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2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

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Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#301

Post by bitserf »

npunt wrote: post #224
otterley wrote: post #9

We bought a 15" 2016 Macbook Pro ("Retina" is redundant; there are no 2016 MBPs that lack a Retina display.) We also bought a LG 27UD88-W monitor to go with it. (It's one of the few that has a USB-C input.) I have to say, I'm really impressed by the single-cable solution. The monitor charges the laptop (57W maximum, which is less than the Apple charger, but "good enough"), and the laptop sends both video and USB peri…

> (2) When the display goes to sleep, it disconnects all the devices on the hub. This is a problem for external disks, as the OS complains that it has been detached without being ejected first. I hope LG fixes this in a future firmware version. This is why I'm quite disappointed that Apple exited the display business. Small issues like this highlight the different scope of LG and Apple business models. As a display m…

I have a Thunderbolt display from Apple, it also powers off the USB devices when it goes to sleep.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#302

Post by bitserf »

eridius wrote: post #248
undersuit wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>When the display goes to sleep, it disconnects all the devices on the hub. This is a problem for external disks, as the OS complains that it has been detached without being ejected first. I hope LG fixes this in a future firmware version. Is there a monitor that doesn't suffer this issue? My Dell's USB hub power is linked to the monitor power. I can't plug a mouse into the monitor if I want to use that mouse to wake…

Apple's (now discontinued) Thunderbolt display does not suffer from this issue. I can wake my computer up from sleep by pressing keys on the keyboard attached to my Thunderbolt display.

I beg to differ. I had an encrypted USB HDD hooked up to Thunderbolt display, and lost all data on it because it does indeed power down its USB hub :)

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#303

Post by 51Cards »

eridius wrote: post #253
51Cards wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The prime issue is lack of tactile feedback. I wrote quite a bit about this in a previous comment, in that we "touch type" because we get feedback from our fingers. Implementing a "keyboard" interface that requires a change of visual focus is not a good UI practice.

In your comment 25 days ago, you stated that the problem is the layout of the Touch Bar changes regularly, therefore you need to look at it. But this doesn't make sense for the Esc key, because the Esc key is always in the same place on the Touch Bar (and is always available while you're typing).

To me there are a couple problems. One is the changing layout as I mentioned and the fact you have to shift focus constantly because you can't feel where things are (esp since they change from app to app). Then secondly the lack of feedback. I wouldn't mind the touch-bar so much if it hadn't replaced keys that some people use constantly. As an add on above the keyboard, sure... while I wouldn't be crazy about it it could be handy for some people. But half the comments talk about how you can re-map keys to work around it... and that to me spells UI downgrade. A fair percentage of people are perceiving this as enough of a loss in functionality they are finding work arounds.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#304

Post by Uupis »

kaypro wrote: post #180

I just got back from returning my 15" 2.6 i7 with Radeon 450. First time I've returned an Apple product ever. The build quality of the machine is superb. TouchID, display, keyboard and SSD are fantastic. There's something going on with the GPU's... I'm putting my money on the Intel HD but the framerate is extremely slow. Just scrolling a simple web page in Safari stutters considerably. I tried using gfxCardStatus to…

> It's too bad you can't get a non touchbar model with the faster CPU's as well.

You can actually get the top-tier CPU in mid-2015 MacBook Pro 15" (i7-4980HQ @ 2.8 GHz) for less than the current base model 15" (i7-6700HQ @ 2.6 GHz). And have it be ~16% faster for multi-core tasks, and some 9% for single-core.

2015 multi-core: 13945, 2016 multi-core: 12006

2015 single-core: 4292, 2016 single-core: 3926

http://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks/

Admittedly, those are synthetic benchmarks, but my performance concerns are primarily related to CPU-bound tasks that should be well-captured in these benchmarks.

That plus the freedom from a dedicated GPU – I am strongly against having one in my laptop –, and I would very strongly consider the mid-2015 one.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#305

Post by merb »

freehunter wrote: post #249
merb wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure why you were downvoted. Actually it works with Fn + F, too.

Can you control two separate volume dials with the normal function keys?

same as touch bar, if you switch the window they have the functionality of the new window. (actually depends if the software supports it, else it will use the old window)

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#306

Post by k_bx »

otterley wrote: post #9

We bought a 15" 2016 Macbook Pro ("Retina" is redundant; there are no 2016 MBPs that lack a Retina display.) We also bought a LG 27UD88-W monitor to go with it. (It's one of the few that has a USB-C input.) I have to say, I'm really impressed by the single-cable solution. The monitor charges the laptop (57W maximum, which is less than the Apple charger, but "good enough"), and the laptop sends both video and USB peri…

> When the display goes to sleep, it disconnects all the devices on the hub

I also have an audio interface connected to my sound monitors, and it is also quite bad for it to lose its power, producing a loud blasting sound. If monitor becomes a power supply, we need it to never stop supplying it, just like notebook doesn't stop when it goes to sleep.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#307

Post by FullyFunctional »

scottlamb wrote: post #256

Here are my caveats: 1. The keyboard. Not the Touch Bar; the rest of the keyboard. There isn't much travel and I'm afraid it will aggravate my RSI. I've tried pressing the keys more gently, but sometimes I'm too gentle and miss keystrokes. Pressing the right side of the caps lock key is unreliable even when I press it fairly firmly. And the right shift key has gotten stuck once already. I'll give it some more time to…

Nothing to do with Apple per se, but if you have RSI issues, then you might want to start looking into external keyboards, at least for the heavy sessions. (I'm typing this on a Dvorak Kinesis Avantage).

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#308

Post by halilim »

On a slightly unrelated note: aren't SSH keys meant to stay in the devices they are created, and you need to create new keys for new devices? Of course this is assuming that that SSH key was a private one.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#309

Post by eridius »

51Cards wrote: post #303
eridius wrote: post #253

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In your comment 25 days ago, you stated that the problem is the layout of the Touch Bar changes regularly, therefore you need to look at it. But this doesn't make sense for the Esc key, because the Esc key is always in the same place on the Touch Bar (and is always available while you're typing).

To me there are a couple problems. One is the changing layout as I mentioned and the fact you have to shift focus constantly because you can't feel where things are (esp since they change from app to app). Then secondly the lack of feedback. I wouldn't mind the touch-bar so much if it hadn't replaced keys that some people use constantly. As an add on above the keyboard, sure... while I wouldn't be crazy about it it c…

I'm willing to bet that most people complaining about it and talking about remapping it haven't actually used the Touch Bar yet.

Re: 2016 Retina MacBook Pro Caveats

#310

Post by r00fus »

matt4077 wrote: post #286
r00fus wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It'd be nice if Apple had an app simply called Force Quit :)

Click the apple in the top left corner -> Force Quit.

Sometimes this simply doesn't work - it's bizarre but the apple menu is actually part of the App that's running it.
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