar where the notch would be, with the menu items on the left and the clock and all those little widget icons on the r…

> But then I saw all these comments about how it was horrible and a deal breaker [...] I thought either everyone had lost their collective mind, or I was missing something

I think people dialled the outrage back again when they realised the area below the notch is a full 16:10 display—i.e. they added display where bezel used to be, rather than cutting into the display area.

Re: 14-inch MacBook Pro review: A Mac Pro in your backpack

#110

Post by fermentation » Mon, Oct 25, 2021, 4:21 PM UTC

nicoburns wrote: post #79

Does anyone have any insight into how many GPU cores to choose with these machines? I don’t do much in the way of video work; but I’d like to be able to run a couple of 4k external displays as well as the internal display. And ideally have video calls not slow down my entire machine.

The higher end options are really only for intense video encoding, like if you're working on a movie (I wonder how many people choose macbooks that task). The basic option should be more than fast enough for running displays.