What about offering an external fingerprint reader and/or mic for the mini?
I would love to see a fingerprint reader integrated into a Bluetooth wireless Mac keyboard. I am quite sure Apple could use its chip technology to prevent spoofing by third party keyboards and gain a secure handshake and encryption between the wireless keyboard and the headless Mac.
As the owner of a Mac mini with the top spec CPU, I can tell you the T2 does nothing to help video transcoding. The lack of a dedicated GPU makes that task spool up the fans quickly for a not very fast cycle time.
You are either A.) using video encoding software that doesn't support hardware encoding or B.) you don't know the correct settings to enable it.
I transcoded a 4K video (approximately 30 minutes in runtime) six consecutive times using the same software (latest version of Handbrake) but with different settings and it is clear that hardware encoding is real. Hardware is Mac mini 2018, 3.2 GHz i7 (6 cores, 12 threads) with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD running macOS 10.14.5.
H.265 (HEVC) VideoToolbox: 28 minutes via hardware (despite the fact I set this up for 8000 kbps bitraate, it ended up as 7150, thus resulting in a smaller file. More later.) The fan ran around 1800 rpm, and the CPU load was nearly zero.
H.265 (HEVC) x265 software encoder: 82 minutes. This was clearly CPU intensive; the user load was 12 (six cores, 2 threads per core maxed out). The fan ran at 4500 rpm.
H.265 (HEVC) x265, 12-bit encoding: 110 minutes. Even slower. Again, the fan ran around 4500 rpm.
H.264 VideoToolbox: 30 minutes. Hardware encode, the fan was around 1800 rpm and the CPU load was nothing.
H.264 x264 (software): 38 minutes. I wasn't around to use XLD to view the CPU nor fan status, but clearly this took more effort than the VideoToolbox setting.
H265 (HEVC) VideoToolbox with bitrate set at 8850: 29 minutes. In an attempt to get more comparable resulting file than the earlier encode (7150), I upped the bitrate from 8000 to 8850. The resulting file took 1 minute more than the control and I ended up with a 8150 file.
You don't need to look at your computer display to know whether or not it is using hardware encoding. The Mac mini 2018 fan tells you.
If your fan kicks in during a transcode on a Mac mini 2018, you are basically doing it wrong.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
Really? I've been using a Mac for 15 years and have never needed to boot from an external drive. So yes, security for all trumps less security to accommodate for edge cases. And when you buy a product, decisions are made for you regarding the design of that product. That's the way it is and always will be. If you don't like Apple's product decisions, buy a different one.
mpantone said: Note that I used Handbrake, an application that is known to have access to hardware encoding features for years.
If your fan kicks in during a transcode on a Mac mini 2018, you are basically doing it wrong.
Yeah, as I do a good bit of video encoding, this discovery was really big for me. I also posted some results and did some testing based on another forum member's recommendations, though it looks like you ran even more variants.
And, as I really value quiet, the low fan use might be as big for me as the time saved, at least some of the time.
Hopefully more of the apps will support it (if they don't already). I just wanted to mention that, as in addition to Handbrake, I'm also using HEVC to output my work from Screenflow. I'm assuming this should be possible for other apps, too, or will be shortly. (If not, start writing the devs!)
slurpy said: Really? I've been using a Mac for 15 years and have never needed to boot from an external drive.
Really? I been using Macs for ~30 years, and used to do it quite often, especially for repair/troubleshooting. But, since getting my 2018 mini and eGPU, I've also had to disable the T2 encryption to work with Boot Camp. So, it isn't just the external drive thing. That said, it isn't all or nothing, so I can still enjoy the accelerated HEVC encoding, w/o having the encryption aspects running.
What about offering an external fingerprint reader and/or mic for the mini?
As the owner of a Mac mini with the top spec CPU, I can tell you the T2 does nothing to help video transcoding. The lack of a dedicated GPU makes that task spool up the fans quickly for a not very fast cycle time.
... Find some suitable 4K content to transcode and open it up in Handbrake. Use a preset like "HQ 1080p30 Surround", switch to the Video tab and set the Quality to an average bitrate of 8000 kbps. Then use the pulldown menu selector for Video Encoder and start selecting different encoders. Name the resulting file accordingly and save it to the queue. Then switch the Video Encoder to something else, rename the resulting file and add it to the queue.
Sorry, 4K to 1080p? You're not only transcoding, you're also downsampling, because 4K is 2160p (2 x 1080) not 1080p, 1080p is HD video. Isn't the test more meaningful keeping the resolution constant, but changing only the bitrate or format for example?
What about offering an external fingerprint reader and/or mic for the mini?
As the owner of a Mac mini with the top spec CPU, I can tell you the T2 does nothing to help video transcoding. The lack of a dedicated GPU makes that task spool up the fans quickly for a not very fast cycle time.
... Find some suitable 4K content to transcode and open it up in Handbrake. Use a preset like "HQ 1080p30 Surround", switch to the Video tab and set the Quality to an average bitrate of 8000 kbps. Then use the pulldown menu selector for Video Encoder and start selecting different encoders. Name the resulting file accordingly and save it to the queue. Then switch the Video Encoder to something else, rename the resulting file and add it to the queue.
Sorry, 4K to 1080p? You're not only transcoding, you're also downsampling, because 4K is 2160p (2 x 1080) not 1080p, 1080p is HD video. Isn't the test more meaningful keeping the resolution constant, but changing only the bitrate or format for example?
You'll get similar results. The downsampling is just an example of a heavier lift than just a bitrate or format change.
For instance, built into it is a dedicated Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) hardware engine. This makes sure the data on your storage drives is encrypted and because it's done in hardware, there's no hit to the speed of your Mac as macOS reads and writes data.
...
That encryption adds to my concern: Data is EVERYTHING! You can replace every single part of a computer but for one single thing: the Data. For years, as we've migrated away from paper (even photos) to digital storage I have reassured myself that, if a computer dies, I can simply remove the drive and either use it in another computer or simply copy off the data. But with a soldered in, encrypted disk, that option becomes increasingly impossible.
Obviously data backup is the only answer here -- it not only covers the computer but the drive/SSD itself. Plus, if setup correctly, it can help recover from user error as in unintended deletions.
But, assuming you backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?
I have to assume that Apple thought through these potential issues - it's the kind of thing they excel at. But still, I picture a layman buying a MacBook assuming everything is taken care of and then, after storing valuable, irreplaceable data on it, spilling their coffee in it and all is lost forever in an instant.
What about offering an external fingerprint reader and/or mic for the mini?
As the owner of a Mac mini with the top spec CPU, I can tell you the T2 does nothing to help video transcoding. The lack of a dedicated GPU makes that task spool up the fans quickly for a not very fast cycle time.
... Find some suitable 4K content to transcode and open it up in Handbrake. Use a preset like "HQ 1080p30 Surround", switch to the Video tab and set the Quality to an average bitrate of 8000 kbps. Then use the pulldown menu selector for Video Encoder and start selecting different encoders. Name the resulting file accordingly and save it to the queue. Then switch the Video Encoder to something else, rename the resulting file and add it to the queue.
Sorry, 4K to 1080p? You're not only transcoding, you're also downsampling, because 4K is 2160p (2 x 1080) not 1080p, 1080p is HD video. Isn't the test more meaningful keeping the resolution constant, but changing only the bitrate or format for example?
You'll get similar results. The downsampling is just an example of a heavier lift than just a bitrate or format change.
It is worth mentioning that Handbrake has also 4K presets. The preset should match the intended resolution.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
Can you explain what on earth you're talking about, specifically?
Macs equipped with the T2 chip cannot boot from external drives. But, I correct myself: This seems to have been addressed and you can enable the feature. My comment still kind-of stands, as Apple keeps making it harder and harder for us to choose our level of security. They keep enabling-by-default security settings that sometimes get in the way of the experience and disabling them many times require complex steps thru the Terminal and workarounds that actually lessen the security more than it should be needed.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
Can you explain what on earth you're talking about, specifically?
Macs equipped with the T2 chip cannot boot from external drives. But, I correct myself: This seems to have been addressed and you can enable the feature. My comment still kind-of stands, as Apple keeps making it harder and harder for us to choose our level of security. They keep enabling-by-default security settings that sometimes get in the way of the experience and disabling them many times require complex steps thru the Terminal and workarounds that actually lessen the security more than it should be needed.
You've always been able to boot from an external since day one of the T-chip. Yes, there's a toggle you have to select to allow it, but it has always been an option.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
And I'm sorry, as a third party repair business owner... we have already encounter issues with the t2 chip... why the hell should it prevent us from replacing a keyboard?? A speaker? Its ridiculous and Apple is going to get their asses sued off under the Right To Repair movement!
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
And I'm sorry, as a third party repair business owner... we have already encounter issues with the t2 chip... why the hell should it prevent us from replacing a keyboard?? A speaker? Its ridiculous and Apple is going to get their asses sued off under the Right To Repair movement!
No jurisdiction, no law can force a company to sell its products in a disassembled form. That would destroy the market economy and is not possible even in China !
GeorgeBMac said: Obviously data backup is the only answer here -- it not only covers the computer but the drive/SSD itself. Plus, if setup correctly, it can help recover from user error as in unintended deletions.
But, assuming you backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?
Yeah, pretty much. But, people should have backup anyway. You're right that it makes things much worse for the typical non-tech user who doesn't backup though. Previously, someone could have helped them get the data back (I've done it in the past for family, friends, and clients).
Backup and password managers are two things we more technically oriented need to keep pushing everyone else to do/use.
I think my main fear, though, is that they are mostly likely to just use Time Machine. That's better than nothing, but it seems kind of unreliable. I'd rather they run something like SuperDuper! once in a while, or use Backblaze, etc.
Some methods use/allow encryption of that backup drive/space. But, again, that's another tech thing how many will even venture into?
The big value, I suppose, is for laptops. If you take your laptop out and about or travel, it is possible it could be stolen. At least, then, even if your backup isn't, the thief can't get into that laptop. Of course, a home robbery foils that with a desktop, but is less likely than having a mobile device lost or stolen.
Is it ultimately worth it? I don't know. It's a great option to have. The problem is there are so many steps and gotcha's along the way that unless the user is somewhat tech savvy, I wonder how much it really helps (vs the downsides). For example, that T2 might nicely encrypt and protect someone's MB Pro, but then they might use the airport WiFi with no VPN, post a bunch of their stuff to social sites, etc. undoing a lot of what Apple accomplished on the hardware.
Personally, we run Time Machine, I do a full SuperDuper! snapshot once in a while, AND we backup to Backblaze. In theory, it should be quite unlikely I'll lose more than a small amount of data. But, I'm also betting I'm in some very small (probably single digit... and low digits) of computer/device users who could say that. (And, while I've always done backups/archival, I've not been that well setup until a year or so ago, either.)
(BTW, I really like the possibilities cloud backup opens up. When I worked in IT at the Fortune 100, we used our own 'cloud' to rsync data between multiple locations, and send archival/backup data as well. A lot of companies have that these days, but it was quite rare back then. Now, even a home user can have that kind of flexibility and data-safety.)
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
Really? I've been using a Mac for 15 years and have never needed to boot from an external drive. So yes, security for all trumps less security to accommodate for edge cases. And when you buy a product, decisions are made for you regarding the design of that product. That's the way it is and always will be. If you don't like Apple's product decisions, buy a different one.
I've booted a problem machine in SCSI or FireWire target disk mode, scanned the disk from another machine, then booted the second machine from the first more times than I care to remember.
A while ago, my AlBook's internal drive died, with no spare Macs available, and I didn't have the time for Apple to ship it around (project due in the immediate future). I happened to have OS X installed on an iPod for testing purposes, so I booted from that for a few days until the project was done.
Fortunately, we still have the ability to boot from external drives.
I see the T2 as the single largest bit of evidence that Apple is moving away from Intel processors. The T2 exists because Intel CPUs doesn't have the features Apple wanted. The T2 is part of the transition. Eventually the T2 will be integrated into Apple’s A series chips for MacBooks Air’s and possible iMacs. The Pro models will still be T2 + Intel for a long while. Businesses will still need the duel boot capability for Windows...
We’ll probably see the T2 + A Series + wireless... integrated in one chip a decade from now. It’s cheaper and more efficient that way...
As I understand it, the T2 already contains an A-Series processor (A10 I think). If they were going down this path they would have progressed further by now. We would see more than just a few HEVC profiles accelerated. Post-Jobs Apple isn’t even ‘brave’ enough to dump AMD for GPU with minimal software investment let alone dump Intel for CPU with huge software investment. The T2 should be a Metal2 Monster at least but I think Intel’s promises and progress have killed any commitment to make the Mac anything more than a pricey PC.
Riiiight... "Post-Jobs Apple isn’t even ‘brave’ enough to ... dump Intel ..."
I see the T2 as the single largest bit of evidence that Apple is moving away from Intel processors. The T2 exists because Intel CPUs doesn't have the features Apple wanted. The T2 is part of the transition. Eventually the T2 will be integrated into Apple’s A series chips for MacBooks Air’s and possible iMacs. The Pro models will still be T2 + Intel for a long while. Businesses will still need the duel boot capability for Windows...
We’ll probably see the T2 + A Series + wireless... integrated in one chip a decade from now. It’s cheaper and more efficient that way...
On the contrary T2 is all the “ARM Mac” you can get. Apple has already a desktop class A series, they made an iPad Pro of it, not a crippled Mac. If they get an even more powerful A series, they’ll use it for a more powerful iPad Pro. The only candidate for an ARM Mac was the 12” Macbook, but they killed that only fanless model of the series, meaning there will be absolutely no ARM Mac in the foreseeable future. Macs will integrate always higher and higher not lower and lower.
For instance, built into it is a dedicated Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) hardware engine. This makes sure the data on your storage drives is encrypted and because it's done in hardware, there's no hit to the speed of your Mac as macOS reads and writes data.
...
That encryption adds to my concern: Data is EVERYTHING! You can replace every single part of a computer but for one single thing: the Data. For years, as we've migrated away from paper (even photos) to digital storage I have reassured myself that, if a computer dies, I can simply remove the drive and either use it in another computer or simply copy off the data. But with a soldered in, encrypted disk, that option becomes increasingly impossible.
Obviously data backup is the only answer here -- it not only covers the computer but the drive/SSD itself. Plus, if setup correctly, it can help recover from user error as in unintended deletions.
But, assuming you backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?
I have to assume that Apple thought through these potential issues - it's the kind of thing they excel at. But still, I picture a layman buying a MacBook assuming everything is taken care of and then, after storing valuable, irreplaceable data on it, spilling their coffee in it and all is lost forever in an instant.
I realize this is a year or so later, but I stumbled across this post and these comments and felt a reply to this is in order...
"I picture a layman buying a MacBook assuming everything is taken care of and then, after storing valuable, irreplaceable data on it, spilling their coffee in it and all is lost forever in an instant." Well, for one, that's why Apple created Time Machine - idiot-proof backup. When Time Machine was released the percentage of people backing up their Macs increased dramatically. Secondly, everyone and their mother (literally) knows today to backup their data -- my folks are in their 80's and not in the slightest bit technical but they know this. Thirdly, Admittedly in more recent years Time Machine has had issues but I think one reason Apple hasn't prioritized not letting it stagnate a bit is because now, the layman buying a MacBook is not necessarily wrong to assume everything is taken care of - almost everything is stored in iCloud by default now. When you go to save a document in any of Apple's apps now, the default location to save it is on the iCloud Drive for that app.
There appears to be some concerning ignorance in this post. I'm tired of hearing the argument that "being able to remove the drive makes my data safer". It's a ludicrous argument and the answer is simple - as you said: Just back up your data. Data is copyable and duplicate-able. That's one of the huge benefits of digital photos over paper ones. Data needs to be backed up regardless to protect against the drive failing, so backing it up to protect against anything else in the computer breaking as well is no more inconvenient. The other issue with this argument ("being able to remove the drive makes my data safer") is that it has nothing to do with encryption. If the drive was removable, the T2 encryption is decrypt-able if you know the password. When you try to mount the drive on another system, it asks for the FileVault password (which is your user account login if nothing else). I know this because it's how it works with Target Disk Mode.
"...backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?" Only if you encrypt them and lose the password etc. As far as the T2 is concerned, data is encrypted on the device. Apple has gone out of their way to make this seamless. Unless you're cloning at the bit level, the OS and/or hardware has to decrypt the data to hand it to the backup application (as it does for any other app that wants it), which then backs up the decrypted data. If the backup is encrypted it's because you either told the backup software to encrypt it, or because you told the OS to encrypt the drive the backup software is backing up to (eg. by formatting the drive as "APFS (Encrypted)" which is more or less the equivalent of turning FileVault on for it.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
Can you explain what on earth you're talking about, specifically?
Macs equipped with the T2 chip cannot boot from external drives. But, I correct myself: This seems to have been addressed and you can enable the feature. My comment still kind-of stands, as Apple keeps making it harder and harder for us to choose our level of security. They keep enabling-by-default security settings that sometimes get in the way of the experience and disabling them many times require complex steps thru the Terminal and workarounds that actually lessen the security more than it should be needed.
And this is how it should be. The average non-techy Joe User who just wants to use their computer to do work, and not mess with it, should have the most secure system by default. Those of us who want to mess with things still have the option to and it's assumed that those of us who want to mess with things do so because we're a little more technical and doing things like booting into recovery mode or firing up a terminal aren't beyond us.
To have it so that the average Joe User has to turn ON the security settings would defeat the purpose because 98% of them wouldn't and would then be mad when something goes south that could have been protected if they'd known to turn on the security stuff.
The kind of person who wants to mess with it, and use less secure settings than what's best for Joe, etc. is really should be the kind of person who should have no trouble learning the steps to do so. Anyone who is not that kind of person really probably shouldn't be messing with it anyway.
Everyone loves their T2 until they need to boot from external media. And you will. You will...
I like security, but I like *ME* deciding what level of security I want or need, not Apple. If I like sleeping with my windows open is my choice. I don't want anyone saying to me 'dude close your windows, you might get robbed' or even worse, someone actually nailing my windows shut and saying 'it is not safe to have windows at your house, screw you.'.
And I'm sorry, as a third party repair business owner... we have already encounter issues with the t2 chip... why the hell should it prevent us from replacing a keyboard?? A speaker? Its ridiculous and Apple is going to get their asses sued off under the Right To Repair movement!
Lol... people have been saying this for years and it hasn't happened yet. Apple's entire business model is a walled garden. To some it's a prison, not letting them out to do some of their own stuff. To others it is indeed a garden and the wall is keeping the bad stuff from getting in from outside.
Apple doesn't want "third parties" repairing their stuff. And they don't have to allow it. The Right To Repair movement can scream - and try to sue - all they want, just as they've done for years so far and gotten nowhere. If Apple is forced to let you repair their stuff, then they're forced to take away some of what I and others love about Apple products.
Here's the question for you: Why do you like Apple stuff (assuming you do, otherwise why are you here)?
The answer is this: Apple stuff is good stuff BECAUSE they tightly lock everything down. The second you start taking that away, you're taking away some of what causes it to be great.
I'm not saying locking it down is great in itself. I'm saying the laws of physics and other laws of this universe are such that you just can't have one without the other. Apple stuff is great because of all the great functionality and stability Apple can build into their products, that the PC world can't do. And the reason Apple can do all that and the PC world can't is BECAUSE of the control Apple has over both their hardware and software - which they get partly by locking stuff down to their way.
If you're the kind of person that appreciates your own control more than the experience that comes from the manufacturer having control, then there's a wealth of alternatives made by loads of companies (Dell, HP, etc) running software from other companies (Microsoft, Google), that give you exactly what you want there. Apple is not one of those. If you want that control, then Apple products are not for you. The rest of us like having Apple make all the engineering etc. decisions for us, so we don't have to think about that and can do our own jobs etc. instead.
If you're in the business of repairing Apple products, I'd advise you to get out of that, all the more so now that Apple's kicking Intel to the curb. Apple products are only going to get even more locked down, which will allow them to deliver even more amazing functionality etc. with them. But that's simply choosing to prioritize the consumer, sadly at your expense as a repairer. So perhaps you'd best find another business to get into before you go broke in this one.
Comments
And, as I really value quiet, the low fan use might be as big for me as the time saved, at least some of the time.
Hopefully more of the apps will support it (if they don't already). I just wanted to mention that, as in addition to Handbrake, I'm also using HEVC to output my work from Screenflow. I'm assuming this should be possible for other apps, too, or will be shortly. (If not, start writing the devs!)
Really?
But, since getting my 2018 mini and eGPU, I've also had to disable the T2 encryption to work with Boot Camp. So, it isn't just the external drive thing.
That said, it isn't all or nothing, so I can still enjoy the accelerated HEVC encoding, w/o having the encryption aspects running.
For years, as we've migrated away from paper (even photos) to digital storage I have reassured myself that, if a computer dies, I can simply remove the drive and either use it in another computer or simply copy off the data. But with a soldered in, encrypted disk, that option becomes increasingly impossible.
Obviously data backup is the only answer here -- it not only covers the computer but the drive/SSD itself. Plus, if setup correctly, it can help recover from user error as in unintended deletions.
But, assuming you backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?
I have to assume that Apple thought through these potential issues - it's the kind of thing they excel at. But still, I picture a layman buying a MacBook assuming everything is taken care of and then, after storing valuable, irreplaceable data on it, spilling their coffee in it and all is lost forever in an instant.
Backup and password managers are two things we more technically oriented need to keep pushing everyone else to do/use.
I think my main fear, though, is that they are mostly likely to just use Time Machine. That's better than nothing, but it seems kind of unreliable. I'd rather they run something like SuperDuper! once in a while, or use Backblaze, etc.
Some methods use/allow encryption of that backup drive/space. But, again, that's another tech thing how many will even venture into?
The big value, I suppose, is for laptops. If you take your laptop out and about or travel, it is possible it could be stolen. At least, then, even if your backup isn't, the thief can't get into that laptop. Of course, a home robbery foils that with a desktop, but is less likely than having a mobile device lost or stolen.
Is it ultimately worth it? I don't know. It's a great option to have. The problem is there are so many steps and gotcha's along the way that unless the user is somewhat tech savvy, I wonder how much it really helps (vs the downsides). For example, that T2 might nicely encrypt and protect someone's MB Pro, but then they might use the airport WiFi with no VPN, post a bunch of their stuff to social sites, etc. undoing a lot of what Apple accomplished on the hardware.
Personally, we run Time Machine, I do a full SuperDuper! snapshot once in a while, AND we backup to Backblaze. In theory, it should be quite unlikely I'll lose more than a small amount of data. But, I'm also betting I'm in some very small (probably single digit... and low digits) of computer/device users who could say that. (And, while I've always done backups/archival, I've not been that well setup until a year or so ago, either.)
(BTW, I really like the possibilities cloud backup opens up. When I worked in IT at the Fortune 100, we used our own 'cloud' to rsync data between multiple locations, and send archival/backup data as well. A lot of companies have that these days, but it was quite rare back then. Now, even a home user can have that kind of flexibility and data-safety.)
A while ago, my AlBook's internal drive died, with no spare Macs available, and I didn't have the time for Apple to ship it around (project due in the immediate future). I happened to have OS X installed on an iPod for testing purposes, so I booted from that for a few days until the project was done.
Fortunately, we still have the ability to boot from external drives.
Riiiight... "Post-Jobs Apple isn’t even ‘brave’ enough to ... dump Intel ..."
Hahahahahahahaaa...
Again: Hahahahahaaaaa....
"I picture a layman buying a MacBook assuming everything is taken care of and then, after storing valuable, irreplaceable data on it, spilling their coffee in it and all is lost forever in an instant." Well, for one, that's why Apple created Time Machine - idiot-proof backup. When Time Machine was released the percentage of people backing up their Macs increased dramatically. Secondly, everyone and their mother (literally) knows today to backup their data -- my folks are in their 80's and not in the slightest bit technical but they know this. Thirdly, Admittedly in more recent years Time Machine has had issues but I think one reason Apple hasn't prioritized not letting it stagnate a bit is because now, the layman buying a MacBook is not necessarily wrong to assume everything is taken care of - almost everything is stored in iCloud by default now. When you go to save a document in any of Apple's apps now, the default location to save it is on the iCloud Drive for that app.
There appears to be some concerning ignorance in this post. I'm tired of hearing the argument that "being able to remove the drive makes my data safer". It's a ludicrous argument and the answer is simple - as you said: Just back up your data. Data is copyable and duplicate-able. That's one of the huge benefits of digital photos over paper ones. Data needs to be backed up regardless to protect against the drive failing, so backing it up to protect against anything else in the computer breaking as well is no more inconvenient. The other issue with this argument ("being able to remove the drive makes my data safer") is that it has nothing to do with encryption. If the drive was removable, the T2 encryption is decrypt-able if you know the password. When you try to mount the drive on another system, it asks for the FileVault password (which is your user account login if nothing else). I know this because it's how it works with Target Disk Mode.
"...backup either to the cloud or an external drive (or both) -- will they also be encrypted and non-recoverable?" Only if you encrypt them and lose the password etc. As far as the T2 is concerned, data is encrypted on the device. Apple has gone out of their way to make this seamless. Unless you're cloning at the bit level, the OS and/or hardware has to decrypt the data to hand it to the backup application (as it does for any other app that wants it), which then backs up the decrypted data. If the backup is encrypted it's because you either told the backup software to encrypt it, or because you told the OS to encrypt the drive the backup software is backing up to (eg. by formatting the drive as "APFS (Encrypted)" which is more or less the equivalent of turning FileVault on for it.
To have it so that the average Joe User has to turn ON the security settings would defeat the purpose because 98% of them wouldn't and would then be mad when something goes south that could have been protected if they'd known to turn on the security stuff.
The kind of person who wants to mess with it, and use less secure settings than what's best for Joe, etc. is really should be the kind of person who should have no trouble learning the steps to do so. Anyone who is not that kind of person really probably shouldn't be messing with it anyway.
Lol... people have been saying this for years and it hasn't happened yet. Apple's entire business model is a walled garden. To some it's a prison, not letting them out to do some of their own stuff. To others it is indeed a garden and the wall is keeping the bad stuff from getting in from outside.
Apple doesn't want "third parties" repairing their stuff. And they don't have to allow it. The Right To Repair movement can scream - and try to sue - all they want, just as they've done for years so far and gotten nowhere. If Apple is forced to let you repair their stuff, then they're forced to take away some of what I and others love about Apple products.
Here's the question for you: Why do you like Apple stuff (assuming you do, otherwise why are you here)?
The answer is this: Apple stuff is good stuff BECAUSE they tightly lock everything down. The second you start taking that away, you're taking away some of what causes it to be great.
I'm not saying locking it down is great in itself. I'm saying the laws of physics and other laws of this universe are such that you just can't have one without the other. Apple stuff is great because of all the great functionality and stability Apple can build into their products, that the PC world can't do. And the reason Apple can do all that and the PC world can't is BECAUSE of the control Apple has over both their hardware and software - which they get partly by locking stuff down to their way.
If you're the kind of person that appreciates your own control more than the experience that comes from the manufacturer having control, then there's a wealth of alternatives made by loads of companies (Dell, HP, etc) running software from other companies (Microsoft, Google), that give you exactly what you want there. Apple is not one of those. If you want that control, then Apple products are not for you. The rest of us like having Apple make all the engineering etc. decisions for us, so we don't have to think about that and can do our own jobs etc. instead.
If you're in the business of repairing Apple products, I'd advise you to get out of that, all the more so now that Apple's kicking Intel to the curb. Apple products are only going to get even more locked down, which will allow them to deliver even more amazing functionality etc. with them. But that's simply choosing to prioritize the consumer, sadly at your expense as a repairer. So perhaps you'd best find another business to get into before you go broke in this one.