Early this week Apple released the new MacBook, the most impressive of this new product is Apple add a OLED touch panel that is located on top of the keyboard. And they called this new technique ToolBar. The toolbar replaced where the function keys would normally be , and it supports Touch ID as it used with Apple Pay.
The ToolBar appears to be contextual that changes based on what’s on the screen. In the images, Apple Pay asks a customer to confirm a purchase with a finger on the panel. It appears Touch ID is built at right side of toolbar very close to the display.
However, beside the toolbar, the new Macbook looks very similar to its previous version. So I am not that excited to the new release. And another reason is because I am not a fun of mac system, I prefer to get a Alienware for the same price rather than the MacBook Pro. The retail price for the MacBook Pro is from $1799 to $2799.
Source: http://www.macrumors.com/2016/10/25/images-of-new-macbook-pro-leaked/
rReference: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2478121,00.asp
Although the OLED toolbar is an innovative feature, I think the most unexpected change of MacBook Pro is that the new MacBook Pro has four Thunderbolt 3 USB Type-C ports instead of USB Type-A ports, and any one of those four Type-C USB ports can be used for charging. Obviously, Apple wants their customers to experience new technology, but I think Apple might face a big wave of complaints from their customers since most output devices have USB Type-A ports. USB-C can transmit both data and power. You can power and move a large amount of information into your device with a single cable if you have a Thunderbolt 3 USB-C port. This is a new technology that first appeared in 2014. I think Apple decided to replace all USB-A ports is a risk decision because USB-C is not common today and most people are still using USB-A to connect devices. However, I also think this is a wise decision since USB-C will replace USB-A gradually in the future.
Overall, I think MacBook Pro is a successful product. Its new features, like OLED touch bar, can be attractive to customers, and its new technology could become MacBook Pro’s advantage in the future.
The new touch toolbar for the new macbook pro is quite a fascinating touch for Apple. With the new touch bar there are many things that can be done such as quick typing, with photos you can straighten and edit them using the touch bar and you can also reply to mails easier. Your Macbook is now more secure with the new touch id system and it is also convenient to make payments with the help of apple pay. In Safari the touch bar displays website that are suggested for you or websites that you visit the most.
I personally like the new idea of the touch bar for the new Macbook Pro. I think it makes users feel more comfortable to use this bar for several tasks. The touch bar clearly provides a lot of advantage for someone who would want to get things done easily and simpler.
I believe that this toolbar system is interesting innovation in terms of security perspective. This is because laptop usually have a function that save any password and credit card numbers, but once a person lost his/her laptop, their passwords would be seen by third party. However, I strongly think that this innovation prevent this problem since owner physically need to be with the laptop. On the other hand, I am concerning the actual demand for this innovation, because this function would not make online shopping easier, I guess it would just provide high-level security for allowing online shopping. In addition to this, I am also worried about their price. Apple’s product is usually relatively more expensive than any other computer brands, but the price the article is saying is a little bit too high that some people would be hesitated to purchase.
Overall, I am excited for this new security function but we still need to consider about the demand and its price.
I would be hesitant to call this change an innovation. Apple has historically made many claims at new “innovative” features. This includes both software and physical hardware changes such as the “new” apple pen (Microsoft Surfaces have had pens ever since they were first released) and their UI changes which have shown similar to popular custom UIs created for rooted android phones
Lenovo, another computer giant, released a prior series, the Carbon X series. All of these have had an incredibly similar toolbox already in place since as early as 2014. This toolbox functions almost identically to this “new” innovation as a touchscreen button on the keyboard.
I think that the toolbar is an interesting innovation for Apple. Apple has had a lot of success around their iPhone/ Ipad/ Itouch line, and I think this owes a lot to the fact that they involve a touchscreen component. I believe that touch screens intrigue people, and perhaps the addition of a touch component to the Macbook would intrigue customers. As you mentioned in your blog, the apple pay incorporation with a fingerprint is a seamless way to mesh Apple technology into the macbook. Perhaps they can add more security features on this touchscreen to unlock the laptop or further prove their identity. It is possible that in the future fingerprint technology will be how we confirm our identity for many types of accounts in the future. I do have some concerns however with this innovation. The function keys could be hard to use as there are so many of them on the keyboard and a touchscreen may make it very hard to press the correct key as it may be cramped. Also, Apple hasn’t pushed the envelope too much with this addition. Yes, it is a welcome addition that could pave the way for further innovation with touch and Macbooks, but it is not a transformative addition. It may not be enough to draw a customer in to buy a completely new Macbook if the Macbook itself hasn’t changed much besides a touch component.