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MacRumors: Apple's Most Questionable Design Decisions in Recent History


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MacRumors: Apple's Most Questionable Design Decisions in Recent History
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-23, 10:26

I saw this article this morning.

Thought it was kinda interesting since we sometimes talk about this sort of thing here. When they lay it all out like that, so starkly, it really says something. Yes, we remember/celebrate the original iMac, iPod, iMac G4, the iPhone, the MacBook Air and a gazillion other things...which makes some some of the utter boneheadery above stand out a little more.

Some of these things are just downright...stupid. And are true examples of form over function (wanting to be as sleek, seamless or minimalist as possible, while sacrificing real-world usability and convenience.

This is also Apple's legacy. And while I hate to flog an expired Mr. Ed, I believe there's one person squarely at the center of most of these.



To give credit, he was squarely at the center of the other things I mention above as well. But those don't provide a lifetime pass, either...
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Quagmire
meh
 
Join Date: May 2004
 
2022-01-23, 10:51

Yeah Magic Mouse having the charge port on the bottom is silly, but as someone who does manage the battery and doesn’t just wait until it is fully drained, it’s easily managed. Plug in overnight or when I know I won’t be using the computer( like when I’m on the treadmill).

But I won’t complain if they move it either. Hehe

giggity
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-23, 12:27

Well absolutely. A wireless mouse shouldn't be built in such a way that it requires frequent, ongoing wired/tethered usage. I, too, just always assumed I could charge that (and the keyboard) overnight every so often.

And that's probably their thinking, having it on the bottom to where someone would do just that as they slept. But it's still one of those goofy things that made it past the questioning stage.

That pencil thing is even more

At that point, it's a weapon. Or a surefire way to break your pencil and/or your iPad.

I think Ive just didn't want any seams, ports, openings, slots, etc. at all, to an almost psychotic level.

"Jony, I promise they won't ask for all their design awards back if, going forward, you make some of this shit make a little more real-world sense...".

Maybe I'm wrong, but I can't buy for one second that he had an ounce of anything to do with those two new 14" and 16" MacBook Pros. Too unapologetically pudgy, too many holes in the side, etc.
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Ryan
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Promise Land of Trustafarians
 
2022-01-23, 12:35

Quote:
Originally Posted by psmith2.0 View Post
Maybe I'm wrong, but I can't buy for one second that he had an ounce of anything to do with those two new 14" and 16" MacBook Pros. Too unapologetically pudgy, too many holes in the side, etc.
And for that we are all grateful.

If Jony had his way we'd all be trying to wedge wireless charging pads under our MacBooks.
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
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2022-01-23, 13:17

I’m honestly surprised Apple didn’t release a Magic Mouse 3 with the mag safe tech from the iPhone 12.

I warned my parents about getting those mice, they insisted on getting Magic Mice 2 for their new machines. Then they complained about how it charges. I had one of those, I told you so moments.
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chucker
 
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2022-01-23, 17:04

Quote:
Originally Posted by psmith2.0 View Post
"Jony, I promise they won't ask for all their design awards back if, going forward, you make some of this shit make a little more real-world sense...".
Exactly.
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-23, 17:52

I'm one of those weirdos who loves the Apple Magic Mouse. I still have the old first version that takes two AA batteries. But I've used it for a thousand years now and love it. My favorite mouse ever.

If I get an iMac at some point, that'll take care of it (comes with a new one). And if I opt for that upcoming, redesigned Air (or whatever they name it), I'll get a new standalone Magic Mouse 2 to go with it (bottom port and all). I sleep every night...I can hook it up to charge overnight once in a while and I'll never know how stupid it looks.

It looks like it's dead and lying on its back, with an IV or some other medical tube going into it.

But I love how they look, feel and work. Always have!
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
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2022-01-23, 18:31

I don't mind a first gen Magic Mouse, I have one for my Mac Mini. Not my favorite mouse in the world, but hardly the worst. Would be hate to be stuck with the gen 2 with the built in battery, cause it's almost certain to be dead in few years, forcing you to shell out for another one. Gen 1, just slap in a new set of batteries, and will likely keep going till the switches or optical sensor dies.
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-23, 18:44

That is true. That is the one thing I wonder about...anything with a battery eventually weinees out and stops holding a good charge over time.

This current Magic Mouse is a solid 12 years old. I replace the batteries every 2-3 months.

I wouldn't want to be on the hook for another entire mouse in just a couple of years (which seems to be when the iPhone battery starts to show its age). Any info on how long a Magic Mouse 2 lasts in real-world, moderate-to-heavy usage?

EDIT: I've seen 3-5 years on just a couple of quick Google looks. Not what I was hoping to see. Oh well.

PS - I never turn my current Magic Mouse off when I'm done using it (either for a few hours or for the entire day and it's sitting here overnight as I sleep). Is that something I should be doing? Fine time to ask, 12 years into it...

I'll start doing so tonight if it squeezes another few weeks of battery usage out of it. I just never have.

The only time I turn the mouse off is if I'm leaving out of town for three or more days. At that point, yeah...I'll turn the little slider switch off and make the green light go away.
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Dave
Ninja Editor
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Bay Area, CA
 
2022-01-24, 16:29

I think the charging mechanism on the 1st-gen Apple Pencil is dumbest, most brain-dead thing I’ve seen in consumer electronics I’ve ever seen.

I mean, the rest of those are all dumb, too, but the pencil charging mechanism takes the cake for me.

When I was a kid, people who did wrong were punished, restricted, and forbidden. Now, when someone does wrong, all of the rest of us are punished, restricted, and forbidden... and the one who did the wrong is counselled and "understood" and fed ice cream.
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709
¡Damned!
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Purgatory
 
2022-01-24, 16:49

Quote:
Originally Posted by PB PM View Post
Gen 1, just slap in a new set of batteries, and will likely keep going till the switches or optical sensor dies.
I still have a Gen 1 Magic Mouse on a machine, and it's still using the rechargeable battery kit Apple sold back around the same time (well, 4 out of the original 6 batteries are still working). Best $29 I ever spent.

So it goes.
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kscherer
Which way is up?
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
 
2022-01-24, 17:04

I hate the Magic Mouse with the stupid little ball on the top.

I hate the Magic Mouse series because they're all too flat.

The 1st-gen Pencil has the dumbest charging system on Earth. 2nd-gen is cool as hell.

HomePods are … and I don't know why they aren't on this list.

Not having reasonable, product-matched displays is a dumb design decision.

And why is there no software on this list? I would take System Preferences apart and rebuild it so it isn't a password-repetitive mess.

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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-24, 17:34

I had that Apple rechargeable thing too some years ago. It was nice.
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
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2022-01-24, 18:47

Quote:
Originally Posted by kscherer View Post
I hate the Magic Mouse with the stupid little ball on the top.
You mean the “Mighty Mouse”, which pre-dated the Magic Mouse.



A family member has one on a older computer. It was mine, and I liked it till the ball got clogged with crap the umpteenth time. Now the ball is dead, and the sensor on the right half doesn’t work.
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-24, 18:58

Had one of those too. Yeah, that little tiny roller ball would just get dunked up over time and require some messing with. The curse of moving parts.
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kscherer
Which way is up?
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
 
2022-01-24, 19:14

Yeah, that's right. But it was only called the Mighty Mouse for about 11.5 minutes. Apple got sued by 20th Century Fox and changed the name to Apple Mouse.

Which did not make it work any better.

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chucker
 
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2022-01-24, 19:26

Quote:
Originally Posted by kscherer View Post
Yeah, that's right. But it was only called the Mighty Mouse for about 11.5 minutes. Apple got sued by 20th Century Fox and changed the name to Apple Mouse.

Which did not make it work any better.
I don’t think that’s right; they licensed the name.
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
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2022-01-24, 20:12

If that did happen it wasn’t until after I got mine, the box was clearly labeled as Mighty Mouse.
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kscherer
Which way is up?
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
 
2022-01-25, 12:10

Quote:
Originally Posted by chucker View Post
I don’t think that’s right; they licensed the name.
It's a typically goofy trademark story. Apple had a license, but then they didn't and stopped calling it that.

But, no matter how you want to spin the name, the thing was a piece of crap!

- AppleNova is the best Mac-users forum on the internet. We are smart, educated, capable, and helpful. We are also loaded with smart-alecks! :)
- Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Mat 5:9)
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-25, 13:11

At least it wasn't a perfect circle.

I've still got my tangerine "hockey puck" mouse (along with the iMac DV it's attached to) sitting in my closet. The plastic/rubber(?) is breaking down or something because it's now all gooey-sticky when you try to hold it.

Man, I'd love to reboot that iMac, but its hard drive died 19+ years ago. I'd love to see what version of OS X I had on it (Jaguar?), what files I had in my documents folder, which ancient version of Illustrator I was using, what my music library looked like (pre-iTunes Store, back when I was ripping/digitizing my own CD collection), my surfing history (or maybe not), etc.
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
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2022-01-25, 15:33

The puck, yes we had a ton of those with our Power Macs. It even got a small revision at some point that added a little ridge to rest your fingers on.
  quote
psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2022-01-25, 15:48

Yeah, I think they "improved" it on that iMac DV run (maybe even before?) because mine has the dimple. But I used the ones that didn't. While the cord itself should be a solid indicator as to its orientation, sometimes you just want to go by feel.

It's always funny to look back at what was novel/cool decades earlier (not just computers either) and kinda do that shudder/cringe thing.

But, silly mouses aside, that 1998-2003 period was my favorite re: Apple. I was neck-deep in the company, the products, Steve was firing on all cylinders, we'd gather in the conference room to watch the Macworld and other keynotes (if they were streamed). Me and all my co-workers lived and breathed this stuff, and it was always so exciting to see what was coming next. No shape was out of the question for a while there! Jellybean computers, round mice, toilet seat laptops with built-in carrying handle, etc. No colors were off-limits either...key lime, Strawberry, Blue Dalmation, grape.

I remember, for a while there, actual announced products were crazier than anything I'd mock up or doodle!

"Wow...that's quite the shade of green!"
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chucker
 
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2022-01-25, 17:46

Quote:
Originally Posted by kscherer View Post
It's a typically goofy trademark story. Apple had a license, but then they didn't and stopped calling it that.
Oh, fascinating. Thanks.
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