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Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

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Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#31

Post by gh02t »

codeisawesome wrote: post #10

Is the title meant to be a joke? - Apple as a company does not have a single point of failure. - Arguably the iPhone could be called that; if they stopped selling MacBooks next year it still wouldn’t be their “downfall” (not that I like this state of affairs as I like MacBooks). I don’t really hate the butterfly keys either. I’ve been using it for over a year now on the pro, and I don’t know if it’s the second iterat…

The article mentions it at the end, by "downfall" they don't mean Apple is going to fold. They mean that Apple making such a difficult to repair laptop is now going to cost them a ton of money because the "keyboard" repair requires replacing the entire top half of the machine due to the design. The article argues that if the design had been easier to repair they would be able to do this otherwise minor repair much more cheaply.

I think that's a fair claim, even if the title is a bit overblown. Apple is paying the price for what is probably too big of a compromise in the design of the laptops.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#32

Post by ztjio »

apocalypstyx wrote: post #23
trilinearnz wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Replace the entire keyboard with an oversized touchbar? ;)

I personally suspect one day they'll marry the touch bar and the taptic engine to make a keyboard surface. That way they could have emoji keyboards and such. And they would only have to manufacture one top case, no matter what country they were shipped to.

They registered a patent for pretty much exactly that before the original iPhone was introduced.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#33

Post by awad »

forapurpose wrote: post #21
wpdev_63 wrote: post #7

Classic case of why business managers shouldn't be directing design of a product. Business managers sees .2mm shaved off the thickness of macbook pro to 'justify' the premium cost of it over other laptops while a developer/pro user of the laptop would increase the thickness to gain battery and maybe mechanical/mesh hybrid keys... I would be more than happy to pay for a pro version of the current macbook pro. EDIT----…

Does anyone know who made the decision? Is there evidence that it was "Business managers"?

None whatsoever. Given Apple's very well known proclivity to elevate their design/product teams, it's probably more likely to have come from someone on that side of the fence anyway. But it's pretty popular to deride non-technical people (especially those in management) as know-nothings, so it's an easy reach.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#34

Post by RobLach »

codeisawesome wrote: post #10

Is the title meant to be a joke? - Apple as a company does not have a single point of failure. - Arguably the iPhone could be called that; if they stopped selling MacBooks next year it still wouldn’t be their “downfall” (not that I like this state of affairs as I like MacBooks). I don’t really hate the butterfly keys either. I’ve been using it for over a year now on the pro, and I don’t know if it’s the second iterat…

Apple losing the image of quality engineering will effect their entire product range, with consumers less willing to pay a premium and second guessing engineering achievements by keeping in mind side effects.

If the next iPhone is 20 grams lighter but I can’t make phone calls after 6 months, will I buy one over a equally powered Android $300 less?

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#35

Post by xellisx »

partiallypro wrote: post #26
cududa wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. Absolutely wrong assessment. This is a design team running amok after their own goals

Thinner for the sake of being thin has been an Apple problem for a while now.

Just another way to impose impossible standards. =)

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#37

Post by tcarn »

danjayh wrote: post #8

Glad to see him mention the Samsung debacle as well. When my Note 4 finally gave in to the eMMC problem earlier this year, I upgraded to a new-old-stock LG V20 instead of the latest greatness, because it was the last flagship made with a user replaceable battery. Over my Note 4's 3 1/2 year tenure, I replaced the battery annually. Each time, the battery life performance was restored to what I remembered from when the…

Similar boat with an LG V10, I Upgraded to a Moto z force that has Moto mods which include an extended battery, been really good for me.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#38

Post by el_benhameen »

ethagknight wrote: post #12

I picked up my repaired late-2016 15” mbp this morning from warranty repair (replacement). The keyboard feels 100% better. Apple replaced my top case, logic board, and display system for free, out of warranty. I was very concerned about this computer’s longevity, I’ve even ordered a Razer mx cherry keyboard to use when at my desk to take some workload off apple’s questionable design decision, but the replacement keyb…

How long did the repair take? I talked to a guy at the Apple store who said they’d likely do it even if the issue is intermittent, but I don’t love the idea of not having my machine for several weeks.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#39

Post by bitpush »

codeisawesome wrote: post #10

Is the title meant to be a joke? - Apple as a company does not have a single point of failure. - Arguably the iPhone could be called that; if they stopped selling MacBooks next year it still wouldn’t be their “downfall” (not that I like this state of affairs as I like MacBooks). I don’t really hate the butterfly keys either. I’ve been using it for over a year now on the pro, and I don’t know if it’s the second iterat…

Its great that the keyboard hasnt failed you, but you have to know there are other people with opposite experience. When a product fails in a systematic way, its upto the company to remedy it (Galaxy S?, Toyota, J&J ..) One could argue Apple could have done more here.

Re: Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall with the Macbook Pro Keyboard

#40

Post by solomatov »

saagarjha wrote: post #19
Nerdfest wrote: post #14

"The new notebook was universally applauded by tech pundits". Riiiiiight.

The article was referring to the 2012 Retina MacBook Pro.

IMO, 2012 Retina and its updates were masterpieces of hardware design. I wish they continue producing them with more up to date hardware.
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