Daniel Hruska The new MacBook has stirred up the IT waters, and the upset will take some time. Every once in a while, Apple comes up with a product that completely changes the way you look at other products in the same category. Some are jaw-dropped in amazement, some are embarrassed by the news, others are clutching their heads in despair, and some are confidently calling the product a flop five minutes after launch, not to mention prophesying the imminent collapse of the Cupertino company.
One for all…
What is the MacBook's fault in the first place? All connectors (except the 3,5mm headphone jack) have been replaced with a new connector USB Type-C – in the singular. Yes, the MacBook actually contains a single connector for charging and transferring data and images. Immediately, hundreds of opinions emerged that it was impossible to work with one connector. He can.
First of all, you need to realize who the MacBook is aimed at. These will be ordinary and completely undemanding users who do not need two external monitors for work and do not have their projects on four external drives. For those users, there is a MacBook Pro. An ordinary user rarely connects an external monitor, sometimes needs to print or connect a USB stick. If he needs the monitor more often, he will use it reduction or consider buying a MacBook Pro again.
It's no secret that if you want to create an amazingly simple product, you have to cut it to the bone. Once you do so, you will find additional unnecessary complexities and remove them. You continue like this until you only have what is really necessary. Simplicity can be achieved by applying it throughout the entire product - without exception. Some will condemn you, others will thank you.
Unless you're a true veteran, USB is an inherent part of every computer. The rectangular connector, into which you usually connect accessories only on the third try, because for some mysterious reason "it doesn't want to fit" from either side, has been with us since 1995. It was only in 1998 that the first iMac took care of mass expansion, which completely dropped diskette drive, for which he also earned criticism at first.
We are now talking about USB Type-A, i.e. the most widespread type. Just USB, as everyone immediately remembers it. Type-B is almost square in shape and is most often found in printers. Surely you have come across miniUSB (types Mini-A and Mini-B) or microUSB (types Micro-A and Micro-B). Last fall, hardware manufacturers were able to integrate USB Type-C into their devices for the first time, which is expected to have a promising future.
Why USB Type-C makes sense
It is fast and powerful. Cables flow data at theoretical speeds of up to 10 Gb per second. However, Apple has said that USB in the MacBook will be capable of 5 Gb/s, which is still a very nice number. The maximum output voltage is 20 volts.
It is small. With ever slimmer devices, this aspect is very important. It was also one of the reasons why in 2012 Apple buried the 30-pin connector and replaced it in the iPhone 5 with the current Lightning. USB Type-C measures 8,4mm x 2,6mm, making it an ideal candidate to replace today's relatively large Type-A.
It is universal. Yes, USB (Universal Serial Bus) has always been universal, but this time it is meant differently. In addition to data transfer, it can be used to power a computer or to transfer an image to an external monitor. Maybe we'll actually see a time when there's only one connector and a dot for the most common devices.
It is double-sided (for the first time). No more third attempts. You always insert USB Type-C on the first try, because it is finally two-sided. It's unbelievable why no one thought of such an elementary feature of the connector 20 years ago. However, all bad things are now forgotten.
It is two-sided (the second time). Unlike previous generations, energy can travel in both directions. Not only can you use USB to power devices connected to the laptop, but you can also use another device to charge the laptop. It might not be a bad idea to post odds on which of the manufacturers will be the first to launch an external battery for the MacBook.
It is backwards compatible. Good news for everyone whose accessories use older USB connectors. Type-C is compatible with all versions. Only the appropriate adapter is needed for a successful connection, the rest is taken care of by the hardware itself.
Thunderbolt shakes
It is obvious to everyone that USB is the most widespread connector. In 2011, Apple introduced a completely new Thunderbolt connector, which grounded even USB 3.0 with its performance. One would say that all the manufacturers will suddenly start cheering, stop production en masse and order their engineers to immediately dump USB and integrate Thunderbolt. But the world is not that simple.
Standards are hard to change, even if you offer a better solution. Apple itself could make sure of this with FireWire, which was generally faster and more advanced than USB. He failed. FireWire has gained some traction in cameras and camcorders, but most ordinary users have probably never heard the term FireWire. USB won.
Then there are relatively expensive production costs, even if it is just a cable. The second financial burden is license fees. Thunderbolt is the work of Intel and Apple, who have invested in development and would like to make some money from peripherals through licensing. And manufacturers don't want to do that.
Overall, the number of Thunderbolt-enabled accessories is relatively small. Due to the price, most of them are intended for professionals who have no problem paying extra for adequate performance. However, the consumer sphere is more price sensitive and USB 3.0 is simply fast enough for all common activities.
We don't know what will happen with Thunderbolt in the future, and maybe even Apple itself doesn't know at the moment. Realistically, the situation is that he lives for now. It lives primarily in the MacBook Pro and Mac Pro, where it makes the most sense. Maybe it will eventually end up as FireWire, maybe it will continue to co-exist with USB, and maybe (although highly unlikely) it will still have its heyday.
Lightning also in danger?
At first glance, both connectors – Lightning and USB Type-C – are similar. They are small, double-sided and fit perfectly into mobile devices. Apple deployed USB Type-C on the MacBook and did not hesitate to sacrifice MagSafe for this step. Quite rightly, the analogy emerges that something similar could be done with iOS devices as well.
Apparently not. A significant amount of money goes into Apple's coffers from the sale of Lightning accessories. Here, in contrast to Thunderbolt, manufacturers are on the contrary accepting license fees because iOS devices are sold many times more than Macs. In addition, Lightning is a hair smaller than USB Type-C.
There is something about it. Nice article.
If they bundled a reducer with the macbook, I won't even say ashes. But this is how calculus looks like thunder. If you look at the side of the mac, 2,3 USB holes would fit there just fine. I know maybe it wouldn't be so elegant.. So again the Apple thing, why make it simple when you can make it complicated.
a standard USB would definitely not fit there, but they could have given 2-3 USB-C at least..
When a new 1 TB SSD disk with a thunderbolt interface finally lands on my desk in the morning for about 20 sticks, and in the evening Apple comes with a Macbook without thunderbolt or any reduction for it, that's really a stupid day.
Yes, only Apple can stubbornly promote a new product at a time when there is practically no use for it, shout about how it is the future, but then bury it without batting an eye. That's how it was with thunderbolt and that's how it will be with USB Type-C – nobody uses it, you don't connect anything to it, but this will be the only idol for us for a year or two before someone comes up with something else.
Hmm, when Apple was the first to cancel the floppy disk drive, everyone laughed that it wouldn't work like that, when they canceled the classic connectors and used USB as the first/otherwise, until then, the developers were in the dungeon for 9 years/also that it doesn't make sense - within half a year there were 500 peripherals, when Apple canceled ….etc. There are always people who say it's stupid, that it doesn't work, and lo and behold, it always takes over and Apple reigns supreme. See the first discussions on the first MBAir. One USB port? it doesn't work, it can't be done and look, Air is here and has set a new standard. So let's let the market decide whether it will take over. I think it will sell like hot cakes.
As I write above:
Connect the MAC to the monitor through one port and the MAC will also charge through the monitor.... Connect the disk to the MAC and it will also have a USB output on the other side (or 2) and then plug the other peripherals directly into it... etc...
It does not change the fact that at least 2 USBs would fit there. 1 on each side so that the cable does not get in the way when the output is on the back side.
AND IT DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING AT ALL THAT CURRENTLY (so for about a year now) IT IS NOT THE CORRECT ACCESSORY.
It's just a "demo" if it goes through or not, so then I'm not willing to pay for something like that, especially not the nonsense you want for it ;-).
:-))) No, I don't really have and never had any external drive with two USBs. And I don't even know if there is such a thing, but it doesn't make much sense to me. Perhaps only because Apple is testing it on us. :-)))
That's exactly why I'm writing this, then there are no accessories, but there will definitely be within a year. Anyway, when it is, it will make sense. But then I'm not clear ;-).
It would have the advantages of the original concept:
At work, you plug the keyboard, mouse, disk into the monitor, and then when you come home, just plug one cable into the monitor and everything is functional (including charging) = perfect.
Alternatively, you'll have it yourself at home, so you plug the monitor and everything around it into it, and with the MACbook you just come and plug in one thing.
usb 3.0 and serial connection of devices? cipana ok, but only one will always work
Joer - how, according to your theory, do you explain the departure from the thunderbolt solution? Neither the connector nor the reducer... Isn't there something wrong with it? :-) When devices with thunderbolt finally come onto the market, because recently Apple came out with it as something better than USB, it costs significantly more and only Apple fans will buy it, so suddenly the "revolution" will come? Users are fools now and the producers are paid about the same.
I have a year-old macbook air, I only connect it to power at night, it lasts me the whole day without charging, and sometimes I have an external disk for backup via Time Machine, so I see this solution as a step forward, in reality most people don't use anything else, everything is wireless, and this is serious it will allow me to make a backup during the night without having to connect anything else, the MBA will simply load from an external disk,
so if I put my macbook on an external 27" monitor at work, I don't charge it and when I charge it, I don't look at the monitor and I'm not talking about the fact that I don't connect practically anything to it today without a reducer, and does this make sense to you? No, it doesn't make sense... ;-)
It is an adapter that turns one port into a charging port, classic usb port and hdmi in one..
Yeah, yeah, adapters, adapters and shit... on the one hand, they're trying to keep it as simple as possible, and on the other hand, we'll have adapters connected to the Macbook and some other shit..., not to mention that if the adapters are of the same quality as the current adapters, then it will be hell.. but yes, I understand that it is not a computer for a working environment
Cece, I've already thought about it too and I also thought that someone is a moron... but...
….I guess I understood that the road leads…..
Currently it is a problem because there is no accessory, but it will be……
i.e. Connect the MAC to the monitor through one port and the MAC will also charge through the monitor.... Connect the disk to the MAC and it will also have a USB output on the other side (or 2) and then plug the other peripherals directly into it... etc...
It does not change the fact that at least 2 USBs would fit there. 1 on each side so that the cable does not get in the way when the output is on the back side.
AND IT DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING AT ALL THAT CURRENTLY (so for about a year now) IT IS NOT THE CORRECT ACCESSORY.
It's just a "demo" if it goes through or not ;-).
this USB probably won't do it, it will have to be USB 5.0
this simply doesn't work on thunderbolt, this is meant for your sister, once you put a cable there for life and that's it, it's a shame it's not usb3 magnetic :(
I think it will be fine, it really just depends on whether the manufacturers are rocking or not. I would definitely like to connect it like a jigsaw puzzle and have it portable. I don't have a monitor at home anyway, but with something like that it would be a really good reason to buy one :-).
Yes, and the magnetic part is a question... it could be a problem with the disk if it were actually writing, or if it were charging something, etc. ;-).
IT REALLY CAN'T WORK WITH ONE CONNECTOR. BUT NICE TRY….
If they put at least 3xusbc there
This can't work
And a phone without wires??
you phone without wires, it has a throughput of 5 gigabytes, it's just that what they made is a phone without wifi, many people don't need wifi in their phone / 5 per second is enough for them. there will be many people for whom this semi-computer and semi-tablet will be enough.
those who bought peripherals are now sadly looking out the window and are afraid that Apple will not go in this direction...but with many other devices.
The biggest downside is MagSafe. If you trip over the cable (and this has happened to everyone many times), it disconnects safely. I'm afraid that with USB-C, even the whole computer will fly with the cable...
That might be a mistake. The Macbook is so light that it could fall to the ground with a magsafe.
And maybe it's not a mistake either and it would help. :-)
Everyone wants a revolution from Apple, that Apple is no longer what it used to be, etc., and when Apple comes with it, then talk :-)
Steve also had a lot of failed attempts, but he always went for it,
and let's see where Apple is today and where the others are. It just sucks.
Tribute takes courage, and the bigger the company, the more courage it takes.
The amazing thing is that USB-C can also be used for charging (ext. batteries), that's the bomb.
Maybe if they put one USB-C on each side, it would be even better, that is, if it could fit there.
Perhaps it was difficult to always charge external peripherals with USB, or not?
The idea was the opposite, to charge the MacBook with an external battery.
I don't agree with the model usage example given in the article - i.e. light user. You write that he "sometimes" connects this, "sometimes" connects that, he doesn't need it often, but he "occasionally" uses it - although I wouldn't call myself an "undemanding user", but in terms of peripherals, this is basically my case (perhaps only I connect the projector a little more often - and this laptop would be ideal for presentations). The problem, however, is that your "undemanding user" would like it "occasionally", but in practice he can do it either never, or at the cost of constantly dragging various reductions (some of which I have not even found - e.g. usb-c - ethernet, but maybe they are yet to come). It is the possibility of "occasional" use that is IMHO problematic. If I want to connect all the time, I choose a machine where the connectors are, or I have a reducer ready in my backpack, on my desk in the office, at home, etc. all the time. For occasional use, I typically don't have it at the moment of need.
I would also be interested in the mechanical resistance of that connector - for example, on my Mid 2009 MBP, the USB connectors are already quite worn - if I have an external drive connected, I literally can't even touch it, otherwise it will disconnect (it's not a cable) - for most peripherals respectively use (e.g. continuous charging of the iPhone) is not a problem (perhaps it is a combination of both opposites of the connector - there is no "China", but I don't have it anywhere), but it is quite okay with the disk (just for the sake of completeness, it is a Western Digital with USB3 and I tried several of those cables). If there is only one and such a "mechanical" type (compare with magsafe), then I am slightly worried.
take a pin to lift the connectors in USbeck
I had a similar problem with my grandfather
This is, first of all, a new direction of Apple - the direction to make an impression, whether it can be used is secondary, according to Apple, the only thing that matters is the impression it makes.
Under Jobs, the emphasis was on cleverness and then on impression. It's just an impression.
Am I one of the few who will be comfortable with this? I now have an older Air 13" connected to an Apple display 27" at work, from which 3 wires run to the Air on the stand. I can imagine that the new Apple display will have only one of these cables, which will charge this new computer for me, convey the image and sound to the monitor, on which I have a hub for other peripherals. Unplugging one cable before heading home and "having a charge" will do just fine for me.
According to Apple, even Thunderbolt 2.0 with a throughput of 20 Gb/s is not sufficient for 4k image transmission at 60 Hz, with this USB-C it says 5 Gb/s, it is a connector for normal use, or an exceptional connection of something more demanding, but I would not hope for that much ..
I don't care about 4K. I hope for the same resolution that I have on the Apple LED 27″ now, there will also be new monitors and it will go there.
forget that there will be led 27 in the USB 3.0 version, you will simply have to have a reduction. basically, one cable goes into your computer and the other cables go into that one to contain everything you need, we'll see how the reduction will handle it. but this notebook is not for people to work with, it is for viewing the web and where a low-level employee can write something on it, the 500 disk is also only for a person who does not need that much.
in essence, the one who will use the printer monitor and the disk will only be happy, connect one cable and it will be, not to mention how the wheels and stands will be created if only one connector is used. who wants more has to go to PRO, and here comes the question, Apple doesn't give a damn about the PRO advice either, and I won't write here that if you want something, you have to do it on an IMAC???
The new Apple monitor must be 5K and I think it will be with thunderbolt (like 3.0), but mainly it will handle Display port version 1.3 r at a speed of 32.4 Gbit/s for a 5K image. According to me, there can be no other way.
The new MacBooks are obviously for undemanding users, after all, the Core M inside is proof of that. However, the direction of one connector is apparently correct. In a few years there may be USB 4.0 that can handle 5K and one connector may be on higher models as well.
As for Thunderbolt, if Apple wants to continue with the Mac Pro in its current format and not return to boxes, then it simply can't get rid of it, because otherwise it won't connect PCIe cards. And nobody likes that (unless they go crazy at Apple), because a lot of specialized devices are only in the form of PCIe cards and there is no other usable interface for them.
I don't think that Thunderbolt is dying, it's just an interface that has to be used by everyone, and the number of devices for it is also related to this. Anyway, it's enough to wonder how much stuff comes out for Thunderbolt every month (yes, it's mostly specialized equipment, but that's what Thunderbolt is primarily intended for, to connect power boxes, audio interfaces and processors, cameras, not to connect flash drives or mice). And I think that if there was a problem with expansion, Apple and Intel can always adjust the license fees and the interested parties will agree (the technical parameters are great (not to mention security, but that's another matter)).
The only situation that I can think of when Thunderbolt would fail would be if Apple cut itself off from the professional sphere and focused purely on consumer goods, phones, simple laptops for the masses (because whatever we say, there is especially money). But I really hope that won't happen.
"The only situation that I can think of where Thunderbolt would fail would be if Apple cut itself off from the professional sphere and focused purely on consumer goods, phones, simple laptops for the masses (because whatever we say, there is mostly money). "
But I think Apple has already done that.
did you see this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZ8ek-6ccc
that video has a mistake.. thanks :D
http://youtu.be/KHZ8ek-6ccc
As far as mainstream users are concerned, this Apple course is almost certainly correct. The eternal pity is that it is increasingly moving away from the pros - MacPro, Shake, Final Cut... burying one professional tool after another - and so far without a real replacement. Pros will continue to upgrade their MacPro2012 for a few years as long as they can. As long as they can, the film will be edited on FinalCut from the pre-X era - and then they will switch to either Premiere or Avid (for heaven's sake I don't have bad dreams!).
I don't understand why everyone is upset about that one port. After all, it is a logical and correct step! The Macbook lasts all day, so I put it on the charger when I go to bed. Everything connects via wifi or bluetooth, as said at Keynote. What do you need a million ports for? I haven't had a single cable connected to my Air for quite some time and I'm alive.
Remember when Apple removed the optical drive… That was bullshit, just like now
USB-C is definitely the right one for me, and alongside the new keyboard and trackpad, a revolutionary step.
clear usb-c, but it could be charged like a watch.
I think it doesn't matter at all. I won't have to charge anything all day, so no one will trip over my cable. And overnight the notepad will be nice on the table...
Lukáš, how do you think you will be world class by having a port that no one has or uses? That you will be on top by not being able to flash your data and presentations? That everyone around you will be a little less if they have anything on an external drive, but you don't want this, you don't use it (because your "Apple Netbook" can't do it) and so they don't come at you with such inferior things? Then you probably fell from the moon, but unfortunately you don't belong on this planet. The world is a little different here, and the fact that Apple will force it on us like this and convince us of it will not change anything. Experienced Apple people already know how unstable these Apple ideas are - today it is the top and the only way, everyone will definitely follow it, but in a year or two everything will be different and even Apple will turn its back on the few sheep.
Rudo, now you've hit the nail on the head and you're talking to me from the heart. I've already burned myself on a few such Apple shooters, and I certainly won't do it again. And it is true that the netbook should be sold at a different price than 40 tac. Yeah, well, it's not officially referred to as a netbook yet? :-)))
lukas, I already have 3 Aira 13′ and the following situations (every day) when you are sitting in a meeting with a customer and he:
1) he hands you a USB flash drive with data
2) you need wga, hdmi or the projector does not have thunderbold
3) you need to connect to the customer's Ethernet cable...
I have been living with a MacBook Air every day for 7 years... It's great, but its biggest weakness at work is its inability to connect... Like an idiot, I carry 3 different adapters (thunderbold-hdmi, USB-Ethernet, thunderbold-wga) and when you pull them out, you look like crap, I feel like crap and I act like an applegeek, actually a jerk. And if I forget them... I'm just screwed and it's simply impossible to present an offer or a project to 13 people on the 10th without a data projector....
Conclusion: all hardware and software from Apple has always been great, but not without errors... And the visionary of one universal serial bus that solves everything is right, but why the hell isn't there an external minidock for that, in your pocket.... So that I can Ethernet, USB A, wga, memory card readers…. Otherwise it's just an ipad with a keyboard…
It IS the future. The only ports I use on the MBPr (2013) are MagSafe (it wouldn't work without it, right? :)), one USB, a 3.5 jack and an SD reader, because USB 2.0 in a SLR is really a step backwards (RAWs are around 30 MB) . From time to time I connect a projector at school via HDMI, sometimes I watch movies on ext. monitor, also HDMI. So I'm actually using USB, jack, charging, SD and HDMI - USB, charging and HDMI will get me one reducer. If it wasn't 40k I would consider it, but the price is really a step back. Apple is just testing us :-)
I wonder what the 30 MB of raw would be for on such scrap. :-)))
In my opinion, even such scrap can process 30MB RAWs :)
I'm sorry that Apple didn't make a MacBook Air with retina. Lamenting over the presented products is just an afterthought.