Apple’s MacBook Pro redesign this fall will bring big changes to one of its most beloved notebooks. According to recent leaks, the machine will pack an OLED touchpad above its keyboard, and only USB-C connectivity.
Some fans aren’t happy about that. Many love the physical function keys already found on the MacBook Pro, while others don’t believe it will be a suitable “pro” machine without standard USB ports. But isn’t it time they moved on?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight as we battle it out over the rumored changes to the MacBook Pro.
Killian Bell: We know Apple can’t please all of its fans all of the time, so criticism of its rumored plans for the MacBook Pro is no surprise. It seems most are particularly upset about its apparent decision to scrap the existing USB port and go all-in on USB-C (again), which means users will have to purchase adapters to make their new notebook compatible with existing peripherals.
Personally, I think this is a good move. In a short space of time, USB-C will become ubiquitous, and it’ll be the only port we need on a laptop — possibly with the exception of the headphone jack (which the new MacBook Pro should maintain). When this time comes, life’s going to be a lot easier; you won’t need to worry about carrying different cables for different devices.
The quicker Apple goes all-in on USB-C, the quicker others will follow suit. Apple can inspire change like no other company — as it has already demonstrated when it kicked things like the floppy disc and FireWire. All those changes were painful at first, but we quickly adapted, and we were better off for it.
Can you understand the disappointment from fans? Do you think it’s still too soon to kill the standard USB port?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Luke Dormehl: The first thing to say — and I know you’ve acknowledge it in your opening gambit — is that Apple hasn’t announced anything yet, so it’s too early to be getting upset. In terms of where I sit should this be correct, well, yes, I can see why fans could be annoyed by it.
There are plenty of peripherals which don’t work perfectly with USB-C, and it’s a rare computer user who doesn’t rely on traditional USB at all. Yes, cloud-based storage solves a lot of problems, but not everyone has constant internet access, while others have to make do with wired (rather than wireless) peripherals, for security reasons among others.
In some ways it feels like Apple is moving further away from computers aimed at pros, who will have to shell out for all the necessary adapters, or avoid upgrading, if they want to continue using their existing equipment.
With that said, I fear that those who refuse to accept it are going to be on the “wrong side of history” in some ways. Apple has always done things like this, and it has usually wound up being for the better, as is the case with some of the peripherals you mentioned like floppy drives. (When’s the last time you worried about losing one of those?)
Considering that a lot of us bemoan Apple at times for not innovating fast enough, it’s tough to look at its plans now and say it shouldn’t make these moves. It’ll be annoying for me in the short term, and you can argue it would be nice to keep the standard USB around for a bit longer, but it’s kind of like a band-aid: it has to come off some time.
I think that’s the most balanced view, isn’t it?
Killian: I don’t think Apple is turning its back on pro users at all. If anything, it is making the future easier for them — as I mentioned before — by pushing one standard that does everything. When all your devices use USB-C, and they will before too long, you won’t need anything else.
Unlike previous USB standards, USB-C can do it all. It transfers data at a whopping 10Gbps — three times faster than USB 3.1. It can transfer power not onto into your MacBook but also out of it at up to 10 watts. It can drive an external display. And unlike some of the other technologies Apple has killed over the years, USB-C is backwards compatible.
That means you can get a USB-C adapter for almost anything — including devices that use traditional USB, micro-USB, Thunderbolt, HDMI, VGA, and more. Ports don’t get more “pro” than that.
Mac sales wouldn’t continue to grow without professional consumers. The rest of us are finding ways to replace our computers — that’s why PC sales keep falling — but pros will always need their workstations, and for many, Apple provides the best. I don’t think the company has any intention of changing that.
Luke: Much as I feel it’s the remit of Friday Night Fights to battle you, Killian, you make a good point. Ultimately the question comes down to whether users are going to mind getting a kick in the teeth in the interests of driving technology forward? USB-C coverage is still spotty, and there are bound to be inconveniences in the short term. You mentioned FireWire, for example, which doesn’t affect a lot of people, but is still used by many users who use it for video editing. To use FireWire, a MacBook is going to have to dongle from USB-C to Thunderbolt, then to FireWire. Will this drive manufacturers to improve their support in this area? Undoubtedly. Is it going to annoy a shedload of users in the short term, which is arguably something Apple should worry about at a time when sales of the iPhone, iPad and Mac are all declining? Quite possibly.
I think you’d struggle to sustain an argument that Apple has focused on “pro” level consumers in the way that it did in the 1990s or even one decade ago. It’s focused on getting MacBooks into the hands of regular folk, but with the iPad fulfilling most casual users’ requirements for a computer, should it have a bit more concern for its higher-end consumers? I’m legitimately torn on this debate. My head agrees with you completely, and I think in five years, we’ll be pleased about the move to USB-C. In the meantime, I can totally understand how some users may be put off upgrading because of this.
Hell, as excited as I am about Apple’s new notebook, I may be one of them.
But maybe we should turn it over to the readers who, ultimately, are going to be the customers for Apple’s new Mac? Do you think Apple’s in the right to go with all USB-C ports for the new MacBook, provided this week’s report is true? Is complaining about it the equivalent of insisting that Apple should keep the 3.5-inch floppy drive? And how unsettling is it for Killian and I not to disagree too much when it comes to our usual Friday Night Fights? (On the plus side, it means he doesn’t have to explain the usual end-of-week bruises to his friends and family.)
Whatever your thoughts, leave them in the comments below.
Friday Night Fights is a series of weekly death matches between two no-mercy brawlers who will fight to the death — or at least agree to disagree — about which is better: Apple or Google, iOS or Android?
