“The MacBook isn’t just a new Air – though in a sense it’s an heir to the Air – but it’s something new that isn’t entirely removed from its predecessors while not being exactly the same either,” Ryan Smith writes for AnandTech.The end result is a device that like the original Air is hard to pin down in this time frame, as it straddles a couple different product segments.”
“This is by far the most portable Mac Apple has ever created, thinner and lighter than ever, making it very easy to carry around,” Smith writes. “And while I’m a bit concerned about overall performance from a 4.5W CPU, overall the hardware is looking solid, with Apple’s keyboard and trackpad changes being very interesting solutions to shaving off further thickness without greatly compromising usability.”
Smith writes, “At this point then it’s the broader picture that remains unclear; with the MacBook Apple is treading new ground by pushing a new usage model, and I think it’s going to take some time to really figure out how well that model works, if the $1299+ price Apple wants to charge is right for that model, and if that model makes sense in a world where there is already the MacBook Air.”
Much more in the full article – recommended – here.
Related articles:
Apple’s revolutionary new 12-inch MacBook heralds world without wires and cables – March 11, 2015
PC Mag hands on Apple’s all-new 12-Inch MacBook: ‘You’ll want to carry it with you everywhere’ – March 10, 2015
Hands-on with Apple’s One-port wonder, the amazing MacBook with 12-inch Retina display – March 9, 2015
Apple unveils all-new MacBook, the thinnest and lightest Mac ever made – March 9, 2015
I think TC in his keynote introduced it as something more than a larger iPad and somewhat less than a full grown MacBook Air. Looking for a larger iPad? This is gonna be it!
Sure, it’s portable. But with its absence of a MagSAFE connector and separate USB port, you could get along just as well with an iPad with a keyboard case. Or at least from a hardware standpoint.
and an iPad is less money.
What this does is indicate that I’ll wait for the next MacBook Pro. Ought to be more exciting with all the better performance features.
The iPad is less money but has less storage and sometimes you just need the full Mac experience.
Think about it, Apple re-engineered everything in the MacBook around all the human interactions with a notebook whether it is typing, holding, seeing, or clicking. That was a masterful stroke.
Processor power for Internet surfers, emailers and video watchers isn’t going to matter. Using the laptop all day on wifi without having it plugged in? Now that’s important.
The iPad with keyboard case shares many features, but it lacks the most critical feature of the Macbook: OS X. That’s an entire app ecosystem designed for use with a keyboard in laptop style form factor. The iPad with keyboard case is limited by having it’s entire app ecosystem optimized for touch screen display use.
I was about to say…this new MB has me rethinking on upgrading to a new iPad. This new MB is insanely light and thin!
If Apple made a car, it would look like a Lamborghini, but if you want an air conditioner, radio, and spare tire, you have to buy a trailer.
That’s actually a pretty good analogy for the dongle(s) you’ll need for this, if you ever wanted to re-use your current USB thumb drives, or external video… or heck, even connecting your iPhone or iPad to erase and restore it!
But not hopefully with the reliability of a Lambo.
Good thing Apple designed it:
-to run cool enough not to need a fan, never mind an air conditioner
-radio… what decade is this? Internet access takes care of FM plus a million other services
-with run flat tires, who needs a spare.
I’m not sure “most portable” is all that much of a compliment. It’s not like the Air or the MPB are giant, clunky anchors. It does go along with Apple’s obsession with “thinnest whatchamawhosit ever” though.
Dropping magsafe power for USB-C is a step backward in usability. Not being able to connect virtually any device any time soon without dongles is a step backward. Not being able to charge my phone while charging my laptop is a step backward.
If Apple had come up with magsafe universal USB/power connectors and provided two of them this would have been a real advance!
I agree, very strange that they wouldn’t put two USB-C buses in there. A heat challenge, maybe. But that at least would allow for a couple of devices (display + power or power + usb)
As is, it really is a wireless-only device. I guess that’s where they see the home market going. They’re often right, so who knows.
It would also allow you to put the power input in either left or right side of the mac. The Chromebook Pixel has two USB-C ports. One per side.
I say adopting USB-C is a step forward for usability.
This finally is a USB connection where, just like the Lighting connection, there’s no wrong way to plug it in – fixing a long standing usability problem in all previous USB connections.
In a desktop Macbook set up, you now only need to plug in one cable to connect the Macbook to a hub with power, display, keyboard, and anything else you have at that desktop workstation. Most set ups like that today require at least 2 connections to plug in the laptop’s power and video.
The single port scenario is troubling. So does the power adapter have a pass through for connecting another device? Does this mean you have to carry an adapter around also? I think there is about zero USB-c devices out there. Hopefully, this will not turn into another thunderbolt fiasco.
It won’t, because USB is a far more common standard, and unlike TB others are already incorporating USB-C ports into their newer systems, so products that use them won’t be far behind… and even those are pricier for early adopters, they’ll still be far cheaper than TB devices.
USB 3.1 Type-C will take off, because it’s awesome in every way that matters to a connection standard.
– It’s tiny. Smaller than Micro-USB 3.0. Devices keep getting smaller, and devices eager to shave off millimeters can adopt this overs just to save physical space.
– It’s cheap. Similar to licensing fees to USB 2.0 and 3.0 standards, should spur similar industry wide support.
– It’s fast. At 5 or 10 Gbps, it equals or doubles USB 3.0 speed.
– It’s feature packed. It can handle many simultaneous connections, video, power, daisy chaining, and is backwards compatible all previous USB standards (with adapter).
I see no reason to doubt this is will be the standard connection for years to come. It has everything everyone was waiting for, including important things Thunderbolt lacked.
I’ll go as far as to say Apple should drop Lightning from future iOS devices in favour of USB-C, since there’s no clear advantage anymore. Both are about the same size (which unfortunately might cause confusion if you don’t know what to look for), and both are reversible.
The only reasons Apple would keep Lightning are the “authorized accessory” circuitry in Lightning, and losing a chunk of change on those certification programs and their Lightning cables and accessories if people start using cheap generic cables. Neither excuse puts Apple in a good light.