Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro • Hacker News Board

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#641

Post by noodlesUK » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:34 PM UTC

gilbetron wrote: post #74

After 8 years of macbooks, after using the 2018 model, I switched to a Dell Precision 5530 running Ubuntu 18.04 and it is awesome. The hardware is great, and having Unix under it all was the only real reason I liked Macs (used to be hardware, too). Granted, I don't need Adobe stuff, or anything else that doesn't run or have an alternative on Ubuntu (although it is dual-booted with Win10, but I've never used it, just…

The precision 5530 is an absolutely fantastic machine. Best laptop I’ve ever owned. I was a MacBook Pro user since 08, and when it came to replacing the ailing 2013 MBP, I was not at all impressed with what apple had to offer. Fedora was a great experience (using i3, but gnome is pretty nice too), and I haven’t looked back at all. The only downside is that I can’t do iOS development on it, but that can be handled with a VM where necessary. I only wish dell made them with an AMD gpu rather than the Nvidia Optimus garbage.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#642

Post by earenndil » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:34 PM UTC

namibj wrote: post #462

earenndil wrote: post #344

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Driver for my wifi card under linux crashes. Granted it is a 'staging' driver, but it's still a pretty bad look.

No. It's better than no driver. (I'll assume it works at all in some capacity.) While there are some companies that make wifi cards you can't use easily, that's just one thing you check before buying, just as e.g. general reliability/performance.

That's way worse than no driver. By 'crash', I mean the whole kernel crashes. And, by the way, it does advertise linux support (for linux 4.10, but that's in the fine print).

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#643

Post by josephg » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:37 PM UTC

ericabiz wrote: post #51

We repair these as part of our business, and to be clear, both the keyboards and the screens are failing on these at an alarming rate. iFixit detailed the issues with the screens, which (in Apple's unending quest for "thinness") use a thinner flex cable to connect the display to the rest of the laptop. This thinner cable is prone to breakage, and we are already seeing 2016-2017 MacBook Pros in our shop regularly for…

They have announced a free fix for displays on 2016 models:

https://www.apple.com/support/13-inch-macbook-pro-display-ba...

And a free fix for keyboard issues on all butterfly keyboard laptops:

https://www.apple.com/support/keyboard-service-program-for-m...

For now the display fix is only for 2016 displays; though I suspect with more bad press they’ll extend to 2017 and 2018 models too.

I have a 2016 model which is starting to get the stage light problem. I wonder if it’s worth getting it fixed now or if I should wait until it gets worse before taking it in for servicing.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#644

Post by SomeHacker44 » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:38 PM UTC

Still no 32GB RAM option on 13”. Still no option to remove Touch Bar. Still almost the same keyboard. Pass.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#645

Post by FractalParadigm » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:39 PM UTC

lukestevens wrote: post #458

bayareanative wrote: post #442

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lenovo T480 hackintosh here.

What has the hackintosh experience been like for you?

I've been running macOS on both my XPS 15 (9550) and desktop (Haswell i3 based w/ Nvidia graphics). The experience is good on both systems but they definitely have their caveats.

The XPS is probably the most positive experience thus far, it'ss a 9550 with i7/16GB RAM/1TB NVMe/GTX 960/4K. It's currently running Mojave 10.14.3, everything except the SD Card reader and Nvidia GPU work (including the touchscreen, WiFi OOTB, Bluetooth, etc.). The GPU really isn't a problem, Intel graphics work with full acceleration and anything GPU-heavy gets done on the desktop. Helps with battery life too; my system's battery health is down to ~45% but I can still squeeze out a good 4 hours from it. It's not very well supported, you really gotta stay on top of updates and be ready to fix what breaks, but when it's running it's a dream to use.

The desktop on the other hand is a completely different beast. It's got an i3-4150/8GB RAM/GTX 980 and currently running High Sierra 10.13.6 (because of a lack on Nvidia drivers in Mojave). Getting it setup was a little bit of work, the WiFi/Bluetooth card needed an enabler kext and audio needs a bootloader tweak to work, otherwise it's functionally indestinguishable to a legitimate Mac; It can even be updated through the Mac App Store, iCloud/iMessage works, Handoff works.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#646

Post by LinearEntropy » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:39 PM UTC

zrail wrote: post #522

TomVDB wrote: post #306

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Replace the battery. I did it last year on my 2012 rMBpro after it have been complaining about servicing the battery for about a year, and while it wasn't a walk in the park, it all worked out great. Tip: there are 2 ways to replace the battery. One is by following the official iFixit etc instructions where you remove absolutely everything before you peel off the battery with acetone. The other is by immediately peel…

Or just take it to the Apple Store and pay them $199 to repair the battery which also gets you an entirely new top case and keyboard (old, original stock)

I had to have my mid 2015 rMBP battery & top case replaced by a premium service provider in New Zealand due to a bulging battery. Thankfully I still had a couple of weeks of AppleCare left as the bill came to over $1300NZD ($850 USD). A $199 replacenent would be a dream.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#647

Post by ddingus » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:40 PM UTC

docker_up wrote: post #176

endymi0n wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can only come to the same conclusion. Typing this on a 2018 MacBook 15 inch, and it's a disaster. I still keep accidentally hitting the Touchbar ten times per day while typing (it's not a press-bar, duh), I need a dongle for _everything and their mother_, battery lifetime isn't good, the keyboard is prone to mistyping and double clicks, the screen doesn't get bright enough sometimes, I can't get any higher spec har…

I recently was forced to upgrade by 2015 laptop at work because the battery life was finally short enough that I couldn't stand it. I hate dongles. The 2015 Macbook will stand as their last best laptop. Nothing about the 2018 laptop is better, it's only worse. I don't understand why they don't see this. There should really be a huge multi-billion dollar class action lawsuit for their keyboards and fixability to wake…

Was it not possible to replace the battery?

I do not mean officially, just get one in there, unofficially.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#648

Post by bartimus » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:40 PM UTC

I'm fairly sure my 2012 core-i7 MacBook Pro with SSD and 16GB ram still has comparable performance for most applications. Single core speed has pretty much stagnated over the years.

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#649

Post by CivBase » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:41 PM UTC

cletus wrote: post #125

What a clusterF is modern Mac hardware: - Keyboards with much worse action that are more prone to failure (from dust no less) and require replacing the motherboard to fix... all for a Touchbar no one wants and 0.5mm cut in thickness. - Loss (over the years) of the ability to upgrade the CPU, SSD or memory; - Display failures due to broken ribbon cables; - The USB-C clusterF; and - Loss of MagSafe (this one still hurt…

> Loss of MagSafe (this one still hurts).

I've been wondering for a while now why USB-IF hasn't defined a standard magnetic connector. I'm surprised none of the flagship smartphones or laptops have tried to push their own magnetic connector. They're desperate to differentiate themselves in the current market and wireless charging is falling behind quickly due to physical constraints.

I use a volta cable for my phone and it is wonderful. It handles power and data just fine. My only issue is that I have to use a dongle.

There's clearly demand for it. Magsafe and volta have proven its effectiveness. It would be a great solution for portable consumer electronics like laptops, cameras, tablets, and phones.

What's holding it back?

Re: Apple introduces 8-core MacBook Pro

#650

Post by borgel » Tue, May 21, 2019, 10:42 PM UTC

pimeys wrote: post #601

nextos wrote: post #496

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Came here to say the same thing. If you can avoid using a laptop, I know many people can't, a desktop buys you a lot of freedom. Freedom to choose good components, a fanless case, and a functional OS like NixOS.

I've been using a desktop at work for the last ten years and hopefully to the foreseeable future. With a price of a MacBook pro you get 16-24 cores, good cooling facilities, 32-64 GB of RAM and excellent Linux support.

I built a desktop a few months ago after 10 years of laptops. Wow, what a difference time makes! It's incredible what you can get on even a modest budget when speccing desktop components.