Agreed. The 13 inch model without the touch bar should have just become the new MacBook Air, or even just another MacBook model with the Air dropped completely.

It's no Pro model, bar the price.

That quote was about the MBP from 2012. Deja vu, huh?

I don't think it's that they couldn't come up with it, it's that they decided against it. There's an Apple patent from a few years ago doing the rounds that looks exactly like the Studio. While I agree the Studio looks pretty great, it's an incredibly niche device aimed specifically at graphic artists to compete with Wacom as much as anyone.

And they don't seem to want to make their laptops with touch screens because they feel (and I'd agree) that touch input on a laptop isn't practical. Touch screens make sense on a handh led device but unless you want RSI, it makes far less sense on a larger screen.

I thought it was a quote from what I read a week or two ago regarding the 2016 model. So on that basis, history repeats itself perhaps.

Wow, it's amazing how far off topic an iPhone thread can go!

Well yes and no. With so many Laptops now incorporating a fully hinged screen touch is no longer the issue it was originally. Have you looked at the rotation device that you put on the screen of Studio Surface? Very cool and many people are saying it could be as revolutionary as the mouse was.

Yup - it looks really great. A dial is a great input device.

But I'd say with the caveat that its only useful when using the Studio in its horizontal position, ie when graphics artists are using it.

I do not think it could replace the mouse for ordinary use in the vertical position. Seriously - can you imagine holding your arm out using that thing on an upright display rather than a mouse?

Best input device IMO is a small Wacom tablet and pen. Worked wonders for my tennis elbow.

Well as you say it is designed for a niche market but some great innovation nonetheless. I like the hardware design as well, plus don't forget the SS has a pen for drawing and art work to. It's also a showcase for just how far Windows 10 has come as an OS despite what the naysayers may think.

Sure - but my point is that cool as the dial might be, and useful for very specific use case scenarios, its not going to be that useful for the average user - so its unlikely to ever be as revolutionary as the mouse.

And just because something is technically possible isn't always a reason for doing something - making laptops with touch screens is a good example of that.

My daughter runs a large I.T. department and has recently got a new fold flat Windows Touch Screen laptop. At first she was very sceptical about 'touch screen' on a computer.

She now tells me she's not a big convert, loves it and uses it all the time. Perhaps you have to try these things out to before coming to any firm conclusions.

Of course it won't replace a mouse, or trackpad, but it's a new form of input and works well with a pen. Even Apple has realised the value of a decent stylus with the Pencil on the iPad Pro and I believe that one way or another, they'll introduce touch to the Mac range in the future.

A touchscreen AND a touch pad on the keyboard would be a great combination. I for one would like to see this coming to an upgraded wireless (or even wired, for power reasons) keyboard for any Mac. It might be regarded as a gimmick by many, but I like the idea of dynamic keys. In the past I've used keyboards with overlays for app shortcuts, so it's a genuinely good idea.

But for pros, I do think touch is going to be the future. Even if you rarely use touch, just a few occasions might make it worthwhile.

As one day macOS and iOS will likely merge, there's no reason to think that you wouldn't want a 'flip' style laptop that turns into a tablet when turned around.

I expect touch hasn't come to the Mac yet because the OS obviously needs to be designed for touch. Windows 10 has touch in mind, and in due course so will macOS. At this point, I'd expect iOS apps to run on Mac too.

I think the new LED touch bar on the top of the new MBP is a half-way house to a fully functioning touch screen. It's certainly Apple's take on it until they can get the tech right with MacOS and iOS.

However, I was reading somewhere that the Unix system is proving very resistant to iOS integration which is perhaps why Apple hasn't got a fully functional touch version as yet. I don't really know what the issues are as it was an article I was scanning through whilst waiting in my doctors surgery.

The SS is a thing of real beauty though.

It kind of was really!


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-37880723

The rest of your post, i'm not going to argue over and over. You nor i know the full amount of people who use connect and use external devices of any kind. I personally think more do than don't on a Pro machine like the MBP is supposed to be. This news really shows that enough use it to force a company like apple's hand to do what they have done here.

Anyway, moving swiftly back on topic before stig makes another comment....

People have lost all sense by buying a phone that cost nearly £700.

That ship sailed ages ago, you been asleep?

Samsung, Pixel, Sony, even budget brands like Huawei are selling phones for around that price these days...

It's a shame, but if you're going to sell fewer phones in the future (which nobody can really stop happening, as people are happy with what they've got) then I guess you need to up the margins.

And Huawei is reportedly not that keen on the Honor brand in some markets, feeling it cheapens the Huawei name. The company is very keen on making sure that there are as few links between Huawei and Honor as possible, and don't ever make comparisons between the handsets despite being built on the same platform.

I fear that, as we saw with the Honor 8, Huawei will make Honor gradually go up market to increase margins there too. Honor has a loyal following of 'fans' so I doubt it will ever go, but I do think we may well see the more successful Chinese manufacturers shying away from low-cost handsets as soon as they can.

Then it will only be the 'no-name' brands left.

All bad news for us, but as long as people keep buying the expensive phones, they'll still be made.

I'm currently sitting with a Huawei Mate 9, Pixel XL and a Wileyfox Swift 2 on my desk - all needing to be reviewed. The Swift 2 is under £200, and only has a 720p screen, but it's an extremely decent phone with plenty of punch, and a very nice camera. In fact, I'd say it's a great phone and if for some reason I lost the Mate 9 and XL, and had to use only the Swift 2 for a day, I'd not end the day thinking 'my God, that was horrible'. Sure, I'd not have the same big-screen experience, but it would do everything I do on the other phones just fine.

It wouldn't lag, apps wouldn't shut down for lack of memory, I wouldn't have slow mobile data speeds. I wouldn't even have to worry about the battery holding out. All fine.

Still a lot of money just for a phone no matter what name is on it a

I have come to the conclusion that some people have no sense, they pay stupid amounts of money to either buy a phone or pay a stupid amount each month, far more than the phone is worth and then do it all again in a couple of years time.,

I have a Nexus 4, it cost me a bit more even then that I wanted to pay, but my thought is it can last for a few years and paying sim only contract I will save in the long run and I have and the phone is still going.

My Nexus can do stuff the new phones can do apart from a little slower. the camera is still pretty good for it's age,saying that I still prefer a proper camera, it can still play music and videos, I can still run apps on it.

Is it a look at me I have an £700 phone thing? it would scare m,e to be honest to have it outside if I spent that much.

I would say that for a lot of people it is. I can show my phone to a group of people I don't socialise with that often, and they instantly compare what I've got with what they have.

Of course, in my work I usually have top-end phones so it's usually quite pointless. Especially if I am carrying 2 or 3 phones with me, and can point out that none of them are on contract and I'm paying around £16.49 for one SIM only contract with 21GB, £20 for another with 20GB and £17 for one with AYCE data. Some are likely paying £60-70 a month for their iPhone/Galaxy S7 edge/Pixel (not that I know a single person that has one, if they haven't had one to review).

It stands to reason that when having a fancy car, or living in a huge house, is going to be beyond the reach of most people, the phone you're carrying is a relatively affordable way to show off.

I do appreciate a good camera in a phone so admit I'd probably spend more money for that, but I do also appreciate that a £150-250 phone would do everything I needed pretty well too.

Its back to personal budget Vs needs and wants. You 'need' a phone for basic phone calls then pick one up for a tenner from Argos...anything more needed depends on your budget and 'wants'.

Is my Galaxy S6 better than the S5 down to Android G1 dream which all sit in a draw better for phoning auntie Glad? No, I just wanted it and could afford it.

Most people don't pay that for a phone anyway. Most take it out on a contract.

This is the problem these days, people too fixated on things. lets spend £400 on this , when something that cost half as much does the job, just because of the brand.

We are having a new clothes shop opening here called Flannels ( what a name for a shop) a jacket cost £800, you can bet your bottom dollar some silly people will buy one, but spill something down it or catch it on a on something and that is £800 down the drain, unless it is insured. Do anyone notice that the jacket they have on is £800, nope.
It can not be about quality, because no doubt that jacket is still produced in some third world country by people working for pittance.

A lot of electronic stuff is the same, made in china, most of them.

I admit, i used to be like some people, must have this, must have that, these days i will stay with products i have got unless they really need updating due to wearing out or that they are not doing the job I require.

My computer is five years old there about, yes ok I did change the graphics card and CPU not long ago, but that was a treat kind of as I was ill, so i thought I would update the computer and yes I am looking at updating it next year if AMD offers something worth updating to. But I used to update my machine every years or two.

My Hi-fi is 6 years old, it still works fine, still great sound, sure I have now added a Chrome cast audio to it so it is now more useful. but unless it goes belly up,m now need to change it and yet some people seems to have a new one every years or so,

My mobile phone as I said is a Nexus 4, it is not that I can not afford a new one, I can, I could go out there and buy a a brand new Iphone if I wanted to.

I think people are just getting brainwashed to be honest, oh i must have that, sadly it is the people who can least afford it that this brainwashing is directed to. Those that think the Iphone or an expensive phone is a status thing

Maybe so, but then they pay a lot more than it is worth over the contract, Vodafone 24 month contract fora an Iphone 7 is £1128, sure they add stuff like 6GB of 4G data, which most people would use less than a couple of Gigs if that, unlimited text, which are cheap anyway and unlimited talk time, while unless you are on the phone for 8 hours a day will cost vodafone very little.

A mate of mine have a Samsung Some thing or other edge and tried to show it off to me, I told him I do not care, my phone does what I want and I will keep it until it goes wrong.
TBH, I am not even sure what I would go for if my did go wrong, something more or less the same, I looked at a Motorola, they looks ok. i will be out of contract on Monday, I have a sim only one and i am not not renewing it, looking at one of the PAYG one like giff Gaff, they seem to offer better value than what vodafone does on contract.

Already I had Vodafone phoning me, and they put the put the phone down when i said about the quality of their signal, I think it was a call centre and not vodafone as such, but on behalf of them. I have had texts galore from them, trying to get me to renew my contract and to take on their home broadband.
They can not call me anymore that number is blocked.

So broadband and mobile will be out of minimum contract, so next year i will start looking around.

As for camera, I still prefer a dedicated device, easier to use and less hassle than a phone, a phone is useful if you do not have a camera on you.,

And make sure everyone else knows what you have got, that the way it seems to be these days. they hold their Iphones and Samsung up as if they are something special and look at what I have got.

I would not touch a Samsung phone to be honest, horrid things, good specs, but the UI is awful and slows it down.

when your 5 year old nexus model starts running the same IOS music apps i can play on my ipad as my iphone, let me know

i got the first model iphone long before android existed, it was brand new and cost about £200 and lasted a few years. i sold it for £150, got a newer model and when i upgraded i got about £250 for that. second hand i can get more for selling an old iphone than your nexus was new. old android phones don't have the same resale value. if you want to compare anything close to like for like for build quality and specs, you are comparing similarly priced phones between apple and other brands

you are basically trying to insult peoples intelligence because an item isn't what you want, but what other people do want

it's the same with fashion, some people will buy cheap stuff at primark and look the same as everyone else in clothing thats functional but not made to last long, whilst others will want to spend more money on something different. now you seem to have a chip on your shoulder and moaning on this thread, but sometimes people buy something and it makes them feel good and they don't go about moaning like you do. so spending a few quid to have a better outlook on life and better better about yourself and not go about moaning about what other people do, which is none of your business, is sometimes money well spent

So how far does that argument go?

Why buy a car when a bicycle does the same thing, just slower, but then why buy a bicycle when walking does the same thing only slower.

Why buy steak when a bit of mince does the same thing, why buy the mince when a piece of bread does the same thing?

Why buy clothes when a black bag does the same thing?

Why buy or rent a house when a few pieces of wood and a bit of plastic does the same thing?

I wouldn't take out a £50 a month contract but would never criticise a person for doing so, it's their money and most of those who criticise probably go on a night out once a month and spend just as much...