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Lack of ports on the new MacBook? No problem for those living in 2015
T-GAAP ^ | Mar 12, 2015 | by Mark Reschke

Posted on 03/13/2015 1:00:55 AM PDT by Swordmaker

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To: Diamond
Those sure looks like more than one port to me:

You are looking at the MacBook Pro, not the new MacBook.


101 posted on 03/13/2015 10:47:20 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: cuban leaf

No that’s funny.


102 posted on 03/13/2015 10:49:36 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: nascarnation
I have a dirtbag Amazon generic $10 mouse with my Dell laptop, basically because I use it mostly in my lap and I got tired of the cable.

Somewhat to my amazement the two AAA cells last 4 months or longer and I forget to turn the thing off at least half the days.

That's about what they last on Apple's meeses. We have a couple dozen at my office. . . and they give the system plenty of warning to replace them. The re-chargeables a little less. Same with the keyboards. No cables is great. No clutter.

103 posted on 03/13/2015 11:08:55 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: Bubba Ho-Tep
13" Mid-2010 model here.

Yeah, I wish mine would die so I could buy a new one. Not only does it refuse to die but it easily upgraded to Yosemite and now runs seamlessly with my many other homosexual Apple products.

104 posted on 03/13/2015 11:14:17 AM PDT by Drew68
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To: moehoward
Ain't that the truth. I use the optical drive and Handbrake far too often to load our dvd collection on the kids/wife's iPads and iPhones, so a usb port is mandatory. And those rare times when only target disk mode and DiscWarrior will fix it, what then, with no firewire or thunderbolt port?

This MacBook is not intended for people who use their computer for that kind of work.This is more of a portable traveler's computer. . . and most people are not going to be ripping DVD's on the road. However, it does have a USB port which is doubled as the power port, and if you need to do that you can take a drive with you along with the USB adaptor which allows the power pass through. Problem solved. . . but a bit awkwardly. It's not the solution I would select. There is no Mac made today with an optical drive included.

105 posted on 03/13/2015 11:18:57 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: Swordmaker

At first I thought the one port deal was a mistake on Apple’s part.

Then I went through how I use my laptop. I cannot think of the last time I used the USB port. I transfer files either by AirDrop or email or over the web some other way. While my customers sometimes bring in a USB drive with artwork, more and more often they are emailing it or using Dropbox.

I never hook it up to a monitor via a cable. I do use my Apple TV to display my screen on my living room TV now and then.

Lastly, on those rare occasions that I might need to plug in a legacy USB drive, there is always the $19 adapter. Probably would end up like the USB adapter I bought for my iPad and never use.

Yeah, I think this is shape of the future. Actually, I would be willing to bet on a no port laptop within a year or two that uses induction charging. Heck, in 10 years we will probably be laughing at plugging in any of our portable devices into anything, ever.


106 posted on 03/13/2015 11:23:36 AM PDT by Crusher138 ("Then conquer we must, for our cause it is just")
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To: Crusher138
Yeah, I think this is shape of the future. Actually, I would be willing to bet on a no port laptop within a year or two that uses induction charging. Heck, in 10 years we will probably be laughing at plugging in any of our portable devices into anything, ever.

I agree. These naysayers are not thinking about the actual use of a notebook computer. They are thinking of it as a desktop substitute. One user above talks about having seven ports, all connected. That's not the way a notebook/laptop computer is intended to be used. The ports are there for occasional use, not continual permanent use. A notebook is a portable computer and Apple has designed what may be intended to be the ultimate, lightweight portable computer. . . one that doesn't need to have a plethora of peripherals connected, but can handle one or two if needed.

107 posted on 03/13/2015 11:46:38 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: Swordmaker

Addition by subtraction.

I couldn’t resist.


108 posted on 03/13/2015 11:50:19 AM PDT by St_Thomas_Aquinas ( Isaiah 22:22, Matthew 16:19, Revelation 3:7)
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To: Swordmaker
"There is no Mac made today with an optical drive included."

Which is where the "home server" comes in mentioned in the post. The former Mac Pro with dual optical drives fit the bill nicely and are bulletproof machines. But whether "on the road" or at home it's nice to not need multiple machines. I'd always opt for the MacBook Pro with an optical drive if possible. Oh, and Handbrake is not a ripper, it's a transcoder. ;^)

109 posted on 03/13/2015 11:52:30 AM PDT by moehoward
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To: moehoward
Which is where the "home server" comes in mentioned in the post. The former Mac Pro with dual optical drives fit the bill nicely and are bulletproof machines. But whether "on the road" or at home it's nice to not need multiple machines. I'd always opt for the MacBook Pro with an optical drive if possible. Oh, and Handbrake is not a ripper, it's a transcoder. ;^)

True, true, and true.

110 posted on 03/13/2015 11:59:31 AM PDT by Swordmaker (This tag line is a Microsoft insult free zone... but if the insults to Mac users contnue...)
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To: Harmless Teddy Bear
According to him Apple is now designing for what they think you should have rather then what you actually need and that is a good thing. If this is Apple's new policy

It's not a new policy - Apple has basically been this way for nearly two decades now.

"You do not know what you need... Cupertino knows what you need."

More seriously, Apple tries to design not to where people are in terms of wants and needs, but where Apple thinks they will be. Now to a point, it's a self-fulfilling view of the future, because they provide (or as in this case, don't provide) the devices. But if they're that wrong, people won't buy them.

They were right on the floppy drive and some older ports. They are right on optical media, on the whole it's a dying format, and only a small percentage of users need it for more than occasionally, and they can get externals for that.

They've made some errors, too - Firewire and Thunderbolt appear to have not quite taken off, and they're switching gears to USB-C now, it seems. But on the whole, they have a pretty decent vision of where things are headed.

111 posted on 03/13/2015 12:10:22 PM PDT by kevkrom (I'm not an unreasonable man... well, actually, I am. But hear me out anyway.)
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To: dennisw; prisoner6
Just buy a high quality-heavy duty>>>> USB splitter/multi port/what have you

Agreed. I think too many people are dismissing the single-port Macbook without considering what it offers. It's USB-C, offering much greater speed than older types of connections, with power to spare. A lot of power and speed. Think about the difference between USB 1 and USB 2 and USB 3.0. Now Apple is the first to offer USB-C which smokes all the other connection types. Make sure whatever USB hub you attach can handle all the devices you connect, because the Macbook can deliver all the power you will probably want for multiple devices (although battery life will be diminished from the available 9 hours or so).

112 posted on 03/13/2015 12:16:03 PM PDT by roadcat
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To: roadcat

I guess I am missing something. What I am concerned about, besides having to buy a bunch of new, proprietary cables and connectors, is the port being used not as a charging hub for attached devices but as a power input for the computer.

IOW it’s sending power IN to the computer but OUT to the devices.

I can see how it could work but it still seems risky to me.

And I’m still looking for weather archiving/reporting software for Apple OS. Cumulus doesn’t make it AFAIK and the same with Android.


113 posted on 03/13/2015 12:34:45 PM PDT by prisoner6 (Unmutual and Disharmonious)
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To: prisoner6
IOW it’s sending power IN to the computer but OUT to the devices.

Yes, two-way power on the USB-C port. I don't know the specifics either. Supposedly, the USB-C specs can handle up to 100W, although that is throttled down on the Macbook. (Up to 5 amps and 20 volts, equivalent to 100 watts). Since it is an industry-wide standard, you're going to see this on many manufacturer's products, not just Apple, Apple being the first. So any concerns about the Macbook would equally apply to other maker's computers.

114 posted on 03/13/2015 12:47:38 PM PDT by roadcat
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To: Swordmaker

Excellent clarification, I didn’t know that. Thanks.


115 posted on 03/13/2015 1:03:28 PM PDT by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
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To: roadcat

You might want to plug in a USB powered external hard drive
PLUS
plug in a USB powered battery charger to charge some batteries

Will this Apple laptops one USB port be able to handle this load? Using a USB hub of course


116 posted on 03/13/2015 1:07:37 PM PDT by dennisw (The first principle is to find out who you are then you can achieve anything -- Buddhist monk)
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To: roadcat

BTW no USB-C devices yet on Amazon ..or USB 3.1. Not there yet as far as I can tell.


117 posted on 03/13/2015 1:08:56 PM PDT by dennisw (The first principle is to find out who you are then you can achieve anything -- Buddhist monk)
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To: All

wireless ports are needed for industrial and government snooping...


118 posted on 03/13/2015 1:12:01 PM PDT by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: Rome2000
Drunks in Redneck Bars are some of the finest people on Earth.

No, they're not. You know why? Because they're drunks, and because they give Rednecks a bad name. And like all drunks, they rape the true Christian, hard working, moral foundation of what people call Rednecks, into a foul-mouthed, idiotic, unhinged idiocy of knuckledragging jackasses. Redneck drunks give the liberal media so much ammunition they don't know what do do with it all. Redneck drunks shame the South, and for that they disgrace themselves.

That's my God given American right.

You wouldn't know a God-given right if it hit you in the ass. You reduce sacred principles generations of men have fought and died to protect to representing your jackassery and attacks against one of the last places in America still leading the world on innovation, business and what used to be called the American dream. You should live in a barn - its where what passes for your mind already lives anyway.

119 posted on 03/13/2015 1:19:08 PM PDT by Talisker (ne who commands, must obey.)
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To: itsahoot

I’m not sure why you are reading coercion into my post. The article is very enthusiastic about what I would consider a limitation on the machine. The article reads like marketing spin to try and convince people that the manufacturer knows better.

I, obviously, disagree with this point of view.

Your mileage may vary...


120 posted on 03/13/2015 4:23:38 PM PDT by MortMan (All those in favor of gun control raise both hands!)
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