These "hidden" costs of AI/LLM driving up IT (and energy) related price inflation are starting to feel more and more as a kind of an inescapable, AI-imposed tax. We should start calculating these increased hardware costs (that at this point basically affects any product with storage and RAM inside) into the real price we for our AI/LLM usage, and not only think of the price in terms of a monthly subscription or $/tokens. How much have you, both personally and at your workplace, in reality spent extra on equipment and on price increases of services per year since the LLM-boom started?
Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
871–880 of 1001 posts
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#872Devs reading this, please start making your apps less memory hungry. All the people running any computer appreciate.
I do. No one cares.
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#873These are the price changes mentioned in the article: Macs MacBook Neo: $699 (up from $599) 13-inch MacBook Air: $1,299 (up from $1,099) 15-inch MacBook Air: $1,499 (up from $1,299) M5 MacBook Pro: $1,999 (up from $1,699) M5 Pro MacBook Pro: $2,499 (up from $2,199) M5 Max MacBook Pro: $4,099 (up from $3,599) iMac: $1,499 (up from $1,299) M4 Max Mac Studio: $2,499 (up from $1,999) M3 Ultra Mac Studio: $5,299 (up from…
Some very steep price rises here! I would have thought with Apple’s scale they would have much of their memory purchases locked in to long-term supply contracts that would insulate them somewhat from the market, but I guess that isn’t the case. Either that or they’re just taking advantage of the situation to juice their profits!
Or simply they have an opportunity to raise prices? They probably will announce record revenues in a year or so.
Happens with all kind of companies: oil goes up, prices go up, record revenues for the companies. I don't see why it wouldn't happen with Apple.
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#874I was considering an upgrade this fall. I think I can do another year or two without. who knows, I might the same spec for even more $$. Just as the trend goes....
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#875These are the price changes mentioned in the article: Macs MacBook Neo: $699 (up from $599) 13-inch MacBook Air: $1,299 (up from $1,099) 15-inch MacBook Air: $1,499 (up from $1,299) M5 MacBook Pro: $1,999 (up from $1,699) M5 Pro MacBook Pro: $2,499 (up from $2,199) M5 Max MacBook Pro: $4,099 (up from $3,599) iMac: $1,499 (up from $1,299) M4 Max Mac Studio: $2,499 (up from $1,999) M3 Ultra Mac Studio: $5,299 (up from…
I think Apple could easily swallow these price hikes in its profit margin if it wanted to, but then its shareholders wouldnt have as pretty numbers to look at in their quarterly reports.
Why would Apple do that?
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#876Earlier quoted context omitted.
I know this is a bit off topic, but is anyone excited for the future? I'm only 20, but everyone used to talk about how excited they were for the future. I don't know anyone who is excited for the future. It upsets me I never got to live the "glory days" of cars, technology, outdoor activities, music, entertainment, etc. I only see it getting significantly worse too. It's hard not to fall into the trap of doomerism bu…
I am super excited for the future! Medical advancements are accelerating, fusion power is on the horizon, space travel is exciting again. This is really an amazing moment in human history. I think we really can conquer cancer, Alzheimer's and maybe even senescence in the next 20-30 years.
> I think we really can conquer cancer, Alzheimer's and maybe even senescence in the next 20-30 years.
Hopefully, but there is something we know we cannot change in the next decade, and that's climate change. Heard of the heatwaves happening right now? That's only the beginning.
The only way it could stay as bad as it is today would be to reduce the emissions to 0 right now. There is no coming back, once the CO2 is in the atmosphere it stays there for much longer than your lifespan.
Of course we won't cut the emissions in the next few years (kind reminder that they keep increasing actually), so every year will be worse.
And I'm not talking about the energy crisis that's coming. Nor about the current mass extinction we are living: biodiversity is measurably dropping, and until now it was NOT due to climate change (only human activity and habitat loss). Now climate change adds up as a bonus.
It's probably time to enjoy seeing insects and the occasional wild life. We probably won't go to Mars, but we're making the Earth look like Mars, so we may all get to live in a "bunker" and have to were a suit outside before the end of our life.
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#877Anyone else here enjoy living in the future? Look at us, we get AI megacorporations ruling the world and bestowing us with the power to use their servers for just $20-200/month. It's practically charity, and all we had to give up for it is all consumer hardware, the quality of the internet and our own jobs. I love it here!
Sure do! Infant mortality lowest it has ever been in the history of man, we live the longest, our material welfare is the highest it has ever been! I have electricity, I can talk with friends all over the planet for free, instantly, I can get to anywhere on the planet within a day. I could go on and on forever.
AI will crash, and once we're through the trough of disillusionment we'll see where it will shine and it will further increase our wealth and enjoyment of life.
If anyone feels negative, I recommend seeing a psychologist. There is no reason for anyone not to feel exceptionally optimistic about the future these days!
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#878Earlier quoted context omitted.
I know this is a bit off topic, but is anyone excited for the future? I'm only 20, but everyone used to talk about how excited they were for the future. I don't know anyone who is excited for the future. It upsets me I never got to live the "glory days" of cars, technology, outdoor activities, music, entertainment, etc. I only see it getting significantly worse too. It's hard not to fall into the trap of doomerism bu…
With all due respect, we have pills for obesity and computers think. If that doesn’t get you excited about the future, nothing will.
Think about that next year when climate gets even worse, and the year after.
And don't forget that it will get worse every year for the rest of your life. Unless we cut CO2 emissions to 0, in which case it won't recover: it will just stay as bad as it is when we stop the emissions. But no need to think about all the disagreements coming from cutting our energy use (because cutting emissions means cutting energy use), because we just won't do it. So we can happily focus on the wars that will come from the energy crisis and enjoy the climate worsening every year.
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#879Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's always a wave. There will be a backlash.
Yeah this could end up being a good thing. We need more diversity in the computing space and this might make some space for that.
Not sure why you're donwvoted. I too see the downsides as well as the upsides. The high prices vs the people that use their excess solar to power a GPU that powers an agent that messed about with an ESP32 and some sensors to build nice Home Automation integrations. Etc.
Of course it's hard to be positive when you lost your job, I get that.
Re: Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
#880Earlier quoted context omitted.
I know this is a bit off topic, but is anyone excited for the future? I'm only 20, but everyone used to talk about how excited they were for the future. I don't know anyone who is excited for the future. It upsets me I never got to live the "glory days" of cars, technology, outdoor activities, music, entertainment, etc. I only see it getting significantly worse too. It's hard not to fall into the trap of doomerism bu…
I was excited about the future... I've always been a tech nerd, from my first Gameboy in 1998 when I was 10, to my first PC, then getting all sorts of gadgets and upgrades. Always an early adopter to many things, even social media and AI. I was basically a day 1 adopter of Facebook when it became available worldwide. I was there before Gangnam Style hit the 313 YouTube views limit (I was the 214th watcher) Tesla was…
I have always been a tech nerd. Growing up, tech nerds sounded like capable introverts who could create great things.
But for every good thing technology brings, it seems like we create bad things by the thousands. And it seems like capable introverts becoming rich and powerful are actually extremely dangerous.
Most technology is part of the problem. There is no good solution (our lives will just get gradually worse from now on), but the best one involves removing the bad technology and keep only the good part, which is a very small minority of technology today.
We're pretty much screwed, and the only way not to see it is to not look into the biggest problems of our time: energy, climate and mass extinction.