At the time it was axed, the 12" PowerBook G4 was the best selling notebook in Apple's lineup.
Ah yes, the 12" G4 MiniMe. It was my very first Mac laptop and it was so sweet. I used it for SEVEN years until it was replaced by my current Mid 2010 15" MBP.
You're being facetious, but stunningly, there's posters at macrumors furious that the new Macbook doesn't have a DVD Drive. I'm not even joking. I sometimes wonder if there's an actual human being behind those words.One of these precious posts:
I mean, how fucking stupid and insane do you have to be to think there was the smallest chance in hell this thing would include an optical drive, when Apple has dropped it from ALL of their products, including desktops and pro machines? How disconnected do you have to be to believe "drivers and utilities still come on CDs' and can't be found on the internet?
Those are probably the same people that bitched about the BitTorrent TV release groups finally stopped supporting XviD/AVI in favour of H.264 codec with either the MKV or MPEG-4 containers. The common argument was their DVD player could play AVIs they burned to a disc, but didn't understand theH.264 codec. Note this was just 3 years ago when H.264 wasn't only commonplace, but Roku had a streaming device for under $60 that would all these asshats the ability to stream the content without having to burn a DVD first.
I had the first and 2nd generation Macbook Airs. The first gen, looked cool, but having only 1 USB created real problems (things like ethernet would only work dedicated via a single USB and not throught a hub). The system frequently overheated and slowed down. It had real issues. 2nd gen was perfect with 2 USBs, an SD card slot, simpler better build quality and snappier performance.
But I fear I'll have to wait an entire year to get a newer version that fixes these flaws.
This was kind of the case though for Macbook Air gen 1 and gen 2. I owned both.
Gen 1 was expensive and flawed. My version frequently overheated and slowed t a crawl. 1 USB port often was a real hassle (as was no SD card). I also had the expensive SSD that had very little space in the first gen. 3K for a flawed toy. If you go back and look at sales, they were okay and not great for first gen.
Gen 2 cured all these issues and delivered a wonderful product at a cheaper price. Never had a day of regret with this newer gen. Note from the 2nd generation with 2 USBs, better storage, an SD slot and better processors, sales took off.
So I'd similarly expect okay sales in 2015, but a massive, massive jump in 2016 when they are able to add a 2nd USB-C port, take advantage of better processors (this is an Intel not Apple issue) and may even release in different screen sizes. Even if my fears are correct and this generation is a bit flawed, just wait for the next version. It's a potential killer product.
This was kind of the case though for Macbook Air gen 1 and gen 2. I owned both.
Gen 1 was expensive and flawed. My version frequently overheated and slowed t a crawl. 1 USB port often was a real hassle (as was no SD card). I also had the expensive SSD that had very little space in the first gen. 3K for a flawed toy. If you go back and look at sales, they were okay and not great for first gen.
Gen 2 cured all these issues and delivered a wonderful product at a cheaper price. Never had a day of regret with this newer gen. Note from the 2nd generation with 2 USBs, better storage, an SD slot and better processors, sales took off.
So I'd similarly expect okay sales in 2015, but a massive, massive jump in 2016 when they are able to add a 2nd USB-C port, take advantage of better processors (this is an Intel not Apple issue) and may even release in different screen sizes. Even if my fears are correct and this generation is a bit flawed, just wait for the next version. It's a potential killer product.
Why not just get a MBP. Does the device really need to be 2lbs when you're talking about "better processors" and number of ports as requirements for your needs? That 13" MBP is still very small.
The mistake you make is assuming that developers are a major portion of the customer base.
It's not an optimal development machine, which is ok, it's not intended to be one.
This was the difference though between the two generations of Macbook Air.
Gen 1 was expensive and flawed. 1 USB port often was a real hassle (as was no SD card). USB hubs were an issue for some things like Ethernet. Sales were okay.
Gen 2 cured all these issues with 2 USBs and sales took off.
So I'm annoyed as I know that the 2016 Macbook will have 2 USB-Cs. I'm would bet money on this... Once Intel gets things under control, future processors will be much better (another compromise on this machine though not Apple's fault).
Question is who wants to wait another year. So I'm not a super enthusiastic customer, but will still probably buy the 2015 version.
But even with my concerns, I realize full well this is the future and will probably wipe out Macbook airs in next year or two. (But again, I'll bet money there will be 2 USB-C ports on all future versions...
And soon to be a one-dollar and change on Monoprice.com
That's an important distinction I haven't yet seen. You do no longer need a proprietary charging device. Any powered USB outlet will work.
YOU CAN EVEN CHARGE THIS MAC IN THE CAR WITHOUT A POWER INVERTER!!!
We will all miss magsafe, but a common non-proprietary charger is incredibly useful, cheaper and is the future. They may even become more efficient power-wise in the Macbook pro line to the point where you can charge larger machines with better processor and graphisc cards as well (in a few years).
To harp on the same point, the real annoyance is only one USB-C, but all future versions will have 2 of them I'm willing to bet. This is just like the differences between the first gen macbook air and all subsequent generations.
Why do I really care about a Retina display? Honestly, the Retina displays are beautiful, but are not a necessity. However, I would love to get an old design Retina display on the older designed MacBook Pro.
The Super Drive. This is a a personal choice, I can live without it...but options are nice. You know people own DVDs and it could be nice to play movies on the computer. Or burn backups, or burn imovie projects. The Super Drive is fairly useful for some, and it is nice to have something built in, instead of carrying something around. Again, this is a personal choice so I see it going either way. You either want it or you don't.
SSD Drive: I love these drives, but I hate the memory restraints. It is expensive to jump to a higher amount of memory. However, I do see the benefit. I know there is cloud storage out there, or you can plug in additional storage, but again notebooks are supposed to be portable...I want to have something portable that doesn't require additional devices to carry with me. Wow, my computer is like 2.o lbs...but I have to carry an additional 4 lbs of devices. (I am exaggerating for emphasis.) The funny thing is, Apple could have solved this with an option to make the old Mac Book Pros with SSD and replace the DVD drive with a regular hard drive.
Again, this is personal preference, so it can go either way on opinions.
Ports: This is where I think the old design words better. More options built right into the computer. When I think of portability and usability I think of being able to just plug any device any, anywhere and it will just work. No laptop is perfect in this regards, but the old design was better geared toward this kind of usability.
Thin design and light weight is beautiful but does not enhance usability.
Now, I know what you will say then go buy the old design, and guess what I did...this year. I like it. I am glad I bought it when I did.
However, it is quite depressing to know Apple will probably never upgrade the specs to the old model for future buyers.
Apple was smart with the old ipod design. They realized it served a different market and kept it around for years and years even after the ipod touch made it obsolete. They even occasionally upgraded it with more space.
Apple should be forward thinking, but also remember that advancing existing products is still important.
The smallest, lightest MacBook has historically been the top selling model. At the time it was axed, the 12" PowerBook G4 was the best selling notebook in Apple's lineup.
Even at Apple's corporate headquarters, employees who have a choice overwhelmingly opt for the 11" MacBook Air as their primary computer. At their desks, they just plug into a monitor, etc., use Bluetooth keyboards, trackpads, etc.
The 12" MacBook will be even better a year from now when USB-C accessories have better availability.
That said, today, I could survive with the HDMI/USB dongle.
This is really odd, can I watch itunes hdcp content from a big tv on the road (eg hotels)? Or will this say it cant output to the outer display???
Meaning: is this dongle like an usb2video converter for HDMI? or does the usb-c standard have some kind of virtual HDMI port that can pass through to a usb-slave or what the heck is it technicaly. If it breaks the encprytion between computer and external display then i dont see how you could watch any videos on big screen on holyday. or then you need to lug around some atv and accesspoint....(or you need to configure all that kit if you take it with you )
I'm surprised that nobody has up the original, 1st generation Air. It was slower, drastically more expensive, and offered nothing but reduced size. Somehow it still found a market.
The original macbook air was a disaster in my opinion. Running on one core only when temps go up is just ridiculous. The buyers should have got their money back... and that 4200 rpm disc was so dog slow atleast I put a intel ssd (1,8") in there (gen2) but that was NOT easy to do but it really made this machine useable in a whole other way. The first i5 versions however got the Air where it should have been in the first place. Maybe this model will also become one of these first tests that need some polishing..
I guess MagSafe is in jeopardy of being dropped from their entire notebook line
I agree with others that it would suck to have that removed from the MBP line, but I don't think it's a deal breaker, and it'll be nice to have PSU with a USB-A port* that can be used for other devices, and replace the cable at will without any real expense.
Finally a universal plug for nearly all CE. I think that's a pretty good trade off, all things considered.
Can you charge the new MB in a car. Is that power draw too high for a car's 12V charger? If not, would it also be fine for a MBP with a USB-C connector?
They could put the magnetic part inline with the cable so that the connector is a standard USB-C that stays attached but the cable itself would break apart if there was too much force:
It might not work quite as well as magsafe because the idea there is that it's hard to pull apart pulling directly outwards but a trip where it's pulled sideways is easier. With an inline method, they'd have to get the magnetic force just right to keep the cable in but low enough that a trip would separate it. They could put a standard USB port on the short part too, next to the break to make it more useful as you could attach a USB device or display while it was plugged in.
This does risk losing part of the cable if it detaches when out and about but it has all the benefits you mention. It means they (or 3rd parties) can sell cheaper non-magsafe chargers. MBPs can have 3 USB ports vs 2, maybe even more given how small the ports are. If they can allow all USB ports to take power input, it would also mean it's easier to figure out where to plug it in.
There's no reason to get rid of Thunderbolt as the next iteration will do 40Gbps vs 10Gbps for USB.
I wonder why they put the writing so far down:
I like the text being more vertically centered in that space.
What basis do you have to say it's expensive for what's inside? Are you ONLY using performance of the Intel Core-M as your reference? Did you consider the cost of that single chip from Intel in lots of 1000 compared to other chips that are faster and cheaper, but use a lot more power? Did you consider the cost of the new keyboard mechanism, the new keyboard backlight, the trackpad mechanism, the Taptic engine, force touch, the new battery design, the much larger battery size, the cost to make a 12" notebook smaller and lighter than the 11" MBA, the Retina display and all the other aspects we were shown? I think it's a brilliant machine and would have no problem recommending it over the less expensive MBA because I think it's a better value.
I compared it to the 13" rMBP , both with retina screens and same price. I am saying no thanks to the new macbook because there is too much trade off in performance of the CPU and GPU for that 1.5 pound. I am sure some people won't care, but I prefer the rMBP over this.
I love the color options, I hope they extend it to the entire macbook lines later. At some point, they could have only 2 lines, MacBooks and Macbook pro.
This is the same BS artist who told us the iPhone6 would be delayed by two months last September. The stock went down 3% as a result. And it turned out to be completely false. Beware stories out of Asia predicting doom for Apple. There seems to be some kind of disinformation campaign going.
I read that the new Macbook is more expensive than the macbook air , but if we compare features it is even less expensive. A Macbook air 13" with 256 GB SSD and 8GB Ram it has the same price as the Macbook, however the new Macbook has a slower CPU but comes with a Retina display.
Comments
Jumping the gun, eh.
At the time it was axed, the 12" PowerBook G4 was the best selling notebook in Apple's lineup.
Ah yes, the 12" G4 MiniMe. It was my very first Mac laptop and it was so sweet. I used it for SEVEN years until it was replaced by my current Mid 2010 15" MBP.
Those are probably the same people that bitched about the BitTorrent TV release groups finally stopped supporting XviD/AVI in favour of H.264 codec with either the MKV or MPEG-4 containers. The common argument was their DVD player could play AVIs they burned to a disc, but didn't understand theH.264 codec. Note this was just 3 years ago when H.264 wasn't only commonplace, but Roku had a streaming device for under $60 that would all these asshats the ability to stream the content without having to burn a DVD first.
Note, Handbrake had already dropped XviD/AVI 2 years before that with a blog entry saying it was an inefficient and poor video codec.
I'm thinking that I may see a minor performance increase. But that is just speculation on my end.
Sure. I guess it's hard to tell with quick-fire upgrades.
I have the same questions.
Would have preferred 13 inch.
Would have preferred 2 USB-C ports to 1.
Very concerned on performance of processor.
I had the first and 2nd generation Macbook Airs. The first gen, looked cool, but having only 1 USB created real problems (things like ethernet would only work dedicated via a single USB and not throught a hub). The system frequently overheated and slowed down. It had real issues. 2nd gen was perfect with 2 USBs, an SD card slot, simpler better build quality and snappier performance.
But I fear I'll have to wait an entire year to get a newer version that fixes these flaws.
This was kind of the case though for Macbook Air gen 1 and gen 2. I owned both.
Gen 1 was expensive and flawed. My version frequently overheated and slowed t a crawl. 1 USB port often was a real hassle (as was no SD card). I also had the expensive SSD that had very little space in the first gen. 3K for a flawed toy. If you go back and look at sales, they were okay and not great for first gen.
Gen 2 cured all these issues and delivered a wonderful product at a cheaper price. Never had a day of regret with this newer gen. Note from the 2nd generation with 2 USBs, better storage, an SD slot and better processors, sales took off.
So I'd similarly expect okay sales in 2015, but a massive, massive jump in 2016 when they are able to add a 2nd USB-C port, take advantage of better processors (this is an Intel not Apple issue) and may even release in different screen sizes. Even if my fears are correct and this generation is a bit flawed, just wait for the next version. It's a potential killer product.
Why not just get a MBP. Does the device really need to be 2lbs when you're talking about "better processors" and number of ports as requirements for your needs? That 13" MBP is still very small.
The mistake you make is assuming that developers are a major portion of the customer base.
It's not an optimal development machine, which is ok, it's not intended to be one.
This was the difference though between the two generations of Macbook Air.
Gen 1 was expensive and flawed. 1 USB port often was a real hassle (as was no SD card). USB hubs were an issue for some things like Ethernet. Sales were okay.
Gen 2 cured all these issues with 2 USBs and sales took off.
So I'm annoyed as I know that the 2016 Macbook will have 2 USB-Cs. I'm would bet money on this... Once Intel gets things under control, future processors will be much better (another compromise on this machine though not Apple's fault).
Question is who wants to wait another year. So I'm not a super enthusiastic customer, but will still probably buy the 2015 version.
But even with my concerns, I realize full well this is the future and will probably wipe out Macbook airs in next year or two. (But again, I'll bet money there will be 2 USB-C ports on all future versions...
And soon to be a one-dollar and change on Monoprice.com
That's an important distinction I haven't yet seen. You do no longer need a proprietary charging device. Any powered USB outlet will work.
YOU CAN EVEN CHARGE THIS MAC IN THE CAR WITHOUT A POWER INVERTER!!!
We will all miss magsafe, but a common non-proprietary charger is incredibly useful, cheaper and is the future. They may even become more efficient power-wise in the Macbook pro line to the point where you can charge larger machines with better processor and graphisc cards as well (in a few years).
To harp on the same point, the real annoyance is only one USB-C, but all future versions will have 2 of them I'm willing to bet. This is just like the differences between the first gen macbook air and all subsequent generations.
I do a lot of presentations, so until all data projectors have bluetooth I'll probably carry the USB-C VGA Multiport Adapter (USB-C plug to USB, VGA and USB sockets). I currently have to carry a VGA adaptor anyway, so it's no extra burden. As Nextweb says "One cable to rule them all" (see http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/03/11/one-cable-to-rule-them-all-everything-you-should-know-about-the-new-macbooks-usb-c-port/). Eventually, I'll be able to use one cable for iPhone, iPad, MacBook, iMac and displays.
Being an Apple supporter means moving at the crest of the wave. If it wasn't for Apple we'd still be using 5" floppy disks!
Why do I really care about a Retina display? Honestly, the Retina displays are beautiful, but are not a necessity. However, I would love to get an old design Retina display on the older designed MacBook Pro.
The Super Drive. This is a a personal choice, I can live without it...but options are nice. You know people own DVDs and it could be nice to play movies on the computer. Or burn backups, or burn imovie projects. The Super Drive is fairly useful for some, and it is nice to have something built in, instead of carrying something around. Again, this is a personal choice so I see it going either way. You either want it or you don't.
SSD Drive: I love these drives, but I hate the memory restraints. It is expensive to jump to a higher amount of memory. However, I do see the benefit. I know there is cloud storage out there, or you can plug in additional storage, but again notebooks are supposed to be portable...I want to have something portable that doesn't require additional devices to carry with me. Wow, my computer is like 2.o lbs...but I have to carry an additional 4 lbs of devices. (I am exaggerating for emphasis.) The funny thing is, Apple could have solved this with an option to make the old Mac Book Pros with SSD and replace the DVD drive with a regular hard drive.
Again, this is personal preference, so it can go either way on opinions.
Ports: This is where I think the old design words better. More options built right into the computer. When I think of portability and usability I think of being able to just plug any device any, anywhere and it will just work. No laptop is perfect in this regards, but the old design was better geared toward this kind of usability.
Thin design and light weight is beautiful but does not enhance usability.
Now, I know what you will say then go buy the old design, and guess what I did...this year. I like it. I am glad I bought it when I did.
However, it is quite depressing to know Apple will probably never upgrade the specs to the old model for future buyers.
Apple was smart with the old ipod design. They realized it served a different market and kept it around for years and years even after the ipod touch made it obsolete. They even occasionally upgraded it with more space.
Apple should be forward thinking, but also remember that advancing existing products is still important.
The smallest, lightest MacBook has historically been the top selling model. At the time it was axed, the 12" PowerBook G4 was the best selling notebook in Apple's lineup.
Even at Apple's corporate headquarters, employees who have a choice overwhelmingly opt for the 11" MacBook Air as their primary computer. At their desks, they just plug into a monitor, etc., use Bluetooth keyboards, trackpads, etc.
The 12" MacBook will be even better a year from now when USB-C accessories have better availability.
That said, today, I could survive with the HDMI/USB dongle.
This is really odd, can I watch itunes hdcp content from a big tv on the road (eg hotels)? Or will this say it cant output to the outer display???
Meaning: is this dongle like an usb2video converter for HDMI? or does the usb-c standard have some kind of virtual HDMI port that can pass through to a usb-slave or what the heck is it technicaly. If it breaks the encprytion between computer and external display then i dont see how you could watch any videos on big screen on holyday. or then you need to lug around some atv and accesspoint....(or you need to configure all that kit if you take it with you
)
I'm surprised that nobody has up the original, 1st generation Air. It was slower, drastically more expensive, and offered nothing but reduced size. Somehow it still found a market.
The original macbook air was a disaster in my opinion. Running on one core only when temps go up is just ridiculous. The buyers should have got their money back... and that 4200 rpm disc was so dog slow
atleast I put a intel ssd (1,8") in there (gen2) but that was NOT easy to do but it really made this machine useable in a whole other way. The first i5 versions however got the Air where it should have been in the first place. Maybe this model will also become one of these first tests that need some polishing..
I think about 80% of the 450k are curious millionaires who want to see what its all about.
They could put the magnetic part inline with the cable so that the connector is a standard USB-C that stays attached but the cable itself would break apart if there was too much force:
It might not work quite as well as magsafe because the idea there is that it's hard to pull apart pulling directly outwards but a trip where it's pulled sideways is easier. With an inline method, they'd have to get the magnetic force just right to keep the cable in but low enough that a trip would separate it. They could put a standard USB port on the short part too, next to the break to make it more useful as you could attach a USB device or display while it was plugged in.
This does risk losing part of the cable if it detaches when out and about but it has all the benefits you mention. It means they (or 3rd parties) can sell cheaper non-magsafe chargers. MBPs can have 3 USB ports vs 2, maybe even more given how small the ports are. If they can allow all USB ports to take power input, it would also mean it's easier to figure out where to plug it in.
There's no reason to get rid of Thunderbolt as the next iteration will do 40Gbps vs 10Gbps for USB.
I wonder why they put the writing so far down:
I like the text being more vertically centered in that space.
What basis do you have to say it's expensive for what's inside? Are you ONLY using performance of the Intel Core-M as your reference? Did you consider the cost of that single chip from Intel in lots of 1000 compared to other chips that are faster and cheaper, but use a lot more power? Did you consider the cost of the new keyboard mechanism, the new keyboard backlight, the trackpad mechanism, the Taptic engine, force touch, the new battery design, the much larger battery size, the cost to make a 12" notebook smaller and lighter than the 11" MBA, the Retina display and all the other aspects we were shown? I think it's a brilliant machine and would have no problem recommending it over the less expensive MBA because I think it's a better value.
I compared it to the 13" rMBP , both with retina screens and same price. I am saying no thanks to the new macbook because there is too much trade off in performance of the CPU and GPU for that 1.5 pound. I am sure some people won't care, but I prefer the rMBP over this.
I love the color options, I hope they extend it to the entire macbook lines later. At some point, they could have only 2 lines, MacBooks and Macbook pro.
A Macbook air 13" with 256 GB SSD and 8GB Ram it has the same price as the Macbook, however the new Macbook has a slower CPU but comes with a Retina display.