Going back to squared-off, full-thickness edges - as they’ve done with the iPhone 12 and 13 and these new MacBook Pros - may buy them a smidge more room for batteries without having to do the “terraced” type of design to better fill those tapered or rounded perimeters?
Having uniform thickness/depth across the span of a notebook, phone or tablet body might mean it’s easier to pack stuff in without having to custom-design novel, space-filling approaches?
I do find it interesting how there’s a return to things that worked so well in the past…the last two flagship iPhones look like the iPhone 4/5 from a decade ago.
The new MacBook Pro looks more like the PowerBook G4 or those very early Macbook Pros when they still looked more like a solid slab and didn’t have the tapered perimeter.
The iMac has gone back to colors, white bezels/keyboard (and I believe the upcoming non-pro redesign will as well, just as the original iBook and white MacBooks had). That’s all design/appearance cues from 20 years ago when these models were so popular, unique and screamed “Apple”.
Oh, and the Mac mini returned to silver (so Space Grey can be used for it’s rumored pro version).
A significant chunk of Apple’s lineup is taking on the design/appearance of iconic, beloved products from 1-2 decades ago.
I think they’re conveying something with that. “We kinda nailed it, years ago. We’ve deviated from it in recent years and maybe it’s time we look to the past, when it makes sense to do so.”
Fine with me! Good design is, in theory, timeless. It it works better a certain way, then returning to a modern take on that is allowed, IMO. There’s no dishonor or laziness in that. It’s admitting “hey, we had something good, but we’ve branched away from it over time.” They’re just refining/improving on proven design, instead of attempting to re-invent the wheel for no valid reason or tangible benefit.
Because we’ve seen what can result when form, thinness and minimalism are given priority on the wrong products…those things work better on consumer-oriented, non-pro products. Pro gear should never be subject to “looking sleek, above all else” thinking.
AS and the departure of Ive (or at least his day-to-day input/influence/direction) is what “saves” the Mac and returns it to its glory days. 2021-2022 will be when things turned around for Macs, IMO.
Couldn’t be happier.