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So glad I purchased two 2017 edition MacBook AIR's this summer for my kid's educational needs.  I pretty much knew Apple would gut the AIR like they did all the other notebook models.  No SD card slot is the epitome of stupidity, not to mention the lack of MagSafe and the addition of that horrid keyboard (3rd gen or no).  My kids use USB-A devices all the time, making the 2017 edition AIR a very practical machine.  I wish it came with a Retina display, but there's no way I would be willing to sacrifice all those other important features for that.  The 2017 AIR is adequate for education.

They Mac the overpriced Mac Pro in the USA, so they could make other equally overpriced Macs in the US as well.  It all depends on how things pan out politically.  But unless China makes concessions that please the President, Apple may be forced into using more expensive US labor to create their products.  Even so, it would make more sense to build them in North Dakota, Oregon, or another state with lower overhead.  California is no place to manufacture anything and is almost too expensive a state for the average person to live.

movingincircles said:

Everyone is apparently a CEO now and know exactly what's good for Apple. 

We disgruntled Mac fans only ask Apple to taste a tiny spoonful of its own THINK DIFFERENT medicine.  In other words, think different as compared with right now (and since late 2016).  :-)

One must also give thought to the fact that if Apple did not care about our opinions, why then offer us numerous feedback forms?  Indeed, I often send them feedback, regardless of whether I think it will do any good or not.  "Ask and ye shall receive" implies "Don't ask and don't receive."  Let us therefore be optimists about giving them feedback.  Give it a try!  I'd also encourage the tech media to stay objective and not always sing Apple's praises.  There's a lot of Cupertino-is-always-right here on AppleInsider but there are articles and videos that balance that a bit, and I appreciate that balance.  The Yuryev brothers tell a straight story in their videos most of the time (e.g., "the Touch Bar is a gimmick").

Next, we all know Steve Jobs is no longer micromanaging Johnny Ive and the engineering team.  Tim Cook does not do that.  Some people say, "Apple has lost its way."  Even if Apple is a bit lost, perhaps a little help from us, people who pay money to them to keep them in business, can encourage them to think outside that box of "paper-thinness for every Mac."  Not every Mac needs to be paper thin, and certainly not their top end "Pro" notebook.

I've been an AAPL shareholder since 1999, never having sold a single share.  I have a vested interest in seeing Apple do well.  But the fact remains that iOS drives AAPL, not Macs.  With that said, Apple isn't doing well in my book when the only Mac notebook that appeals to me is the MacBook Air, and that only because of its good keyboard, SD card slot, USB-A ports, and MagSafe.  Add a retina display and beefy GPU to that mix, and then the MBP matters less and my complaints then largely become moot because the Air will become a more viable buying option.  In other words, Apple should make the most of its 3 notebook product lines.  To offer suggestions in that regard isn't stepping into the shoes of CEO.  It's merely constructive feedback.

There is always room for improvement at Apple.  Always.

Rayz2016 said:

...this is precisely what I would expect to happen when Apple gave you exactly what you asked for. You asked for faster processors, you asked for more memory. Apple delivered. 

You say they should make the case bigger; well, fair enough, but what you don't know is how much bigger they will have to make the case, how much larger they will need to make the fans to move the air round the case, and how much extra this will cost in terms of battery drain to make a difference. You also don't know how many of Apple's customers would reject a laptop that wasn't as svelte as the one they're used to... You say then Apple should make a laptop just for us 'professionals' with a profusion of SCSI ports, a case as large as a tank and a keyboard with travel that goes to the centre of the earth. 

Well, I live in the UK...

I asked for that?  Sorry, friend, but I did not.  I asked for an internal SD card slot and a good keyboard, and Apple instead delivered a performance bump.  So no, I didn't ask for what Apple delivered.

Does everyone there in the UK speak in extremes like "large as a tank" and "goes to the centre of the earth"?  No one is asking for that.  Indeed, I've already said my 2015 15" MBP thickness is about ideal.  It's a very thin machine, yet you can fit a good keyboard in there with a good amount of key travel.  Hardly anyone complained about the key travel on that model, versus the complaints that are still ongoing about the butterfly keyboard.  And if Apple did suddenly start make Professional MacBook Pros that were as thick as the 2015 model but put a host of ports, slots and thermal goodness in such a machine, I assure you, Apple enthusiasts would not turn up their noses, especially when the MacBook exists for people who are willing to have the absolute thinnest and leanest machine possible.  Saying it another way, people who dislike something thicker than a piece of paper are the target buyers for the MacBook.

Again, the MacBook strips away nearly everything to make a portable thin and light.  The MacBook Pro has sadly been morphed into that mold even though there was no reason for it (since the MacBook already exists for that).  And the Air has been allowed to languish.  The MBP needs to be a tank in terms of ports and power but still fairly thin and light (again, like the 2015 models).  The Air can then be updated and be a bridge between the MacBook and MBP.  By having 3 up-to-date product lines like that, assuming the pricing is right, you really can please most Mac users.  Don't think so?  Apple once did.  Seriously.  Apple once came out with new Macs that very few Mac users were upset about.  These days, we Mac users have become very divided over the thinness and its tradeoffs.  (And over bad thermal paste or excessive thermal paste.)  And again, that is precisely why Apple should use its 3 notebook product lines to create models that fit the needs of most Mac users.  Sorry, but they are not doing that now.  If they were, my needs would be met and I would not even be typing this.  And don't think I am the lone soul on this planet who loves Macs and feels this way.  I assure you I am not alone in wanting more from the MBP, especially with regard to key travel and an internal SD card slot.

macmojo said:

The tests done by this Youtuber don't prove much. ...anonymous nobodies on YouTube have a vested interest in increasing traffic to their channel and so are prepared to do what's necessary to achieve that end. Slagging off Apple (for any reason), is guaranteed click-bait. 

Hardly...



At 7:04 that video shows us a $5000 iMac Pro manufactured only a couple months prior with already rock solid thermal past.  That information is no click-bait, my friend.  It's either the truth or he fabricated it.  Do you honestly think he fabricated it?  I doubt that.