I love the Mac. I feel no need to replace it with one of Apple’s other devices, like iPad, nor would I think of replacing it with another type of Windows-based computer. While Apple has focused a lot of attention and resources on mobile over the past few years, it has also made quite a number of significant improvements to the Mac. That fact is often overlooked by many people in the industry.
One of my favorite Macs ever is the [gold 12-inch MacBook](http://www.apple.com/macbook/). This computer shows that Apple’s forward thinking design is not limited to iPhone and iPad. It also maintains Apple’s vision of giving consumers what they need before they even know they need it.
There are two features of the MacBook that drew criticism, and praise, when the laptop was released: The keyboard and the USB-C port.
If you told me just a couple of years ago that I’d be using a laptop with just one port that controlled charging and that I’d use the same port for all my peripherals, I would have said you were crazy. Yet, here I am.
Just like when Apple did away with the floppy disk, and later the CD drive, eliminating the extra ports on the MacBook made sense. That doesn’t mean people liked it at first—they didn’t. But as history shows for the floppy and CD, it was the right move.
I had some of the same questions as other people: How will I charge my iPhone? Where will I plugin the peripherals I need? How can I make this work?
Apple had been answering the iPhone question for the past few years by giving that device so much extra battery life. I noticed that I no longer *needed* to plugin my iPhone as much as I did in the past, and when I did, I plugged it into the wall charger. Turns out I wasn’t using my laptop to charge my iPhone anyway.
The only peripherals I use with my computer are music related: Audio interfaces and the like, so I could plug my guitar into my laptop and record. Let’s face it, that’s not what the MacBook was made for. While I have done it, and it worked just fine, that is not why I wanted a MacBook—that’s why I wanted an iMac[^1].
The 12-inch MacBook has the best keyboard I’ve ever used. Yes, it took a couple of days to get used to it, but once I did, I never wanted to go back.
Here’s what I wrote in my [initial review of the keyboard](https://loopinsight.com/2015/04/09/review-12-inch-macbook/):
> Apple redesigned the key mechanism, going from a scissor design found on other computers, to a butterfly design. The end result of the change is that the keys are pressed more easily and precisely, and they don’t go down as far as the old mechanism did. In fact, they go down about half as far as the old keyboard.
> When you first start using the keyboard, you may get the feeling that you didn’t actually hit the key, but you really did. This is what will take some getting used to—I am typing very quickly with the MacBook now, but it took a day or two in order for my mind to trust my fingers were hitting all the keys.
I like the keyboard even more now.
MacBook is incredibly small and light, but it has really long battery life—this is thanks to the newly redesigned batteries, made specifically for this computer. The batteries are layered, meaning that every space in the computer, except for the CPU, is reserved for a battery.
Usually when a computer gets smaller, the trade-off is battery and CPU power, but Apple managed to get it all right with MacBook. Of course, MacBook also has a Retina Display and Force Touch trackpad—like I said, they got it right with this laptop.
I remember years ago traveling with a backpack full of peripherals, backup drives, and a heavy laptop. My backpack weighed as much as my suitcase sometimes, but I needed it all—or at least I think I did.
When I travel these days, I throw my MacBook into the carry-on bag with the power adapter and leave. There is really nothing else I need anymore. It’s powerful, and portable, enough to take anywhere without much planning.
I know there are people that need, or want, a laptop with a variety of ports for peripherals. If that’s the case, then MacBook may not be the right laptop for you. However, if you want a powerful, versatile laptop that you can take anywhere, I can’t think of a better computer than MacBook. It’s my goto computer.
[^1]: I have a story in the works about building a home recording studio using a 21-inch iMac.
My biggest regret since getting my MacBook is how little I use my Mac Pro at home now. I should sell it and get an iMac I guess. I just don’t need that much computing power at home. Foiled by my own choices!
I’ll bite, since I’ve bee curious since the thing shipped…. If you could have the Macbook as is OR an Air with Retina display, would you choose the Macbook and if so, why?
For me, the Macbook feels like the wrong set of tradeoffs. Yes it’s thinner and lighter than the Air, but with the stepped battery tech and the Air form factor they could have fit in even more battery. No, I don’t need a ton of ports… but why 1 vs, say, 2?
FYI, I have and quite like an 11″ Macbook Air from mid-2013.
Convenient and portable – I see all that. Versatile? How so? And as for powerful? Definitely not. Powerful enough for Office and such. Yes. Powerful in the real sense? No.
While I am more in the iPad (Pro) for mobile use camp, my girlfriend loves her 12″ MacBook, and I would love that keyboard on my Retina MBP (it is indeed better). I hope that they will use this keyboard on all models when my 15″er is due for replacement.
sounds like a great ultra-portable. not sure why so many people are freaking out about it not being a more robust machine when there are other options in the product line for those use cases.
Agreed. People who whine about it are like people who are confused about the difference between a Toyota Prius and a full size pickup truck.
For much of what I do with my computer and my iPad, I prefer Mac OS to iOS so my next “iPad” will be a MacBook. I’m willing to lose a few useful iOS apps (which I have on my iPhone) to get a real keyboard, Mac OS, better text editing, and a better browsing experience (for me).
I think the argument is that a) your Time Machine disk should be wireless, like Time Capsule; b) you don’t need power attached all of the time.
If you think of how we use our iPads, we don’t use them plugged into power. The battery’s good enough, we charge it overnight, unplug it, and go. Why not with the Macbook? In some sense, this is the “college student” model—the people I see in coffeeshops working on their papers and email are perfectly served by the product.
Don’t get me wrong; the current gen Macbook isn’t powerful enough for me CPU-wise, but I can easily see the wireless, all-day-battery-life vision. It’s the beginning, and Apple’s going to iterate on it, and it’s possible the next generation will be powerful enough.
The answer is simple: most people dislike change, especially when having to reformulate their use cases as well-covered by a legacy model of computing.
The future is wireless and all-day-battery, no doubt about it. Look at the iPads Air and Pro. But many people don’t use their computers this way, and to them, the Macbook is currently limiting.
To me, I watch my mom (who does everything on her iPad) or my sister (who only uses power on her laptop) or the millions of people sitting in coffee shops working, and the vision of the new Macbook is very clear. However, these people don’t post on forums. 🙂
I switched my MacBook Air to wireless Time Machine (a hard drive plugged into an AirPort Extreme) a few months ago at the office. I’m still plugging in at home, but I feel the wireless is a definite improvement.
I currently have a MacBook Air that’s frequently overheating. My number one suspect is the fan. I don’t think it’s moving air as efficiently as it should be. I don’t it ever has. If I could trade off a bit of power to keep the temperature under control I definitely would.
Don’t misunderstand me, though: The MacBook is too big a tradeoff in performance for me at this time. But I doubt it will be for very long.
(I would also want a USB-C version of my Thunderbolt Display before switching to a MacBook.)
Back in the old days a typical PC was a big box that housed, among other things, a motherboard which typically had six or seven empty I/O card slots which the user could use to populate any optional cards designed to expand the capabilities of his computer system.
That bit of history sets the stage for my comment. My gold 12″ MacBook 1.3 GHz laptop (which I admire as much as Jim admires his) would be justifiably criticized if it could not be expanded in much the same way as those old PC boxes were. Fortunately, it can but it does so via external adapters (or port hubs) attached to that lone USB-C port rather than internal card slots.
Personally, I use a new external hub that supplies power pass thru, two USB 3.0 ports and a SD and microSD card reader slot that effectively eliminates the “only one port” complaint regarding the new MacBook design. Most readers would recognize the name of this relatively inexpensive, small external hub – which weighs about the same as four US quarters – by my description (hint: the company’s name begins with an “S”) via a short internet web search.
You’re making me want a MacBook! I’ve only played with one in a store, and was amazed at its lack of heft. (Since that day, my MacBook Air has felt twice as heavy as it did before…)
(Oh, a writer-y point: You plug in iPhones and peripherals. Not “plugin”. You can’t just go around “pluginning” things! : )
Anyway. Off to check those MacBook prices once more…
I’m a software developer, and I have been hesitant to go with the new MacBook. I’ve been a rMacBook Pro guy for a while now . . . ever since my company shelled out for it over a Windows laptop.
But I have felt a little that the damn thing isn’t really all that portable. I don’t like carting it around on my bike or the subway.
So l got an 11″ MacBook Air a couple months ago, and I swear to god it is the best computer I’ve ever owned. It’s definitely powerful enough for the kind of dev work I do. It’s so portable that I want to take it everywhere. The screen is painful to look at compared to the MBP, but then again, most of what I’m looking at is monospaced type in text editors. It matters, but it doesn’t matter that much.
Seriously, I don’t think it gets any better than the 11″ MBA.
I have a three level backup system and Time Capsule doesn’t really fit it. For wireless backups, I use Backblaze which is better than TC since it works wherever I am, even away from my home network. I use an external disk Time Machine for onsite incremental backups.
Also, I do use my Air plugged in. It’s plugged in right now… because I work from home and my Air is my sole Mac – I have it plugged in and connected to a 24″ screen with Bluetooth mouse and keyboard. I don’t need a LOT of ports… but I need one for power and one for video at the least. As it is, Apple sells an adapter I could use, but the Macbook has other tradeoffs that I don’t like atm so…
See above on wireless backup. I just combine that with offsite.
If you’re seeing overheating on the Air, use Activity Monitor to see what’s using CPU. My bet is a Chrome helper running Flash. If so, install a Flash blocker. Unless you’re doing some heavy CPU work on the Air the fan should rarely be on.
I guess what I don’t understand is why the Macbook is a better direction than putting a retina display in the Air. Doing that would give me the power I have now, same or probably more battery, the same port count. The Macbook asks me to step back in power, lose ports, keep the same battery life and get Retina. Will it get more powerful? Sure, but why wait 2-3 years to get power equivalent to what I have now? The rntire thing feels odd and it’s not like the original Air which, while pricey and not powerful, radically changed the form factor of the Macbook. This one loses a few mm and a few ounces. Meh.
It DOESN’T give all day battery and in fact compromises the battery life for thinness. Take that Core M CPU and put it in the Air case (11 or 13″) and you really are closer to a 24 hour battery.
If by ‘all day’ you mean 8-12 hours, the 13″ Air has had that for a couple of years.
It’s not Flash. I use Safari and I removed Flash long ago. It’s just Xcode, which is a pig of an app. Make a minor change? Xcode will all but build the project in the background to make sure autocomplete and documentation work properly. But it’s a great feature.
And I, too, would love a MacBook Air with Retina now. But I see this as a better direction, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Apple hold off on the future and build the new MacBook out instead. Imagine a future MacBook with a USB-C charger/display/port replicator. Fantastic desk warrior, fantastic portable machine for the road.
This is what confuses me – it’s a machine that took thinness even further, losing connectivity thereby forcing you to add external dongles to get that back. Um… how is that a good decision again? Your Macbook is thinner than my Air… but my Air has 2 USB ports, a Thunderbolt port and a power port and you can’t credibly call out the 11″ Air for being bulky or ugly.
Moving to a superthin design but then adding dongles feels like 1 step forward, 2 back. Not only are the dongles ugly, I’ve got to remember them.
I bought a space grey 1.3 GHz model MacBook and named it Bob. I name all my devices. Over the last 30 years I’ve owned everything from Mac SE’s to Bondi Blue iMacs to MacBook Pros and Airs. I’ve also lived inside a lot of Unix boxes, mainly as servers. I did a stint as a .NET guy (you gotta make money) so I’ve spent a lot of time with Dells and Toshibas. I’ve been very lucky.
That said, my MacBook is my favourite computer of all time. The screen/keyboard/trackpad are amazing, the battery life is really good, and it’s light form factor is jaw dropping. I only have the tiniest nit picks with it – for instance I find the front edge near my palms a little sharp. I also don’t mind the low res camera since I look better at a lower res. 😉
I still do some coding in golang, swift, and python. No complaints at all. Luckily I’m not working on any massive Java projects so I don’t have a view into what a compile/build cycle would look like on that. That said I find Docker VM’s spring to life pretty quickly on my MacBook although I push most of those types of uses into a cloud container pretty quickly. My nerdy friends who use MacBooks like it for their projects which are pretty diverse in technologies.
For other tasks everything is great. I only do simple photo editing and no video so I’m happy with the basics there. MS Office/Google Apps/iWork all are great. My Omni stuff is happy, Ulysses hums along, and I like watching video on it.
The only shortcoming that I can see is that Apple doesn’t actually make an external display which works with Bob. Glitch the iPhone sympathizes. Enzo the iPad doesn’t care….
I use Backblaze, too. I also do two Time Machine backups at two different sites. At work, my drive is plugged into an AirPort Extreme and I do wireless backups to it. I’ll be switching to the same approach at home. No physical connection between the computer and drive makes me a little more confident.
Oh XCode… yeah, that will do it. On the other hand, I don’t see the Core M handling that well. Since it can’t vent the air via fans, I’d imagine it just throttles as heat rises.
I’m wondering if the lineup in 2-3 years will be the 12″ Macbook for most people and a 12″ and 15″ Pro. The former could be the same screen as the Macbook.
Yeah, if my MacBook Air is anything to judge by the MacBook won’t handle Xcode well for years and years. But it wouldn’t surprise me at all if my MBA is worse at dissipating heat than most of the MBAs because the fan isn’t working perfectly. There’s no good way for me to judge that.
My next machine will probably be a MBP for the extra millimetres of space. 🙂
Technology marches on, Rick. But these are my reasons for purchasing my 1.3 GHz MacBook versus a MacBook Air. (In no particular order)
1. Overall design. It’s a subjective choice, I admit, but the gold finish paired with the black keys and black display bezel appeal to me.
2. The absence of an internal fan (and hence the absence of any mechanical noise).
3. The optional 1.3 GHz variant of the Core M provides the MacBook with an equivalent computing potential to a Core i5 Surface Pro hybrid (according to 64 bit Geekbench results and personal experience) – and is quite good enough for me.
4. The beautiful 12″ HiRes retina display. It’s 12″ display is sort of the sweet spot between the MBA’s 11″ and 13″ choices. Besides, I use my iPad displays as a secondary extended display using either Air Display or Duet software apps when I require extra mobile display space.
5. The enhanced trackpad design using haptic feedback technology.
6. And, of course, the low two pound system weight. That low base weight allows the addition of an iPad in my travel bag without a noticeable overall system weight disadvantage.
7. Sufficient battery life (the MacBook Air has much greater average battery life but the MacBook’s 6 hours – for me – average battery life between charges is enough).
8. Keyboard feel is very subjective but I agree with Jim’s opinion about the MacBook keyboard feel over time. However, to be fair, I prefer the new stand alone “Magic Keyboard” by Apple that uses a similar mechanical design but has a little more key travel and softer feel.
Now, I think my first comment covered why I feel the lack of multiple ports was addressed thru optional, third party hub, for example, by Satachi. Although beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the gold finish of the Satachi hub is close enough to the MacBook and the hub’s minuscule dimensions and weight are quite acceptable to my esthetic values. (I don’t think it’s anywhere near “ugly”. Plus, I don’t really need those extra serial connections 99 percent of the time. Wireless technologies, like Air Drop and Air Play and Apple’s iOS to OS X unified wireless ecosystem allowing easy transfer of data from one machine to another really, for my work flow habits, eliminates the need for a wired connection requiring those extra ports – again, for most of the time.
The points in favor of the MBA are: greater power and more standard ports. However, to my mind, the relatively “low res” display of the MBA vs the MacBook’s is a major disadvantage. I suspect that the new MBA or MBP redesign for 2016 will address your MacBook design “disadvantages”. Again, technology marches on but for me, the MacBook is one sweet machine for mobile work.
Thanks for the detailed reply. Let me ask you this… if the Air had come in that gold finish, added the new keyboard and a retina display… would you still buy the Macbook?
I’m not AT ALL saying “you’re doing it wrong” – it’s more that the machine makes what is to me an odd set of tradeoffs and I’m curious about how people view those. To me, taking things away just because you can feels wrong – there should be some new advantage given for losing a feature.
Given your MBA modifications, then yes, I would have chosen a MBA over the MacBook. (One can’t get enough power.)
That being said, my build to order 2010 27″ iMac “fully loaded with a core i7 2.93 GHz processor and 16 gigs of ram has a marginally lower single core 64 bit Geekbench score than my MacBook. And I have had NO problems with running any current desktop prosumer grade apps on the iMac. (The 64 bit multi-core benchmarks for the iMac are about 3.5 times better than the MacBook, however.)
But, once again, the advantages of the current MacBook over the current MBA are it’s display, weight, form factor and trackpad. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I do not foresee a laptop upgrade for the next 3 to 4 yrs or so. Which means these updated MBA and MBP coming out this year would have been my choice over my 8 month old MacBook had I waited 1 more year.
Again, thanks. This is exactly what I was hoping to get, some insight into how others who have the Macbook use it and why they like it over an Air.
I usually replace my Macs on a 3-4 year cycle since they still have good resale value. That means this year or next so I’m somewhat in shopping mode. What I really want is a Macbook Pro that’s 12″ and basically the new Macbook scaled up for Pro specs. Hear that Tim!? 🙂
Definitely agree. You gotta wait for Xcode or a Jetbrains product to do the indexing. That part is slower.
My older eyes were finding the non-retina 11″ screen a problem. It is a great computer otherwise.
One other nitpick with the MacBook – I almost walked out the door this morning without it. The thing is so light that I didn’t notice that it was missing from bag.
It’s close enough, IMO, and clearly what Apple did here was to target a battery life and design the smallest laptop that would supply it.
Do you run out of battery on an iPad or iPhone when using it throughout the day? I’ve used iPads when traveling as laptop replacements and the 10-hour battery life has held up just fine.
If you’re going to do a 10-hour coding session, perhaps not, but my day tends to be pretty fragmented.
For plugging in at home, the MB is fine, in fact far superior to the Air, since you can easily have a docking station with power given USB-C. I’m looking forward to switching to the 2nd-gen MB for this very reason from my current 13″ rMBP; I hate connecting power and DisplayPort and the occasional USB every single time.
That aside, here’s the core issue: you seem to be looking at this from a maximalist “capabilities” model, where you want the most power you can in the smallest form factor (basically, a rMBA). It’s a power user perspective on things, I can appreciate it. I suspect the MBP line will continue to get thinner and serve this market.
Apple is explicitly pursuing the OPPOSITE vision for the Macbook; their ideal is a small, ephemeral device that goes everywhere, never needs a wire, everything happens over the air. Basically an iPad that runs OS X. Turns out for many people that works just fine.
Looking at the computing model backwards, e.g., look at all the coffee shop types and design a computer for them is what I think Apple is doing with the MB. And, there, fanless, thin, wireless is the vision.
I suppose your point is, “why? why can’t they put the ports and let people have the choice?” and I think the counterargument is by not putting ports, they’re forcing a wireless vision to become a reality faster, much like eliminating legacy ports and floppy disks on the original iMac were key for promoting USB, networking, and thumb drives.
Watch the Gruber video/podcast with Schiller from last year. Schiller basically says exactly this.