a real pro-level device, with some flaws

The keyboard feels good and sounds good

The first Mac to receive the Butterfly Keyboard was the 2015 MacBook. It was too hard to use, but the design revisions made that the next Generation of butterfly keyboards would feel a bit better, if it was still a bit stiff, but still too noisy (ask the wife of someone who works on a MacBook Pro).

The 2018 Pro MacBook have the third generation of this keyboard, which adds a tiny silicone membrane around the butterfly switch; to keep the debris off the keys while stifling the sound and giving the keys a rebound that compensates for the lack of travel. The result is a keyboard that feels as good as a keyboard in a high-end notebook should; something that is comfortable to use, while feeling precisely designed.

If this solves the reliability issues of previous generations of butterfly keyboards is still too early to say. For what it's worth, I think the controversy is both justified and completely exaggerated.

It seems ridiculous that a faulty key requires the complete replacement of the entire laptop, as was the case on previous versions of this keyboard, so I am glad that Apple has an extensive warranty program on all previous butterfly keyboards

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But I take Apple to its word when it says that this issue has affected a small number d & # 39; users. In my day job, I am a Mac administrator, and in recent years I have worked in two universities with about 1400 MacBook Pros in both fleets. I knew only two MacBook Pros that were replaced, and both had unfortunate encounters with a glass of spilled wine. If the butterfly keys failed as often as the Mac bloggers suggest, I would have treated a lot more.

It's a Mac Pro

It seems that every Apple product must be launched with some kind of controversy, real or imaginary. Last year, the complaint was that there was no option 32GB RAM (despite this being a limitation of Intel chips and therefore a limitation for the rest from the industry, too). With the new Intel chips inside, the 15-inch MacBook can now support 32GB of DDR4 RAM, making the MacBook a true desktop replacement.

The controversial MacBook Pro 2018 was a throttle-gate that lasted a few days before an updated software fixed a problem that few would encounter. Ignore panic, this laptop is crazy powerful. I've tested the 4K video editing laptop in Davinci Resolve and I've been able to make real-time changes on multiple 4K tracks, then run some virtual test machines and have them all perform their own intensive tasks. The Macbook did not transpire.

Yes, Apple could make the MacBook Pro fatter, with giant fans and ugly grills to allow more cooling and therefore just a little more power, but that's the kind of laptop very few people want. Design is a matter of compromise, and even the most dedicated software developer or video publisher probably spends more time on less powerful tasks like email or web browsing. I am satisfied with the balance of portability on the power that the MacBook Pro has chosen.

For those looking to add a professional GPU to their workflow, Apple has partnered with Melbourne-based Blackmagic Design on an external GPU package. By plugging into one of the Thunderbolt 3 ports, you'll be able to take advantage of the GPU for developing graphics, games and virtual reality.

Making the Touch Bar an Extra Option

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In 2016, I bought a MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, meanwhile that the OLED band at the top of the keyboard is part of my day-to-day use. I immediately saw the value of connecting to a computer with Touch ID, and from time to time the Touch Bar would pleasantly surprise me – I especially liked the way the Calendar application of Mac used the tape – but more often than not I missed the more function keys than I enjoyed the Touch Bar.

Last year, while changing jobs, my new employer offered me to buy any laptop that I wanted. I asked for the MacBook Pro without Touch Bar.

The problem, especially for long-time Mac users, is that the Touch Bar takes longer to use than the keys it replaces. Having used an Apple notebook everyday since the 2001 G3 iBook, I could lower the brightness of my screen or increase the volume with muscle memory, I knew exactly which function keys to hit. With the touch bar, I had to look away from the screen, press the band to enlarge, then hit the flat and non-haptic controls.

I've heard similar complaints from Photoshop or Final Cut Pro specialists; Of course, the touch bar gives quick access to some functions that can be buried in seven sub-menus, but people who have used these applications for years know the keyboard shortcuts. The Touch Bar seems more suited to a low-end beginner notebook than a Pro computer.

But the big complaint is that the Touch Bar is not an optional accessory. If you want to buy the high-end 13-inch or one of the 15-inch devices, you will have the Touch Bar whether you like it or not, adding to the price of the laptop.

The USB-C own purpose

Another complaint is the lack of ports beyond the USB-C. I wrote in 2015 that I hailed the move to the USB-C, which can also be Thunderbolt 3, and is on the MacBook Pros (but it's too confusing to explain right here).

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I am pleased to see that more laptops are accepting USB-C, but most are adopting a more conservative approach; adding USB-C while retaining the old USB version. This could be blamed for slow adoption overall USB-C, but I think in fact that it is a much more popular Apple device – the iPhone – that is to blame for slower adoption.

For me, the advantage of USB-C is more obvious when you have USB C on both ends of the cable. When you can use the single cable to charge or transfer between your laptop, phone, camera or headset, it makes sense to do so. When you do not need to check which end of the cable you have, because the two ends are identical, this makes even more sense.

Instead, the iPhone and the iPad have stood on Lightning at one end and USB-A at the other, I can not charge my iPhone or my iPad with my MacBook Pro charger without buying a separate cable, but I can charge my Samsung Galaxy S9. Even if I had bought the USB-C-to-lightning cable, I should check which end was in my hand. If the iPhone cable was USB-C at both ends, then I'm sure hotels, airlines and docks would have quickly replaced the USB-A by C, and the rest of the market would have followed.

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These complaints around the era of the MacBook Pro Touch Bar coincided with increased competition in the notebook market. When I bought this iBook in 2001, it was so far ahead of comparable laptops in build quality and included software, it was an easy choice to make. Today, PC makers have realized that they need to compete on hardware, with the Dell XPS line, HP Specter, and the various Microsoft Surfaces all beautifully designed devices. If Apple had not improved the keyboard, I would be very tempted by the XPS in particular.

It is interesting to note that the most popular Windows laptops seem to borrow more heavily on MacBook Air than on MacBooks. Pro design.

Obviously, none of these new laptops are running under MacOS; that I prefer on Windows 10 at a time from a personal point of view and from a support point of view. The simplicity of managing a Mac fleet can not be underestimated in the continued success of the MacBook; if i can do it, no matter who can.

With this latest update, Apple has made a high-end MacBook Pro that should silence some critics. If you want to buy the most powerful MacBook Pro that you can buy, and you are ready to pay the Touch Bar Tax, then these are excellent laptops.

But there is still room for improvement in the low end. Apple desperately needs a MacBook Air replacement; the 13-inch non-touch bar and the regular MacBook are both too expensive to fulfill, while the MacBook Air has internal users too old to recommend. All this adds to a confused product line.

The question "which Mac laptop should I buy?" Was once easily answered with "if you need power, get the Pro, if you do not have, look". Today, it is easy to recommend the latest MacBook Pro if you need the most powerful and portable Apple laptop you have and you have a lot of money to spend, but I have to bad to recommend an entry-level Mac notebook [ad_2]
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