MacBook Pro - page 20

Some computer setups will make you green with envy, considering their gear’s quantity as well as quality. Take today’s featured setup, a delight for both gamers and podcasters.

It sports not just a new M1 MacBook, but also a powerful custom gaming PC. It boasts not just a solid 27-inch full HD display, but a monster 49-inch super-ultra-wide screen. And it relies on not just a good webcam, but a premium mirrorless digital camera.

And the list goes on, extending to audio and even a new mechanical keyboard. Read on.

Not everyone has a huge desk with ample room for their computer setup and loads of associated gear. But with a few smart moves, anyone can make the most of a small desk in a cramped space.

Today’s featured setup is a good example. It takes advantage of a standing desk, displays mounted on arms and ample wall-mounted storage to maximize limited space.

And the audio gear and lighting don’t disappoint, either.

Today’s featured setup looks, at a glance, like it sports dual mounted laptops. But one’s an iPad Pro with a Magic Keyboard and one’s a MacBook Pro, floating on either side of a 32-inch external Samsung display. Universal Control lets the user work across the screens.

His only problem seems to be that silver Magic Trackpad sticking out like a sore thumb in darker surroundings. Naturally, social media came to the rescue with possible fixes.

People love posting impressive photographs and descriptions of their computer setups online. And other people love either drooling over them or mercilessly criticizing them.

But no matter what technology appears — lets say a new-ish M1 MacBook Pro, a 4K wide-screen display, an excellent 4K webcam, rock-solid input devices and a reliable standing desk, as in today’s featured setup — it’s all forgotten if there’s a pet in the picture.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: It looks like MacBook Pros with more-powerful M2 series chips will come sooner rather than later. Is Apple going to make this an annual thing? And if so, how will Erfon (and other Mac fans) cope? So many decisions …

Also on The CultCast:

• What exactly is Apple up to with its U1 chips and iOS 16? Sounds intriguing.
• Amazon Prime Air delivers with drones, and a robotaxi might not be far behind.
• The DeLorean might make an 88-mph comeback.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video livestream, embedded below.

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Apple’s 2021 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro are down to their lowest prices on Amazon. You can get the models with a whopping $300 discount.

The entry-level 16-inch MacBook Pro is available for just $2,199, down 12% from its retail price of $2,499.

Apple agreed to a preliminary settlement Monday for a class-action lawsuit that claimed the company knew the MacBook’s “butterfly” keyboard was defective but kept selling it. Apple admits no wrongdoing but agreed to pay up to $50 million, most of which will go to customers who had to replace the faulty keyboards.

This is good news for people in seven U.S. states who experienced problems with their MacBook butterfly keyboard.

You might think you’d give your right arm for one of those stunning, 49-inch curved ultra-wide monitors to use with your Mac. But then again, you might end up begging for your appendage back, as well as your old display. Or at least something a little less colossal.

Minus the stray arm — as far as we know — that’s more-or-less what happened with today’s featured MacBook Pro-based setup.

MacBook Pros powered by upgraded Apple M2 Pro and M2 Max chips could debut as early as this fall. The new chips would focus on delivering improved GPU performance.

The upcoming 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro refresh is not expected to pack any other significant changes.

Missed out on buying the 16-inch MacBook Pro for Prime Day? Worry not, as Amazon is still offering a whopping $250 off on the lineup.

The deal drops the price of the entry-level 16-inch MacBook Pro to just $2,249 — down from $2,499. A similar discount is also available on the more powerful M1 Max model, dropping its price to a new low.

Some people dislike using a mouse. Others can’t fathom a trackpad. And believe it or not, some folks hate both. So what do they do to get their brilliant thoughts onto the computer screen?

Knowing it’s hard to get by in life on just a keyboard, what input device can they use in addition to it? As today’s featured computer setup illustrates, they might try using a certain tablet like it’s a cross between a trackpad and a mouse.

Apple’s struggle to get computers assembled in China during COVID lockdowns this spring had the expected result: Mac shipments dropped 22.5% in the spring quarter of 2022, according to a market-research firm.

At least company execs can take solace from the fact that this is not a demand problem. Consumers want to buy Macs but Apple can’t supply them.

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Today’s featured M1 Pro MacBook workstation has a new Studio Display with bias lighting, illuminating the wall behind the display. It comes from three strategically placed Philips Hue Play bars that really make that corner of the small apartment “pop.”

You can grab Apple’s 2021 MacBook Pro lineup from Amazon with discounts of up to $250. The deal drops the price of the 16-inch MacBook Pro to just $2,449 — down from $2,699.

All configurations of the machines are in stock, and you can get them as early as next week.

Most of the time, when we talk about home automation, we’re talking about Apple’s HomeKit system. But today’s featured computer setup, which relies on a formidable M1 Max MacBook Pro and dual displays, goes another route.

The homeowner runs a Raspberry Pi with open-source software to achieve about 50 automations, including Siri integration.

Curved ultra-wide displays are all the rage lately, and it’s no wonder why. What a fantastic amount of real estate. But it can be worrisome buying one if you’re not sure how it will look with your Mac’s resolution and scaling options.

Today’s featured computer setup pairs a beast of a 16-inch M1 Max MacBook with a brilliant 40-inch LG 5K UltraWide curved display. Let’s look at how well it’s working and what some of the issues can be.

The just-released MacBook Pro running Apple’s new M2 processor offers generally good performance, but its single fan can’t stop it from experiencing ‘severe’ thermal throttling under certain conditions, according to tests done on the device.

The upcoming MacBook Air also uses an M2 chip and doesn’t have a fan at all. How much thermal throttling it will experience is not yet knownn, but it could be signficant.

Wait times for Apple’s hottest MacBooks are shorter than they were this spring. It’s now possible to get some versions of the 2021 MacBook Pro delivered in less than a month.

And the COVID outbreak in China that caused the delays is apparently over.

The slower SSD on the entry-level M2 MacBook Pro has a noticeable impact on its performance in daily use. Tests show the M1 MacBook Pro beating its successor in stress tests that rely heavily on swap memory usage.

Benchmarks first revealed that the base M2 MacBook Pro SSD is about 50% slower than the M1 model.

Graphic designer and illustrator Terry Smelker’s workstation includes many interesting elements, like a specialized drawing tablet and a multimedia controller he uses along with his tricked-out MacBook Pro. But even if you’re not curious about his setup proper, get a load of that Apple gear collection! Fortunately, he provided plenty of photographs.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of Apple’s design aesthetic,” he told Cult of Mac. And that started him on his collection of vintage Apple products, which complements the rest of his gear.

Apple’s new M2 MacBook Pro ships with a notably slower SSD than its predecessor. Tests show the speed difference is as big as 50% in some scenarios.

Announced at WWDC22, the M2 MacBook Pro went on sale June 24.

Apple could launch a new MacBook Air powered by a faster M3 processor as soon as next year.

The company also has a bunch of other Macs due for launch later in 2022 or early 2023. They will run on Apple’s new M2 chip, which powers the new 13-inch MacBook Pro as well as the upcoming M2 MacBook Air set for July launch, or the M2’s more powerful Pro/Ultra/Extreme variations.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The first reviews for the new M2 MacBook Pro are … not good.

Also on The CultCast:

• Benchmarks for Apple’s new M2 chip continue to impress, but you can expect even more amazing performance boosts later this year.
• What the upcoming CarPlay update is really about.
• Apple TV+ has another hit on its hands with For All Mankind.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video livestream, embedded below.

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An updated MacBook Pro – the first laptop to run on the powerful new Apple M2 processor – hit store shelves Friday morning. The chip makes it the fastest 13-inch notebook in Apple’s lineup.

The company unveiled the M2 chip  three weeks ago at its Worldwide Developers Conference. It also took the wraps off the first two laptops to run on it: the just-launched MacBook Pro and a redesigned MacBook Air that is coming in July.

Mounts can make the most of a computer setup. They can mobilize so much of your gear — computers, displays, microphones — so you can use them when you need them and push them out of the way when you don’t, opening up desk space. And you can minutely adjust their positioning, too.

Today’s featured MacBook Pro and Mac Studio computer setup takes advantage of mounts for the computers, display, video camera and microphone.