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Bob Morales: Aug 18, 2006; ~~Just wear the fucking mask, Bob~~

I don't care how many people I probably infected with COVID-19 while refusing to wear a mask, my comfort is far more important than the health and safety of everyone around me!

2010-2013 MacBook Air is still the greatest laptop that ever lived.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 16:47

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# ? Jun 8, 2024 01:54

Proteus Jones: Feb 28, 2013

japtor posted:

I was gonna make a joke about new MacBooks coming out any time now since I just ordered but gently caress, I didn�t think it�d be a few hours afterwards. I�d have gotten the quad core and upped the RAM. About the same cost as the MBP 13 refurb I got, but double the storage...and the scissor keyboard.

Guess those Ice Lake bench leaks were for the MBA rather than MBP as originally rumored, so I guess MBP 14 later this year will probably be a thing.

Nothing stopping you from cancelling and ordering these.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 16:48

tuyop: Sep 15, 2006; Every second that we're not growing BASIL is a second wasted; Fun Shoe

Sri.Theo posted:

Unless they massively increase the price of the new MacBook Pro - although I guess a �300 difference is quite a lot.

When the website says "delivering up to 40Gb/s of throughput for twice the bandwidth of Thunderbolt 2" does that mean it's sufficient for an external GPU to work with it? I know there are differences in implementation that will affect performance.

Yes. The thunderbolt 3 connection is just passing 4 lanes of PCIe 3.0 (plus USB 3.1, plus 2 DisplayPort 1.2 connections) through the cable and port. So any GPU that works on a short PCIe port will theoretically work over TB3. You just need a separate enclosure to also power it if it�s any bigger than 100w iirc.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 16:49

Binary Badger: Oct 11, 2005; Trolling Link for a decade

So it looks like Retina 13-inch 2020 MacBook Air has "Iris Plus Graphics" capable of driving a 6K or 5K monitor at full 60 Hz speed at full color depth.. and with a quad core processor topping off at 3.8 GHz, it already makes a low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro look bad, if for nothing else the price point if not reality.. top RAM on the Air still the same, 16 GB..

2020 MBA's top storage increased to 2 TB, which is good.

I know a user who swears that their MBA 2018 at 1.5 TB of storage is faster than their 2019 13-inch MacBook Pro with 512 GB.

Interesting how color depth has been yanked from the Display control panel for so long..

I literally can't see any improvements or changes in the Mac Mini 2020, over the 2018 version except the name.. video capabilities (and lackluster GPU) are the same..

# ? Mar 18, 2020 17:15

Roadie: Jun 30, 2013

tuyop posted:

Yes. The thunderbolt 3 connection is just passing 4 lanes of PCIe 3.0 (plus USB 3.1, plus 2 DisplayPort 1.2 connections) through the cable and port. So any GPU that works on a short PCIe port will theoretically work over TB3. You just need a separate enclosure to also power it if it�s any bigger than 100w iirc.

One thing to keep in mind here is that while macOS handles eGPU stuff real seamlessly, trying to get it to work on any machine that already has a dGPU is a shitshow in Windows because Windows resource addressing can't handle three graphics cards properly.

Binary Badger posted:

I literally can't see any improvements or changes in the Mac Mini 2020, over the 2018 version except the name.. video capabilities (and lackluster GPU) are the same..

They bumped the baseline storage from 128/256 to 256/512.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 17:34

japtor: Oct 28, 2005

Proteus Jones posted:

Nothing stopping you from cancelling and ordering these.

Just did

Didn't realize earlier I could up spec the lower end one to quad so just did that, 16GB, and stuck w/256GB. Saved about $150 compared to the MBP :dance:

# ? Mar 18, 2020 18:26

trilobite terror: Oct 20, 2007; BUT MY LIVELIHOOD DEPENDS ON THE FORUMS!

japtor posted:

Just did

Didn't realize earlier I could up spec the lower end one to quad so just did that, 16GB, and stuck w/256GB. Saved about $150 compared to the MBP

I�m so curious about how these benchmark. Or did those already leak? I remember some benchmarks and some MacBook numbers that ppl expected were new MBPs. I guess these must be they?

# ? Mar 18, 2020 18:39

Bob Morales: Aug 18, 2006; ~~Just wear the fucking mask, Bob~~

I don't care how many people I probably infected with COVID-19 while refusing to wear a mask, my comfort is far more important than the health and safety of everyone around me!

Binary Badger posted:

So it looks like Retina 13-inch 2020 MacBook Air has "Iris Plus Graphics" capable of driving a 6K or 5K monitor at full 60 Hz speed at full color depth.. and with a quad core processor topping off at 3.8 GHz, it already makes a low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro look bad, if for nothing else the price point if not reality.. top RAM on the Air still the same, 16 GB.

Aren't they U chips or whatever with a single fan?

The current Air pales up against the Pro in stuff like Cinebench

# ? Mar 18, 2020 19:04

Mu Zeta: Oct 17, 2002; Me crush ass to dust

Bob Morales posted:

2010-2013 MacBook Air is still the greatest laptop that ever lived.

I'd say the 2013 model is the peak because it massively improved battery life. I remember being pissed because my 2012 model "only" ran for like 7 hours while the refresh went several more hours in web browsing.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 19:06

Binary Badger: Oct 11, 2005; Trolling Link for a decade

Bob Morales posted:

The current Air pales up against the Pro in stuff like Cinebench

Probably still does even with the quad-core and uprated GPU, but for the price I'd just get the QC Air.. Apple better do something like shove a RX5500 or something into the 14-inch Pro or the gap between the highest Air and the lowest Pro is gonna be so small so as to cannibalize low end 13/14-inch sales.

Binary Badger fucked around with this message at 19:23 on Mar 18, 2020

# ? Mar 18, 2020 19:16

LionArcher: Mar 29, 2010

Binary Badger posted:

So it looks like Retina 13-inch 2020 MacBook Air has "Iris Plus Graphics" capable of driving a 6K or 5K monitor at full 60 Hz speed at full color depth.. and with a quad core processor topping off at 3.8 GHz, it already makes a low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro look bad, if for nothing else the price point if not reality.. top RAM on the Air still the same, 16 GB..

2020 MBA's top storage increased to 2 TB, which is good.

I know a user who swears that their MBA 2018 at 1.5 TB of storage is faster than their 2019 13-inch MacBook Pro with 512 GB.

Interesting how color depth has been yanked from the Display control panel for so long..

I literally can't see any improvements or changes in the Mac Mini 2020, over the 2018 version except the name.. video capabilities (and lackluster GPU) are the same..

I�m curious if the mini can drive the 6k display.

# ? Mar 18, 2020 21:10

trilobite terror: Oct 20, 2007; BUT MY LIVELIHOOD DEPENDS ON THE FORUMS!

Binary Badger posted:

Probably still does even with the quad-core and uprated GPU, but for the price I'd just get the QC Air.. Apple better do something like shove a RX5500 or something into the 14-inch Pro or the gap between the highest Air and the lowest Pro is gonna be so small so as to cannibalize low end 13/14-inch sales.

For real. And once you add a 5k screen to a kitted out 16� MBP you�re in �iMac+Air/13� MBP� territory anyway.

I wouldn�t be surprised if the 14� is hex-core. Maybe the SKUs come out close/identical to the 16� minus the dGPU if I can dare to dream. 8 core 14� on the top end :allears:

# ? Mar 18, 2020 22:29

Binary Badger: Oct 11, 2005; Trolling Link for a decade

LionArcher posted:

I�m curious if the mini can drive the 6k display.

Sorry, nope, not at the full native 6K res.. most the Mini can do is 5K since it still uses the Intel UHD 630 for a GPU.

Apple will at least shove in one of the 10th gen Iris Pluses into the next 13/14 incher Pro, just so they can keep up the appearance of all their New Pro machines being able to drive the Pro Display XDR at full res.

My fear is that the one item they'll add for the 13/14 inchers is the hexacore option as that will be the only thing to elevate that size pro over an Air..

# ? Mar 19, 2020 00:32

Hadlock: Nov 9, 2004

Pivo posted:

Anyhow the dream is this: when working from home, just put laptop down on table and plug in one cable. Gaming PC setup instantly turns into work setup.

Hadlock posted:

That reminds me, here is my final home office setup. I've been meaning to post this forever. I live in a moderately small 1 bedroom in a major urban area and work from home probably 2 full days a week + 9am-noon three days a week, so it's important to have a good work area.

The other main requirement was that it blend nicely with my fiance's decor as my home office is one corner of our cramped apartment livingroom.

I have bought all-in on USB-C. My phone, tablet, work and personal laptops, nintendo switch, noise cancelling headphones are all USB-C now so the only things that still use micro-usb are a couple of "usb battery-banks".

Click to embiggen

Overall setup. Work laptop is macbook pro, sitting on some sort of mango wood desk, the monitor is a 1440p dell with a nifty arm that keeps all the wires off the table. The laptop is plugged in to a $70, 6-foot, 100w "active" Thunderbolt 3 cable, that plugs in to a TB3 dock (see cabinet photos). Also there's a standard wireless logitech mouse, the usb mouse dongle lives attached to the TB3 dock. There's just ONE cable that goes from the laptop, off the desk. there's a cable that goes from the monitor to the TB3 dock, and then a power cable for the monitor (which comes up the arm, so never gets on the desk to add clutter) and the last cable, I had to check, is a USB 3.0 A->B cable, as the monitor has a 4 port powered USB 3 hub. The monitor was medium in price, it's the 2017 dell ultrasharp, non-4K edition, and then the arm was a new design for dell (vast improvement over the old version that's been around for 10+ years).

Closeup shot. I am not really sold on this lamp but when we moved in this corner was super dark and this met Her approval. The chair is some ikea thing, I mostly hate it but is serviceable and does not attract cat hair for some reason.

This is my Dell XPS 15 which I have a love/hate relationship with, it also has Thunderbolt 3, which means I can just plug it in with this single cable and all the crap that works with my work laptop, I now have access to with my personal laptop. Same monitor, mouse, NAS, UPS, network equipment, USB 3 hubs, etc etc. Litterally just plug and play. Also works with anyone elses' TB3 laptop.

That white blob on the left is a lead-weighted cable organizer, I use it to keep the TB3 cable from sliding off the table.

This is what I like to call the most expensive computer case on the planet. From the first picture, on the left there is that book case with the cabinet. I think this is like a $700 book case/cabinet. Top right is my beloved Lenovo Thunderbolt 3 dock, out of it comes a 7 port powered USB-C hub, attached to that is a 1TB USB-C ssd, i'm also trickle charging two USB battery banks, from there snakes a Cat 6 patch cable to

The middle shelf, which is a 1gb, 8 port unmanaged switch, and my beloved Yoga 10+ Pro tablet (USB-C charging, of course), that all feeds down to the bottom shelf,

Bottom shelf has an amazon branded UPS battery backup that the Thunderbolt 3 dock, network swtich, wireless router, and NAS are plugged in to, also has a USB out to the thunderbolt 3 dock so the laptop can shutdown automatically

Last photo, top shelf is a google wifi unit, it provides local wired internet to everything in the cabinet attached to the switch, also gives me wifi all the way to the elevator on my floor, it talks to the onhub in my bedroom where the cable internet tap is, so there's no goofy loving CAT-5 ethernet snaking around doors, under carpets or whatever. Google wifi figures it out for me, has been flawless so far

Bottom shelf is a Synology 4 bay NAS that's plugged in to the UPS and it has 6 TB mirrored backup whatever, two bays free for now, all backs up encrypted to amazon glacier for $6 a month.

All this poo poo is accessible via a single 6' cable that comes on to my desk. I am so loving happy. No cables getting tangled, no dust collecting around/between the 50 cables required to keep my laptop plugged in to all my poo poo, no dongle hell... it all lives off this one, single glorious Thunderbolt 3 cable. And yes I can (and do) game on it, even though the cable only provides 100W and the CPU + GPU can pull a max of 135W.

Thunderbolt-3 single-cable-supremacy club :slick:

# ? Mar 19, 2020 01:26

cowofwar: Jul 30, 2002; by Athanatos

Everyone talking about getting a macbook air like they wouldn�t miss the amazing :frogsiren:

touchbar

# ? Mar 19, 2020 02:29

japtor: Oct 28, 2005

Ok Comboomer posted:

I�m so curious about how these benchmark. Or did those already leak? I remember some benchmarks and some MacBook numbers that ppl expected were new MBPs. I guess these must be they?

I posted that a little while ago, they were thought to be for the MBP13 at the time but yeah they were probably the MBA, at least the quad core models. I think they were in the ballpark or a bit faster than the MBP, but the GPU had the biggest boost.

Realistically as always it'll depend on cooling so ehhh...Apple seems better as of late but we'll see. In theory it should also help that the chips are lower power and on a new process.

Ok Comboomer posted:

For real. And once you add a 5k screen to a kitted out 16� MBP you�re in �iMac+Air/13� MBP� territory anyway.

I wouldn�t be surprised if the 14� is hex-core. Maybe the SKUs come out close/identical to the 16� minus the dGPU if I can dare to dream. 8 core 14� on the top end

AMD Renoir time :v:

cowofwar posted:

Everyone talking about getting a macbook air like they wouldn’t miss the amazing touchbar

I was looking forward to using it with...something. But instead I'm saving $150 and getting a better keyboard and need a laptop soon so whatevs.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 02:40

Binary Badger: Oct 11, 2005; Trolling Link for a decade

cowofwar posted:

Everyone talking about getting a macbook air like they wouldn�t miss the amazing touchbar

Bingo, you've just made another case for getting a 2020 Air over a 2019 13-inch Pro.

It's literally a power-wasting feature IMHO and it looks like Apple feels the same way too..

# ? Mar 19, 2020 02:47

Mu Zeta: Oct 17, 2002; Me crush ass to dust

Yeah the new Air looks sweet and checks all my boxes. I'm probably going to grab one when the economy calms down.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 04:53

MarcusSA: Sep 23, 2007

I am still crossing my fingers for the rumored 14. If its nothing to write home about I'm gonna grab a new Air for sure.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 05:00

Binary Badger: Oct 11, 2005; Trolling Link for a decade

So, yeah:

MacBook Air 2020 - 1.2/3.9 GHz quad core 10th gen i7, 16 GB RAM, Iris Plus G7 GPU, 1 TB SSD - $1,849.00

MacBook Pro 2019 - 1.4/3.8 GHz quad core 8th gen i5, 16 GB RAM, Iris Plus 645 GPU, 1 TB SSD - $2,099.00

$250 cheaper! Take that $250, order a CalDigit TS3 Plus and now you've got all the USB-C / Tbolt ports you'll ever need.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 08:43

Lazyhound: Mar 1, 2004; A squid eating dough in a polyethylene bag is fast and bulbous—got me?

Mu Zeta posted:

Yeah the new Air looks sweet and checks all my boxes. I'm probably going to grab one when the economy calms down.

They finally made a Mac laptop I�d actually want to buy as soon as I stopped wanting to buy a new Mac. :shepface:

# ? Mar 19, 2020 08:54

Pivo: Aug 20, 2004

It actually bothers me that the ports are only on the left though. The way all the fixed places I use my laptop are, the cable is supposed to go off to the right. First world problems...

# ? Mar 19, 2020 12:25

eames: May 9, 2009

Do we have any benchmarks of the new MBA yet?
I'm mostly curious how the GPU compares to the MBP, then again it's a -Y CPU with 4.5W TDP, so I'm not sure why I'm getting my expectations up.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 15:03

trilobite terror: Oct 20, 2007; BUT MY LIVELIHOOD DEPENDS ON THE FORUMS!

eames posted:

Do we have any benchmarks of the new MBA yet?
I'm mostly curious how the GPU compares to the MBP, then again it's a -Y CPU with 4.5W TDP, so I'm not sure why I'm getting my expectations up.

Because it's that much thinner and lighter and available in gold and way cheaper paired with a kitted out iMac or other desktop than a comparable 16" MBP plus equally good display would be?

I mean a restrained 13" MBP SKU isn't that far off, and probably what I'd ultimately go with depending on my needs. I guess I'm somewhat Touch Bar-curious, but also every time I've tried it in-store I've been nonplussed.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:03

Bob Morales: Aug 18, 2006; ~~Just wear the fucking mask, Bob~~

I don't care how many people I probably infected with COVID-19 while refusing to wear a mask, my comfort is far more important than the health and safety of everyone around me!

I hate the touchbar. I'm touching it more on accident on my 16" than I ever did before.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:10

some kinda jackal: Feb 25, 2003; �
�

I�ve got a love/hate relationship with the touchbar.

I think it�s genuinely useful for some thing. I love having my zoom audio/video controls at the touch of a �button� and some apps do provide useful touchbar bindings, but for the most part I am annoyed by it. I can never remember how to get to function keys if I need them, and I don�t use it enough to have any significant muscle memory of �oh if I need XYZ I press this� other than volume and lock, I guess.

It�s a mixed bag IMO. I think a separate, smaller touchbar would be useful for my purposes, but that would never happen, or even be ideal for most users.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:16

Astoundingly Ugly Baby: Mar 22, 2006; "...crying bitch cave bitch boy."
- Anonymous Facebook user

Apple should turn the Touch Bar into an accessory that you plug into a TB3 port.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:46

some kinda jackal: Feb 25, 2003; �
�

Actually, I think what would be much cooler is if they took the top 10% of the giant rear end trackpad and put the touchbar there. You could make it touch disabled unless you have a button depressed as well, shift or cmd or something, or let people flip it on for touch by default.

Most of the touchpad is wasted space IMO. Fully prepared to hear that this is a terrible idea, but I'd actually prefer that to the upper touchbar IMO.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:54

Data Graham: Dec 28, 2009; 📈📊🍪😋

Astoundingly Ugly Baby posted:

Apple should turn the Touch Bar into an exhibit at the Bad Apple Ideas museum.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 16:56

Tiny Timbs: Sep 6, 2008

Touch bar shows you controls when you're using Word in focus mode. God's perfect use case.

# ? Mar 19, 2020 17:01

Corb3t: Jun 7, 2003

The touchbar is a godsend for non-English alphabet typers, so it's never going away.

It's provides more functionality. Just like USB C compared to MagSafe...

# ? Mar 19, 2020 17:08

Escape Goat: Jan 30, 2009

Martytoof posted:

Actually, I think what would be much cooler is if they took the top 10% of the giant rear end trackpad and put the touchbar there. You could make it touch disabled unless you have a button depressed as well, shift or cmd or something, or let people flip it on for touch by default.

Most of the touchpad is wasted space IMO. Fully prepared to hear that this is a terrible idea, but I'd actually prefer that to the upper touchbar IMO.

I think this is a great idea. You could even turn the entire trackpad area into a capacitive touch screen and do the partitioning of buttons/cursor by software. Could add the top macOS menu as well (file, edit, view menus etc).

# ? Mar 19, 2020 22:10

Wheeee: Mar 11, 2001; When a tree grows, it is soft and pliable. But when it's dry and hard, it dies.

Hardness and strength are death's companions. Flexibility and softness are the embodiment of life.

That which has become hard shall not triumph.

I've been hoping for a new MBP 13 for a while, but the new Air looks amazing; how well will the babby CPU quad core in the Air handle VMs?

An i5 16/512 Air is super tempting right now, especially as nobody seems to know when new Pros will come out.

# ? Mar 20, 2020 00:32

Pardot: Jul 25, 2001

I really liked my old maxed out air 11". Had a fast i7 for the time. When they brought the airs back the put the terrible 5 watt cpu in which was really disappointing. On these new airs, you can take it back up to an i7 but is there any gotcha I'm not seeing? I don�t see anywhere listing the power draw of the cpu on these ones so I'm a little apprehensive.

# ? Mar 20, 2020 01:00

cowofwar: Jul 30, 2002; by Athanatos

Escape Goat posted:

I think this is a great idea. You could even turn the entire trackpad area into a capacitive touch screen and do the partitioning of buttons/cursor by software. Could add the top macOS menu as well (file, edit, view menus etc).

What about those of us whose palms tend to overlap the top of the trackpad because we are weridos?

# ? Mar 20, 2020 01:26

Bob Morales: Aug 18, 2006; ~~Just wear the fucking mask, Bob~~

I don't care how many people I probably infected with COVID-19 while refusing to wear a mask, my comfort is far more important than the health and safety of everyone around me!

Pardot posted:

I really liked my old maxed out air 11". Had a fast i7 for the time. When they brought the airs back the put the terrible 5 watt cpu in which was really disappointing. On these new airs, you can take it back up to an i7 but is there any gotcha I'm not seeing? I don�t see anywhere listing the power draw of the cpu on these ones so I'm a little apprehensive.

"9W TDP"

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/197121/intel-core-i5-1030g4-processor-6m-cache-up-to-3-50-ghz.html

# ? Mar 20, 2020 01:32

Data Graham: Dec 28, 2009; 📈📊🍪😋

lol just make the trackpad into another little screen

# ? Mar 20, 2020 02:12

Pardot: Jul 25, 2001

Bob Morales posted:

"9W TDP"

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/197121/intel-core-i5-1030g4-processor-6m-cache-up-to-3-50-ghz.html

Thanks!

# ? Mar 20, 2020 02:23

Wheeee: Mar 11, 2001; When a tree grows, it is soft and pliable. But when it's dry and hard, it dies.

Hardness and strength are death's companions. Flexibility and softness are the embodiment of life.

That which has become hard shall not triumph.

When will people begin getting their hands on the new Airs? I want to see initial reviews and benchmarks since it's a new product, but if they haven't hosed anything up I think I'll be buying my first Mac; always liked using them, never really justified buying one until now.

# ? Mar 20, 2020 04:42

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# ? Jun 8, 2024 01:54

japtor: Oct 28, 2005

Wheeee posted:

When will people begin getting their hands on the new Airs? I want to see initial reviews and benchmarks since it's a new product, but if they haven't hosed anything up I think I'll be buying my first Mac; always liked using them, never really justified buying one until now.

Should be pretty soon. When I was ordering I think I saw ETA next week for stock configs, about two weeks for my BTO one.

Edit: according to the specs it's slightly thicker. By .02 inches.

japtor fucked around with this message at 06:18 on Mar 20, 2020

# ? Mar 20, 2020 06:12

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Serious Hardware/Software Crap > Mac Hardware - 5k Supremacy

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