Gyroscopic Investing

The excellent Marques Brownlee review of the new M1 m̶o̶r̶t̶a̶r̶ Macbook is now live!


https://youtu.be/f4g2nPY-VZc

WiseOne wrote: ↑Thu Nov 12, 2020 12:08 pm Thanks for the assessment Smith!

I'd heard about this, but now I'm really excited to try this out. I had delayed replacing my laptop, but it's now really starting to show its age (it's a 2013). Gaming isn't my issue but I do need to run some intense mathematical software on large datasets. My current laptop just plain can't do it.

On the todolist....along with a ton of other things but hope to order new macbook pro soon. It's only the 13" that has the M1 chip, right? That's the size I want, as it happens.

Not sure if you are aware, but generally the best sales for Apple computers are the day after Thanksgiving.

10 days to make a decision.

No pressure.

Definitely has me thinking about getting a laptop. Currently just have an old 2012 Mac Mini that is fine for most things, but shared with others and likely to be off helping my dad more.

10 days till the expected Apple sale to figure out if I go iPad or MacBook, Air or Pro.

I foresee spending way to much time reading reviews and user reports until then....

Pro differences vs Air, $300.00 gets you:

* Better performance:
- Better cooling (Fan)
- Faster SSD? (Ugh, I thought I saw a benchmark, but can't find it right now; not a major difference)
- Better GPU - 8 vs 7 cores vs entry level Air

* Brighter Screen (500 vs 400 nits)

* Longer battery life (+2 hours listed)

* Better speakers and mic
(TBD on the speaker; Apple site lists differently; MacRumors review says the same)

* Touch Bar on Pro, not Air (any opinions on this?)

* Faster charging (?)

Air does offer the Gold color option and is a little lighter; probably quieter (and warmer) without a fan.

Any other diffs I'm missing?

https://www.macrumors.com/guide/apple-s ... cbook-pro/

[Edit: I think the main reason I'd consider the Pro is screen brightness, although nothing concrete that the 25% increase in brightness would matter to me]

I'm seriously looking at the Air right now. I like the "no fan" even though it may mean that I might be thermally throttled at times.

Load it up with memory and disk storage...

Dieter wrote: ↑Tue Nov 17, 2020 8:44 pm * Touch Bar on Pro, not Air (any opinions on this?)

The Touch Bar will compete with the Edsel for the worst design flaw in American history.

Mark Leavy wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 1:32 am

Dieter wrote: ↑Tue Nov 17, 2020 8:44 pm * Touch Bar on Pro, not Air (any opinions on this?)

The Touch Bar will compete with the Edsel for the worst design flaw in American history.

I have a MacBook Pro, 2018. Touch bar is basically worthless for my needs. Rarely use it for anything other than adjusting speaker volume.

Dieter wrote: ↑Tue Nov 17, 2020 8:44 pm Definitely has me thinking about getting a laptop. Currently just have an old 2012 Mac Mini

Mac minis are what I use. Extended keyboard, mouse made of wood, magic desktop trackpad.

I should use my old Mac mini for some fun project.

The CPU is the same in the Air and the Pro. Do you need the better GPU for anything like video editing or gaming? Are you doing any large tasks on it that require the cooling? Most of the population would be a no to both. For average daily use (internet, streaming, Office, etc) the Air would be the much better fit.

I've also put some consideration, whenever I do actually update my MacBook, into potentially going the iPad Pro route. But the iPad Pro is actually more expensive when you add the keyboard and everything into the mix. Until the prices go down there, I would still probably tend to lean MacBook Air. Not to mention that while the iPad Pro would be basically the best portable streaming video player on the planet, iPad itself is still more limited than a MacBook in a lot of ways. Like, I would never even think of attempting to code on an iPad, even with a keyboard, lol.

I am still on a 2015 15" Macbook Pro (purchased in 2016). Going on 4 years and don't currently see a need to upgrade. Though the new Apple silicon definitely has me questioning what otherwise would have been a planned move away from Apple's high prices. Right now that M1 chip has made Macbooks a phenomenal value, even without a change to their lineup's overall pricing structure.

I am just thankful that I bought this laptop before apple "upgraded" the line to those horrific 1st gen butterfly keyboards. That's another story though.

Smith1776 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:18 pm I am still on a 2015 15" Macbook Pro (purchased in 2016). Going on 4 years and don't currently see a need to upgrade. Though the new Apple silicon definitely has me questioning what otherwise would have been a planned move away from Apple's high prices. Right now that M1 chip has made Macbooks a phenomenal value, even without a change to their lineup's overall pricing structure.

I am just thankful that I bought this laptop before apple "upgraded" the line to those horrific 1st gen butterfly keyboards. That's another story though.

Those keyboards are indeed horrific! I still have a mid-2009 MacBook Pro - drastically better keyboard. Much of what I type on the 2018 MBP has errors that take a lot of time and effort to fix - way more problematic than the 2009.

dualstow wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 7:35 am Mac minis are what I use. Extended keyboard, mouse made of wood, magic desktop trackpad.

Sounds ideal for a home machine. I'm imagining a couple of giant monitors with that. Probably wouldn't fit very well in my pack.
Nice setup, though.

If only the M1 Mac mini supported 3 displays, then I would be sold. Alas, maybe the next generation.

I’ve just got the one Compaq display that i bought for a Windows xp tower in the mid-late aughts.

dualstow wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 5:43 pm I’ve just got the one Compaq display that i bought for a Windows xp tower in the mid-late aughts.

The wonderful thing about the MacBook Pro is that even though it "only" supports two external monitors, those are in addition to the built-in display. So, technically I have a triple monitor setup, even though one of the monitors is comically tiny next to the others.

When I finish school I will sell my current MBP and get an Apple silicon powered one.

I'm not sure if I should be more impressed by Apple's processor engineering or disappointed by Intel's. Either way, I've been seeing a lot of the fanboys from the PC community kind of get taken aback at how good Apple's processor chops are. A lot of the old arguments about Apple selling overpriced and underpowered hardware now have to be revisited.

Smith1776 wrote: ↑Thu Nov 19, 2020 11:39 am

dualstow wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 5:43 pm I’ve just got the one Compaq display that i bought for a Windows xp tower in the mid-late aughts.

The wonderful thing about the MacBook Pro is that even though it "only" supports two external monitors, those are in addition to the built-in display. So, technically I have a triple monitor setup, even though one of the monitors is comically tiny next to the others.

When I finish school I will sell my current MBP and get an Apple silicon powered one.

I'm not sure if I should be more impressed by Apple's processor engineering or disappointed by Intel's. Either way, I've been seeing a lot of the fanboys from the PC community kind of get taken aback at how good Apple's processor chops are. A lot of the old arguments about Apple selling overpriced and underpowered hardware now have to be revisited.

Three or four years ago I bought for $500 this used computer with an i7 and 16GB RAM with a four output monitor video card (and I do have four monitors connected to it). What would it cost me now to buy an equivalent used Apple computer?

Vinny

vnatale wrote: ↑Thu Nov 19, 2020 12:04 pm
Three or four years ago I bought for $500 this used computer with an i7 and 16GB RAM with a four output monitor video card (and I do have four monitors connected to it). What would it cost me now to buy an equivalent used Apple computer?

Vinny

4 monitors is awesome! Hehe, so I have to admit though, I really like having an odd rather than even number of monitors. I like having one monitor in the center and the same number of monitors on either side. Having an even number of monitors either means a given setup will have you staring right at the bezel between two monitors or something otherwise lopsided.

I just hopped on the university apple store (educational discount) to look at macbook pros, and found something interesting.

The options with the M1 chip are limited to 512 Gb SSD drive and 8 Gb memory.

If you want a 1 Tb drive and 16 Gb memory, you have to go with the intel processor.

For the mathematical computing I'm using it for, 8 Gb memory would be a nasty limitation. I'm ok with the 512 Gb because I use Dropbox with the smart sync feature.

Anyone know if that is a hard limit on memory for the M1 chip laptops, or is that upgradeable after the fact?

I just went to the Apple (educational store) web site and it let me configure a Macbook Air with 16Gigs of memory and 2TB storage.
Unfortunately, I'll be waiting until it is available to the general public.

Interesting discrepancy.

WiseOne, is that perhaps just a limitation with the education outlet of the online store?

My mistake, you can upgrade to 16 Gb and 2 Tb disk. It's only $180 to get the extra 8Gb. A virtual requirement for anyone who doesn't intend to buy a new laptop every year, I would think.

I'm going to stick with the 512 Gb disk actually....with Dropbox smart sync there seriously is no need for more than that. And the drive should be upgradeable if the laptop outlasts moore's law for disk space.

Mark are you sure you couldn't buy the Air on the educational store? I'm on it and having no problem ordering the macbook pro (with M1).

WiseOne wrote: ↑Thu Nov 19, 2020 4:18 pm Mark are you sure you couldn't buy the Air on the educational store? I'm on it and having no problem ordering the macbook pro (with M1).

Not sure. I just assumed that I would need to provide some educator credentials - which I don't have.

Last question for the apple experts: is buying apple care worth it? I've always bought it but never used it.

I have never purchased Apple Care, instead put the money toward extra options.
Never had any reliability problems with any Macbook I had purchased. YMMV

WiseOne wrote: ↑Thu Nov 19, 2020 4:18 pm My mistake, you can upgrade to 16 Gb and 2 Tb disk. It's only $180 to get the extra 8Gb. A virtual requirement for anyone who doesn't intend to buy a new laptop every year, I would think.

I should say so! I just upgraded my laptop to 64GB from 32GB. How you can sell one at 16 unupgradable is hard to imagine.

By never purchasing warranties/apple care I figure I save enough money to afford a replacement if ever on the off chance one of my devices kicks the bucket prematurely.