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As interesting as the new MacBook Pro is, particularly the Touch Bar model, it seems that Apple has made things under the hood more complicated than ever before, making the laptop practically impossible to effectively repair. The new design changes also make upgradeability of system RAM or the SSD impossible, forcing you to pay Apple's premium memory and storage prices upfront.
This week, teardown specialists, iFixit, released their assesment of the new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, giving it a 1/10 repairability rating. It also revealed a few other unwanted design changes, like the fact that the laptop's two speaker grilles are actually just for show as neither of the speakers are located near them. Instead, these speakers likely direct their sound through the side vents of the laptop.
Image Credit: iFixit
While past MacBook Pro's have allowed users to replace the RAM and SSD, this time around all of the components are soldered directly to the logic board and the battery is glued to the case. This makes upgrades impossible, meaning you will have to pay Apple's £180 price tag for 16GB of RAM, or pick up a more expensive model entirely for more storage.
A poor repairability score isn't completely new for the MacBook Pro when it comes to iFixit's rating system but the lack of upgradeability options does sting a bit with these new models.
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KitGuru Says: I bought my MacBook Pro back in 2011 and over time I have upgraded the RAM and switched out the HDD for an SSD to keep the machine running snappy. In all, the upgrades probably cost me less than £100. However, if you wanted to make similar upgrades to Apple's new model, you would need to do so when you first pick it up and it will end up costing you the better part of £500. It's a shame Apple values compact design over practicality these days. Still, the standard MacBook Pro with no Touch Bar should still be upgradeable for now.
Well, Apple fans seem to know no level of self-respect as they gladly pay Apple’s exorbitant prices (aka The apple tax) for the same hardware they could get for 60% of the price with a PC…and the reasoning for which is based on the myths they perpetuate of PC’s shortcomings and Apple’s greatness.
And here is one of the reasons I won’t buy Apple. An onboard SSD is so expensive; so I bought my current laptop without one and then replaced the ODD with an SSD. Just one of the ways in which I can change the specs of my laptop, at a decent price instead of paying premium up front.
But one cannot deny Apple has a great business strategy, because fellow academics keep asking me why I would want a Windows laptop, and they consistently trash it. (Ironically, they experience far more software problems than I do; but fanboyism was never about rationality.)
To be fair, Apple products DO look amazing and they often use premium materials. When that is said, it’s sad to see which path Apple has chosen. I like their hardware, but the software is… not exactly my cup of tea. Poor repairability and no option for upgrades puts this model on my list of things to never touch.
They’re making their products less re-usable and more disposable
This feels like the actions of a company on the verge of bankruptcy, cheaping out and cutting corners where they can and forcing consumers to pay exorbitant prices to repair Apple products. Removing IO and charging far, far to much for adapters just so you can get a USB port that should come with any laptop and in fact comes with machines that are much more powerful and cost less. A multi-billion dollar company….
No one gains buying Apple products but Apple…….