Earlier this week, Apple updated their MacBook Pro line of laptops with faster processors containing more cores. But the new gear is the same size, it has the same limited ports, the same potential issues with heat dissipation, and a new and “allegedly-improved” butterfly keyboard.
A keyboard that’s been a problem for three years. As a good friend sent me in an email last night: “Oh, sure,” he writes, “like it’s really fixed this time? I’ll believe it when Casey Johnson and Joanna Stern say it’s fixed.”
The only reason this butterfly keyboard exists at all is that Apple believes that Pro laptops are thin laptops. Which is both arrogant… and misguided.
When I do video production or video editing or audio editing on location – tasks which are considered pro functions – these new machines require I also travel with a 20 pound bag of dongles. Production today requires USB, HDMI, audio out and a Micro SD slot. None of which Apple considers Pro anymore.
ASIDE: When was the last time you went on a job saying, “If my laptop isn’t thin, I can’t use it?” Or, was it more likely you said: “DARN! I hope I remembered to bring all my stupid connectors?”
Every year, I promise myself that I’ll buy a new Apple laptop. I have the money – it’s in the bank. Yet, every year, when Apple updates their laptops. they don’t fix the keyboard, don’t fix the heat issues, don’t add more ports; and constrain GPU power. So, I’m still traveling with a 2013 MacBook Pro which has a slower CPU but plenty of ports and a keyboard that has never failed.
Increasingly, as media software continues to evolve, GPU speed and storage bandwidth take center stage while CPU speed diminishes in importance, especially for higher-resolution formats. But these new Pro units boost the CPU not GPU.
Still, they are thin.
ASIDE: When was the last time you said: “Wow, my extra-thin laptop sure looks sexy sitting on the corner of the craft table.” Or, did you say, “I wish this color grading would render faster?”
As you know, Apple does not share its hardware plans with the public, so I have no inside knowledge. But it is my hope that these units are a placeholder for a complete system redesign coming in the next year.
A pro laptop that is thicker, that includes a better, more reliable keyboard. More ports. Faster GPUs. And a heat sink big enough to cool Cleveland. And if they need to slow the CPU down a bit to accommodate that, that’s a good trade-off.
ASIDE: Hands, please. How many people want a laptop that’s really, really thin, overheats under load and has a problematic keyboard? OK. How many people want a computer that isn’t quite so thin, better cooling, faster GPU, more ports and a reliable keyboard?
I’m happy that consumers like thin. I think thin is cute. But, excuse me, I need to grab my traveling kit of dongles and docks. It’s time to get work done.
THINKING FURTHER
I have no objection to thin laptops. Not everyone who needs a laptop needs all the horse-power of a video editor. The MacBook Air is a delightful machine; and very thin.
My objection is that systems which are marketed as high-power, professional systems should focus on goals other than simply seeing how thin they can be made.
36 Responses to Dear Apple: Thin Is Not Pro
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Rudy says:
May 27, 2019 at 6:50 am
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Clayton Moore says:
May 27, 2019 at 7:26 am
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Philip Cutting says:
May 27, 2019 at 8:45 am
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Larry says:
May 27, 2019 at 8:48 am
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Stacey Sanner says:
May 27, 2019 at 8:49 am
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Larry says:
May 27, 2019 at 10:39 am
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Gabe says:
May 27, 2019 at 10:16 am
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Frank Bruno says:
May 27, 2019 at 2:53 pm
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Nick Rains says:
May 27, 2019 at 4:21 pm
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Larry says:
May 27, 2019 at 4:38 pm
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Nick Rains says:
May 27, 2019 at 8:50 pm
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Tan says:
May 27, 2019 at 6:16 pm
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Dr.Marc M. Batschkus says:
May 28, 2019 at 12:31 am
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Larry says:
May 28, 2019 at 7:52 am
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Lee Walkup says:
May 28, 2019 at 7:20 am
← Older Comments Newer Comments →Nothing new here. All started when Apple dumped FCP7 to give us the the joke that was FCP X. That was the beginning of the end for me. I am now using my 2015 Mac Book Pro running Premiere (unless I’m forced to use FCPX ) I’m certain it will be the last apple computer I ever own. Once that’s gone and I toss my iPhone onto the pyre, I will be finally Apple free!!!
Great post and great comments. The Jony Ive thing clearly puts design first, then try’s to squeeze function into it. But thin and sexy has become commonplace everywhere and has even become a thing I’ve even seen people joke about. Power and performance in portables is always a challenge involving the balancing of battery power and heat. Seems to me though that Apple may be hitting a wall, and they have a choice to make. Either offer a choice for professional users or not.
All of these comments are interesting. I’m a serious hobbyist and have a 2nd hand MBP 13” with Touch Bar. I think it’s fabulous! I travel with a LaCie portable SSD drive, an SD card reader, and two USB3 to USB-C adapters. No problem. FCPX works reliably. Job done. I crossed to MACs years ago for the reliable and secure infrastructure/OS. It’s probably easier now to get this with Windows, but far far easier to NOT get it with Windows. I’m not prepared to take that risk! Also, I never buy new. I can’t afford it. As long as others update their machines regularly enough for a thriving second hand market, I think I will be fine!
Philip:
This is a great comment – pointing out the value of second-hand gear. And, you are correct, 2-3 year-old equipment handles most media files just fine.
Thanks,
Larry
Hi Larry, yes you are right. I got the MacBook Pro in late 2017. I paid gobs of money to have as much memory and processing speed as they would allow. And I too walk around with a bag of dongles just to get my work done. It is an incredible inconvenience. And the investment is questionable. The touch bar so far, for me anyway, is a useless feature. The other thing realized is that regardless of how beautiful the Retina display may be, I do most of my editing on a monitor, so the computer’s display is less important. I also do all my Final Cut editing using an external hard drive, so the speed of processing is more tied to the external hard drive than it is to the computer, correct? (If not please feel free to correct me!) I still love Apple and Macs but I sure wish I had not paid what I paid for it. To make up for it, I still haven’t upgraded from my iPhone 6!
Stacey:
One quick note. If your 2017 MacBook Pro has an SSD for its internal drive, it is really, REALLY fast. If you are working on smaller projects, and you have the room, exports will be faster saving to the internal drive than the external drive. I tend to store media externally, but export the master file to the internal drive. The speed difference is significant. (I’ll then move it off the internal drive for long-term storage.)
Other than that, however, you are correct. The speed of the external storage will determine multicam and export performance. It generally won’t affect normal editing, unless you are connecting it via a slow USB connection, rather than Thunderbolt.
Larry
I’m perfectly happy jumping on eBay and buying the 2014/2015 Macbook Pro’s….the last version with 2 Thunderbolt Ports, 2 HDMI 3 ports, an SDHC/XC port, an audio port and an HDMI port. You can often find these in refurbished or like new condition with an i7 (quad core processor) and both an integrated and discrete graphics card for under $1000. I’ve bought one, used it for a year, sold it for almost the exact same amount as I bought it, and then ‘upgraded’ to a model (which was a year newer) for the slightly better graphics card. I bought the first one for $800, sold it for $750 and bought the slightly better model for $875.
Hi Larry and fellow punch and crunchers. Great info. I just happen to be in the market for a laptop! Typical of pro equipment mfgs. Nobody listens to the users. Keep pounding them!! Thanks Larry Glad i met you years ago at LA FCP meetings. Frank B
Not disagreeing with the “thin” thing here, but one thing I have noticed is that one decent dongle is the only thing you need, not ’20lb of stuff’. That’s it. And as a side benefit, a decent dongle can download files from good SD card way faster than the internal SD slot in my 2015 MBP. Like 120-150MB/s. Yes I need a dongle, but only the one and it performs better than the ports in the older models.
Nick:
A good comment. Personally, I need dongles for Ethernet (2 discrete networks), HDMI, audio out, an SD reader, and multiple USB-A ports for most of my gigs. Plus, I carry external storage, audio speakers and Ethernet cabling. Hence the “20 pounds.”
Agreed, a dock in an alternative. But, some of these ports, I submit, should be standard without requiring dongles.
Larry
The cabling and external storage etc you’d have to carry anyway I suspect. I have a single Sinstar dongle with 3x USB, 1x HDMI, 1x SD, 1x 1GbE and a pass through USB-C power port. Works a treat but God help me if I lose it! Probably should buy a spare. At least with internals you can’t lose them.
While I have not much issues with the ports, I would say they should make it thicker to allow more design and heat leeway. I would prefer if Apple focus on the machine performance then thinness. There’s the Air if people want thin.
Dear Larry,
thank you for another great article.
The headline already says it all and you´re right.
Nevertheless should we still be able to acknowledge the incredible advancements that Apple initiated. Who knows how laptops would look like today if Apple hadn’t pushed the limits of thinner and lighter way back in 2008 with the first MacBook air?
And that seems for me the distinction. Yes, there are people for whom thinner and lighter is very important because they need to carry the laptop around and maybe together with other stuff limiting their capacity.
And on the other hand there are the pro users for whom this use case seems to be less relevant because battery and CPU and connectivity is paramount (also screen size like with the 17″ that many pros loved). Yes, their number might be smaller but they are important and produce what other people watch and consume.
Maybe Apple is tempted to soften the focus to include “prosumers” that are numerous and spend much money for their “hobby” and like to have a “sexy” device. This would explain at least part of the obsession with “thinner”.
Marc:
I agree with you. There is a need and purpose for thin. I think the MacBook Air is a lovely system: thin, light and powerful.
But even Apple does not label that “Pro.” A Pro system needs more than thin, as I think the comments to this article attest.
Larry
Larry, I agree wholeheartedly. I’m a heavy user of a mid-2015, 15″ MBP. Use it all day at the studio, then take it home and edit/render some more. It gets hot! And I know its days are numbered; so will need new one pretty soon. Don’t care about thin. Need that “heat sink big enough to cool Cleveland”! And as much GPU as it will hold. I mostly use mine w/external monitor and kbd, so the butterfly kbd is not critical for me. But I’ve heard horror stories about keys that don’t work. Please, Apple, more ports of different kinds, more GPU, better heat sinks. Don’t care about thin. I just want to get the work done on a cool, dependable machine that renders fast.