7 ms·

But the old MBP had two thunderbolts and an HDMI connector, on top of the two USB. You could plug in 3 displays, charge it and still have room for a mouse and a

by tnones 10y ago

But the old MBP had two thunderbolts and an HDMI connector, on top of the two USB. You could plug in 3 displays, charge it and still have room for a mouse and a keyboard. Now it's always a trade-off, so on top of DVI/HDMI/DP dongles, you'll have to carry a USB hub.

glogla 10y ago
And having to use a special Apple dongle to connect normal mouse or flash disk is downright embarassing.
- spankalee 10y ago
  Why would it be a special Apple dongle? Any USB-C to USB-A adapter would work, until you get a USB-C mouse.
  - bluedino 10y ago
    USB C mouse? Let me know when you can pick one of those up at Staples or Best Buy
    - bartvk 10y ago
      Why the snark? It'll probably take a year before you can get a cheap throw-away mouse with USB-C at Staples or Best Buy. But assuming you're a professional, you either already have a bluetooth mouse/trackpad or you'll want some quality and order a mouse from a reputable brand.
      - bluedino 10y ago
        Does Logitech make a USB-C receiver for their wireless mouse yet?
        bartvk 10y ago
        Heh, that's an interesting point you make. Assuming you can't or don't want to use Bluetooth, I was surprised to see that in The Netherlands, there's only 1 brand that carries an USB-C mouse, and it's a budget brand as well: http://www.trust.com/en/product/20969-usb-c-retractable-mini-mouse-black http://www.trust.com/en/product/20969-usb-c-retractable-mini... So I have to admit it's indeed very, very slim pickings.
    - jsz0 10y ago
      How about a $10 USB-C mouse from Amazon?
- Roritharr 10y ago
  Nothing special about it, its standardized. Actually Apple just released a Notebook that has NO proprietary ports anymore. As a Surface User I find this astonishing and great. On top of this I find it weird that people say they have to carry 20 Apple branded dongles. Depending on your use-case there is already type-c usb hubs with HDMI Ports, or Ethernet Ports, or both.[1] The thing is, I love the USB-C TB3 Ports and I love Apple's decision to drag the industry kicking and screaming into a reality where an Office can have a Monitor that is a Thunderbolt 3 Hub, connected with Ethernet and peripherals, that work with both Windows and Mac. This will revolutionize flex-desk setups for big organizations and Co-Workingspaces everywhere. Imo it's worth to have this transition period where people drag a dongle with them to achieve this. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Resolution-Aluminum-MacBook-ChromeBook-Supported/dp/B01EIWJ9QG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1477758507&sr=8-4&keywords=usb+c&refinements=p_89%3AAukey https://www.amazon.com/Resolution-Aluminum-MacBook-ChromeBoo...
  - LoSboccacc 10y ago
    macbook users tend to overlap with iphone users. so there's that, no hub I know has also a thunderbolt. will happen given enough time and the current demand, but if this was the direction engineering went with the laptop, a revolutionary iphone would have had two usb c
    - Roritharr 10y ago
      Correct, Apple's decision to insist on lightning for the iPhone is a bad one considering where the wind is blowing.
    - jsjohnst 10y ago
      > no hub I know has also a thunderbolt Belkin, Elgato, OWC and others sell them. I use the Belkin one and it works great.
  - farm_code 10y ago
    And then replace laptop with your phone. Continuum.
- eropple 10y ago
  My flash drives will be a minor pain in the rear, but the disks I use more often (4TB+ externals) just take a C-to-B cable and I'm done. I don't think this is going to be as big a deal as people say. Honestly, the biggest beef I have is removing the SD card slot, because I do a lot of photo/video work.
  - slantyyz 10y ago
    >> I don't think this is going to be as big a deal as people say. I think it depends on the type of user you are. If you're a true "mobile user", it's probably not a big deal, because you put a value on mobility over other stuff. If you treat your laptop as a "portable desktop", it can get annoying. The ability to not have dongles for everything is one less thing to think about. Yes, it's not the end of the world to have dongles, but if you're used to not needing dongles, being forced to use them is going to make you unhappy.
    - eropple 10y ago
      I'm not really a "mobile user". But I'll be happy to be able to run my entire desk off of one plug rather than the five (power, two monitors, two USB, one of which is a hub) that are currently plugged into my 15" MBP.
cma 10y ago
Or a Bluetooth mouse/keyboard (which may need their own chargers; hopefully will be chargable via usb-c directly in the future as things transition).
colanderman 10y ago
Where could you possibly go where (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub, and you did not think to keep a USB hub there? Either you're mobile and need the USB ports, or stationary and there's a hub there. What use case am I missing?
- ctrl-j 10y ago
  > (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub. I don't know of a monitor that doesn't require a USB A-B cable to provide USB, so you're looking at three $70 adapters, plus three USB A-B cables. Sure maybe all that lives at the office. It's still less convenient. I still can't get over the fact that you can't plug your new iPhone 7 into your new Macbook Pro without a dongle.
  - colanderman 10y ago
    My Apple monitor at work provides USB and Ethernet over the same cable (mini-DP) it uses for video. Every day I go in I just connect the mini-DP and MagSafe (both of which come from the monitor) and magically all my peripherals are connected. It seems like in the new USB-C world, I'd only have to connect one cable. Bonus points if it's sturdier than mini-DP and less flaky than MagSafe. Sure beats those weird-ass proprietary docks that used to be common ~10 years ago.
    - AlexandrB 10y ago
      > It seems like in the new USB-C world, I'd only have to connect one cable. That's something I've never seen properly explained. Can you charge at 100W at the same time as using Thunderbolt 3 connectivity? It strikes me as unlikely since the power delivery and the signaling would have to share the same pins/wires. Edit: I stand corrected after seeing that new LG monitor. Now I'm just curious how it works. Even PoE can't deliver 100w and Thunderbolt 3 uses much higher speeds while having to inject power.
djrogers 10y ago
Yeah, but your thunderbolt or USB-c monitor can now provide power, wired Ethernet, etc all over one of the 4 ports.
petemill 10y ago
The new 5k monitor display[1] not only connects with a USB-C but it also provides charging power (85W) to the Macbook at the same time. Plus, it has an additional 3 USB-C ports, meaning you plug one cable in to your Macbook Pro, and you are left with a total of 6 USB-C slots free, which you don't need because power is provided over the same cable anyway... [1] http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HKN62LL/A/lg-ultrafine-5k-display http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HKN62LL/A/lg-ultrafine-5k-...
- robotresearcher 10y ago
  I wish it had an Ethernet port and a couple of legacy USB ports on the back to avoid the mess and cost of dongles. The old Apple Lightning Display was a nice everything-dock.
  - bwilliams18 10y ago
    There are a ton of good T-Bolt 3 dock options out there, none provide power at the moment, but I'm sure someone will have one on the market shortly.
  - bartvk 10y ago
    Here in Europe we have the Philips Brilliance 258B6QUEB http://www.philips.co.uk/c-p/258B6QUEB_00/brilliance-lcd-monitor-with-usb-c-dock http://www.philips.co.uk/c-p/258B6QUEB_00/brilliance-lcd-mon... It has exactly what you want: hook it up with USB-C, and on the back it has ethernet, three USB-A, audio in and audio out. Fantastic thing. Resolution is 2560x1440. http://images.philips.com/is/image/PhilipsConsumer/258B6QUEB_00-COP-global-001?$jpglarge$&hei=500 http://images.philips.com/is/image/PhilipsConsumer/258B6QUEB...
kartickv 10y ago
You're right that if you've maxed out the old MBP's ports, the new one supports fewer connections at once. But I still think it's a net win because: - We need to buy and manage fewer cables. - We'll no longer have the problem of having a free port, but not the right kind. - When we buy a device, we don't have to decide which ports it should plug into. Like, when I buy a monitor, I don't have to decide whether it should have DisplayPort, HDMI, both or either.

by tnones 10y ago

glogla 10y ago

And having to use a special Apple dongle to connect normal mouse or flash disk is downright embarassing.

spankalee 10y ago
Why would it be a special Apple dongle? Any USB-C to USB-A adapter would work, until you get a USB-C mouse.
- bluedino 10y ago
  USB C mouse? Let me know when you can pick one of those up at Staples or Best Buy
  - bartvk 10y ago
    Why the snark? It'll probably take a year before you can get a cheap throw-away mouse with USB-C at Staples or Best Buy. But assuming you're a professional, you either already have a bluetooth mouse/trackpad or you'll want some quality and order a mouse from a reputable brand.
    - bluedino 10y ago
      Does Logitech make a USB-C receiver for their wireless mouse yet?
      - bartvk 10y ago
        Heh, that's an interesting point you make. Assuming you can't or don't want to use Bluetooth, I was surprised to see that in The Netherlands, there's only 1 brand that carries an USB-C mouse, and it's a budget brand as well: http://www.trust.com/en/product/20969-usb-c-retractable-mini-mouse-black http://www.trust.com/en/product/20969-usb-c-retractable-mini... So I have to admit it's indeed very, very slim pickings.
  - jsz0 10y ago
    How about a $10 USB-C mouse from Amazon?
Roritharr 10y ago
Nothing special about it, its standardized. Actually Apple just released a Notebook that has NO proprietary ports anymore. As a Surface User I find this astonishing and great. On top of this I find it weird that people say they have to carry 20 Apple branded dongles. Depending on your use-case there is already type-c usb hubs with HDMI Ports, or Ethernet Ports, or both.[1] The thing is, I love the USB-C TB3 Ports and I love Apple's decision to drag the industry kicking and screaming into a reality where an Office can have a Monitor that is a Thunderbolt 3 Hub, connected with Ethernet and peripherals, that work with both Windows and Mac. This will revolutionize flex-desk setups for big organizations and Co-Workingspaces everywhere. Imo it's worth to have this transition period where people drag a dongle with them to achieve this. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Resolution-Aluminum-MacBook-ChromeBook-Supported/dp/B01EIWJ9QG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1477758507&sr=8-4&keywords=usb+c&refinements=p_89%3AAukey https://www.amazon.com/Resolution-Aluminum-MacBook-ChromeBoo...
- LoSboccacc 10y ago
  macbook users tend to overlap with iphone users. so there's that, no hub I know has also a thunderbolt. will happen given enough time and the current demand, but if this was the direction engineering went with the laptop, a revolutionary iphone would have had two usb c
  - Roritharr 10y ago
    Correct, Apple's decision to insist on lightning for the iPhone is a bad one considering where the wind is blowing.
  - jsjohnst 10y ago
    > no hub I know has also a thunderbolt Belkin, Elgato, OWC and others sell them. I use the Belkin one and it works great.
- farm_code 10y ago
  And then replace laptop with your phone. Continuum.
eropple 10y ago
My flash drives will be a minor pain in the rear, but the disks I use more often (4TB+ externals) just take a C-to-B cable and I'm done. I don't think this is going to be as big a deal as people say. Honestly, the biggest beef I have is removing the SD card slot, because I do a lot of photo/video work.
- slantyyz 10y ago
  >> I don't think this is going to be as big a deal as people say. I think it depends on the type of user you are. If you're a true "mobile user", it's probably not a big deal, because you put a value on mobility over other stuff. If you treat your laptop as a "portable desktop", it can get annoying. The ability to not have dongles for everything is one less thing to think about. Yes, it's not the end of the world to have dongles, but if you're used to not needing dongles, being forced to use them is going to make you unhappy.
  - eropple 10y ago
    I'm not really a "mobile user". But I'll be happy to be able to run my entire desk off of one plug rather than the five (power, two monitors, two USB, one of which is a hub) that are currently plugged into my 15" MBP.

cma 10y ago

Or a Bluetooth mouse/keyboard (which may need their own chargers; hopefully will be chargable via usb-c directly in the future as things transition).

colanderman 10y ago

Where could you possibly go where (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub, and you did not think to keep a USB hub there? Either you're mobile and need the USB ports, or stationary and there's a hub there. What use case am I missing?

ctrl-j 10y ago
> (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub. I don't know of a monitor that doesn't require a USB A-B cable to provide USB, so you're looking at three $70 adapters, plus three USB A-B cables. Sure maybe all that lives at the office. It's still less convenient. I still can't get over the fact that you can't plug your new iPhone 7 into your new Macbook Pro without a dongle.
- colanderman 10y ago
  My Apple monitor at work provides USB and Ethernet over the same cable (mini-DP) it uses for video. Every day I go in I just connect the mini-DP and MagSafe (both of which come from the monitor) and magically all my peripherals are connected. It seems like in the new USB-C world, I'd only have to connect one cable. Bonus points if it's sturdier than mini-DP and less flaky than MagSafe. Sure beats those weird-ass proprietary docks that used to be common ~10 years ago.
  - AlexandrB 10y ago
    > It seems like in the new USB-C world, I'd only have to connect one cable. That's something I've never seen properly explained. Can you charge at 100W at the same time as using Thunderbolt 3 connectivity? It strikes me as unlikely since the power delivery and the signaling would have to share the same pins/wires. Edit: I stand corrected after seeing that new LG monitor. Now I'm just curious how it works. Even PoE can't deliver 100w and Thunderbolt 3 uses much higher speeds while having to inject power.

djrogers 10y ago

Yeah, but your thunderbolt or USB-c monitor can now provide power, wired Ethernet, etc all over one of the 4 ports.

petemill 10y ago

The new 5k monitor display[1] not only connects with a USB-C but it also provides charging power (85W) to the Macbook at the same time. Plus, it has an additional 3 USB-C ports, meaning you plug one cable in to your Macbook Pro, and you are left with a total of 6 USB-C slots free, which you don't need because power is provided over the same cable anyway... [1] http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HKN62LL/A/lg-ultrafine-5k-display http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HKN62LL/A/lg-ultrafine-5k-...

robotresearcher 10y ago
I wish it had an Ethernet port and a couple of legacy USB ports on the back to avoid the mess and cost of dongles. The old Apple Lightning Display was a nice everything-dock.
- bwilliams18 10y ago
  There are a ton of good T-Bolt 3 dock options out there, none provide power at the moment, but I'm sure someone will have one on the market shortly.
- bartvk 10y ago
  Here in Europe we have the Philips Brilliance 258B6QUEB http://www.philips.co.uk/c-p/258B6QUEB_00/brilliance-lcd-monitor-with-usb-c-dock http://www.philips.co.uk/c-p/258B6QUEB_00/brilliance-lcd-mon... It has exactly what you want: hook it up with USB-C, and on the back it has ethernet, three USB-A, audio in and audio out. Fantastic thing. Resolution is 2560x1440. http://images.philips.com/is/image/PhilipsConsumer/258B6QUEB_00-COP-global-001?$jpglarge$&hei=500 http://images.philips.com/is/image/PhilipsConsumer/258B6QUEB...

kartickv 10y ago

You're right that if you've maxed out the old MBP's ports, the new one supports fewer connections at once. But I still think it's a net win because: - We need to buy and manage fewer cables. - We'll no longer have the problem of having a free port, but not the right kind. - When we buy a device, we don't have to decide which ports it should plug into. Like, when I buy a monitor, I don't have to decide whether it should have DisplayPort, HDMI, both or either.