I'm sorry but what specs for these two models were compared? Are we talking a comparison between a core m3 rmb and a i7 mba? An m5 and an i5? Did I miss that part?
Interesting article, thx. Is it just me or is the MacBookAir looking a little dated next to the MacBook?
It's the black bezel. Even when I used to have my MBP and MBA open side-by-side, the MBP looked much better since it had the black bezel to off-set the silver colour.
I'd choose Retina over non-Retina, but in Ireland the MacBook starts at €1,499 for that same price you can get a 2.2 Ghz MBA MacBook Air with RAM and hard drive parody. For me the biggest pluses of the Air over the MB are 1. Battery life (I can stretch it to over 15 hours in a real push while writing) 2. 13" is better than 12"—12 is too small for me to watch a film for example. 3. Greater power. 4. MagSafe. 5. A few ports.
What I'm looking for is a MB-like 14" Retina Mac with a keyboard with a least the travel of the "magic" keyboard and MacSafe and at least 2 UBS ports. And if an SD Card would fit it should include this also. Chief among my wants for this machine would be a stated battery life of at least 15 hours for web browsing at 60% brightness.
Mainly very long battery life, a larger display and Retina though. With power that exceeds current 13" MBA.
I'm sorry but what specs for these two models were compared? Are we talking a comparison between a core m3 rmb and a i7 mba? An m5 and an i5? Did I miss that part?
When specs are not mentioned, I always assume it is the base/entry model that they are testing. The majority of buyers of any model typically select the base model.
Or perhaps it becomes the first A-series laptop running not OS X, but a non-touch version of iOS.
Or.... maybe it will run either OSX apps or iOS, and maybe, just maybe have a touch screen for those iOS apps.
Possibly, but Apple always enjoyed selling you two of something rather than just one, so if one device runs two things, they'd forfeit a sale of one of the devices (in their minds). Intel chip devices for OS X, A-series chip devices for iOS (and its variants).
Looking at it another way, what reason do they have to support OS X on A-series chips (along with the effort to put OS X on an A-series chip and the convincing of the developers to follow, then users to see any benefit in numbers large enough to warrant the effort of the two previous efforts)? Wouldn't it be easier to make iOS more mature and sophisticated to handle more user scenarios that used to be only available on apps running on OS X, and then sell more A-series devices which run only iOS and nothing else? Which path do they seem to be following? OS X will become the OS for high end and niche needs, running on Intel chips. iOS for all the rest, A-series for the masses. I think their path seems clear.
You do realize that Apple is now in the business of selling dongles to attach anything to this MacBook. You cannot plug in power and another external device without plugging in a dongle first. Anything external requires a dongle. Not many people prefer that method because if they accidentally forget a dongle, they are out of luck if they need to connect to anything.
You do realize that Apple is now in the business of selling dongles to attach anything to this MacBook. You cannot plug in power and another external device without plugging in a dongle first. Anything external requires a dongle. Not many people prefer that method because if they accidentally forget a dongle, they are out of luck if they need to connect to anything.
The Macbook is not designed to be primarily used as a desktop replacement by those that work at home or work at a desk (i.e. primarily desk bound). It is an ultraportable that is designed from the point of view that people who use it are primarily interested in portability and being able to work from anywhere. People that are in that group don't tend to carry a lot of devices around to plug in, you just have to look at most people using laptops not at their desk and you won't see lots of devices being pulled out and plugged in. Dongles or a dock are meant for the odd time that you use it at your desk. That is the primary market this laptop is aimed at. In addition there are a lot of people that casually use a computer, and just need it from time to time and they don't really want to dedicate a lot space to a home office.... Just a laptop that they pull out to use at the breakfast table or on the couch at night.... Techies seem to get wrapped up their own world and project it as what most users want.... when in reality they are the minority. This is born out by the Macbook being the most popular Mac in the lineup now.
Or.... maybe it will run either OSX apps or iOS, and maybe, just maybe have a touch screen for those iOS apps.
Possibly, but Apple always enjoyed selling you two of something rather than just one, so if one device runs two things, they'd forfeit a sale of one of the devices (in their minds). Intel chip devices for OS X, A-series chip devices for iOS (and its variants).
I think it is more of a fact that Apple approaches the world as designing a device to be great at filling specific use cases, rather than designing a device and then trying it to force it into many use cases. Other vendors approach it the opposite way and end up not being really great any any use case, but it is versatile.... even if it is a piece of crap for what you want to use it for.
Got a 2015 rMB about 8 months ago, best overall computer I've ever used. Sure my 2013 15" Macbook Pro is faster and has more ports, but the rMB is all about a compromise between extreme portability and a full fledged computer and it hits the nail on the spot. The screen is gorgeous, the keyboard is a dream to type on, and it's plenty fast to do just about anything on it you want. 12" is a sweet spot in potable size and I still am amazed at how lightweight and sleek it is. Just a pleasure to use this laptop.
Interesting article, thx. Is it just me or is the MacBookAir looking a little dated next to the MacBook?
It's the black bezel. Even when I used to have my MBP and MBA open side-by-side, the MBP looked much better since it had the black bezel to off-set the silver colour.
Agree...I have a 2013 MacBook Air i7 512 SSD with 8 GB and a Macbook 2010 and I sometimes tend to use the Macbook 2010 more because of the screen and black bezel frame when doing general usage stuff. I do see a difference with the black around the edges compared to without, for the black frame gives a better view optically. Maybe it is my eyes etc. I do like the MacAir without the black bezel just for the all silver type design look, but again I believe the black bezel gives a better screen view overall. I notice this also with my iPhone as well with its black edge when watching video.
"A little dated...? Kind of...just because we are now use to the look only, not in dated superior design.
What I predict with the eventual versions of Macbook line-up is that the Macbook Air will just turn into the Macbook Pro, maybe with its current basic design. The Macbook Air in my opinion is the best laptop design ever to date overall. I really don't think that they have to change much. I am on my third Macbook Air since the first 2008 version. Apple should just put a retina on the current MBA design, figure out how to add a few more ports with of course updates to CPU, GPU and RAM and give it a black bezel and call it the New Macbook Pro. Keep the current keyboard and overall design, even the current Macbook Air's trackpad if they want to keep costs lower and keep the Macbook's features and overall design different to justify buying (The Air's trackpad is already superior to anything else without track force anyway). This would keep still the difference between the new Macbook and the Macbook Pro for consumers selection without confusion.
Plus, those really who what a Macbook Pro are work horse type of people anyway. So making it all "pretty" is not really important. They want good design and function, function over thinness and cuteness. 'Power' baby...that what the Pro consumer demands...and needs depending on what they are doing.
Again, I LOVE the current design look of the Macbook Air. Hard to reinvent perfection.
Like every one else, I have my own sense of priorities for a MBP.
The first is to preserve the elegant design of the current Pro. If it isn't already, it belongs in the Museum of Modern Art. It is the opposite of blob design of the Macbook. I compare it to the crisp design of the current Corvette with the blob front end of the previous model.
The second is to preserve the current keyboard of the current Pros and Airs. Although several have accepted the MB's keyboard, it is a deficiency that I would seek to avoid. I can understand that Apple was constrained by the device's minimal thickness. This brings about my puzzlement with stated wishes for a thinner MBP. I am quite happy with the current thickness. There are no negatives with typing attributable to it's thickness. I can understand the value in a thin cell phone.
What I would like to see are 3D memory and storage such as the Optane system and the ability to use the Ipad Pro as a linked device.
Like every one else, I have my own sense of priorities for a MBP.
The first is to preserve the elegant design of the current Pro. If it isn't already, it belongs in the Museum of Modern Art. It is the opposite of blob design of the Macbook. I compare it to the crisp design of the current Corvette with the blob front end of the previous model.
The second is to preserve the current keyboard of the current Pros and Airs. Although several have accepted the MB's keyboard, it is a deficiency that I would seek to avoid. I can understand that Apple was constrained by the device's minimal thickness. This brings about my puzzlement with stated wishes for a thinner MBP. I am quite happy with the current thickness. There are no negatives with typing attributable to it's thickness. I can understand the value in a thin cell phone.
What I would like to see are 3D memory and storage such as the Optane system and the ability to use the Ipad Pro as a linked device.
My old Compaq transportable, or the Macintosh SE I just saw in MBK deserves to be in a museum of Modern Art.... but I would no longer want to use them... time has past them by.
Thinner and lighter usually come hand in hand. Being more portable, less of a weight around your shoulder is one of the major goals of any portable... otherwise why would you just not get a desktop if you don't need to lug it around. The Macbook Pro tries to maintain a reasonably good power to portability ratio, and generally does a reasonably good job at it. I don't know why someone would be anti-thinner just for the heck of it.
I agree with you that I would like the iPad Pro to more seamlessly be paired with other computers -- i.e. useful both with and without another computer.... I actually expect they have stuff in their labs that they are working on software wise.... whether we see them soon or not depends on how good a job they have done in the lab with this. The optane memory is likely still in the future at this point.... which I find disappointing. Intel gave us the impression that they were sampling and ready to tool for manufacturing, but apparently there are still kinks to work out.
I actually find the keyboard on the Macbook to be very very good. What is more of a problem is moving back and forth between computers with really different keyboards. I can actually type quicker on the Macbook after a few days of use than my normal keyboard -- I would like to see a more ergonomic version of the keyboard for desk use (i.e. angled outwards). The keys are firm so that I don't accidentally hit a character, but consistent that when I push I am certain it will register. Moving back and forth between keyboard types though takes a little getting use to each time you do it.
What I would like to see on the Macbook Pro other than the push to lighten it for the same computing power, is the introduction of TB3. It would be nice if they could register ethernet as an alternate data stream on USB-C so that ethernet cables could be created using USB-C standard so that without adding an ethernet port (which is one of the first ports to fail on most machines) you could plug an ethernet cable directly in without an intermediate dongle.
Like every one else, I have my own sense of priorities for a MBP.
The first is to preserve the elegant design of the current Pro. If it isn't already, it belongs in the Museum of Modern Art. It is the opposite of blob design of the Macbook. I compare it to the crisp design of the current Corvette with the blob front end of the previous model.
The second is to preserve the current keyboard of the current Pros and Airs. Although several have accepted the MB's keyboard, it is a deficiency that I would seek to avoid. I can understand that Apple was constrained by the device's minimal thickness. This brings about my puzzlement with stated wishes for a thinner MBP. I am quite happy with the current thickness. There are no negatives with typing attributable to it's thickness. I can understand the value in a thin cell phone.
What I would like to see are 3D memory and storage such as the Optane system and the ability to use the Ipad Pro as a linked device.
I don't think a little tapering would be too bad on the rMBP:
and add a Space Grey option:
I don't think there would be enough demand to justify Gold and Rose Gold options but I think Space Grey would be popular. Shiny metal logo at the back and metal hinge. The current MBP keyboard is very comfortable but the keys wobble and the backlighting is uneven. Even if they don't reduce the height of the keys, I'd expect them to improve the backlight and stability.
It will probably have GT4e (Intel 580) graphics as well as an AMD chip on the top model (R9 M470x?). Thunderbolt 3, maybe retain mag-safe, maybe not. Mag-safe can be added to the cable like with the USB-C Griffin BreakSafe. Options for 24GB RAM, 1.5-2TB storage perhaps. The 13" rMBP would replace the Air. The current Air starts at $999 for non-Retina 8GB/128GB. The 13" rMBP is $1299 for 8GB/128GB. A Retina 13" Air would have been $1099 with weaker hardware. If they can get the 13" rMBP down to $1199, there's no need for the 13" Air.
Nice comparison video and write-up, but next time, please pause for a breath! The narration was much too fast... Speaking more slowly, varying pace and intonation, and pausing now and then to let the screen do the talking, makes for a much better listening experience.
At least, thank goodness, you didn't include an irritating background music track throughout the presentation!
Note: One key thing you didn't cover was the size of the palm rests! For many users, especially those with with larger hands, the MacBook's palm rest is far too small! One's palms hang over the edge or even miss them entirely! If you keep them on the rests, your fingers end up in the very bad claw position decried by ergonomic specialists as it produces carpal tunnel syndrome!
Comments
damnit, can't edit text properly in the iPhone appleinsider
It's the black bezel. Even when I used to have my MBP and MBA open side-by-side, the MBP looked much better since it had the black bezel to off-set the silver colour.
Looking at it another way, what reason do they have to support OS X on A-series chips (along with the effort to put OS X on an A-series chip and the convincing of the developers to follow, then users to see any benefit in numbers large enough to warrant the effort of the two previous efforts)? Wouldn't it be easier to make iOS more mature and sophisticated to handle more user scenarios that used to be only available on apps running on OS X, and then sell more A-series devices which run only iOS and nothing else? Which path do they seem to be following? OS X will become the OS for high end and niche needs, running on Intel chips. iOS for all the rest, A-series for the masses. I think their path seems clear.
"A little dated...? Kind of...just because we are now use to the look only, not in dated superior design.
What I predict with the eventual versions of Macbook line-up is that the Macbook Air will just turn into the Macbook Pro, maybe with its current basic design. The Macbook Air in my opinion is the best laptop design ever to date overall. I really don't think that they have to change much. I am on my third Macbook Air since the first 2008 version. Apple should just put a retina on the current MBA design, figure out how to add a few more ports with of course updates to CPU, GPU and RAM and give it a black bezel and call it the New Macbook Pro. Keep the current keyboard and overall design, even the current Macbook Air's trackpad if they want to keep costs lower and keep the Macbook's features and overall design different to justify buying (The Air's trackpad is already superior to anything else without track force anyway). This would keep still the difference between the new Macbook and the Macbook Pro for consumers selection without confusion.
Plus, those really who what a Macbook Pro are work horse type of people anyway. So making it all "pretty" is not really important. They want good design and function, function over thinness and cuteness. 'Power' baby...that what the Pro consumer demands...and needs depending on what they are doing.
Again, I LOVE the current design look of the Macbook Air. Hard to reinvent perfection.
Thinner and lighter usually come hand in hand. Being more portable, less of a weight around your shoulder is one of the major goals of any portable... otherwise why would you just not get a desktop if you don't need to lug it around. The Macbook Pro tries to maintain a reasonably good power to portability ratio, and generally does a reasonably good job at it. I don't know why someone would be anti-thinner just for the heck of it.
I agree with you that I would like the iPad Pro to more seamlessly be paired with other computers -- i.e. useful both with and without another computer.... I actually expect they have stuff in their labs that they are working on software wise.... whether we see them soon or not depends on how good a job they have done in the lab with this. The optane memory is likely still in the future at this point.... which I find disappointing. Intel gave us the impression that they were sampling and ready to tool for manufacturing, but apparently there are still kinks to work out.
I actually find the keyboard on the Macbook to be very very good. What is more of a problem is moving back and forth between computers with really different keyboards. I can actually type quicker on the Macbook after a few days of use than my normal keyboard -- I would like to see a more ergonomic version of the keyboard for desk use (i.e. angled outwards). The keys are firm so that I don't accidentally hit a character, but consistent that when I push I am certain it will register. Moving back and forth between keyboard types though takes a little getting use to each time you do it.
What I would like to see on the Macbook Pro other than the push to lighten it for the same computing power, is the introduction of TB3. It would be nice if they could register ethernet as an alternate data stream on USB-C so that ethernet cables could be created using USB-C standard so that without adding an ethernet port (which is one of the first ports to fail on most machines) you could plug an ethernet cable directly in without an intermediate dongle.
and add a Space Grey option:
I don't think there would be enough demand to justify Gold and Rose Gold options but I think Space Grey would be popular. Shiny metal logo at the back and metal hinge. The current MBP keyboard is very comfortable but the keys wobble and the backlighting is uneven. Even if they don't reduce the height of the keys, I'd expect them to improve the backlight and stability.
It will probably have GT4e (Intel 580) graphics as well as an AMD chip on the top model (R9 M470x?). Thunderbolt 3, maybe retain mag-safe, maybe not. Mag-safe can be added to the cable like with the USB-C Griffin BreakSafe. Options for 24GB RAM, 1.5-2TB storage perhaps. The 13" rMBP would replace the Air. The current Air starts at $999 for non-Retina 8GB/128GB. The 13" rMBP is $1299 for 8GB/128GB. A Retina 13" Air would have been $1099 with weaker hardware. If they can get the 13" rMBP down to $1199, there's no need for the 13" Air.