[chucker]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 After seeing that new iMac, I no longer buy the rumor of the card slot, HDMI port, etc. returning to a new, redesigned MacBook Pro. The ports already there would support all those functions, right (with the appropriate dongle/adaptor), right? It just doesn't seem very 2021 Apple to go back and ad large "legacy" type ports that not all users may need or want. Provide four(?) of the ports already in use, plus a single audio/headphone port (or will they even do that), and just let the so-called "pro" user purchase exactly what they want in the way of adaptors to use with the hardware specific to them.

[ Yes, you can go from the four Thunderbolt port to virtually any port, and I think getting some kind of hub/dock for this is a good idea anyway. Have a relatively lightweight laptop on the go, and your desk setup ready at home and/or at work. It can even include power, so just one cable to plug in. Kind of like the ol' PowerBook Duo setup.

But. Even leaving aside cost (it's essentially another $80-300 on top of the already pricy laptop), this isn't great on the go. What if you're on the train and just want to plug in an SD card real quick? What if you're presenting at a client's and want to hook up to the projector via HDMI? There goes another $50-100 for a portable dongle that has the essentials. And the embarrassing moment where you forget to bring it with you will happen sooner or later. ]

Now, back to the M1 and the rumors. I don't think the iMac is that much of an indication here, for two reasons: one, it's clearly the low-end model, with some severe limitations (just 16 GiB RAM max, just one external display, no eGPU, just two Thunderbolt ports). I imagine Apple's workhorse laptop, the 16-inch MBP, will have few or none of those restrictions.

And two, while this is entirely a choice of Apple's own doing, many ports wouldn't fit in the iMac; it simply isn't thick enough. They sort of hacked the headphone jack by putting it on the side (which they should've done all along, TBH). It'll be interesting to see what they do on bigger iMacs. Do they get more side ports? (Those… kind of have downsides, too. Rather awkward to permanently have stuff hanging out of there.) Are they significantly thicker and therefore can fit deeper ports on the back? (Doesn't sound plausible to me.) Either way: the MBP doesn't have those problems. It has all its ports on the side anyway (going all the way back to the 2003 aluminum PowerBooks, and even further back to the 2001 white iBook), which works better than it would on the iMac, because the device is flat to the surface.

All of which is to say: they would've had to do a lot to accommodate more ports on this iMac design, but they wouldn't on the MBP. SD probably fits already. Make it just a tad thicker, and HDMI also fits.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Apple would never, unless the entire sides (both) are littered with various ports, accommodate every type of "pro" user out there and what they made need for their specific pursuits (photography, video, etc.). But provide four powerful ports than can be anything. Because I know people who have older MacBook Pros with HDMI, card slot, etc. and have never once touched them. Why saddle an otherwise sleek machine with ports that may not appeal to, or be used by, many users? Provide the capability, keep the machine itself sleek and uncluttered, and, for those who require HDMI, card slots, USB A, DVI this, VGA that and all the rest...they have options to get exactly what they need/want.

Absolutely, but Apple can do (and almost certainly has done) research on this and will have noticed that 1) almost nobody needs DVI these days (OTOH, I'm literally reading this on a creaky old DVI display); 2) some projectors are still VGA-only, but that has become rare. Ethernet would be very nice, but that wouldn't fit on the 2012 Retina design, much less the 2016 Touch Bar design, so that ain't happening. That leaves HDMI, SD (CF is too niche) and USB-A, and I wouldn't be shocked to see some of those make a return.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 I think the "Pro" in MacBook Pro, on this next go-around, is hinging on performance, vs. "provide every possible I/O solution in existence, including the old stuff we jettisoned some time ago". You simply can't predict/know all the devices and connections any 5-10 "pro" users may require. So don't. Provide the Thunderbolt and let them figure out what they need. They're "professionals", spending $1,799(?)+ on their new high-end MacBook Pro...they're completely capable of knowing what it is they use/need in the way of add-ons and peripherals.

The problem is this was clearly their strategy for the 2016 MBP, and… it was met with a rather lukewarm reception. Very, very few people said that this was the best MBP of all time. Between the Touch Bar, the butterfly keyboard, the lack of port choices, and some other decisions, it felt like a misstep to many. (Intel screwing up their CPUs in that era didn't help.)

It's hard to quantify, but it seems like, to many, the previous 2012 Retina generation is regarded as simply better, and while it would be very un-Apple-like to take a step back, they have done exactly that with the keyboard, and maybe they will with the ports as well.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 (the new 24" iMac, you'll notice all over Apple.com, is accompanied with an asterisk disclaimer stating that the display is actually 23.5" diagonally, just two inches larger than the model it replaced). But "24" sounds much nicer, doesn't it?

I've always found it odd that they call it the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. Why? Literally nobody would complain if they just round up. 11-inch iPad Pro; 13-inch iPad Pro. Done and done.