brianus

timmillea said:

I have an original M1 MacBook Air, 16GB/2TB, with its perfect wedge shape. I see no reason to renew it until the design of the MBA is improved. From an aesthetics point of view, I would regard the current design a downgrade, regardless of chip. 

Although aesthetically I think the newer design is more pleasing when used next to other Apple devices (thin bezels, flat sides, colors that match recent phones and iPads, notch matching my phone), the M1 was the pinnacle of functional design. Hard to improve on the wedge shape and for a device that was marketed for its thinness/portability, it’s odd that the new ones are slightly deeper in one dimension. Unfortunately “bigger overall, but slightly thinner” seems to be the direction all their products are taking now (except the Mac mini, which is thicker, but overall smaller)

Very impressive. But is it eggshell, with Roman type? Or bone? 

Why do we always get statements like "the Files app is garbage" without any context or explanation? I have a trillion complaints about Apple's often halfassed software, bugs that stick around for years despite reports, etc... but I use the iPadOS Files app on a daily basis and have very few issues with it. Maybe actually explain how Files hamstrings you in this instance?

The only substantive comment seems to be that third party apps don't all support FIles, but... that is not a comment on the quality of the app itself.

twolf2919 said:

If this really existed - not an assured thing in this rumor driven world - then it's the dumbest idea ever.  Thanks god it was canceled!  I could understand AR glasses tethered than iPhone - at least you could still experience AR's promise of augmenting the world with useful information as you moved through it.  But what's the use of augmenting anything while you're sitting somewhere with your MacBook???  Add a virtual calculator or calendar to your office walls?  Who'd walk around with a laptop in hand?  Makes no sense at all.

Are you kidding me? As the article rightly notes, Mac Virtual Display is considered by many to be the most compelling feature of the Vision Pro. This would be like that, but with normal glasses that are comfortable and not too weird looking (well, one hopes). The very large number of VIsion Pro customers who use it primarily for Virtual Display would ditch their clunky, heavy goggles in a second if something like this was available. I don't own a VP, but glasses with that feature would be a day one purchase for me.

To be clear, it's not so you can have a floating calculator. It's so you can extend your Mac's display without needing an external monitor - extremely useful while traveling or in confined spaces, when the tiny laptop display just isn't enough for your workflow. I currently use the XReal Air USB-C glasses for this purpose, and they're... ok. But it's a 1080p display with no spatial awareness (it moves as your head moves). Apple could make something much, much slicker. 

Anyway, very disappointed to hear they cancelled it. I tend to agree it would require iPhone tethering for mass appeal, so I get that if they couldn't make that work, it wasn't worth it to make something just for Mac users. Still, huge bummer.

Oy. Apples and oranges, I know, but this feels like Apple Maps replacing Google Maps all over again. There's a reason Google was and always will be so far ahead in that space, it's not just about engineering talent. 

I just hope in 10 years we aren't waking up to articles about how Apple products with the in-house modem design are now "sort of not that bad anymore" after years of embarrassing failure.