Reinaldokool Loc: San Rafael, CA

No dongles needed on a Windows PC. My cheap HP ($499 last year) has three USB ports and SDcard slot, audio in and out, DVD burner, 1 TB, 12GB ram, bluetooth, a mid-range I7 cpu, B&O audio, etc.

I forgot about the HDMI port, the RJ45 ethernet port.

nytexano

Apple seems to have fallen into a 'Function follows Fashion' mindset' dominated by their chief designer Johnny Ives. I suspected as much when Apple released the thinner iMacs which, to accommodate their ultra-slim profile, dispensed with the optical drive and placed the SD Card slot behind–where's it's least convenient. Then there were changes to the OS which transformed some simple tasks into more complicated or confusing tasks, then the redesign of iTunes…

Now, discarding essentials used by their professional base, Ives once again is pissing on us so that he can 'express himself' by dictating what HE decides we need. Microsoft hardware in it's latest iteration is beginning to look a LOT more attractive than it ever has. If Tim Cook persists down this road, he may turn into the new John Scully that nearly bankrupted the company by deciding what he would give users rather than paying attention to what they needed.

whitewolfowner

Sounds like you are just the customer Apple is targeting; one who just cannot wait to keep spending money with them. Enjoy it.

whitewolfowner

Couldn't have said it better myself. Amazing how history repeats itself. As soon as Jobs is out of the picture, Apple can't see past their greedy little eye balls.

tomcat

I certainly hope that doesn't happen because I'm 100% dependent upon Apple. I did the MS thing for many years and could not take anymore. I started with Apple in 1984, the Lisa machine, and then our company switched to IBMs. So I had to learn to use MS-DOS and then Windows. I hated every minute and was overjoyed when I returned to Apple OS in 2002. I don't want to use the MS crap again and pray that I don't have to.

As far as the optical drive goes, I can't recall the last time that I burned a DVD/CD. I know it's been over a year because my customers now get their files via Dropbox, The Cloud, or Hightail. Discs just seem to be so 19th century now. So I would rather have the space that the drive took up to be used by a battery.

tomcat

It's not just the Apple machines that I crave-it's the software. The Apple macOS Sierra and the iOS software interplay that makes each iPad and iPhone a virtual iMac desktop. My iPhone is now an extension of my iMac when I'm getting my oil changed or waiting at the dentist office or the barber shop.

Martino Loc: Northwest Florida

I have no opinion on the new MacBook Pros as I'm not in the market for a laptop, although I used to use them and found them much more reliable and longer lived than my colleague's PCs.

However as regards Apple moving away from various items of technology.....

I have an iMac that has both a optical drive and an SD slot. I can't honestly remember when I last used the optical drive, and struggle to think of a reason why I'd need to. I do use the SD slot to upload photos, but probably use a card reader dongle to upload to my iPad (RAW images) just as much. If I don't have the dongle I can upload wirelessly from my Canon to my iPhone. The latter process seems to get faster as technology progresses. Lightroom mobile uploads to the cloud almost immediate and then the images are on all my devices.

There's been much talk about the absence of a headphone jack on the latest iPhone. Personally I haven't missed it. I can use the new headphones with no problem. I have an old set of Bose QC2 phones I use when flying, but they can attach using the converter, or I can get a small Bluetooth converter cheaply. ...or if I were still flying as much as I used to, get some new wireless cans.

Technology evolves and moves on. If it didn't we'd still be using floppy discs!

tomcat

Mary Kate Loc: NYC

Doesn't that description fit you and the product you enjoy??????

whitewolfowner

I am an Apple fan myself but have been disappointed in the direction the company is going. I made the mistake of going Android with my smart phone and can't wait until I can afford t switch to an iphone. My son made the move about a year ago and all his problems disappeared when he got the ipone 5s and loves the compatibility with his mac book pro. I have had enough bad experiences with microsoft trying to help others with their computers that I wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole. I'm not endorsing Apple either; I hate their business model and how they treat their customers but they can get away with it as long as they stay ahead of microsoft, which is not at all hard to do.

forjava Loc: Half Moon Bay, CA

Yeah. I've got 16 GB on one of those 2011 babies now. Just added a dock to get 3.0 USB to match my 33MB camera.
I think a search on my name at UHH would bring up more content on this topic, two posts.

whitewolfowner

I just had a conversation with a tech at OWC and he said they are flooded with complaints with the new mac book pro. He also commented how film studios are still trying to hoard 2010 and 2012, 12 core mac pros with the faster processors. Apple just doesn't get it!

tomcat

I don't get it either!! The complaints, I'm talking about..... I really want one of these machines because of that new Touch Bar invention. It's going to make my sessions a lot more fun and more efficient with the touch functions it offers.

I just don't understand why folks would complain about the fact that Apple has invented a more efficient computer with a long battery life??? Are these the same folks that complained when the auto industry took ash trays out of cars?

nytexano

Longer battery life? Says who? From the reports I've read the battery is as lame as ever ESPECIALLY with the extra power burden of that golly-gee Touch Bar. Apple already claimed 10 hours of life for the previous model and it WILL last 10 hours–as long as you just leave it on and don't use it.

For working professionals with considerable investment in peripherals, the idea of having to carry around a mass of dongles is very unappealing not to mention the extra time and annoyance of matching which drive or peripheral to which dongle. F•ck that.

Thin for thins sake is form over function. Omitting the ports professionals use on a daily basis for the sake of streamlining is especially dim-witted.

The 15" is about 4oz lighter than the previous MBP 15". Wow, what a difference THAT will make carrying it around all day!

tomcat

I didn't say "longer" battery life--- I just said "long" life. And I haven't burned a DVD/CD in 2 years---they are so 19th century---so I won't be carrying a dongle for that. For my Air Mac, I have a dongle that has FW800, USB, and HDMI all in one small $30 Thunderbolt attachment, which will be all I'll need.