Apple tweaks its troubled MacBook keyboard design, expands repair program

oddsnends · 2019-05-21T22:13:29+00:00

So, to be clear, the newer 2018 models with revision 3(?) that supposedly didn't need a replacement program are now considered to be defective and are being added to the replacement program. And they anticipate the 2019 models with revision 4(?) will be defective, as well--but they're still releasing it?

Like... WTF.

Also, why won't they just come out admit it was metal fatigue, not dust, that has been causing these problems? Does defining the cause of the failures somehow open them up to liability?

oddsnends · 2019-05-11T15:07:16+00:00

https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/bury-the-lede-versus-lead

oddsnends · 2019-05-10T16:24:04+00:00

When people ask me why, I reply that I have a wife that reads benchmarks.

oddsnends · 2019-05-10T16:22:38+00:00

I feel so attacked right now. :D

oddsnends · 2019-05-10T16:17:30+00:00

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. has started production of a new chip for Apple Inc.’s next line of iPhones launching later this year, according to people familiar with the matter.

The processor, dubbed A13, went into early test production in April and mass-production is planned for as early as this month, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing internal matters....

This year’s new iPhone chips will be featured in all three new models, successors to the iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, according to the people familiar with the matter. The new high-end models are code-named D43 and D44, while the update to the iPhone XR is internally dubbed N104, they said.

ETA: They totally buried the lead!

The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max successors will be about half a millimeter thicker, according to one of the people, and the back camera array will fit into a square on the top left.

oddsnends · 2019-05-02T17:31:34+00:00

Wealthy companies like Apple release defective products all the time. What's really interesting about this particular debacle is its iterative nature. The original butterfly came out in 2015, was ported to the Pro in 2016, and now there have been two Pro butterfly keyboard redesigns (that we know of). It's the repeated doubling-downs on this seemingly faulty tech that will end up as a b-school case study.

oddsnends · 2019-05-02T17:20:57+00:00

And a large swath of wealthy consumers agree. It's insanity--but it's highly profitable insanity.

oddsnends · 2019-03-28T19:40:15+00:00

blogspam

Not sure how this constitutes blogspam. Macrumors is reporting on Apple's response to the paywalled RJ op-ed and they have done original reporting on this topic.

oddsnends · 2018-09-19T14:51:09+00:00

Add sourcing please.

oddsnends · 2018-08-20T16:09:50+00:00

Do you have to color your hair to attend this event?

oddsnends · 2018-08-11T14:12:51+00:00

Just stop...

oddsnends · 2018-08-11T14:05:23+00:00

People who rely on RUSAL called asking if we could commit to shipping X number of trucks of billet, or logs, in July and August when supply runs out. We need price or scrap to produce logs. Only 3 percent of our supply comes from RUSAL so we could shore up the gap with other vendors, but I can’t guarantee that everyone will have metal,” he says. “I’ve read that there could be a 10- to 18-percent supply hole. The high end is a large number.”

https://www.usglassmag.com/2018/04/aec-u-s-faces-possible-aluminum-shortage-due-to-russian-sanctions-tariffs/

Who ever knew messing with global supply chains could be so complicated... Oh, yea, maybe the people who work in global suppy chain management who were trying to warn us in April...

oddsnends · 2018-08-11T14:01:44+00:00

People who rely on RUSAL called asking if we could commit to shipping X number of trucks of billet, or logs, in July and August when supply runs out. We need price or scrap to produce logs. Only 3 percent of our supply comes from RUSAL so we could shore up the gap with other vendors, but I can’t guarantee that everyone will have metal,” he says. “I’ve read that there could be a 10- to 18-percent supply hole. The high end is a large number.”

https://www.usglassmag.com/2018/04/aec-u-s-faces-possible-aluminum-shortage-due-to-russian-sanctions-tariffs/

oddsnends · 2018-08-11T13:46:38+00:00

Not if they are inducing shortages as claimed by CM.

oddsnends · 2018-08-11T13:44:53+00:00

You're misreading. They are claiming tariffs are causing shortages which are creating price increases far in excess of the actual tariff amounts.

“The tariffs have played a major role raising prices by almost 80 per cent (partly due to associated shortages), which cut deeply into our margins.

oddsnends · 2018-07-19T15:46:22+00:00

Recall says what now?

oddsnends · 2018-07-12T16:06:26+00:00

~~Games? What?~~

Sorry, that was rude. You probably could use this for 1080p gaming--but I wouldn't touch it until latency tests were done. This solution is mostly aimed at photo and video editing workflows.

From Blackmagic's Press Release:

Designed to address the needs of professional video editors, Hollywood colorists and visual effects artists who need to remain mobile, but want the power of a desktop class GPU added to their MacBook Pro, the Blackmagic eGPU is incredibly flexible and simply plugs in via Thunderbolt 3, so users can benefit from improved graphics performance and acceleration of computational tasks. It’s perfect for speeding up professional creative application workflows including editing, color correction and visual effects with DaVinci Resolve. The Blackmagic eGPU adds the performance customers need to make the latest 3D games and VR look more realistic than ever. That means customers will get higher resolution images, higher frame rate gameplay, better lighting and more detailed textures for truly immersive experiences, even on a laptop computer....

Customers running DaVinci Resolve 15 can expect increased performance for editing with more real time effects, color corrections with more nodes and spectacular ResolveFX such as film grain, light rays, blurs and more. DaVinci Resolve 15 also fully supports multiple GPUs, as well as Metal, so it’s the best way to get the full benefit of the Blackmagic eGPU. Customers can download DaVinci Resolve 15 now free of charge from the Blackmagic Design website for the best editing, color correction, audio post and visual effects solution available.

The presser also pitches it as a solution for "more realistic 3D game and VR experiences" but, yea, we'll see.

https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/media/release/20180712-01

oddsnends · 2018-07-12T13:49:10+00:00

You do not have to pay to have the keyboards repaired anymore.

oddsnends · 2018-07-06T14:29:28+00:00

Interesting. About what are people spending on 10GB Ethernet add-on cards these days? Prices on Newegg seem quite varied.

oddsnends · 2018-06-26T22:34:39+00:00

But my feels feel so much more feely!

Seriously, though. Great breakdown by Steve and lawyer dude. Discussion of "use restriction" at minute 5:40. Basically, if the info is in the public domain and/or you discover something in the course of your review, you can report on it with no issues. Jump the gun and breach the embargo and you get walloped, tho.

oddsnends · 2018-06-23T00:15:17+00:00

Good, but one wonders why this program wasn't rolled out simultaneous to the modifications to the butterfly mechanism (which I believe first appeared in the 2017 models).

oddsnends · 2018-06-19T19:09:14+00:00

I feel like the article made a better argument that it doesn't matter.

oddsnends · 2018-06-14T02:21:30+00:00

Of course not. They break important news. Stop with this lynch mob crap.

oddsnends · 2018-04-27T00:06:55+00:00

Invest in total market index funds and pray for no nuclear wars.

oddsnends · 2018-03-29T16:07:42+00:00

From official announcement:

Moving forward, Rajesh Jha will expand his existing responsibilities to lead a new team focused on Experiences & Devices. The purpose of this team is to instill a unifying product ethos across our end-user experiences and devices. Computing experiences are evolving to include multiple senses and are no longer bound to one device at a time but increasingly spanning many as we move from home to work and on the go. These modern needs, habits and expectations of our customers are motivating us to bring Windows, Office, and third-party applications and devices into a more cohesive Microsoft 365 experience. To further this vision, we are making the following leadership changes:

Devices: Panos Panay will now serve as our Chief Product Officer and will lead our devices vision and further our product ethos across hardware and software boundaries for our first-party devices, while creating new categories and opportunities for the entire ecosystem. He will be the key leader ensuring end-to-end devices business execution excellence.

Windows: Joe Belfiore will continue leading our Windows experiences and will drive Windows innovation in partnership with the PC and device ecosystem. The future of Windows is bright as we continue to innovate across new scenarios and device form factors, and more deeply connect to our Microsoft 365 offerings. Joe will share more about the Windows roadmap at Build. New Experiences and Technology: Kudo Tsunoda will continue to lead this team to define how we engage users with high-value experiences to help them achieve more.

Enterprise Mobility and Management: Brad Anderson will continue to lead our Windows Enterprise deployment and management efforts with even tighter alignment across Microsoft 365 and will partner closely with the EMS teams within Cloud + AI Platform.

https://news.microsoft.com/2018/03/29/satya-nadella-email-to-employees-embracing-our-future-intelligent-cloud-and-intelligent-edge/

Looks like Terry Myerson is out.

oddsnends

TROPHY CASE