Life Has Been Busy

It has been a while since I last wrote here. A move, a wedding and life have all been keeping me busy. Things have settled down so I thought I’d give a few short thoughts on a number of products I’ve had a chance to use as well as cover a few things I saw virtually at Microsoft Build and Apple’s WWDC. First, products.

The new MacBook Pro 14 inch laptop. I have been using the base unit (M1 Pro 8 core CPU, 14 core GPU, 16 gb ram, 512 gb hd) for several months. This is one of those products that I grow more fond of every time I use it. This means day to day work which includes writing code, spreadsheets, mail and documents as well as some minor photo editing and watching movies.

It is fast, that’s for sure. The biggie though is the battery life, the display and sound. There is a noticeable improvement with the XDR display over the old MacBook Pro display. Crisper with deeper color is how I would describe it and yes it does make a difference even when writing.

Apple has done a great job with sound as well. Their spatial audio gets better and better and the fidelity, while not the equal of good speakers, is still very good for this small of a laptop.

The battery life is also amazing. All day battery life. I have come to treat this laptop like an iPad meaning I hardly ever plug it in. Oh, and it never gets hot and I never hear the fans. This shouldn’t be a surprise as this is one of the main reasons Apple switched to using their own processors.

The only real downside is it doesn’t seem quite as solid as the old 16 inch MacBook Pro I have. I think the flat design makes it “oil can” a bit. Nothing that would be noticeable if you didn’t have both of them in front of you at the same time.

Finally, the old Touch Bar is gone. I didn’t have a problem with it but I don’t mind having the function keys back either. I still debate on which keyboard I like better, the new one or the old 16 inch one. They are really pretty much the same.

Apple announced the new MacBook Air at WWDC with the new M2 chip and it might be a better option for most day to day work and play. The screen is still better on the pro but I’m not sure it is worth the price difference. I’m also not sure the new Air is worth the price increase over the old Air. Once it is in stores, I’ll have to do some comparing. I just wish they offered it in the same colors as the 24 inch iMac.

Highly recommended.

Next on the list is the Executive Leather Messenger from Waterfield (www.sfbags.com). All their products are terrific and this one is no exception. It holds a laptop and iPad along with anything else you’ll need for a day at the office or coffee shop. The leather is amazing along with the build quality. The laptop and iPad compartments seem to have a little extra padding as well, which is nice.

The downside, the non-removable strap. In my case, it always squeaked and would actually vibrate as I walked due to the material and how it rubbed the metal buckles. I solved it by cutting the strap off and buying one of their supreme suspension straps. It is removable and works great. I recommended the change to Waterfield.

Highly recommended even with the strap issue.

Microsoft Build – A disappointment. More and more this has become an advertisement for Azure services.

WWDC – Better than last year meaning a lot of great information and support. You can view the last few years of WWDC online and I’d recommend it if you want to do any development on Apple products. About the only thing I would suggest to Apple is to offer some sessions that go over the how to for common tasks, such as connecting an app to a database or other mundane items. These mundane things are the basics that you need to know that they (Apple and Microsoft) seldom seem to cover.

That’s it for now. Stay safe out there!