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The problem with this is that you either do something like what Apple does (and receive the hate for it) or then you do "what people want" and get this https://

The problem with this is that you either do something like what Apple does (and receive the hate for it) or then you do "what people want" and get this https://twitter.com/JonyIveParody/status/850350499840888833 https://twitter.com/JonyIveParody/status/850350499840888833 AFAIK this whole System 76 blew up because of the disappointment in the newest Macbook Pro. People say they'd wanted bigger battery and more connectors -- however, I'm a bit skeptical if those would be enough to choose a much heavier, uglier and bulkier model when actually buying a laptop. The way laptops are built, I'm not sure a 10-20% increase in battery size would mean only a small change in the size of the laptop (everything fits pretty tight in there...).

aarmenaa 9y ago
The previous model of the Retina Macbook Pro 15" (the one without the touchbar) had a 99 watt hour battery, which is right at the limit for what they'll allow you to take on a plane. The new one with the touchbar is 76 watt hours. I have a pre-touchbar model and it's more than thin enough. It can be done. To my mind, the question is can a company that doesn't have Apple's resources manufacture on the same level as Apple? I'm not sure.
- frou_dh 9y ago
  Reminds me of the hassle it was to internationally get hold of a nice replacement battery for a MBP-17 (OWC 103Wh). Lines being drawn at nice round numbers are understandable but can be galling!
- ianai 9y ago
  I don't think that's a fair target for a laptop startup. I'm thinking Linux devs would benefit more from and prefer something of a thinkpad clone. Added bulk for modularity and maybe ease of manufacture.
crazy2be 9y ago
Fallacy of the excluded middle. They can do something more than Apple (i.e. not just USB-C ports), but less than others. The Apple design doesn't end up being small or light, because to actually use it you need a plethora of connectors. At a minimum, I would expect standard USB, headphone, sd card reader, standard HDMI, mini displayport. You're going to have a hard time convincing me that an HDMI connector adds more than a few grams of weight. Thickness, maybe. But even then. VGA and ethernet could be nice too, but wouldn't see much use in my case. The battery could be removable (i.e. half internal half external, like the thinkpads). Optical drive is obviously not much use in a laptop anymore and should be external. (this one actually adds weight and not just thickness)
- keymone 9y ago
  vga and ethernet on modern laptop is a sin. they are barely younger than 5" floppy disks.
  - chriswarbo 9y ago
    Is it a sin to use the latin alphabet on keys? That's several thousand years old. What's wrong with widely used communication standards?
    - keymone 9y ago
      great straw man!
  - crazy2be 9y ago
    VGA is still the most common connector type I see on projectors and in conference rooms. It's being slowly replaced by HDMI, they might be about even now. Ethernet is still the premier PHY layer for people who want their shit to work. Wifi is still flaky as crap these days in many places. Thus, there is no Ethernet replacement yet. As chriswarbo says, the age of the tech is completely irrelevant. Instead, it's the utility / cost tradeoff that matters. A floppy drive would be expensive in terms of weight/size, and would be useful to approximately 100 people (10 if it's 5"). VGA and Ethernet adaptors would be useful to probably 1/2 to 1/4 of the users, and cost almost nothing to have. Also, VGA specifically is one of those ports that's still really nice to have, just in case. Last thing you want is to show up at a conference room and not be able to plug in your laptop.
    - keymone 9y ago
      > cost almost nothing to have you're dead wrong here. it costs space, which is a precious resource in modern laptop builds. i just feel like companies and people hanging on to these archaic technologies is hindering progress and adoption of newer and better technologies. after all why do you need thunderbolt port if you already have the vga? why do you need better wireless chip if you can always plug in the cable? these stupid decisions are made on a level that impacts the whole industry.

aarmenaa 9y ago

The previous model of the Retina Macbook Pro 15" (the one without the touchbar) had a 99 watt hour battery, which is right at the limit for what they'll allow you to take on a plane. The new one with the touchbar is 76 watt hours. I have a pre-touchbar model and it's more than thin enough. It can be done. To my mind, the question is can a company that doesn't have Apple's resources manufacture on the same level as Apple? I'm not sure.

frou_dh 9y ago
Reminds me of the hassle it was to internationally get hold of a nice replacement battery for a MBP-17 (OWC 103Wh). Lines being drawn at nice round numbers are understandable but can be galling!
ianai 9y ago
I don't think that's a fair target for a laptop startup. I'm thinking Linux devs would benefit more from and prefer something of a thinkpad clone. Added bulk for modularity and maybe ease of manufacture.

crazy2be 9y ago

Fallacy of the excluded middle. They can do something more than Apple (i.e. not just USB-C ports), but less than others. The Apple design doesn't end up being small or light, because to actually use it you need a plethora of connectors. At a minimum, I would expect standard USB, headphone, sd card reader, standard HDMI, mini displayport. You're going to have a hard time convincing me that an HDMI connector adds more than a few grams of weight. Thickness, maybe. But even then. VGA and ethernet could be nice too, but wouldn't see much use in my case. The battery could be removable (i.e. half internal half external, like the thinkpads). Optical drive is obviously not much use in a laptop anymore and should be external. (this one actually adds weight and not just thickness)

keymone 9y ago
vga and ethernet on modern laptop is a sin. they are barely younger than 5" floppy disks.
- chriswarbo 9y ago
  Is it a sin to use the latin alphabet on keys? That's several thousand years old. What's wrong with widely used communication standards?
  - keymone 9y ago
    great straw man!
- crazy2be 9y ago
  VGA is still the most common connector type I see on projectors and in conference rooms. It's being slowly replaced by HDMI, they might be about even now. Ethernet is still the premier PHY layer for people who want their shit to work. Wifi is still flaky as crap these days in many places. Thus, there is no Ethernet replacement yet. As chriswarbo says, the age of the tech is completely irrelevant. Instead, it's the utility / cost tradeoff that matters. A floppy drive would be expensive in terms of weight/size, and would be useful to approximately 100 people (10 if it's 5"). VGA and Ethernet adaptors would be useful to probably 1/2 to 1/4 of the users, and cost almost nothing to have. Also, VGA specifically is one of those ports that's still really nice to have, just in case. Last thing you want is to show up at a conference room and not be able to plug in your laptop.
  - keymone 9y ago
    > cost almost nothing to have you're dead wrong here. it costs space, which is a precious resource in modern laptop builds. i just feel like companies and people hanging on to these archaic technologies is hindering progress and adoption of newer and better technologies. after all why do you need thunderbolt port if you already have the vga? why do you need better wireless chip if you can always plug in the cable? these stupid decisions are made on a level that impacts the whole industry.