Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

New MacBook Pro series

apple.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

331–340 of 359 posts

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#331

Post by DougBTX »

astrodust wrote: post #240
hackermom wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I almost choked on a sip of tea when I noticed that the 13" "Pro" is still stuck with a 1280*800 display. Talk about boneheaded move.

The number of potential customers for this model that actually know what that means is very small. If Apple put in a 1900x1080 screen, what you'd hear instead from consumers is that everything is too tiny to read.

A colleague has a Vaio with that resolution running Win7. It doesn't seem to respect DPI settings system wide, he is continually adjusting font sizes. I don't know why he puts up with it, it seems much more hassle than it is worth.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#332

Post by moe »

wtallis wrote: post #329
spicyj wrote: post #316

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pointless to discount the Mac Mini because of its form factor. Put it in a cardboard box if you want it to look like a tower.

It's valid to discount the Mini because when you buy a Mini you are paying for several very significant features that are lacking from a typical desktop. If you want to make a fair comparison to the Mini, look at home-theater PCs that will be similarly small and quiet.

I don't follow how being a better desktop disqualifies the mini from being a desktop?

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#333

Post by ugh »

danudey wrote: post #289
CountSessine wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, why not? Among top tier laptop and cellphone manufacturers, the only name that appears on both lists is Apple (well, I guess Samsung makes laptops too...). Adding a SIM/RUIM slot and a 3G chip makes so much sense. I know a lot of laptop manufacturers in Europe have offered this as an option. Why not Apple?

Because most people don't want to pay for two 3G data plans, and the types of people who would want 3G connectivity on their laptops probably have 3G smartphones with tethering already.

You don’t have to pay for a data plan. I use one of those prepaid 3G USB sticks and pay 2.50€ for one day unlimited HSDPA internet access (limited to GPRS speeds after 500MB).

That’s perfect for me since I’m maybe six hours in a train two or three times a month and no flatrate can beat the five or eight Euro I’m paying.

There are dozens of other options available (at least in Germany), suitable for pretty much any conceivable need and some will come with extra SIM cards for your smartphone or tablet.

How about this one: 15€ per month, unlimited HSDPA internet access (limited to GPRS speeds after 1GB), 9ct per minute for all phone calls and SMS (as always in Europe, incoming phone calls and SMS are free), two SIM cards. You could order an unlocked iPhone from Apple right now (I don’t know whether that’s possible in the US but it is now in Germany) and put one SIM card in the phone and use the other one for your laptop or whatever other device.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#334

Post by danudey »

ugh wrote: post #333
danudey wrote: post #289

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because most people don't want to pay for two 3G data plans, and the types of people who would want 3G connectivity on their laptops probably have 3G smartphones with tethering already.

You don’t have to pay for a data plan. I use one of those prepaid 3G USB sticks and pay 2.50€ for one day unlimited HSDPA internet access (limited to GPRS speeds after 500MB). That’s perfect for me since I’m maybe six hours in a train two or three times a month and no flatrate can beat the five or eight Euro I’m paying. There are dozens of other options available (at least in Germany), suitable for pretty much any co…

In the US and Canada you don't get anything like these offers, and Apple's not the kind to redesign their hardware just so that some people in Europe can do something easily accomplished with a smartphone or a $50-100 USB 3G modem.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#335

Post by ugh »

danudey wrote: post #334
ugh wrote: post #333

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don’t have to pay for a data plan. I use one of those prepaid 3G USB sticks and pay 2.50€ for one day unlimited HSDPA internet access (limited to GPRS speeds after 500MB). That’s perfect for me since I’m maybe six hours in a train two or three times a month and no flatrate can beat the five or eight Euro I’m paying. There are dozens of other options available (at least in Germany), suitable for pretty much any co…

In the US and Canada you don't get anything like these offers, and Apple's not the kind to redesign their hardware just so that some people in Europe can do something easily accomplished with a smartphone or a $50-100 USB 3G modem.

It seems just so strange. The iPad does have 3G built in, why not their other mobile products? Plugging that 3G modem in is just so unelegant.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#336

Post by kondro »

wheels wrote: post #18

Color me disappointed. I was hoping for: • Ditching the optical media for longer battery life • 4 cores in the 13" • Max RAM of 12 GB (this one isn't listed ... maybe?) • The higher resolution 1440x900 resolution in the 13" that the Macbook Air has Altogether it's a pretty wussy update. Basically it looks like the diff (on the 13" model, which is what I care about) is: • Faster CPU (finally!) • Thunderbolt port (coun…

The battery life score is based on Apple's new battery tests. 50% screen brightness whilst browsing 30 websites (including flash) in a normal fashion until the battery dies.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#337

Post by rosser »

trotsky wrote: post #300
MrFoof wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure if they're being more realistic. The previous MBPs had CPUs with a TDP of 35W. The TDP of the CPUs in the 2011 MBPs are 45W. Battery life seems to have dropped inline with the increase in power envelope. We should see improved battery life next year with Ivy Bridge, or if there's a mid-year refresh with Sandy Bridge processors with new steppings. Regardless, I plunked down for a 15" today so I could rid…

The increase in TDP mostly has to do with the increased GPU power - I think (speculating) that if you were running the 2010 CPU + the nvidia gpu hot for equivalent performance you'd be seeing at least as high a total power draw.

My 2010 15" MBP (i7, anti-glare upgrade) routinely gets 5-6+ hours on battery -- unless I'm doing something that causes the discrete GPU to kick in. Then, I'm lucky to get two hours.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#339

Post by rosser »

rdl wrote: post #214
joonap wrote: post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nope. They have all been TN so far. Just better quality TNs. I've been wishing for an IPS on a Macbook for years. Looks like this update didn't bring any change to that matter.

I believe the last commercially available IPS laptop was the think pad t43p. The actual plant making 15" IPS panels shut down. (EDIT: wow, thank you! (I forgot about the T60p, but that's also discontinued; the HP EliteBook having a 17" is amazing though...I may have to get one of those!)

The x61 tablet had one, too. One of the many reasons I stuck with that machine as long as I did.

Re: New MacBook Pro series

#340

Post by macros »

sandGorgon wrote: post #100

hmm - you need to go to 1799$ before you end up with a half decent graphics card and 2199$ for a decent card. Compare it with a Dell XPS 15 Sandy Bridge - $1049 for i7 2620M, 1920X1080 display, nVidia GT525 Optimus card, HD Camera. For a first time possible mac buyer (me) - is it well justified ?

I've got a 15" dell xps with a core-i7, total piece of shit. Build quality is crap, broken hinges and keys. The battery holds 2/3 of original charge after 6 months. Overheats due to acpi bugs not reporting the temp correctly. Bulky.

Really miss my thinkpad. Never again.

Post reply on HN