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Apple always makes incredibly beautiful internal designs - for themselves, not the users.

by yuuta 5y ago

spoonjim 5y ago
Some of it is too much though. Why are those black stickers on there covering up parts of the components? It's like they were ashamed of the schematic or something.
- greggsy 5y ago
  Possibly a mix of cosmetic and functional. Maybe they identified that dust buildup can cause static issues. Maybe the plastic addresses some solder filament problems. It might also increase the device’s tolerance to vibration, or performs sound dampening.
- Casteil 5y ago
  EMI shielding, most likely
- gumby 5y ago
  Their CEO is a master of the BOM. They aren’t including a sticker like that unless it is functional.
tlb 5y ago
Most Apple products I've owned, I've ended up seeing inside at some point in their life cycle. It makes a difference to me knowing that they're nice inside. But also, it's hard to think of products that are nice on the outside but ugly on the inside. I suspect it's because some people care and some don't, and both inside and outside reflect that.
- sgjohnson 5y ago
  > it's hard to think of products that are nice on the outside but ugly on the inside HP and Microsoft have both made some pretty looking laptops recently, but they are a complete and utter mess on the inside.
sneak 5y ago
If it comes at the expense of usability in software, it isn't worth it. I wish their software and UI teams were this unrushed (or time-efficient).
- lwkl 5y ago
  Can you explain how you come to this conclusion? Maybe I'm much more critical of Windows because I have been using it for the last 13 years (and will be using it alongside macOS and Linux in the future) but my experience was the complete opposite. I switched back to macOS after having been away for 13 years and I felt right at home. System Apps and Settings generally are and worked the same. Sure the UI might have have changed a bit but mostly by repositioning things or adding a feature. Almost everything I learned about the UI 15 years ago still applies. The disk encryption and firewall settings were still in the same place, same goes for the touchpad and everything else. It was the total opposite to the Windows 11 VM I set up after. The settings app had a major redesign again and instead of relying on my memory I had to use the search function after failing to find some settings.
wsc981 5y ago
The internals of the G4 MDD were beautiful (and functional) for both Apple as well as the users: https://512pixels.net/2016/11/lazarus-mac-mdd-g4/ https://512pixels.net/2016/11/lazarus-mac-mdd-g4/
- dagmx 5y ago
  The direct comparison today would be the Mac Pro which has both a very well designed (though not super bespoke) interior, and is accessible to users too.
sschueller 5y ago
But not technically the best designs. They run high voltage next to unprotected low voltage which in the case of water ingress can damage things like the CPU. This may not be an issue with a desktop but it is with a laptop or keyboard. Alternatively you could coat a board if there are places where you can't get around such design situations but Apple doesn't do that either.
- Damogran6 5y ago
  Name another desktop (or laptop even) that’s designed for water ingress. Sure, some keyboards have channels to run a cup of coffee away, but I want to know who creates a “technically the best” design that isn’t a massive brick-with-a-handle MDT.
- PUSH_AX 5y ago
  Is it not safe to assume that if you have water ingress all bets are off regardless?
  - sschueller 5y ago
    Sometimes dust and humidity is enough if the traces are that close to each other.
  - PedroBatista 5y ago
    “Water” also means condensation or humidity from just the weather or even some rain sprinkles. They seem to design their products for Cupertino weather , specifically the weather inside their spaceship lab and fake model homes. Or is just good ol’ “planned attrition”..
    - traceroute66 5y ago
      > condensation or humidity from just the weather or even some rain sprinkles. I find all these comments here very strange indeed. The Mac Studio is a desktop. Like any other desktop from any other manufacturer it is intended for use indoors in a typical home or office environment. If you require a device that works outside of "normal" parameters then there are specialist industrial PC manufacturers who will build you something that will deal with humidity, dust, vibration and temperature extremes. 99.999999999999999999% of people on this planet do not require the extra mechanical designs (and associated expense) of an industrial PC. Hence Apple and every other commodity PC manufacturer on this planet designs for the typical home or office. Edit to add: Look at the Mac Studio specs: - Operating temperature: 10° to 35° C (50° to 95° F) - Storage temperature: –40° to 47° C (–40° to 116° F) - Relative humidity: 5% to 90% non-condensing - Operating altitude: tested up to 5,000 metres (16,400 feet) I'd say that pretty much covers everyone on the planet, and if your house or office falls outside of those parameters then you probably have bigger personal health problems to worry about (caused by living/working in such extreme conditions for long periods of time) than whether your Mac Studio will boot up. ;-)

Apple always makes incredibly beautiful internal designs - for themselves, not the users.

by yuuta 5y ago

Apple always makes incredibly beautiful internal designs - for themselves, not the users.

Some of it is too much though. Why are those black stickers on there covering up parts of the components? It's like they were ashamed of the schematic or something.

greggsy 5y ago
Possibly a mix of cosmetic and functional. Maybe they identified that dust buildup can cause static issues. Maybe the plastic addresses some solder filament problems. It might also increase the device’s tolerance to vibration, or performs sound dampening.
Casteil 5y ago
EMI shielding, most likely
gumby 5y ago
Their CEO is a master of the BOM. They aren’t including a sticker like that unless it is functional.

tlb 5y ago

Most Apple products I've owned, I've ended up seeing inside at some point in their life cycle. It makes a difference to me knowing that they're nice inside. But also, it's hard to think of products that are nice on the outside but ugly on the inside. I suspect it's because some people care and some don't, and both inside and outside reflect that.

sgjohnson 5y ago
> it's hard to think of products that are nice on the outside but ugly on the inside HP and Microsoft have both made some pretty looking laptops recently, but they are a complete and utter mess on the inside.

sneak 5y ago

If it comes at the expense of usability in software, it isn't worth it. I wish their software and UI teams were this unrushed (or time-efficient).

lwkl 5y ago
Can you explain how you come to this conclusion? Maybe I'm much more critical of Windows because I have been using it for the last 13 years (and will be using it alongside macOS and Linux in the future) but my experience was the complete opposite. I switched back to macOS after having been away for 13 years and I felt right at home. System Apps and Settings generally are and worked the same. Sure the UI might have have changed a bit but mostly by repositioning things or adding a feature. Almost everything I learned about the UI 15 years ago still applies. The disk encryption and firewall settings were still in the same place, same goes for the touchpad and everything else. It was the total opposite to the Windows 11 VM I set up after. The settings app had a major redesign again and instead of relying on my memory I had to use the search function after failing to find some settings.

wsc981 5y ago

The internals of the G4 MDD were beautiful (and functional) for both Apple as well as the users: https://512pixels.net/2016/11/lazarus-mac-mdd-g4/ https://512pixels.net/2016/11/lazarus-mac-mdd-g4/

dagmx 5y ago
The direct comparison today would be the Mac Pro which has both a very well designed (though not super bespoke) interior, and is accessible to users too.

sschueller 5y ago

But not technically the best designs. They run high voltage next to unprotected low voltage which in the case of water ingress can damage things like the CPU. This may not be an issue with a desktop but it is with a laptop or keyboard. Alternatively you could coat a board if there are places where you can't get around such design situations but Apple doesn't do that either.

Damogran6 5y ago
Name another desktop (or laptop even) that’s designed for water ingress. Sure, some keyboards have channels to run a cup of coffee away, but I want to know who creates a “technically the best” design that isn’t a massive brick-with-a-handle MDT.
PUSH_AX 5y ago
Is it not safe to assume that if you have water ingress all bets are off regardless?
- sschueller 5y ago
  Sometimes dust and humidity is enough if the traces are that close to each other.
- PedroBatista 5y ago
  “Water” also means condensation or humidity from just the weather or even some rain sprinkles. They seem to design their products for Cupertino weather , specifically the weather inside their spaceship lab and fake model homes. Or is just good ol’ “planned attrition”..
  - traceroute66 5y ago
    > condensation or humidity from just the weather or even some rain sprinkles. I find all these comments here very strange indeed. The Mac Studio is a desktop. Like any other desktop from any other manufacturer it is intended for use indoors in a typical home or office environment. If you require a device that works outside of "normal" parameters then there are specialist industrial PC manufacturers who will build you something that will deal with humidity, dust, vibration and temperature extremes. 99.999999999999999999% of people on this planet do not require the extra mechanical designs (and associated expense) of an industrial PC. Hence Apple and every other commodity PC manufacturer on this planet designs for the typical home or office. Edit to add: Look at the Mac Studio specs: - Operating temperature: 10° to 35° C (50° to 95° F) - Storage temperature: –40° to 47° C (–40° to 116° F) - Relative humidity: 5% to 90% non-condensing - Operating altitude: tested up to 5,000 metres (16,400 feet) I'd say that pretty much covers everyone on the planet, and if your house or office falls outside of those parameters then you probably have bigger personal health problems to worry about (caused by living/working in such extreme conditions for long periods of time) than whether your Mac Studio will boot up. ;-)