From dodgy keyboards, speakers, circuit boards, removing ports and unjustified price hikes its like Apple do not care that they are driving one of their masterpieces into the ground. Right up beside the iPhone sits the MacBook Pro, iconic and sleek the MacBook Pro is common throughout colleges. However whilst being decently powered and well configured the MacBook Pro isn’t necessarily a bang for your buck machine.
It was in 2016 the Apple introduced us to the “touch-bar” a means to justify higher price’s for something that isn’t worth it. The thin strip below the screen has little use or advantages over traditional buttons. It was also these 2016 and 2017 models where you would pay $2,199 for the entry-level 13″ Pro to have the keyboard break on you.
Seriously you pay that much for just the entry-level laptop and its keyboard will break on you. Let alone paying more such as $3,599 for the 15″ Pro. Any wonder Apple has now been forced to offer free repairs.
It was this generation of MacBooks that may be the breaking point for Apple. Along with the dodgy keyboard and boring “touch-bar” they decided to remove pretty much all of the ports and connectors from the MacBook. Taking away the HDMI, USB 3, SD card slot and Thunderbolt 2 to have just 4 thunderbolt USB-C ports. A crime in itself, you pay more for less plus need to cart around adapters and dongles.
Another stupidity in Apples progression on the MacBook Pro’s was the removal of the Magsafe charging system. The simple magnetic “tap on” charger was removed for the ever so common laptop charger which if someone was to now trip on the cable whilst it was plugged into your Mac it would go flying, something the Magsafe prevented.
Bold changes that will come back to haunt
Flash through to now when the 2018 MacBook Pro lineup released to minimal hype and after event interest would it come as a shock to you that Apple again is looking down at another disastrous year for its MacBook lineup?
The new CPU’s for the 2018 lineup was the biggest draw from the release. An i7 and i9 which would bring excitement to content creators and enthusiast users, until it becomes apparent that there is thermal throttling happen which massively drops performance. Making the expensive i9 version completely not worth it.
With the 2016 – 2017 MacBook lineup tarnished and resale value damaged compared to the past versions, now we have the 2018 version not even a month into its life cycle already being shown as being misrepresented in marketing and specs guides from Apple in its CPU speed and performance. Who would buy this trash?! Trust and belief in wanting to drop thousands of dollars into a laptop that now has a track record of being faulty, broken and worrisome.
Another year another failure?
To pay $3000 for a sleek and decently powered laptop is questionable but to pay that for something that isn’t as advertised (major throttling) and is fragile? unfortunately for MacBook lovers it’s a case of shut up and pay or don’t and go elsewhere. There is no alternative to the MacBook Pro for feel and design.
If you count up Apples mistakes with the MacBook in the past few years I would put them at 2 strikes. One more strike and any new Mac release is going to have to grow consumers confidence and consumption from the ground up, something Apple hasn’t done for a very long time.