[allenbrunson]

> I also agree that the pro market is ripe for disruption (again).

I kind of hope so.

I am not happy with Apple's latest moves with their Mac lineup. I have been using my current Macbook Pro for six years. I expected to buy one of the newly-announced Macs, but they really aren't speaking my language anymore. So I ordered a refurb Macbook Pro from 2015. It's still not what I would prefer, because the battery is glued in, the RAM can't be upgraded, not the latest processor, etc. But at least it still has USB-A ports, magsafe, and a physical touch pad. I guess now I've bought myself another six years' worth of time to see if Apple comes up with something that is more to my liking.

If someone were to introduce an entirely new and exciting platform, with ways to make money in its ecosystem for a programmer like me, I would strongly consider it. I've done it before. Way back in 1999, I abandoned Windows and switched to BeOS. I worked for Be, Inc. for almost a year, before they went out of business.

Even though it didn't go so well last time, I would make the jump to a new platform, a second time, in a heartbeat.

[linguae]

I concur. Before the announcement I wanted to buy a new MacBook Pro to replace my three year-old MacBook Air, but I was disappointed in what was announced (MacBook keyboard with very little key travel, being limited to 16GB RAM, and the other upgrades being rather incremental). I plan to stick to my MacBook Air for a while longer since it's in perfectly working condition.

My ideal situation would be to migrate to PC hardware, but the problem is I'm dissatisfied with the OS situation there. Windows is still annoying to use after all of these years, the Linux desktop experience seems to always be perpetually behind OS X and even Windows, and making a Hackintosh is an EULA violation (which matters to me since I use my computers in public, professional environments). I agonized about this over three years ago before eventually succumbing and buying a MacBook Air despite my dissatisfaction with Apple's trend toward non-upgradeable computers. I don't want to buy another non-upgradeable computer, but I don't like Windows and the Linux desktop, either.

I would be very interested in some sort of alternative OS, and I think the time is ripe for the development of one.

[woah]

Lack of USB A, MagSafe, and physical touch pad is what you're mad about? The first is a understandable, but a matter of obsolescence, the second also (plus you can fix it with a $20 USB c cable with magnetic breakaway). Being mad about the haptic touch pad is a real head scratcher, since it is strictly an improvement.

[donatj]

The haptic touch pad is probably the worst part in my honest opinion. It just feels wrong, even after a year of using it.

[fzzzy]

Seriously? The haptic touch pad is the best thing to ever happen to pointing devices! It is absolutely amazing.

[fzzzy]

Uhh, the 2015 retina has a haptic touchpad.

[allenbrunson]

> Uhh, the 2015 retina has a haptic touchpad.

indeed it does! i had to convince myself that it is so by trying to press the touchpad on my new mac when it was turned off. it's just "dead" in that state.

i remember hearing a lot of people complain about the "force touch" thing when it was released. i am super super sensitive to any part of a computer i have to touch, so i figured if anybody had a problem with it, i would as well. when my new mac arrived and i didn't notice anything strange about the touch pad, i just assumed i had one of the old reliable physical-button ones that i have come to know and love. so in this case, apple's hardware advance is okay with me.

... but i can name another thing i forgot that i am annoyed by: apple doesn't sell macs with matte screens anymore. i really don't like seeing my own reflection in the dark areas of the display. but they've managed to tone it down a bit. it's not as bad as it used to be in the original glossy screens they released.

[fzzzy]

I agree about the matte screen thing. I had one of the last laptops they offered with the matte option, and I used it for 5 years until a month ago, when I bought the rMBP a few weeks before Apple released the crippled new model. (The rumors were extremely accurate coming up to the launch, so I knew I wouldn't be interested in the new model.)

I was skeptical about the haptic touchpad, but now after using it for a while (I got a Magic Trackpad 2 a few months ago) I'm extremely impressed and feel like it is better than a physical click in every way. I think it is better on my RSI as well.