The Apple Discussion Thread

[emptym]

Thanks for the recs, @imatlas and @scamster. Unfortunately, both of those are pretty big, bigger than the iPhone 8, which is already a bit too big imo.

@dieworkwear, you don't know the Stonestown Mall? As a half-Asian who teaches an Asian studies class and is married to an Asian, I am hereby revoking your Bay Area Asian membership card. Although, technically, it's the Stonestown Galleria, so maybe I'll let it slide this time.

 

[dieworkwear]

@dieworkwear, you don't know the Stonestown Mall? As a half-Asian who teaches an Asian studies class and is married to an Asian, I am hereby revoking your Bay Area Asian membership card. Although, technically, it's the Stonestown Galleria, so maybe I'll let it slide this time.

Damn, I just looked it up. I am continually a shame to my ancestors.

 

[emptym]

Stonestown is like 90% Asian. Btw speaking of Bay Area Asians, did you know that Bruce Lee was actually mixed, something like 1/8-3/8 European heritage? I just heard that yesterday.

 

[dieworkwear]

Stonestown is like 90% Asian. Btw speaking of Bay Area Asians, did you know that Bruce Lee was actually mixed, something like 1/8-3/8 European heritage? I just heard that yesterday.

Huh, didn't know that. I'm sure like everyone, I was a big fan of Bruce Lee as a kid, but my knowledge of him is still pretty superficial.

I've lived here for so long, but I also still haven't been to San Jose for Vietnamese food. Vietnamese friends of mine say I have to try it. Sometimes I think about taking my parents there when they visit, but it also seems like such a drive.

 

[the shah]

back in may my 2015 mbp keyboard was suddenly not responsive, so I took it to the store and they disconnected and reconnected it. worked fine for a week then stopped as soon as I reached Milan...

went in again second time. they said to replace it would cost 90gbp, mostly labor cost. but as my screen gloss coating had worn off, and it is covered under lifetime warranty, they said they will replace the screen for free and then the labor for the keyboard/trackpad could be included so I was just charged 9gbp. it ended up working , but then my battery started draining when the lid was closed.

third visit to the store...they suggested I replace the battery, very coincidental that the drainage started as soon as they replaced a cable. so I paid 200gbp for new battery and labor. picked up the machine in a week. seemed to work fine. I went on another trip and suddenly the laptop would not power on at all. the charging cable light would turn green but the rest of the computer remained unresponsive, as in even the trackpad haptic feedback did not work.

after returning, fourth visit to the apple store. they said since they replaced the battery they did not know if it was their fault or not, and the motherboard was fried so they offered to replace the motherboard for free. picked up the laptop a week later. at this point, I have a new screen, new keyboard, new trackpad, the whole top case is new since they include that in the keyboard replacement, a new motherboard...only thing that is the same is the hard disk. but the battery draining issue persisted.

fifth visit to the apple store. the guy looked through the repair history and said, "this is ridiculous -- give me a few minutes." he went to the back, spoke to his manager, and returned saying, "I have no idea how to fix your computer so instead I will just give you a new 2019 MacBook Pro and upgrade it to a quad core model , but RAM and hard disk specs will be the same."
yesterday I went in a picked it up, the guy was there and said none of his colleagues believed him that this was happening so he had me show them the machine in the new sealed box.

But now I have this useless TouchBar (but turns out it can be made useful) and weird keyboard...

speaking of keyboards, the Happy Hacking Keyboard is the most luxurious typing experience I've ever had the pleasure of clicking away on. It's a mechanical keyboard but rather quiet, just a lot of buttery smooth travel. makes the emacs experience amazing

 

[emptym]

I wonder if the new, foldable Motorola Razr is the small phone I've been looking for. I loved my Razr 20 yrs ago.

 

[Jr Mouse]

Anyone have a HomePod? I avoided it originally at $349, but there are some excellent sales going on right now. Best Buy has it for $199 and I’ve seen a some rumblings that people are finding it for $149 at Costco.

Seems worth it right? I use an Echo Dot and don’t really care about HomePod’s smart device capabilities. Would use it as a speaker in my bedroom.

 

[otc]

No, but I have a 8" Lenovo smart display in my kitchen and having the screen is nice

 

[ter1413]

Anyone have any experience with this:

The cheapest way to get a real MacBook charger straight from Apple - Connect IT Birmingham

Make a Genius Bar appointment and take your broken charger and Apple will give you $20 off a new charger. You’re here because something happened: your MacBook charger got chewed by your cat, dog, child, or couch. It might even be lost. You’re also here because you don’t want to pony up $80 for a …

connectitcompany.com

Basically says that Apple will give you $20 off the cost of a new Macbook charger if you book an appt via the Genius Bar.

Another question....so my MacBook Air charger is no longer working. I used a friend’s charger to test and it’s def my charger.

SHould I buy the 45W replacement or the 85W MagSafe.....for the same price? I figure that I can have have larger W charger in case I get a MacBook Pro that can use it. Or does it matter as the newer macs use the MagSafe 2 chargers?

Thanks.

 

[Bolibol]

Anyone have a HomePod? I avoided it originally at $349, but there are some excellent sales going on right now. Best Buy has it for $199 and I’ve seen a some rumblings that people are finding it for $149 at Costco.

Seems worth it right? I use an Echo Dot and don’t really care about HomePod’s smart device capabilities. Would use it as a speaker in my bedroom.

I bought it two months ago, and I love it.
Great sound. I'm even using it with my apple tv. It's not optimal but still better then TV-speakers. I don't use a lot of smart features, just controlling my philips hue lights and apple tv, asking about the weather and setting alarms/timers. And for my use it's perfect.

 

[dieworkwear]

YES SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER

 

[Van Veen]

YES SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER

I just got a new MacBook Pro, and after all your posts I'm afraid to type on it, so I browse StyFo on my $150 Chromebook.

 

[dieworkwear]

I just got a new MacBook Pro, and after all your posts I'm afraid to type on it, so I browse StyFo on my $150 Chromebook.

I'm still waiting for the Air update.

Honestly, this keyboard is the bane of my existence. Absolutely awful and slows down my productivity every day. I hate it so much. Sometimes I use an external keyboard and am reminded of how much I hate this laptop keyboard.

 

[dieworkwear]

Supposedly new scissor switch keyboard coming for Mackbook Air in June.

Kuo: New MacBook Pro and MacBook Air with new scissor switch keyboard launching by June - 9to5Mac

Apple is said to be accelerating the product pipeline for new Mac laptops. Following the warm reception to the 16-inch...

9to5mac.com

 

[dieworkwear]

Scissor switch Air has finally arrived. My nightmare is over

Apple announces new MacBook Air with improved keyboard, faster performance, and more storage

The new MacBook Air also has refreshed specs.

www.theverge.com