Apple's new MacBook Pro might ditch regular USB ports(theverge.com)
theverge.com
Apple's new MacBook Pro might ditch regular USB ports
http://www.theverge.com/2016/10/18/13314972/apple-macbook-pro-late-2016-rumors-no-usb-ports
5 comments
> I'd like some kind of reassurance that USB Type-C is going to last more than a couple of years...
heh https://xkcd.com/927/
It's unrealistic to expect a single connector/cable/pinout to last for a very long time. Throughput requirements increase, size constraints do too, mechanical designs improve, etc.
Even Firewire or SCSI looked like "the last interface you'll ever need" 15 years ago.
heh https://xkcd.com/927/
It's unrealistic to expect a single connector/cable/pinout to last for a very long time. Throughput requirements increase, size constraints do too, mechanical designs improve, etc.
Even Firewire or SCSI looked like "the last interface you'll ever need" 15 years ago.
My IO requirements haven't changed that dramatically in the past six years, and are still well served by a Mid-2010 MacBook Pro.
I've got MagSafe for power, Mini DisplayPort for video out, Mini TOSLINK for audio out, and USB 2.0 for everything else. There's a gigabit Ethernet port if I want it, but otherwise 802.11n works just fine.
I'd like faster data transfer (not that any of my peripherals are USB C compatible yet), but otherwise I don't really understand what the massive fragmentation of connector standards does for me.
I've got MagSafe for power, Mini DisplayPort for video out, Mini TOSLINK for audio out, and USB 2.0 for everything else. There's a gigabit Ethernet port if I want it, but otherwise 802.11n works just fine.
I'd like faster data transfer (not that any of my peripherals are USB C compatible yet), but otherwise I don't really understand what the massive fragmentation of connector standards does for me.
Finally. I have been waiting for this. I'm not being sarcastic.
I have a MBP at work and at home. When they are on the desk, both have a 7 things plugged into them. When I lift it up, I have to unplug 7 things. When I put it down, I have to plug all 7 things back in. Being able to plug those all into a single dongle which I can then plug into the computer. Besides convenience, it would also make cable management easier.
That said, I hope the pro model has a least two and that it keeps an HDMI port.
I have a MBP at work and at home. When they are on the desk, both have a 7 things plugged into them. When I lift it up, I have to unplug 7 things. When I put it down, I have to plug all 7 things back in. Being able to plug those all into a single dongle which I can then plug into the computer. Besides convenience, it would also make cable management easier.
That said, I hope the pro model has a least two and that it keeps an HDMI port.
That sounds like an inferior version of the desktop dock that every business laptop (Lenovo, Dell, HP, etc) has had for over a decade. It would be an omission of failure if Apple resorted to something like that.
How about purchasing a dock?
On my ThinkPad a single cable delivers power, video, USB, Ethernet...
I'm sure Apple has identical solutions, I've seen many third party ones for the 12" MacBook.
On my ThinkPad a single cable delivers power, video, USB, Ethernet...
I'm sure Apple has identical solutions, I've seen many third party ones for the 12" MacBook.
I finally went out and bought a 10-port powered USB dock.
Which doesn't work with my USB Midi keyboard.
Well, shit. Now what?
Which doesn't work with my USB Midi keyboard.
Well, shit. Now what?
> Well, shit. Now what?
Another dongle for you!
Another dongle for you!
The rMBP has 2 USB ports right now. I plug four cables into that thing every day, I would also love to have to plug in just one cable and mount the dongle somewhere behind the desk. But I don't think USB can be used for a 4k external monitor?
FINALLY. I have been waiting for this. Once they lock down all of the hardware ports they should take a hard look at the keyboard. Do users even need to be able to enter in text input or control their own computers? The evolution of the mac seems to confirm the persistent rumor apple is working on a tv. If they strip out virtually any ability for a user to interact with the device, it becomes a one-way broadcast medium, e.g. a TV. I know I can't wait, I just picked up $300.00 headphones that ensure I can listen to the apple certified audio for at least two hours at a time. what a time to be alive.
<sarcasm>
<sarcasm>
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Slowly making laptops less useful.
Why not discontinue macbooks altogether and just sell iPads?
Oh wait, the same people buy both.
If you are still paying retail for macbooks you are an idiot.
Why not discontinue macbooks altogether and just sell iPads?
Oh wait, the same people buy both.
If you are still paying retail for macbooks you are an idiot.
I can't imagine how one can code productively on an iPad - the environment and ecosystem just isn't there. I'm sure it's just as good, or better, at things like multimedia consumption and entertainment, but a lot of things still require the use of a 'desktop' environment.
Does an overpriced laptop with outdated hardware provide a 'desktop' environment.
Yes.
Are you wasting your money on branding when you could just install linux on any old computer and be fine.
Yes.
Yes.
Are you wasting your money on branding when you could just install linux on any old computer and be fine.
Yes.
> Are you wasting your money on branding when you could just install linux on any old computer and be fine.
Many developers just don't want to put up with the hassle of installing and maintaining a Linux environment. Just yesterday I've helped a friend installing Arch on a ThinkPad T440s and we almost gave up due to libinput bugs that made the trackpad pretty much unusable (fixed by a few hours of trial and error and then going back to evdev). We still have to get the Intel wifi to work decently. Apparently some glitch with power management doesn't let it achieve full throughput.
OS X (and even a clean Windows 10 install in most cases) pretty much work out of the box and let you focus on actual tasks.
Many developers just don't want to put up with the hassle of installing and maintaining a Linux environment. Just yesterday I've helped a friend installing Arch on a ThinkPad T440s and we almost gave up due to libinput bugs that made the trackpad pretty much unusable (fixed by a few hours of trial and error and then going back to evdev). We still have to get the Intel wifi to work decently. Apparently some glitch with power management doesn't let it achieve full throughput.
OS X (and even a clean Windows 10 install in most cases) pretty much work out of the box and let you focus on actual tasks.
If you are willing to trade a couple thousand dollars for a few hours of work I'm not going to stop you.
A few hours of work...on the first day of use.
How many more hours of engrossing touchpad driver jiggerypokery will any person need to do over the course of ownership before the cost of their wasted time adds up to the cost of a macbook?
How many more hours of engrossing touchpad driver jiggerypokery will any person need to do over the course of ownership before the cost of their wasted time adds up to the cost of a macbook?
Ubuntu takes 20 mins to install, and I have yet to run into driver issues on any of the 5 machines in my home.
I have worked at several VFX studios that used Ubuntu for their workstations. 250+ machines, an absolute joy to manage.
I'm sorry you guys have so much trouble, but maybe you should read the docs?
I have worked at several VFX studios that used Ubuntu for their workstations. 250+ machines, an absolute joy to manage.
I'm sorry you guys have so much trouble, but maybe you should read the docs?
For so long, USB 2.0 with a Type-A connector was the standard. You saw Type-B connectors on printer cables, but the other end always had the reassuring Type-A connector.
Then along came USB 3.0, and USB 3.1, which have the same receptacle as 2.0, but aren't necessarily interchangeable. USB 3.x adoption is still lacklustre, so you now have a bunch of devices with different versions, and new systems come with a mixture of 2.0 and 3.0 ports. Why? Isn't 3.0 backwards compatible, and better?
Now we have USB Type-C, which doesn't bear any resemblance to anything which came before.
USB Type-C makes sense because it's smaller, but we already have a mind-boggling array of smaller USB connectors for mobile devices, like USB Mini-A and Mini-B (What's the difference? Did they elope to create Mini-AB?). Then Micro-A and Micro-B, which sound a lot like the Mini variants, but aren't. What the hell is Micro-B SuperSpeed, and why is it actually two ports?
While all this has been going on, three versions of Thunderbolt have emerged. Thunderbolt v1 and v2 inexplicably use a Mini DisplayPort connector. Thunderbolt v3 uses a USB Type-C connector, but isn't the same as USB Type-C. Or is it?
Meanwhile, the general population are still furious that Lightning came along and rendered half their iPod/iPhone/iPad accessories redundant.
I wouldn't mind Apple dropping USB Type-A ports in favor of Type-C for the new MacBook Pro, but I'd like some kind of reassurance that USB Type-C is going to last more than a couple of years...