Category: Apple

The review embargo for the new MacBook Pros just dropped. Let’s see what people have to say.

Jason Snell at Six Colors was impressed with the personality present in Apple’s design:

But what really surprised me were the animations. The Touch Bar is an animated interface through and through. Items don’t just fade in and out, but also slide smoothly back and forth. The arrow pointing from the Touch Bar to the Touch ID sensor during a request for an unlock grows and shrinks, practically begging you to put your finger down. There’s a lot more personality here than I expected.

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Today Apple launched a new Apple TV app named iBooks StoryTime:

iBooks StoryTime gives your family a different way to experience classic kids’ books and discover new favorites. With Read-Aloud narration and beautiful illustrations, every handpicked title in the app transforms Apple TV into an engaging place for young readers to enjoy the stories they love.

As the Read-Aloud narration completes a page, it automatically turns to the next one. The narration comes complete with different character voices, sound effects, and is made word-for-word so kids can follow along.

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Jason Snell on the dividing line between Retina and non-Retina Macs:

Will Apple ever sell a Retina Mac for less than $1299? It seems inevitable, but for now the company seems content to follow a similar approach to the Mac as it does with its iOS devices: Offer the latest and greatest hardware at premium prices, and offer older models at the low end in order to create a range of prices.

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There’s been a lot of handwringing and worry over the state of a single computer in Apple’s lineup:

Children, if you aren’t sure what a Mac Pro is, go ask your parents. Maybe they have some old pictures somewhere.

No doubt the Mac Pro is in a bad spot. Apple skipped a generation of Xeons and is now waiting of Intel to get Skylake-E ready. As Apple is stuck waiting on Intel, the Mac Pro grows older by the day.

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Well, this isn’t confusing at all.

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Joanna Stern at The WSJ:

Apple announced Friday that it will significantly cut the prices of the USB-C adapters it sells in its stores, following backlash to the lack of full-size USB, SD card or HDMI ports in the new line of MacBook Pro laptops.

The price cuts include these items:

• Apple USB-C to USB adapter: from $19 to $9
• Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter: from $49 to $29
• Apple USB-C to Lightning cable, 1 meter: from $25 to $19
• Apple USB-C to Lightning cable, 2 meters: from $35 to $29
• Apple USB-C digital AV multiport adapter: from $69 to $49
• Apple USB-C VGA multiport adapter: from $69 to $49
• SanDisk Extreme Pro SD UHS-II Card USB-C reader: from $49 to $29

According to Jim Dalrymple, Apple’s statement included this:

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In an Interview with The Independent, in response to a question about leaving the headphone port in the new notebook:

If it was just about headphones then it doesn’t need to be there, we believe that wireless is a great solution for headphones. But many users have setups with studio monitors, amps, and other pro audio gear that do not have wireless solutions and need the 3.5mm jack.

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I’m not sure I’m willing to try this on my new MacBook Pro, but it seems like the startup chime isn’t as dead and gone as it seemed over the weekend.

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As noted by Dan at Pingie, the new MacBook Pros do not chime after having their NVRAM reset.

Apple outlines this in a new kbase article. This has been in the directions forever:

Hold these keys until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for a second time.

There’s now a new section just for Late-2016 MacBook Pros with this subtle change:

Hold these keys down for at least 20 seconds to ensure that your Mac completes the process correctly.

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Alrighty then.

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Federico Vitcci has rounded up a lot of information about the T1 chip that drives the Touch Bar in the new MacBook Pro. Ars Technica’s Andrew Cunningham has more.

Wild stuff.

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Today’s Apple event focused on the MacBook Pro. The company shipped three new models: a 13-inch with standard Function keys, a 13-inch with the new-fangled Touch Bar, and a 15-inch with the Touch Bar:

They are faster, thinner and lighter than before. The only I/O beyond a headphone jack is a set of Thunderbolt 3 ports. These ports also carry USB-C, USB 3, Thunderbolt 2, Ethernet, HDMI, DisplayPort and more. MagSafe, SD card slots, USB ports, HDMI and Thunderbolt 2 are gone.

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