Apple Is Dead To Me… And why NOT to buy a MacBook

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slrlounge.comYou couldn’t pay me to use a MacBook Pro. And it’s something I’ve been saying for years. Why? Well the simple fact is they can no longer keep up with a Windows machine and the immense power avaiable, at a much lower cost.

The oft heard crys from Apple fanboys and Girls, ‘no viruses’, ‘they don’t crash like Windows’ blah blah blah et al is just well, totally irrelevant and unfounded.

In other words, the Apple range of laptops and desktops, the once ‘must have’ machine for professional Graphics Artists, Designers and Photographers, is fast loosing it’s fan base. Can somebody tell Tim Cook that becoming a glorified phone company is not the way to repay his customer base for years of ongoing, but fast diminishing loyalty

An extract from an open letter to Apple after the fall ’16 keynote sent by Trey Ratcliffe

first want to start with the overall presentation you gave. I gotta say I’m at a loss for words at that presentation. It’s akin to getting ready to have tacos on Tuesday but instead a swift kick to my groin happened. To me, the magic of the Apple events is dying and becoming quite predictable with a thinner, faster, longer battery life device with features we didn’t truly need. Beneath all of this is a quite literal ignorance of what the pros actually want and need.

A comment from Pratik Naik, of Solstice Retouch

“With the MacBook Pro, it has become very clear to me that their products aren’t congruent with the needs of professionals with the direction of their forced change. Apple’s brilliance came from their focus on minimalism while providing the efficiency that every creative immediately gravitated toward. Now with their latest update, they welcome a flood of inconveniences that are becoming hurdles to efficiency.”

While the new Macbook Pros are anything but, Apple still has a hard time keeping them on their shelves. Why is this? The OS, although flashy, hasn’t really changed since 2013, only occasionally receiving the scraps from the latest iOS release. The company has prioritized the iPhone above all, and as of late last year, has no dedicated Mac operating system team. The hardware continually drags behind the competition and the ability to upgrade the machine becomes more abysmal each year, with everything becoming proprietary and soldered down. read more at slrlounge.com

 

There’s no perfect MacBook anymore – and Apple doesn’t care

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reviewed.comIs Apple really losing the plot with the MacBook? Has Tim Cook given up on the idea of the idea of the MacBook as the perfect laptop?

TJ Donegan of reviewed.com believes he has and that Apple Inc now sees it’s future in the iPhone. Have almost single-handedly created the premium laptop sector, Apples CEO now seems to be handing the market to his competitors on a silver platter.

As Donegan is keen to point out there are Windows PC’s at half the price that run circles around most of the current older Mac models that desperately need an update.

“The new MacBook Pros are neat, but they’re all significantly overpriced, have a keyboard that is only slightly better than the MacBook, and are missing major ports requiring you to live the Dongle Life.”

Over the past few years, it’s become increasingly obvious that Apple’s future is all about the iPhone. But while the iPhone has been ruling the smartphone market, Apple’s MacBooks have lost their luster.

While mobile computing is the future, many users and Apple fans depend on Macs to get their work done every day. But despite loud, repeated, and clear complaints from the Mac userbase, Apple has spent the last two years reinventing the wheel instead of listening to its customers. read more at laptops.reviewed.com

 

Mac-lash The Apple MacBook Pro and Why It Isn’t For The Pro

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firstpost.com

The new MacBook Pro that, well, isn’t for the Pro? Did Apple screw up?

Just exactly where has Apple gone with the new MacBook Pro update? Well, it really looks as if it’s gone were many true and loyal long term MacBook fans don’t really like.

There has literally been a huge Mac-lash and much hand wringing since the real usability issues have come to light. So what’s happened?

In truth, it looks like Apple has built and designed the new 15″ MacBook Pro for the consumer rather than the professional developers who have been faithful to the brand and design for years.

Why? You had better read on to check out the 2016 Apple MacBook Pro dealbreakers.

It may seem strange, at first. There’s nothing seriously wrong with the new Macs – they pack in improved displays, a Touch ID sensor (finally!), insanely fast SSDs, better audio quality and the all-compatible USB-C port on a chassis that makes the much-loved and once-impossibly-thin MacBook Air look fat! But the more I think about it, the more I’m not entirely sure if these Macs are for the “Pros” anymore…or for that matter, who they’re really meant for… read more at firstpost.com

 

New MacBook Pro Still Planned for October, USB-C MacBook Air Also in the Works

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macrumors.comWill the new, updated and much anticipated MacBook Pro launch to a clamoring multitude of Apple fans at the end of this month? October 2016? Are you eagerly waiting for the launch announcement?

Well, up to now there is no event on the calendar, and no invites have been sent out and yet the rumor mill is going strong. The Japanese Mac fan site Mac Otakara cites a very “reliable Chinese supplier” who confirms says Apple will definitely launch both 13 and 15-inch models before the end of the month.

So we have no event, will Apple quietly launch the much anticipated new models with an announcement and press release? It seems likely at this late stage of the game.

And the features we are still expecting to see? Touch ID via the power button, a LED contextual strip for the functions, AMD graphics, and support for USB-c and Thunderbolt-3. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

Apple still plans to announce its new MacBook Pro “in the month” with shipments to begin at the end of October, according to new information… Apple is also expected to launch a new 13-inch MacBook Air, but will not debut a new 11-inch MacBook Air machine. With the month coming to an end in just two weeks, it is unclear if there will be an event to announce the new machines. There have been no hints of an event and no invites have been sent out, so it’s possible Apple will debut the machines more quietly, with just a press release. read more at macrumors.com

 

 

Apple Aiming for Late October Launch of Redesigned MacBook Pro

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apple macbook pro 15 2016 review

(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

It’s now looking more and more like the new 2016 Apple MacBook Pro is going to be released in late October. On Friday we reported on conjecture from various unsubstantiated sources that a date of the 24th of October had been set. Whilst Apple loves late October release dates, we have as yet no firm announcements from the Apple Campus.

With the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, plus the Watch 2 released to a great deal of fanfare, it looks like the new and much-needed update to the flagship MacBook is imminent. this could also take the stage with a new MacBook 13: Air, and a new and updated iMac along with a 5k screen. Now that is a release we would love to see. We can also expect Intel Skylake processors and an option for AMD’s 14 nm Polaris GPUs. Tasty…

Apple Likely Aiming for Late October Launch of Redesigned MacBook ProWednesday September 28, 2016 12:45 pm PDT by Eric SlivkaWith the iPhone 7 and Apple Watch Series 2 launches having dominated the Apple news cycle in recent weeks, attention is now turning back to the Mac lineup, which has been in need of updates for quite some time as highlighted by our Buyer’s Guide.

Looking ahead to the rapidly approaching holiday shopping season, rumors have suggested Apple is preparing to update several of its Mac lines before the end of the year, led by a redesigned MacBook Pro that has been rumored to be ready for launch “as soon as October.”

MacRumors has learned that Apple is indeed moving rapidly toward a launch of the new MacBook Pro models, with the company’s current development work on macOS 10.12.1 focused largely on preparing the operating system to support the updated hardware’s new features, which have been rumored by several sources to include Touch ID support and an OLED “touch bar” replacing the current row of function keys across the top of keyboard.

Check this Topic at macrumors.com

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Expectations Grow For 2016 MacBook Pro Launch Looks Like Late October

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Rumours are now coming thick and fast from the tech mill with the latest post from 9to5Mac publishing an admittedly vague whisper off the grapevine that the new Apple MacBook Pro 15″ for 2016 will be announced on October the 24th.

Reliable sources are also predicting that Tim Cook will be on stage announcing a new MacBook Air in 13″ and also a brand new iMac with a wait for it, 5k Screen! We like that one, so let’s hope that Tim and his crew deliver.

Get the full run down at 9to5Mac…

With numerous reports suggesting that Apple will launch a new MacBook Pro range in late October, one sketchy rumorsuggests that the keynote presentation will take place on October 24. A Monday doesn’t seem particularly likely, and the ‘multiple sources’ cited are apparently just anonymous emails, but sometime around that date seems more likely than not. Logic dictates that a new OS update will be required for these new machines and if they were ready late September/early October, Apple would have added them to the September event.

Additionally, Apple is known for its lateOctober launches, having had one in October four of the past five years (skipping last year) and it wants to have its channel full of inventory for the runup to the holidays in November. So October is a safe guess for upcoming products…

Check this Topic at 9to5mac.com

Image courtesy of 9to5mac.com

MacBook Pro 2016 release date, news and rumors

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The news all Apple fans have been waiting for, the eagerly awaited and much anticipated (assumed) redesign of the Apple flagship MacBook Pro range of laptops. Most upgrades over the last couple of years have been purely incremental and it’s really a testament to the superb design of the original MacBooks that they still look as good today.

The rumour mill is in full swing with stories of a newly designed hinge from the company who manufactures the hinge for the Surface Pro, to the number of USB ports, and of course conjecture about the available case colors.

Update: Apple is apparently enlisting the services of Amphenol, which makes hinges for Microsoft’s Surface Pro devices, to manufacture hinges for its rumored super-slim MacBooks.

Apple’s MacBook Pro range hasn’t been updated for some time: the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina was refreshed in March 2015 and the 15-inch in May. New MacBook Pros are clearly imminent. The biggest change is likely to be in the Pros’ processors, and while there are rumours of detachable touchscreens we’d take them with a hefty pinch of salt.

According to one report by DigiTimes, Apple is gearing up to release new 13- and 15-inch MacBooks in the second half of 2016. It reckons they will feature hinges produced using a mechanism called ‘metal injection moulding’. Said to be inspired by Microsoft’s Surface Pro line of devices, the hinges will apparently be manufactured by Ampenol, who makes hinges for Microsoft’s convertible tablet.

The MacBook Pro is due an update, and we think it’ll be a big one. Will the new model be a radical redesign?

Check this Topic at techradar.com

Image courtesy of techradar.com