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Cannot believe the updated base MBP has the old Touch Bar. Why can’t they give us back our function keys? EDIT: and is now the only laptop without MagSafe? The

Cannot believe the updated base MBP has the old Touch Bar. Why can’t they give us back our function keys? EDIT: and is now the only laptop without MagSafe? There are more ports on the new MBA!

interestica 4y ago
And still just the two USBC ports. I would have jumped to this if it just had better onboard connectivity like it's 14/16 versions.
- gnicholas 4y ago
  Oh man I didn’t even realize that. So if you want HDMI or SD slots you have to shell out $2k for the high-end MBPs?
  - coder543 4y ago
    Yes. There is literally no point to the 13" MBP. No one should buy it. The M2 Air looks great, and the 14" and 16" MBP continue to be great as well (but pricey). The 13" MBP offers you nothing but an outdated chassis, screen, and keyboard. Ignore the word "Pro". There was nothing more Pro about the 13" MBP when M1 came out... and it's even less Pro than the M2 MBA this time around.
    - asdff 4y ago
      By the time you spec up the memory and base ram to something from this decade for the 13", you are only another couple hundred away from the 14" pro which you might as well get at that point
nickpp 4y ago
The whole existence of the 13” MBP is kinda pointless and anachronistic?! It sticks out like a sore thumb with the old-school display and touch bar next to the 14” MBP.
- asdff 4y ago
  As is tradition. I seem to recall the white plastic macbooks sticking around for too long as well.
- dmtroyer 4y ago
  I really don't understand it. I want HN to explain it to me. Is there a whole team and supply chain for the 13" MBP that was too far along in the M2 upgrade design process to stop or something?
  - dbbk 4y ago
    Given that it still has a Touch Bar with this update, I would say it's a supply chain thing yes
tra3 4y ago
Is there no config available with no Touch Bar for the 13" pro? I would prefer the Air M2, honestly, but still only 1 external monitor support. Mind blown.
KVFinn 4y ago
>Cannot believe the updated base MBP has the old Touch Bar. Why can’t they give us back our function keys? It's truly bizarre. They must have 10 million of the old laptop bodies in a warehouse or something?
- andrekandre 4y ago
  > They must have 10 million of the old laptop bodies in a warehouse or something? the supply-chain is a leaky abstraction...
quacker 4y ago
The 13" MacBook Pro is so strange. It is identical to the M2 MacBook Air, except: - Worse camera: 720p camera where the Air has a 1080p camera - Worse speakers: stereo speakers where the Air has four-speakers (I'm assuming stereo is 2-speakers?) - Bigger battery: 58.2 WHr vs 52.6 WHr (about a 2hr battery life difference) - Slightly heavier: +0.3 lbs over the Air - Slightly smaller screen: 13.3" vs the Air's 13.6", although this is probably due to the notch - Has the touchbar They are priced the same from what I can tell.
- biztos 4y ago
  > I'm assuming stereo is 2-speakers You can't do stereo with fewer than 2 speakers but even if you have 64, you're probably still doing stereo. (Or you are a movie theater.) Generally speaking, you can probably achieve better stereo sound with the 4 speakers than with the 2, but this is not always the case. Coming from Apple, I would normally expect the Pro to have higher-end speakers and thus probably sound better. But I could be wrong, since Actual Audio Professionals don't use the onboard speakers for anything serious. Also: I'm really surprised there are enough TouchBar lovers to justify its continued existence.
  - vel0city 4y ago
    Apple Music has been pushing "spatial audio", music delivered with Dolby Atmos multichannel. So these days you might have 64 channel music. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212182 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212182
prvc 4y ago
They probably sell well.

Cannot believe the updated base MBP has the old Touch Bar. Why can’t they give us back our function keys? EDIT: and is now the only laptop without MagSafe? There are more ports on the new MBA!

interestica 4y ago

And still just the two USBC ports. I would have jumped to this if it just had better onboard connectivity like it's 14/16 versions.

gnicholas 4y ago
Oh man I didn’t even realize that. So if you want HDMI or SD slots you have to shell out $2k for the high-end MBPs?
- coder543 4y ago
  Yes. There is literally no point to the 13" MBP. No one should buy it. The M2 Air looks great, and the 14" and 16" MBP continue to be great as well (but pricey). The 13" MBP offers you nothing but an outdated chassis, screen, and keyboard. Ignore the word "Pro". There was nothing more Pro about the 13" MBP when M1 came out... and it's even less Pro than the M2 MBA this time around.
  - asdff 4y ago
    By the time you spec up the memory and base ram to something from this decade for the 13", you are only another couple hundred away from the 14" pro which you might as well get at that point

nickpp 4y ago

The whole existence of the 13” MBP is kinda pointless and anachronistic?! It sticks out like a sore thumb with the old-school display and touch bar next to the 14” MBP.

asdff 4y ago
As is tradition. I seem to recall the white plastic macbooks sticking around for too long as well.
dmtroyer 4y ago
I really don't understand it. I want HN to explain it to me. Is there a whole team and supply chain for the 13" MBP that was too far along in the M2 upgrade design process to stop or something?
- dbbk 4y ago
  Given that it still has a Touch Bar with this update, I would say it's a supply chain thing yes

tra3 4y ago

Is there no config available with no Touch Bar for the 13" pro? I would prefer the Air M2, honestly, but still only 1 external monitor support. Mind blown.

KVFinn 4y ago

>Cannot believe the updated base MBP has the old Touch Bar. Why can’t they give us back our function keys? It's truly bizarre. They must have 10 million of the old laptop bodies in a warehouse or something?

andrekandre 4y ago
> They must have 10 million of the old laptop bodies in a warehouse or something? the supply-chain is a leaky abstraction...

quacker 4y ago

The 13" MacBook Pro is so strange. It is identical to the M2 MacBook Air, except: - Worse camera: 720p camera where the Air has a 1080p camera - Worse speakers: stereo speakers where the Air has four-speakers (I'm assuming stereo is 2-speakers?) - Bigger battery: 58.2 WHr vs 52.6 WHr (about a 2hr battery life difference) - Slightly heavier: +0.3 lbs over the Air - Slightly smaller screen: 13.3" vs the Air's 13.6", although this is probably due to the notch - Has the touchbar They are priced the same from what I can tell.

biztos 4y ago
> I'm assuming stereo is 2-speakers You can't do stereo with fewer than 2 speakers but even if you have 64, you're probably still doing stereo. (Or you are a movie theater.) Generally speaking, you can probably achieve better stereo sound with the 4 speakers than with the 2, but this is not always the case. Coming from Apple, I would normally expect the Pro to have higher-end speakers and thus probably sound better. But I could be wrong, since Actual Audio Professionals don't use the onboard speakers for anything serious. Also: I'm really surprised there are enough TouchBar lovers to justify its continued existence.
- vel0city 4y ago
  Apple Music has been pushing "spatial audio", music delivered with Dolby Atmos multichannel. So these days you might have 64 channel music. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212182 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212182

prvc 4y ago

They probably sell well.