Apple's new 12" MacBook uses iPad-style power brick, brings new USB-C breakout accessories

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Comments

  • Reply 61 of 113
    xixoxixo Posts: 450member
    Anyone know if target disk mode still works on these new models?

    I'm guessing there's a 27" USB-C retina monitor coming soon.
  • Reply 62 of 113
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by reyesmac View Post



    So the Macbook went from being Apples most affordable laptop to now being a luxury item? Is the new Macbook faster than any of the other laptops Apple sells? I can see how this can be a great casual use computer, but I am still trying to find what the price/performance ratio is on this one. If this is a good computer for work, then does it have the power to do heavy duty tasks. And if its for play, can it get good frame rates on todays best games? The macbook airs are just starting to get powerful enough to handle this.



    First of all, this is a new product. It does not replace the Air nor Pro (both of which received updates), it is an additional product. 

     

    I'm not sure what you mean by "casual use."

     

    My guess is that this new computer is perfectly capable of standard "office" tasks (word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, e-mail, web surfing, etc.) as well as consumer-grade multimedia (photo editing, video editing, music composition), just like my two-year old MacBook Air is perfectly capable of such tasks.

     

    Meaning, the new model should be able to run the entire iLife/IWork suites adequately.

     

    The 11" MacBook Air has actually been the preferred computer for Apple employees if they have a choice (i.e., they don't work for the iMac group or require extreme performance).

     

    There are some mini-dock options for the Air; just plug in, and can stare at a full-size monitor, type at a full-size Bluetooth keyboard/Magic Trackpad, etc. 

     

    My guess is that Tim Cook and the senior management team will likely be stuffing the new MacBook into their briefcases in the upcoming weeks and as new computers are deployed to Apple corporate employees, most of those with a choice will opt for this new MacBook.

     

    My two-year-old Air is perfectly fine for what I need to do. I'm not editing 4K video nor Photoshopping 200MB images. And these days, I don't even bother to run Boot Camp, Wine, Parallels, VirtualBox, whatever on my MacBook Air anymore. I've set up a Windows Server 2012 R2 instance at Amazon EC2 and connect via Microsoft Remote Desktop. I basically use none of my MacBook Air's memory, disk space, CPU cycles, etc. on running Windows. I let Amazon host all that stuff (it's free for the first year)

     

    But Tim Cook probably isn't playing games on his Mac, and he isn't editing videos with Final Cut Pro X, so I'm not sure if he's doing any "serious work" on his computer.

     

    Just remember that a lot of people doing "serious work" on computers don't need massive amounts of computing resources.

  • Reply 63 of 113
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Originally Posted by xixo View Post

    I'm guessing there's a 27" USB-C retina monitor coming soon.

     

    Thunderbolt 2 is twice as fast as USB 3.1 and it can’t do a retina 27”. We have to wait for Thunderbolt 3 for that, which means there won’t be any USB-C monitors of note any time… ever.

     

    Hopefully USB-C is small enough that we can finally get rid of, say it with me,

     

    A, Mini A, Mini AB, Micro A, Micro AB, B, B 3, Mini B, Micro B, and Micro B 3.

  • Reply 64 of 113
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post

     

    Thunderbolt 2 is twice as fast as USB 3.1 and it can’t do a retina 27”. We have to wait for Thunderbolt 3 for that, which means there won’t be any USB-C monitors of note any time… ever.




    Curiously, the MacBook specs page states that the computer can drive an external display at 3840 by 2160 pixels (UHDTV) and that USB 3.1 Gen 1 is good up to 5Gbps.

     

    Thus, my hunch is that there may be a USB-C 4K monitor in the near future. It doesn't need to support the full Thunderbolt 2 bandwidth or protocol, it just needs to support UHDTV (a.k.a., 4K video). The same specs page state that the MacBook natively supports DisplayPort 1.2, meaning it can drive 4K video.

  • Reply 65 of 113
    dacloodacloo Posts: 890member
    MagSafe wasn't very effective on my 11' MacBook Air anyway. It's so light that it disconnects too late when someone trips over the cable. I totally understand they left it out. They had to anyway considering the concept behind it.
  • Reply 66 of 113
    I wonder how fast Apple is going to replace the current model with a new one that uses mag-safe USB type C instead of a plug. Or maybe there will be a magnetic adapter to attach from a third party. Because this really stupid.
  • Reply 67 of 113

    Guys - please, stop praising Apple for a rather dumb design move - a single port and killing the MagSafe on the new MacBook. IMHO - exceptionally foolish. Was it that hard to fit on one more USB-C or a MagSafe?!? No one charging AND transferring data at the same time?!? Give me a break please! Too light for the MagSafe? How about a weaker magnet... So you walk into a meeting with your brand new 2 lb. retina MB, a colleague hands you a Flash drive and you pull THIS chunk to hook up and transfer data?!? OUCH! Jony - sorry, dude, this one was truly brainless... :rolleyes: 

  • Reply 68 of 113
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Originally Posted by mpantone View Post

    Thus, my hunch is that there may be a USB-C 4K monitor in the near future.




    But Apple has shown they don’t care about that. They made a “5k” iMac, after all.

  • Reply 69 of 113
    staticx57staticx57 Posts: 405member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post

     

     

    Thunderbolt 2 is twice as fast as USB 3.1 and it can’t do a retina 27”. We have to wait for Thunderbolt 3 for that, which means there won’t be any USB-C monitors of note any time… ever.

     

    Hopefully USB-C is small enough that we can finally get rid of, say it with me,

     

    A, Mini A, Mini AB, Micro A, Micro AB, B, B 3, Mini B, Micro B, and Micro B 3.


    Except you miss the fact that USB 3.1 supports Displayport 1.3 which supports 5K. So yes, 5K with USB-C is possible. And who is to say USB 3.2 won't use the same connector like USB 1.0, 1.1 and 2.0.

     

    If you want some more reading, here: http://www.anandtech.com/show/8558/displayport-alternate-mode-for-usb-typec-announced

  • Reply 70 of 113
    croprcropr Posts: 1,122member

    I currently use 2 USB connectors, the mini Display connector and and the magSafe connector.  No adapter needed with existing Macbook Air/Pro

     

    But this is slightly different with the new Macbook. With the HDMI adapter and replacing the miniDisplay cable by an HDMI cable, I am still lacking an USB port.

     

    What a dumb design decision.  For app development and testing, I need at least 2 USB connectors, not a Macbook Anorexia

  • Reply 71 of 113
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    ^ for app development you would need a different product then. Just because this one isn't for you doesn't make it dumb. Amazing how few people seem to grasp this.
  • Reply 72 of 113
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Mac_128 View Post

     

    Nope. One port is great. This is the perfect laptop to plug into an Apple Display with one wire and turn it into a full blown desktop. I applaud this.

     

    What would be nice is the option of at least one USB legacy connector, for when you're out and about and you've forgotten your dongle. That's really my only complaint here. In a world where everybody uses only the latest Apple products, wireless works great, but the reality is flash drives are passed around like candy at halloween, and there are many things folks still regularly plug into their MacBooks, the least of which is an iPhone for a quick charge when there's nothing else around.  


     

    Wait... you seem confused.  1 port is great.  But then you want a legacy USB.  Which is it?

    You might as well have not said anything

  • Reply 73 of 113
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by koolhaas View Post

     

    Guys - please, stop praising Apple for a rather dumb design move - a single port and killing the MagSafe on the new MacBook. IMHO - exceptionally foolish. Was it that hard to fit on one more USB-C or a MagSafe?!? No one charging AND transferring data at the same time?!? Give me a break please! Too light for the MagSafe? How about a weaker magnet... So you walk into a meeting with your brand new 2 lb. retina MB, a colleague hands you a Flash drive and you pull THIS chunk to hook up and transfer data?!? OUCH! Jony - sorry, dude, this one was truly brainless... :rolleyes: 


     

    Outside of the massive hyperbole in this post, I do agree... "No one charging AND transferring data at the same time?"  

    If Apple likes to balance the aesthetic, let's equal out the sides.  USB-C on both sides.  Boom! Convenient.  

    Let's remember.  The Air gained a USB port after time, so I imagine this will too.  (and hopefully an i5) in the next iteration.

  • Reply 74 of 113
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Originally Posted by staticx57 View Post

    Except you miss the fact that USB 3.1 supports… …5K.



    How can it possibly? It doesn’t have the throughput, does it?

     

    And who is to say USB 3.2 won't use the same connector like USB 1.0, 1.1 and 2.0.


     

    The future’s irrelevant. USB 3 didn’t even use the same connector and they just invented C; the trend is toward MORE new ports, so that’s not a point in their favor. Anyway, hopefully all of the existing ones are now rendered obsolete. BUT WE KNOW THAT PRINTERS WILL IGNORE THAT AND KEEP USING B, effing piles of…

  • Reply 75 of 113
    nhtnht Posts: 4,522member
    dacloo wrote: »
    MagSafe wasn't very effective on my 11' MacBook Air anyway. It's so light that it disconnects too late when someone trips over the cable. I totally understand they left it out. They had to anyway considering the concept behind it.

    Exactly. You need more mass on the laptop side for MagSafe to work
  • Reply 76 of 113
    nhtnht Posts: 4,522member
    dup
  • Reply 77 of 113
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Mac_128 View Post

     



    Nope. One port is great. This is the perfect laptop to plug into an Apple Display with one wire and turn it into a full blown desktop. I applaud this.

     

    What would be nice is the option of at least one USB legacy connector, for when you're out and about and you've forgotten your dongle. That's really my only complaint here. In a world where everybody uses only the latest Apple products, wireless works great, but the reality is flash drives are passed around like candy at halloween, and there are many things folks still regularly plug into their MacBooks, the least of which is an iPhone for a quick charge when there's nothing else around.  


    Whoa....  easy there...  FULL BLOWN DESKTOP?  It's a 1.# M chip.  There is nothing DESKTOP about that processor.

    This laptop will most likely melt down if you try to do anything remotely more challenging than email, web and spreadsheets.

  • Reply 78 of 113
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by nht View Post





    Exactly. You need more mass on the laptop side for MagSafe to work effectively.



    Really? How about a bit of a lesser magnet, proportionate to mass - wouldn't that work? ;) 

  • Reply 79 of 113
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by JackMiracle View Post

     

     

    Outside of the massive hyperbole in this post, I do agree... "No one charging AND transferring data at the same time?"  

    If Apple likes to balance the aesthetic, let's equal out the sides.  USB-C on both sides.  Boom! Convenient.  

    Let's remember.  The Air gained a USB port after time, so I imagine this will too.  (and hopefully an i5) in the next iteration.




    Sorry for the 'hyperbole', but I was really waiting for a retina Air... This one looks great besides the processor, however, the single port is flat out dumb. Thanks for bringing up the original MBA - I used to have one. It had a single USB and a charger. I guess we are pleading to at least meet that standard. The dongle is a massive atrocity next to the sleek design of the MB, not to mention functional ignorance - this is meant as an ultra-portable, yet one has to have the extra chunk with them at all times in order to function half way properly... Amazing! :no:

  • Reply 80 of 113
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Originally Posted by koolhaas View Post

    this is meant as an ultra-portable, yet one has to have the extra chunk with them at all times in order to function half way properly Amazing! :no:



    Obviously this is in no way the case, but you couldn’t care less about fact or reason.

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