It's insane how boldly (for Apple) they focused on ports and cables. I can't remember a previous demo video that showed so many ugly cables hanging out the back of the machine. They've finally realized it's a selling point!
They did better with the limited space they have — they included a bunch of multi-functional USB-C ports that can be used with dongles for additional HDMI ports!
USB-C (or Thunderbolt) can also carry a DisplayPort link natively, and you don't even need a dongle for that. Workstations don't really care about HDMI, that's for TVs.
Not only that but with the Ultra variant, all of the USB-C ports are thunderbolt 4 ports at 80gb/s, that's a massive amount of IO.
(note that despite the number of ports - only 4 of them can be running displays, plus the HDMI port gets its own channel)
On Max it's only 4 thunderbolt ports (and I would assume 2 displays + 1 HDMI since it's half of an Ultra) but still, that's about 2x anything else on the market.
> Workstations don't really care about HDMI, that's for TVs.
And people who only have HDMI cables! I was using display port on my old MacBook, but I'm using HDMI on the new one as I already had an HDMI cable, but not a USB-C to DisplayPort one.
It's still useful to have at least one HDMI port. For things presenting at other people's offices, where you don't want to be carrying a cable or dongle around with you.
USB-C to DisplayPort cables are like $14 on Amazon. I'm responding to you using one. I have a MacBook Air in clamshell mode with 1 USB-C going to the display and a $10 hub that does Power Delivery and 3 USB-A ports for speakers, Yubikey, and external SSD for backup.
I had a M1 Mac Mini but I do occasionally want to take a Mac with me so I replaced it with the Air. I only slightly miss the extra ports on the Mini.
Tangent: it's a personal pet peeve that Model M buckling-spring keyboards often pull too much power for modern PCs. This is particularly apparent with the PS/2-to-USB adapters but also happens with some PCs using "native" PS/2 connection. And then I got a fancy Unicomp Model M with native USB connection and... that does it too.
That was on a Dell desktop I had at a previous job. Not sure if it was just kinda crappy, or whether the inrush current on those Model Ms is just that big.
I haven't found a reliable HDMI setup for 4k at 60 FPS yet, while OTS display port has been fine. TBQH in this price point and market segment that's the minimum requirement, so I can understand why they don't ship with HDMI.
For standard lengths up to 10m any HDMI 2.0 cable from decent manufacturers, like AmazonBasics or Monoprice will be fine. For longer lengths it gets tricky and you have to be quite selective but that's a niche use case.
This is Google with their new battery-powered Nest Doorbell explaining that it can't record 24/7 video _even when it's plugged in_ because "it's too thin and the thermals presented problems."
MAKE IT THICKER. IT'S A GODDAMN DOORBELL. YOU CONTROL THE THICKNESS! THERE IS LITERALLY NO REQUIREMENT IT BE THAT THIN!
Because nobody outside hardcore computer nerds wants a beige box tower with 14 drive bays sitting on their desk. People want quite little boxes that gets work done without having to have dedicated room for loud machines.
The advantage of a huge beige box ( mine is white actually) is that easy airflow and acoustic padding makes them pretty quiet. But yes huge. Mine is 24" x 20" x 10". And very heavy. Not on my desk.
So your opinion is that you want it. My opinion is I don't. HDMI is much more limiting.
Say that you're a manufacturer trying to keep an eye towards wants new vs supporting what's old, what decisions do you make to support new and retro without increasing the costs? At some point, having backseat decision makers giving input results in the car designed by Homer.
Of all of the things I've personally railed on Apple about in the past as well as others, their most recent HW offerings have been a great compromise. They've brought back some USB-A, SD card reader, HDMI, etc. They realized they've gone too far in certain areas, but some how they had a come to Jeebus meeting that reigned them back in.
If there were two HDMI ports, how would that impact your one-HDMI world? It's clear from the comments others would find it useful. So that's a valid compromise. It's on the back of the unit so you wouldn't have to stare at that second unused port and shudder in disgust.
> trying to keep an eye towards wants new vs supporting what's old
No one is suggesting they trade anything away. Apple has settled on USB-C. But there's plenty of extra room on the rear panel. Your argument assumes benevolence on Apple's part. For all you know the chips support dual HDMI, they removed it to save money which ends up being pure profit because they didn't reduce the product price at all. Do you think adding a second HDMI would increase the arbitrary price from $2k to $2k plus $20?
For the record, I would LOVE it if the Mac startup chime played "La Cucaracha"
Sure, but I don't think any Apple Silicon Mac has dual HDMI. While I guess it's possible that they spent the money to design dual HDMI support in their own chips and then said "but now that we've done this, we can save twenty bucks by not actually making the physical ports," but doesn't it seem likely that they also saved the money by…not putting it on the chip?
> Do you think adding a second HDMI would increase the arbitrary price from $2k to $2k plus $20?
Do you think anyone contemplating buying a computer that starts at $2K is going to suddenly stop, slap their forehead, and scream, "To connect two HDMI monitors, I'm going to have to buy a $15 USB-C to HDMI cable instead of a $6 HDMI cable! That extra $9 blows my budget! CURSE YOU, TIM COOK!"
I mean, I get what you're saying, but this just seems like a weirdly tiny hill to die on. :)
> For the record, I would LOVE it if the Mac startup chime played "La Cucaracha"
You want a 2nd HDMI port, probably because you already own HDMI cables by the drawer full. That's a valid something.
However, it's not like you have to replace your monitors because of only one HDMI port. There are cables that go from TB4 to HDMI without dongles. Yes, you would need a new something instead of the something you already have.
Do you really know what the cost of adding a 2nd HDMI port to a system is? I do not. I do know it will be much more than the cost of the actual port connector itself. There's a new hole to be added to the case. There's more robotically soldered points to connect the new port to the system. Of the way the system is laid out on the board, is there enough bandwidth to supply signals to all of the ports? I have no idea the level of complexities involved in deciding what ports are available with the bandwidth of the system, but I do not for a second think that I could do it better.
For people with big clunky PC boxes, they stick it under a desk or on the floor because that's where it fits and it's out of sight.
Because of the "sleek" design and smaller size, Apple has people convinced that the computer should be like children in the '50s--seen but not heard.
If you offer someone a computer in the shape of the mac mini or this new studio design OR they could have a typical PC style box, I'm guessing the majority of people will choose the smaller box. Even if there are no Apple logos on the smaller box. Nobody wants a 30+lb box any more. As an editor, you can take this bad boy on the road with you without incurring overweight luggage fees at the airport.
The current model Mac Pro at least supports add-in PCIe cards. So you are only 1 sound card away from having as many headphone and other audio jacks that you want.
Which display are you using and does it wake up properly when you wake your mac mini? I've had a problem with displays that wake up normally with an intel based mac but not with an M1 mac.
I'm also using a 144hz monitor (Samsung 28" G70A) with a DP-USB-C cable. Wakes up normally and VRR works both with my new MBP (M1 Pro) and with the previous MBA (M1).
Like others have mentioned, I've used displayport over usb-c for high-refresh rate at high resolution. Atm I'm using that for low-refresh rate 30" screen. Though I believe LG and Dell screens do have USB-C directly.
For cases when you have let's say a gaming PC and a Macbook connected to the same screen. You want a USB-C port so the Macbook will get everything from a single USB-C port (power included), but you also want your gaming PC to benefit from a high performance monitor with high refresh rates on a DisplayPort/HDMI connection.
Isn't this what a dock is for? Are you treating your monitor itself as the dock? I still don't see why the monitor itself needs USB-C support.
I use a Lenovo Thunderbolt dock for both my M1 16" MBP and a Lenovo laptop running Linux. It runs 2 x DisplayPort monitors, mouse, keyboard, and webcam.
> Isn't this what a dock is for? Are you treating your monitor itself as the dock
Yep. There are monitors with Type-C, power delivery, usb hub, so they avoid you the need of having a dock. Usually they're priced at around monitor+fancy dock, so it doesn't even cost more for more practicality.
And yet none on the front. So your shoebox full of thumb drives are useless and you have to plug them in from behind.
Just to be clear yes I know USB-C thumb drives exist but they are next to useless because their whole purpose is to shuttle files between devices. Devices that likely don't have USB-C yet.
Apple is one of the world's biggest proliferators of e-waste through indirect means. No charger with the new phone huh? Well it's USB-C cable won't fit your old charger or computer either.
USB-A is the de-facto standard for thumb drives. Are we all just supposed to throw them away overnight because Apple blessed us with computers without USB-A ports? Or, they'll sell you a dongle for $19 which can be had on Aliexpress for $0.75. Would it have killed them to throw an extra USB-A 3.x port on the nearly empty front panel? It carries nearly the same signals as USB-C minus power delivery. No, this was a purely aesthetic decision. Apple could design a brick PC with no ports besides power and people would still pleasure themselves into a coma at the thought of spending $2k on such a grotesque monstrosity.
>Apple is one of the world's biggest proliferators of e-waste through indirect means.
This seems like a very disingenous way of saying that Apple is one of the largest companies on the planet and sells hundreds of millions of devices a year.
Given that Apple regularly supports devices almost a decade old with firmware updates, has one of the most aggressive environmental agendas in the industry, and has invested billions of dollars in recycling programs, I would hazard a guess and say that on an adjusted basis they probably compare very favourably to competitors like Samsung and other OEMs.
>USB-A is the de-facto standard for thumb drives. Are we all just supposed to throw them away overnight because Apple blessed us with computers without USB-A ports?
You're upset about having to reach seven inches further to plug in a USB drive. If that's enough to cause you to throw all of your thumb drives away then I'd say that reflects more on you than on Apple.
>Or, they'll sell you a dongle for $19 which can be had on Aliexpress for $0.75.
There's a considerable engineering (and therefore cost) difference between a dongle that carries all the required electrical certifications, and a 75c Chinese firestarter that stands as much chance of damaging your computer as enhancing it, but that's moot anyway since nobody is forcing you to buy the Apple-made adapter in the first place.
>Would it have killed them to throw an extra USB-A 3.x port on the nearly empty front panel?
Given the form factor, quite possibly. It isn't as simple as just cutting out a slot and sticking a connector in, you need to route that connecter internally and find space on the logic board for the supporting circuitry, which has all sorts of difficult implications for the board layout.
And for what? How many thumb drives do you think the average person needs to plug in at any given moment? Why do you assume that your extremely narrow use-case is so important that it must be given the highest possible priority for Apple's engineers to meet?
The overwhelmingly vast majority of consumers, even pro consumers, will do just fine plugging their thumb drives into the back of the very small box sitting in front of them, or plugging in a USB hub to one of the USB-C ports on the front. Why add complexity and cost to solve a non-problem for a tiny subset of users who, if they're anything like you, were never going to buy an Apple product irrespective of what ports it has on the front?
Okay, so don't give them your business. I'm sure you're protest with your wallet will have Apple contemplating their "0 thought applied to their decision" for the next go round.
If you are willing to buy a $0.75 anything from Alibaba and trust it with your precious data, you do you. As I've already suggested, you more than likely already have everything you need in a drawer, on your desktop, etc that will allow multiple USB-A devices to connect through a single port.
On that kind of device it doesn't cost them much and those features are more appreciated. It's not much of a war. On the laptops it becomes a bit more of a design conundrum. I'd imagine they have different leadership teams, and, Jobs + Ive are both gone. So there's that.
