7 ms·

I did take a close look at the Surface Pro. Sorry, the build quality is nowhere near a MacBook Pro. Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried us

by electic 10y ago

I did take a close look at the Surface Pro. Sorry, the build quality is nowhere near a MacBook Pro. Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried using it for a week and found that my hand just hurt lifting it up repeatedly and also hated switching context from the keyboard to the screen. Not to mention, the screen was full of smudge marks after awhile. To be honest, I really found myself using the keyboard and touchpad the most on the Surface and when you think about it, the MacBook Pro has the best touch pad. I think Apple needs to do some minor things to get the MacBook Pro back on track: - Fix the battery issue. They really need to fix that from a hardware perspective. Also, the OS needs to be optimized to preserve battery. The burden can't be fully on hardware. - Put magsafe back or some sort of USB-C magsafe solution. - Bump the specs. The whole point of the Pro is it is leap years ahead of everyone on processor, HD, and RAM. - The keyboard is getting better, but I still think it needs more travel time. - The screen could be further to the edges a bit for a more modern look. - The ports. Look, I get it, you want to embrace the future but then please include free cables to help in the transition. A power extension cable was not even included in this MacBook pro release, that is just sad.

untog 10y ago
> Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried using it for a week and found that my hand just hurt lifting it up repeatedly and also hated switching context from the keyboard to the screen. I agree, but on the other hand, I'm yet to find something that requires the use of the touchscreen. So I don't use it. Unless I'm carrying it around like a tablet, in which case it's a great feature to have.
- avn2109 10y ago
  Yeah but you paid the money, reliability, and weight penalties for a touchscreen for no reason.
  - untog 10y ago
    Not no reason - as I said, the tablet mode is useful. Just not in the scenario when you're normally be using a keyboard and trackpad.
  - tech2 10y ago
    I bought the Dell XPS 13 with the hidpi display. I didn't buy it for the touchscreen and I couldn't buy it without if I wanted the resolution. I'd have happily paid less for the same resolution but longer battery life (low power for driving the touch sensor and more for driving the display to a greater brightness to support the same display brightness). I figure I should have put up with a lower resolution display tbh, which is sad.
    - kupiakos 10y ago
      Personally, I find FHD on a 13-inch screen perfectly fine. One might be able to distinguish between FHD and QHD on the screen, but definitely not at a regular viewing distance. This way, I don't have to deal with any of the issues that HiDPI typically brings as well. What I really wanted was a non-touch FHD Developer Edition with Rose Gold, but c'est la vie. It's been one of my favorite laptops.
      - tech2 10y ago
        Yeah, like I said, I should have just stuck with the FHD display :( Tradeoffs...
kruipen 10y ago
The touch screen on the Surface has one killer application: scrolling while reading. It's very natural to scroll content with a thumb on the edge of the screen.
- electic 10y ago
  Yes, but you have to lift your arm up. It is far far faster to scroll through a web page with the touchpad.
  - lhopki01 10y ago
    Lift your arm up? I can rest my arm on the desk and have my thumb in the lower right corner of the screen. It's actually much nicer than having my hand in front of me slightly raised to have two fingers to scroll with. Try it now.
    - electic 10y ago
      Yes, but then you just have one hand on the keyboard. So now to type, you have to bring your right hand down, and resume typing. The distance there is greater vs. using the touchpad. I just have to flick my wrist and boom, I am on the touch pad scrolling. On Surface, assuming I hate the touchpad and want to use the screen, I have to take my hand off the keyboard, put it on the screen and start scrolling.
      - douche 10y ago
        If having your hands on the keyboard is so important, on a Surface you can just scroll with the arrow keys, the way Flying Spaghetti Monster intended.
      - lhopki01 10y ago
        Why do you assume that you have to use the screen or the touchpad exclusively? Surely if you're going to be fliting back and froth between keyboard and scrolling you'll use the touchpad but if you're reading a longer form article you rest your hand on the desk with your thumb on the screen and scroll comfortably. Both can work.
cookiecaper 10y ago
The Surface's touch screen is not meant for full-time use. It's a hybrid device. If you need a pure tablet, get a pure tablet. I really like my ThinkPad Yoga's hybrid featureset. I hate to say it, but this post definitely has the ring of fanboyism. The build quality of the Surface is "nowhere near a MacBook Pro" ... without specifying anything that's actually worse. The point of the MBP is "always to be leap years ahead" on specs, but in reality, they never really are; they're usually comparable to other high-end laptops, although they are normally the priciest by about $1k and among the least repairable/extensible. Speaking of gimmicks, you've apparently seriously suggested that Apple just need to make even thinner edges. Maybe I'm just a tasteless philistine like all the other non-Mac users, but personally I think you may've had a bit too much kool-aid. I used a 2007 MBP as my main computer for a while (and it was my only laptop for years), and I've also used a work-issued 2013 MBP for extended periods of time. There are certainly nice things about Macs (I ended up loving the Retina display much more than I expected to), but they're not the end-all be-all.
- dkonofalski 10y ago
  While I agree with you on a few points, I think it gets drowned out by the ring of anti-fanboyism too. The build quality on MacBooks is well-known in the industry and, if you go to a Microsoft Store (or own one), it's readily visible that the build quality isn't on par. Don't get me wrong, it's really good, but it's not MacBook good. This isn't the greatest example because I don't own one, but look at this shot (https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-QM003_MSFTst_P_20161026143348.jpg https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-QM003_MSFTst_P...) and compare even the fit and finish of the cutouts. As for the specs, I don't know where you got that the point of the MBP is to be leap years ahead on specs and I'm pretty sure this is a straw man that you set up just to argue against it. Apple has never been about pushing specs but only the overall experience of using their machines. In fact, in a lot of benchmarks, Apple devices outperform similarly (or even better) spec'd PCs simply because of Apple's ecosystem advantage. You're right that they're not the end-all be-all, but you should probably make sure you're being objective yourself before suggesting that someone else has had too much kool-aid.
  - 10y ago
jaxondu 10y ago
> Fix the battery issue. I don't think there is any hardware/software issues for the poor battery performance in latest MacBook Pro. The TouchBar uses AppleWatch CPU under the hood, and anything with a screen will suck up battery rather badly. They might be able to squeeze some more juice by software update. Its likely noticeable improvement will come with the refresh next year. The one thing Apple needs to do is the price. Many are pissed that they pay so much premium but get worst battery performance than last year model.
- bryanlarsen 10y ago
  The parent article has the first good explanation I've seen for the battery issues in the new MacBook Pro. Apparently they wanted to use a fancy non-square battery but it failed some tests so they reverted to a much smaller square battery at the last minute, thus the significant drop in capacity.
ohyoutravel 10y ago
I really like the touchscreen on my Surface Pro and don't find it gimmicky. It's very useful, especially to scroll while reading an article, or to use it in "tablet mode," or just to hit buttons on command prompts. I don't use it for everything, but it is good at making small efficiency improvements in my overall life with my computer. Not accusing you of anything, but I suspect if Apple released a laptop with a touchscreen, people like you would change their tunes on calling it "gimmicky."
- fritzw 10y ago
  You had me at scrolling. Apple is in denial. If nothing else it's the number of times I've witnessed someone try to manipulate the OS on a MacBook only to find themselves dumpfounded, "duh it's not a touchscreen". Well maybe it should be
  - electic 10y ago
    I really think those people would be better off with an iPad. At least that is the skill level you are describing.
    - guitarbill 10y ago
      Bit harsh on the downvotes, I agree somewhat. There's a disconnect here, I guess myself and electic are still under the impression "Pro" stands for professional. I would hate to sacrifice even more battery life for a touch screen. Fact is, if you use external monitors, touch screens are never going to work very well. And seriously, if web browsing is your main use-case, a MBP is overkill.
    - overgryphon 10y ago
      People who use a touchscreen laptop are used to scrolling with a touchscreen. It has nothing to do with skill level of the user.
  - itazula 10y ago
    Keyboard shortcuts help for scrolling and jumping to the beginning and end of a long page. Use the arrow keys in conjunction with the fn key.
72deluxe 10y ago
Oddly I found the kickstand on the Surface Pro irritating to work with because the device becomes impossible to use on your lap, as you need to put the Surface quite far up your leg, and then the kickstand is further along than the length of your leg (hanging over your knees). So it becomes impractical to use. The OS has done quite well to optimise battery I thought - App Nap has been great. If I reboot my MBP into Windows (so same hardware, different OS), I get worse battery life. Agree with the ports - the Surface Pro I use at work has 1 USB port so plug in a wired mouse and you can't plug in your USB key. Despite the love of wifi, ports are a great way to keep your device useful.
- stonith 10y ago
  I agree the kickstand is horrible. I bought an aftermarket case (manvex) which makes it much easier to use on non-flat surfaces. I think there's other brands with similar things.
- c22 10y ago
  I have this problem too. They could've mostly solved it by just making the keyboard work wirelessly while detached. (Surface with kickstand on the coffee table, keyboard in my lap.)
module0000 10y ago
> Not to mention, the screen was full of smudge marks after awhile. This! I can't even get to the other complaints myself because this one triggers my OCD almost immediately into the experience.
lmm 10y ago
> I did take a close look at the Surface Pro. Sorry, the build quality is nowhere near a MacBook Pro. Shrug, not my experience. > Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried using it for a week and found that my hand just hurt lifting it up repeatedly and also hated switching context from the keyboard to the screen. Don't force the touchscreen. Just use it when it makes sense. I've found it's a very natural way to press buttons (because you can just... press the button), particularly when I'm using the keyboard (e.g. filling in a multi-page form, or writing generally) - must nicer than pushing a pointer around to the right place. And it's nice when dragging and dropping, and there are a few games that play nicely that way. And being able to draw/write on it is very nice occasionally. But sure, most of the time I don't use the touchscreen. But even if you ignore the touch aspect, it's a beautiful screen. I've also fallen in love with 3:2 - it seems to strike the right balance between vertical space for development and rectangular enough for watching movies on. At least for me. > Not to mention, the screen was full of smudge marks after awhile. That seems like something that shouldn't be happening, assuming your hands were clean? It doesn't happen on mine.
- cocktailpeanuts 10y ago
  > Don't force the touchscreen. Just use it when it makes sense. This is like saying "Don't force the new touch bar on macbook pro. Just use it when it makes sense.". A lot of people are pissed about how useless the touch bar is. You can make the same argument about this but the thing is, they could have done better. There's nothing wrong with people criticizing something that's bad. Sure you can just "NOT use it". But these are features designed to be used, and when it doesn't make sense in many cases, it probably means it's badly thought out. >That seems like something that shouldn't be happening, assuming your hands were clean? It doesn't happen on mine. Good for you for having the most sanitary hand in the world. For the rest of actual human beings, everyone knows that touching any glass surface leaves smudge, not just computers. I'm fine with logical arguments but please don't deny what everyone knows as fact, because that doesn't fly, and brings credibility of the rest of your arguments down to zero.
  - exergy 10y ago
    The difference being that the touchscreen doesn't take away anything, while the touchbar replaces function keys. You could circumvent this by getting the smaller pro, though. I own an SP3 and the touchscreen is a blessing. Ironically, even more so because the touchpad on the sp3 is crap, but either way, I seem to know my fingers more than mouse pointers on the screen and prefer to touch the screen as often as possible. It's not for everyone, but for me, I can dual boot Linux on it, write code, still keep MagSafe charging, have a USB port, AND disconnect the keyboard at the end of the way to watch a movie on a kickstand tablet, AND throw it in my bag and forget it's there, for much less money than a macbook. I love the thing to death. Also, the screen can be cleaned with a cloth or the bottom of your shirt, like most of us do with our phones. That might be annoying but doesn't sound like a deal breaker.
kenjackson 10y ago
Regarding the touchscreen, I have a Thinkpad with a touchscreen. If you ask me how I used a touchscreen six months ago I'd say probably never. It wasn't until I got a loaner that didn't have a touchscreen that I realized how much I used it. I was constantly trying to use the touchscreen when I was doing things like scroll the webpage when I was immersively reading. I actually didn't realize I was using it until I no longer had it.
nilkn 10y ago
I couldn't agree more. The Surface Pro and Surface Book are in a completely different (lower) category of build quality compared to the new MBP. Also, the touchpads on the Surface products are nowhere near as good as I was led to expect from online comments. The Surface touchpads are passable at best by late 2016 standards and, again, are in a different category than the new MBP trackpads.
- charrondev 10y ago
  I have a retina Macbook Pro (15") that I absolutely love, but I have to say the touchpad on the new MacBook Pros just doesn't feel right to me. I've played with them in the store, and maybe I could get used to it, but its mostly the size. It just seems overly large and my palms end up on it. Although to be honest I use my MacBook with a couple of dell p2715q's hooked to it, and I use a magic trackpad and keyboard separately now.
  - nilkn 10y ago
    I'll admit the touchpad on the new 15" seemed comically large at first. I actually laughed a bit when I first saw it. Now I'm used to it though and really appreciate the extra size. Granted, I use BetterTouchTool a lot with lots of custom gestures.
mcphage 10y ago
> Fix the battery issue. They really need to fix that from a hardware perspective. Also, the OS needs to be optimized to preserve battery. The burden can't be fully on hardware. They actually have been doing this for the past few years—for instance, when you ask the OS for a timer, the timer you get will be ±10% of what you requested so that a bunch of timers can go off all at once. This way the CPU can sleep, wake up, take care of all of them, and then go back to sleep. (You can say 'no really it needs to be exactly this time', but most of the time you don't need that). Other things as well, but that's the one that's stuck in my brain.
- grennis 10y ago
  They only have been doing that for the past few years? Android did that in 2009
mabey 10y ago
>The keyboard is getting better, but I still think it needs more travel time. I wish Apple would use the same keys that they use on the new Magic Keyboard. Definitely less travel than outgoing MacBook Pros but still clicky and usable.
jen729w 10y ago
> The screen could be further to the edges a bit for a more modern look. I have the new MBP 13" (love it), but the one thing that annoys me slightly is the smudges on the edge of the screen from opening it, or adjusting the screen angle. It's impossible not to get marks on the screen. As it is, they're in the thin bezel area and not on the actual screen. I'm not sure I'd want the screen to go all the way to the edge...

by electic 10y ago

untog 10y ago

> Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried using it for a week and found that my hand just hurt lifting it up repeatedly and also hated switching context from the keyboard to the screen. I agree, but on the other hand, I'm yet to find something that requires the use of the touchscreen. So I don't use it. Unless I'm carrying it around like a tablet, in which case it's a great feature to have.

avn2109 10y ago
Yeah but you paid the money, reliability, and weight penalties for a touchscreen for no reason.
- untog 10y ago
  Not no reason - as I said, the tablet mode is useful. Just not in the scenario when you're normally be using a keyboard and trackpad.
- tech2 10y ago
  I bought the Dell XPS 13 with the hidpi display. I didn't buy it for the touchscreen and I couldn't buy it without if I wanted the resolution. I'd have happily paid less for the same resolution but longer battery life (low power for driving the touch sensor and more for driving the display to a greater brightness to support the same display brightness). I figure I should have put up with a lower resolution display tbh, which is sad.
  - kupiakos 10y ago
    Personally, I find FHD on a 13-inch screen perfectly fine. One might be able to distinguish between FHD and QHD on the screen, but definitely not at a regular viewing distance. This way, I don't have to deal with any of the issues that HiDPI typically brings as well. What I really wanted was a non-touch FHD Developer Edition with Rose Gold, but c'est la vie. It's been one of my favorite laptops.
    - tech2 10y ago
      Yeah, like I said, I should have just stuck with the FHD display :( Tradeoffs...

kruipen 10y ago

The touch screen on the Surface has one killer application: scrolling while reading. It's very natural to scroll content with a thumb on the edge of the screen.

electic 10y ago
Yes, but you have to lift your arm up. It is far far faster to scroll through a web page with the touchpad.
- lhopki01 10y ago
  Lift your arm up? I can rest my arm on the desk and have my thumb in the lower right corner of the screen. It's actually much nicer than having my hand in front of me slightly raised to have two fingers to scroll with. Try it now.
  - electic 10y ago
    Yes, but then you just have one hand on the keyboard. So now to type, you have to bring your right hand down, and resume typing. The distance there is greater vs. using the touchpad. I just have to flick my wrist and boom, I am on the touch pad scrolling. On Surface, assuming I hate the touchpad and want to use the screen, I have to take my hand off the keyboard, put it on the screen and start scrolling.
    - douche 10y ago
      If having your hands on the keyboard is so important, on a Surface you can just scroll with the arrow keys, the way Flying Spaghetti Monster intended.
    - lhopki01 10y ago
      Why do you assume that you have to use the screen or the touchpad exclusively? Surely if you're going to be fliting back and froth between keyboard and scrolling you'll use the touchpad but if you're reading a longer form article you rest your hand on the desk with your thumb on the screen and scroll comfortably. Both can work.

cookiecaper 10y ago

The Surface's touch screen is not meant for full-time use. It's a hybrid device. If you need a pure tablet, get a pure tablet. I really like my ThinkPad Yoga's hybrid featureset. I hate to say it, but this post definitely has the ring of fanboyism. The build quality of the Surface is "nowhere near a MacBook Pro" ... without specifying anything that's actually worse. The point of the MBP is "always to be leap years ahead" on specs, but in reality, they never really are; they're usually comparable to other high-end laptops, although they are normally the priciest by about $1k and among the least repairable/extensible. Speaking of gimmicks, you've apparently seriously suggested that Apple just need to make even thinner edges. Maybe I'm just a tasteless philistine like all the other non-Mac users, but personally I think you may've had a bit too much kool-aid. I used a 2007 MBP as my main computer for a while (and it was my only laptop for years), and I've also used a work-issued 2013 MBP for extended periods of time. There are certainly nice things about Macs (I ended up loving the Retina display much more than I expected to), but they're not the end-all be-all.

dkonofalski 10y ago
While I agree with you on a few points, I think it gets drowned out by the ring of anti-fanboyism too. The build quality on MacBooks is well-known in the industry and, if you go to a Microsoft Store (or own one), it's readily visible that the build quality isn't on par. Don't get me wrong, it's really good, but it's not MacBook good. This isn't the greatest example because I don't own one, but look at this shot (https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-QM003_MSFTst_P_20161026143348.jpg https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-QM003_MSFTst_P...) and compare even the fit and finish of the cutouts. As for the specs, I don't know where you got that the point of the MBP is to be leap years ahead on specs and I'm pretty sure this is a straw man that you set up just to argue against it. Apple has never been about pushing specs but only the overall experience of using their machines. In fact, in a lot of benchmarks, Apple devices outperform similarly (or even better) spec'd PCs simply because of Apple's ecosystem advantage. You're right that they're not the end-all be-all, but you should probably make sure you're being objective yourself before suggesting that someone else has had too much kool-aid.
- 10y ago

jaxondu 10y ago

> Fix the battery issue. I don't think there is any hardware/software issues for the poor battery performance in latest MacBook Pro. The TouchBar uses AppleWatch CPU under the hood, and anything with a screen will suck up battery rather badly. They might be able to squeeze some more juice by software update. Its likely noticeable improvement will come with the refresh next year. The one thing Apple needs to do is the price. Many are pissed that they pay so much premium but get worst battery performance than last year model.

bryanlarsen 10y ago
The parent article has the first good explanation I've seen for the battery issues in the new MacBook Pro. Apparently they wanted to use a fancy non-square battery but it failed some tests so they reverted to a much smaller square battery at the last minute, thus the significant drop in capacity.

ohyoutravel 10y ago

I really like the touchscreen on my Surface Pro and don't find it gimmicky. It's very useful, especially to scroll while reading an article, or to use it in "tablet mode," or just to hit buttons on command prompts. I don't use it for everything, but it is good at making small efficiency improvements in my overall life with my computer. Not accusing you of anything, but I suspect if Apple released a laptop with a touchscreen, people like you would change their tunes on calling it "gimmicky."

fritzw 10y ago
You had me at scrolling. Apple is in denial. If nothing else it's the number of times I've witnessed someone try to manipulate the OS on a MacBook only to find themselves dumpfounded, "duh it's not a touchscreen". Well maybe it should be
- electic 10y ago
  I really think those people would be better off with an iPad. At least that is the skill level you are describing.
  - guitarbill 10y ago
    Bit harsh on the downvotes, I agree somewhat. There's a disconnect here, I guess myself and electic are still under the impression "Pro" stands for professional. I would hate to sacrifice even more battery life for a touch screen. Fact is, if you use external monitors, touch screens are never going to work very well. And seriously, if web browsing is your main use-case, a MBP is overkill.
  - overgryphon 10y ago
    People who use a touchscreen laptop are used to scrolling with a touchscreen. It has nothing to do with skill level of the user.
- itazula 10y ago
  Keyboard shortcuts help for scrolling and jumping to the beginning and end of a long page. Use the arrow keys in conjunction with the fn key.

72deluxe 10y ago

Oddly I found the kickstand on the Surface Pro irritating to work with because the device becomes impossible to use on your lap, as you need to put the Surface quite far up your leg, and then the kickstand is further along than the length of your leg (hanging over your knees). So it becomes impractical to use. The OS has done quite well to optimise battery I thought - App Nap has been great. If I reboot my MBP into Windows (so same hardware, different OS), I get worse battery life. Agree with the ports - the Surface Pro I use at work has 1 USB port so plug in a wired mouse and you can't plug in your USB key. Despite the love of wifi, ports are a great way to keep your device useful.

stonith 10y ago
I agree the kickstand is horrible. I bought an aftermarket case (manvex) which makes it much easier to use on non-flat surfaces. I think there's other brands with similar things.
c22 10y ago
I have this problem too. They could've mostly solved it by just making the keyboard work wirelessly while detached. (Surface with kickstand on the coffee table, keyboard in my lap.)

module0000 10y ago

> Not to mention, the screen was full of smudge marks after awhile. This! I can't even get to the other complaints myself because this one triggers my OCD almost immediately into the experience.

lmm 10y ago

> I did take a close look at the Surface Pro. Sorry, the build quality is nowhere near a MacBook Pro. Shrug, not my experience. > Secondly, I found the touch screen very gimmicky. I tried using it for a week and found that my hand just hurt lifting it up repeatedly and also hated switching context from the keyboard to the screen. Don't force the touchscreen. Just use it when it makes sense. I've found it's a very natural way to press buttons (because you can just... press the button), particularly when I'm using the keyboard (e.g. filling in a multi-page form, or writing generally) - must nicer than pushing a pointer around to the right place. And it's nice when dragging and dropping, and there are a few games that play nicely that way. And being able to draw/write on it is very nice occasionally. But sure, most of the time I don't use the touchscreen. But even if you ignore the touch aspect, it's a beautiful screen. I've also fallen in love with 3:2 - it seems to strike the right balance between vertical space for development and rectangular enough for watching movies on. At least for me. > Not to mention, the screen was full of smudge marks after awhile. That seems like something that shouldn't be happening, assuming your hands were clean? It doesn't happen on mine.

cocktailpeanuts 10y ago
> Don't force the touchscreen. Just use it when it makes sense. This is like saying "Don't force the new touch bar on macbook pro. Just use it when it makes sense.". A lot of people are pissed about how useless the touch bar is. You can make the same argument about this but the thing is, they could have done better. There's nothing wrong with people criticizing something that's bad. Sure you can just "NOT use it". But these are features designed to be used, and when it doesn't make sense in many cases, it probably means it's badly thought out. >That seems like something that shouldn't be happening, assuming your hands were clean? It doesn't happen on mine. Good for you for having the most sanitary hand in the world. For the rest of actual human beings, everyone knows that touching any glass surface leaves smudge, not just computers. I'm fine with logical arguments but please don't deny what everyone knows as fact, because that doesn't fly, and brings credibility of the rest of your arguments down to zero.
- exergy 10y ago
  The difference being that the touchscreen doesn't take away anything, while the touchbar replaces function keys. You could circumvent this by getting the smaller pro, though. I own an SP3 and the touchscreen is a blessing. Ironically, even more so because the touchpad on the sp3 is crap, but either way, I seem to know my fingers more than mouse pointers on the screen and prefer to touch the screen as often as possible. It's not for everyone, but for me, I can dual boot Linux on it, write code, still keep MagSafe charging, have a USB port, AND disconnect the keyboard at the end of the way to watch a movie on a kickstand tablet, AND throw it in my bag and forget it's there, for much less money than a macbook. I love the thing to death. Also, the screen can be cleaned with a cloth or the bottom of your shirt, like most of us do with our phones. That might be annoying but doesn't sound like a deal breaker.

kenjackson 10y ago

Regarding the touchscreen, I have a Thinkpad with a touchscreen. If you ask me how I used a touchscreen six months ago I'd say probably never. It wasn't until I got a loaner that didn't have a touchscreen that I realized how much I used it. I was constantly trying to use the touchscreen when I was doing things like scroll the webpage when I was immersively reading. I actually didn't realize I was using it until I no longer had it.

nilkn 10y ago

I couldn't agree more. The Surface Pro and Surface Book are in a completely different (lower) category of build quality compared to the new MBP. Also, the touchpads on the Surface products are nowhere near as good as I was led to expect from online comments. The Surface touchpads are passable at best by late 2016 standards and, again, are in a different category than the new MBP trackpads.

charrondev 10y ago
I have a retina Macbook Pro (15") that I absolutely love, but I have to say the touchpad on the new MacBook Pros just doesn't feel right to me. I've played with them in the store, and maybe I could get used to it, but its mostly the size. It just seems overly large and my palms end up on it. Although to be honest I use my MacBook with a couple of dell p2715q's hooked to it, and I use a magic trackpad and keyboard separately now.
- nilkn 10y ago
  I'll admit the touchpad on the new 15" seemed comically large at first. I actually laughed a bit when I first saw it. Now I'm used to it though and really appreciate the extra size. Granted, I use BetterTouchTool a lot with lots of custom gestures.

mcphage 10y ago

> Fix the battery issue. They really need to fix that from a hardware perspective. Also, the OS needs to be optimized to preserve battery. The burden can't be fully on hardware. They actually have been doing this for the past few years—for instance, when you ask the OS for a timer, the timer you get will be ±10% of what you requested so that a bunch of timers can go off all at once. This way the CPU can sleep, wake up, take care of all of them, and then go back to sleep. (You can say 'no really it needs to be exactly this time', but most of the time you don't need that). Other things as well, but that's the one that's stuck in my brain.

grennis 10y ago
They only have been doing that for the past few years? Android did that in 2009

mabey 10y ago

>The keyboard is getting better, but I still think it needs more travel time. I wish Apple would use the same keys that they use on the new Magic Keyboard. Definitely less travel than outgoing MacBook Pros but still clicky and usable.

jen729w 10y ago

> The screen could be further to the edges a bit for a more modern look. I have the new MBP 13" (love it), but the one thing that annoys me slightly is the smudges on the edge of the screen from opening it, or adjusting the screen angle. It's impossible not to get marks on the screen. As it is, they're in the thin bezel area and not on the actual screen. I'm not sure I'd want the screen to go all the way to the edge...