What do people think to the new MBP?

[englishpremier]

Build quality wise I can see why some might use a MacBook solely for windows (dual boot, then fair enough), but specs wise and economically it doesn't make sense. You can get more power/performance for your money in a similar form factor. The Dell XPS 13 range looks impressive, bar the dodgy webcam placement.

I've got a 2015 MBP and even that feels industrial next to the new ones so I wasn't criticising the Surface Book in that regard. . I mentioned earlier that I don't see them as enough of a performance boost for me upgrade just yet, but I'm likely too at the next refresh. Oddly enough, I did consider a surface pro 4 when they came out, but just couldn't live with windows. The Surface Book is of course on another level compared to the Surface Pro.

On the new MBP I can see the touch bar only being used to changed brightness or sound level. Without tactile feedback I would have limited use for me. I'd prefer the none touch bar model, but it's specs are lower at the moment.

As for USB-type C I'm a fan, the only dongle I could imagine needing is an SD card reader, which I have anyway even though my current MBP has a built in reader. For most other things the correct cables are available either included with devices or cheaply on ebay/amazon.

 

[lamboman]

Might as well pitch in late

Build of the new machines is lovely, as you'd expect from Apple. However I personally can't forsee the utility of the Touch Bar outweighing the inconvenience of it. It's a mediocre half-way house between a touch screen and keyboard shortcuts, without the intuitiveness of the former nor the ergnomics of the latter.

I'm not too fussed by the use of LPDDR3 as in reality the reduced throughput isn't going to yield many losses in the majority of use cases, however I am fussed by the memory limitation it imposes. With 32GB of memory the 15" could be a very capable, dockable desktop replacement (and indeed once Thunderbolt's bandwidth is high enough and single GPUs are powerful enough for consistently high performance at high resolutions, I'd move to an external GPU, one machine solution).

The price is frankly silly, you can only blame the exchange rate so much when the price for a comparable base model has risen 50%. Insanity.

I have no problem with Apple dropping legacy ports, however it's moronic to argue that USB A is legacy. Chuck some dongles in the box to soften the blow and introduce consistency across the product line (i.e. maybe allow users to plug their Apple phone into their Apple notebook).

Both OS X and iOS are buggy messes compared to the past, speaking from experience back to the Mac OS 8 days - my bleeding edge Linux boxes are significantly more stable. That alone would put me off OS X altogether.

1080p XPS 13 would be my compact machine of choice right now to replace my 2013 Air, if I could actually justify replacing it. The webcam positioning is weird but I don't think it's as bad as it first seems - it has a very wide FOV. Placing the webcam on top and keeping the bezel form factor the same would make the display even lower, which I don't think would work.

I've never been convinced with the argument that Macs are decent Windows machines, and that solution will come with the limitations mentioned by others now.

Aside from a desire for consistency and familiarity, I can't really see any justification for purchasing Apple products in general now, not just a Mac, which is a real shame. That said, on the Android side the deeply nested issues with software support are even worse.

 

[233]

got a 2014 and a 2016 with touch bar here, to be honest no difference at all in day to day use, and if anything the older model feels better put together

 

[kitkat9933]

Spoiler

Got my new MBP today, everything is amazing but I feel the keyboard will take some time to get used too.

 

[DanF]

I've had the 13" non touch for a while now. So far it's been really nice to use. No battery life issues and no glitches or instability. I've got it setup with a bunch of devops kinda stuff and so far it's more stable running it than my windows 10 PC.

comparing it to the current xps 13. The macbook is way better built, the screen is nicer, the track pad way better, speakers are better. Not really sure what the Dell has going for it other than being a native windows laptop. I guess the price is a bit less.

 

[TS7]

The MBP 13" Touchbars were on sale £200 off at £1550 - both Currys and John Lewis. I ummed and arred too much and missed the boat. However, I was surprised by it being on sale and at £200 off considering a) it's apple and b) it's only been out two months.

 

[NeedAUsername]

Probably the backlash from the media and people who have never used a Mac hating on the lack of ports forced them to reduce the price.

I havent opened mine yet, seems I can get a better deal with Applecare using my student ID than using my work discount.

 

[dowie]

comparing it to the current xps 13. The macbook is way better built, the screen is nicer, the track pad way better, speakers are better. Not really sure what the Dell has going for it other than being a native windows laptop. I guess the price is a bit less.

It doesn't have much going for it - I had both(briefly) the Dell is on the way back to the factory in China and I'm very happy with the MBP.

 

[Soootylad]

I hope the rumours are true about the reason for the trackpad being so ma-hoosive - A v2.0 of the Apple Pencil that means I don't need a separate tablet for quick jobs will be an absolute winner for me.

Here's to hoping!

 

[DanF]

some of the new windows laptops in CES 2017 have really limited ports as well. One of the macbook 12" competitors is just one usb-c as well.

 

[WJA96]

some of the new windows laptops in CES 2017 have really limited ports as well. One of the macbook 12" competitors is just one usb-c as well.

i didn't buy one of those either.

 

[WJA96]

I hope the rumours are true about the reason for the trackpad being so ma-hoosive - A v2.0 of the Apple Pencil that means I don't need a separate tablet for quick jobs will be an absolute winner for me.

Here's to hoping!

And Steve Jobs is spinning faster and faster in his grave.

 

[englishpremier]

i didn't buy one of those either.

Soon you're going to need adapters and dongles for your new gear as most things being released now such as cameras, hard drives e.g are type-c

But yeah, you made the smart choice. It doesn't fit you so your didn't buy it. There are people who it doesn't fit who will buy it and just moan and moan and moan. And those who won't buy it and will continue to moan. Not sure why. A smart car doesn't fit my needs so I won't buy one, but I'd never think to complain about it, I'd just buy something that does fit.

 

[WJA96]

Soon you're going to need adapters and dongles for your new gear as most things being released now such as cameras, hard drives e.g are type-c

Yes, I know what you mean. My new iPhone is USB.... No, wait....

And my new Panasonic Lumix camera, that's... No. It's old USB as well.

In fact, I can't see anything USB C on my shopping list.

But yeah, you made the smart choice. It doesn't fit you so your didn't buy it. There are people who it doesn't fit who will buy it and just moan and moan and moan. And those who won't buy it and will continue to moan. Not sure why. A smart car doesn't fit my needs so I won't buy one, but I'd never think to complain about it, I'd just buy something that does fit.

Because I've always bought Smart cars. They fit me perfectly. Except now the new Smart car, the one I was waiting to buy, the one I saved up for, is just like the old one, but much more expensive, and I'd have to buy extra bits to be able to use it with my existing accessories.

 

[dowie]

Yes, I know what you mean. My new iPhone is USB.... No, wait....

iphone 7 uses a lighting connector - you can use lightning to usb-c

 

[The_Abyss]

iphone 7 uses a lighting connector - you can use lightning to usb-c

I think the point he's making is that Apple do not provide this cable in the box, and you need to buy it separately now to connect to their two flagship laptops - MacBook and MacBook Pro.

 

[WJA96]

iphone 7 uses a lighting connector - you can use lightning to usb-c

englishpremier said that many of the new devices currently being released are coming with USB C rather than A out of the box and that my "legacy tech" current MBP and the new Surface Book I've just bought will need dongles. I was simply pointing out that even Apple aren't shipping their current phones with USB C.

It's simply nonsensical to suggest that USB A is a legacy port when almost nothing is shipping with USB C. In 2 years time, people who bought MacBooks and MacBook Pros today may well be able to ditch their dongle collection but right now, I would need adaptors for everything.

I think the point he's making is that Apple do not provide this cable in the box, and you need to buy it separately now to connect to their two flagship laptops - MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Precisely.

 

[NeedAUsername]

You only really need to buy one USB C to USB dongle, I got one with 4 normal USB ports. I think Apple will replace the headphone adapter with a USB-C to USB adapter for the next gen iOS devices, rather than provide two adapters in the box.

In a year, I can see all new devices coming with USB-C cables.

 

[Housey]

Still using my late 2013 Retina Pro 13 and I see no reason to upgrade to the current model. Frankly the only reason I bough this is my Late 2010 Pro 15 was too heavy and I wanted a Retina display. I use it for browsing, writing, spreadsheets and the odd App, all of which will run on any Mac.

 

[englishpremier]

englishpremier said that many of the new devices currently being released are coming with USB C rather than A out of the box and that my "legacy tech" current MBP and the new Surface Book I've just bought will need dongles. I was simply pointing out that even Apple aren't shipping their current phones with USB C.

It's simply nonsensical to suggest that USB A is a legacy port when almost nothing is shipping with USB C. In 2 years time, people who bought MacBooks and MacBook Pros today may well be able to ditch their dongle collection but right now, I would need adaptors for everything.



Precisely.

Yes many devices currently being released are USB-C even some older devices like the GoPro 5 and Samsung T3. New devices like the Olympus EM1 II and the newly announced GH5. The latest card readers are also USB-C - these are just off the top of my head. I sure a search could yield many more.

For older devices you can buy USB-C cables for nothing more than a few pounds. Why do you need a dongle? Surely you just need a cable. Bare in mind that some devices these days don't even come with any cables in the box at all Type A or C.