More Apple Macbook pro failures.

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[XAP]Bob
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Re: More Apple Macbook pro failures.

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Psamathe wrote: 13 Jun 2021, 11:22pm
[XAP]Bob wrote: 13 Jun 2021, 11:02pm ......
I do think that dropping MagSafe was a bad idea, but that’s because they served a very specific purpose - there was no reason not to have both MagSafe and power over usbc
I agree that dropping MagSafe was a bad idea but I have seen you can buy similar adapters that connect into the USB PD - they look a bit like those USB bluetooth/radio adapters mice used to use. Trouble is the ones I've seen are only on Amazon from unheard of Chinese companies so I've not tried any. Not a perfect solution and having MagSafe as well as USB-C PD would be ideal (so you don't need the proprietary MagSafe if all available is a standard USB-C PD supply.

Ian
Yes, but they leave a blob on the laptop when they are disconnected, and generally don't support data transfer (which means you lose a port).

Having a MagSafe "port" wouldn't be a particularly difficult addition IMHO. My laptop is generally powered by the eGPU for instance
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
toontra
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Re: More Apple Macbook pro failures.

Post by toontra »

In general terms, from 2012 onwards Apple have made MacBooks almost impossible to repair or upgrade by the end user. That's why I've stuck with the 2012 model for so long and why I was able to repair the data cable (which would have cost a fortune via Apple), easily replace the battery and upgrade the RAM and hard drive at sensible costs.

The M2 coming will tempt me on processor power alone, along with the promised the extra ports, but I'm not happy about not having the ability to repair or upgrade MY machine myself.
Psamathe
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Joined: 10 Jan 2014, 8:56pm

Re: More Apple Macbook pro failures.

Post by Psamathe »

[XAP]Bob wrote: 15 Jun 2021, 12:22pm
Psamathe wrote: 13 Jun 2021, 11:22pm
[XAP]Bob wrote: 13 Jun 2021, 11:02pm ......
I do think that dropping MagSafe was a bad idea, but that’s because they served a very specific purpose - there was no reason not to have both MagSafe and power over usbc
I agree that dropping MagSafe was a bad idea but I have seen you can buy similar adapters that connect into the USB PD - they look a bit like those USB bluetooth/radio adapters mice used to use. Trouble is the ones I've seen are only on Amazon from unheard of Chinese companies so I've not tried any. Not a perfect solution and having MagSafe as well as USB-C PD would be ideal (so you don't need the proprietary MagSafe if all available is a standard USB-C PD supply.

Ian
Yes, but they leave a blob on the laptop when they are disconnected, and generally don't support data transfer (which means you lose a port).

Having a MagSafe "port" wouldn't be a particularly difficult addition IMHO. My laptop is generally powered by the eGPU for instance
I was initially slightly tempted but never looked into them particularly closely as I don't trust these cheap things from unknown brands (normally from China) where loads of different brands stick their unknown name on identical product ...

One wish is that Apple would either add a Lightening port to MacBook Pros or drop the Lightning on iPhones for USB-C (it seems to have gone from the iPad now but I'm unsure if the size might make it unsuited to iPhone). Main reason is cables and adapters I have (and need) for iPhone e.g. SD card adapter (not too concerned about transfer speed, just have to carry around USB-C and Lightning SD card adapters.

Ian
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[XAP]Bob
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Re: More Apple Macbook pro failures.

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Lightning will eventually get replaced by USB-C (or by nothing, just using wireless connectivity) on the iPhone lineup. There isn't anything in a phone that yet needs directly exported PCI-e lanes, so there is no compelling reason to change.

There isn't a need for them to rush though, and I'm quite content with that. They actually keep their connectors for a decent length of time (30 pin lasted from 2003 to beyond 2012, lightning was designed to last at least as long, and so far it's just about caught up).

During the time of the 30 pin connector I went through a number of different connectors for phones: Nokia fat barrel, Nokia thin barrel, Treo, Motorola, mini usb, micro usb, I'm sure I've forgotten some as well. The fact that lightning has been constant is no bad thing, although manufacturers are only just catching on to the fact that they don't actually need to ship chargers and cables with every device.
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
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[XAP]Bob
Posts: 19793
Joined: 26 Sep 2008, 4:12pm

Re: More Apple Macbook pro failures.

Post by [XAP]Bob »

toontra wrote: 15 Jun 2021, 12:30pm In general terms, from 2012 onwards Apple have made MacBooks almost impossible to repair or upgrade by the end user. That's why I've stuck with the 2012 model for so long and why I was able to repair the data cable (which would have cost a fortune via Apple), easily replace the battery and upgrade the RAM and hard drive at sensible costs.

The M2 coming will tempt me on processor power alone, along with the promised the extra ports, but I'm not happy about not having the ability to repair or upgrade MY machine myself.
To be fair I've done some work on the 2015 model as well, batteries and storage are upgradable, even if not the ram.
But laptops have always been a compromise in terms of upgradability - people don't buy laptops with socketed CPUs, and increasingly don't need to upgrade memory.

Given the recent rise in GPU shared memory and direct access storage I can see someone releasing a thunderbolt memory add-on pack - heck, even if it was "just" used as insanely fast swap in the first instance.
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
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