Downie is packaged in a very nice wrapper and the update process is very nice.
I know that there are a lot of video editing programs out there - but I don't really care to learn new programs if I don't have to.
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Flip Flopping between macOS and Windows
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Downie is packaged in a very nice wrapper and the update process is very nice.
I know that there are a lot of video editing programs out there - but I don't really care to learn new programs if I don't have to.
I know more network engineers that prefer using a MBP over a windows PC, and that seems pretty serious to me.
What an odd statement however, Apple created their M series SOC that seismically changed the computer industry, and somehow this is viewed as a negative because it out performs most other windows machines?
I would say the base model, MBA, iMac and Mini are great computers for home and students and I would never consider them over powered. The MBP, M4 Pro mini, and the Studio are more powerful models that provide ample CPU and GPU capability for people who want or need it.
Why? as I mentioned its used for real work, real people, students home needs, professional needs. I bought my M4 Max not because I can show it off on instragram or it gives me a look for my lifestyle, but rather its a superior machine over any windows machine.
I bought my M4 Max Studio this past June, I started out looking at building a new PC (something that I have extensive experience with), and found the price increases (at the time) for the CPU, and GPUs were such that I was getting a better deal with the studio, a much better deal.
Secondly macOS has so many advantages over windows, at least by my perspective, including less telemetry, more privacy, less AI being forced on me. The direction of MS wanting to make windows agentic is absolutely insane. Their RECALL feature is an absolute privacy nightmare in my book and them forcing me to use an online account at eveery turn.
I support windows desktops and work on servers for my job, I feel I have a good handle of windows, and consider myself power user. Yet the advantages of macos is numerous.
I'm a big proponent of using the right tool for the job, and for many people including you a windows machine is very much the right tool, but that doesn't mean that macs are not capable of serious work and are a lifestyle choice
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I uninstalled CoPilot yesterday and it took quite a while to do. It is apparently used all over the place in Windows but it is nice that you can remove it. I have my Yoga looking a lot like macOS these days and it's quite easy to go back and forth because the programs I use are comparable or the same on both platforms. Outside of iMovie and Downie.
RECALL is not on by default. You get asked if you want to turn it on. I won't have to worry about that after removing CoPilot. Microsoft is well aware that customers do not like CoPilot. Even the CEO is unhappy with some of the results from it. I really like that you can turn it off; just like you can turn off the AI data gathering on macOS.
What I really love about the Windows world is the hardware diversity and, to a lesser extent than in the past, the ability to modify the computer that's supported by the manufacturer.
Yeah I used to really like the hardware diversity as well. But if I am being completely honest with myself, my Macbook Air is just so easy and stable, it just gets almost boring. Which, again, if I am being honest with myself, is a good thing because I can get back to what I should be doing and not fiddling around with finding new apps to do the same old things to avoid doing said things. It's just tough to reconcile with the "squirrel" part of my brain that seeks novelty.
That's what I realized not that long ago. I was just puttering around to avoid writing my books and moving forward on my coding platforms. I would get enraged about AI BS, telemetry, lack of privacy, CSAM in onedrive, and just general anti-user behavior by Microsoft and switch to Mac for everything (put away my Surface Pro 9, etc.,).
Then I would get mad about RAM prices and the walled garden (tough for someone raised in the build-your-own-PC times) and leave Apple.
So the revelation I finally had was needed to just pick a strategy and get on with doing real work and not waffling anymore. I settled on using Apple for everything except gaming--which I use a Windows desktop for. Based on the "ethos" of the company, this was really my only option. Microsoft quit caring about users a long time ago. Only Enterprise customers (and maybe not even that anymore) and shareholders matter now. It's really annoying, but I ain't changing it. Apple at least pretends (and more than that honestly) to care about user privacy and experience.
Having a custom PC for gaming allows me to "keep my hand in" with Windows for gaming, but I don't have to get angry at Microsoft anymore because I am not doing anything substantive in there...Just Steam, GOG, etc.,
I also take advantage of Apples superior (if a bit stale) hardware for all the things I need to do productivity. I haven't looked for alternatives to my software products in weeks. I am just using everything Apple and Apple-based. Now I don't have to worry about invasive AI, anti-privacy issues, etc., And I just take my iPad Pro and MBA M4 13" everywhere.
I am back to actually doing productive things that matter instead of trying to find a windows alternative to mac programs and then migrating. It may feel good, but it accomplishes nothing in the long run. I don't know if this applies to you, but it certainly worked for me.
At least for now....
It seems that MS has made a it a bit difficult, prior videos from Chris Titus seems to indicate its not fully removed from the system, and I truely think as time goes on it will be there like or not. Like MS' other initiatives of pushing us to onedrive.
Damn if only Apple would build a Yoga style 2 in 1 device, but cannibalizing couple of product lines isn't how they roll, quite the opposite.
Lenovo at CES. They show off the Thinkpad X1 Carbon Gen 14 and the Yoga Slim, updated with Panther Lake. The big things about these are battery life improvements. I have not been impressed with Panther Lake so far so I was wondering how they improved battery life. The section on the Yoga Slim is interesting as they show the old motherboard and the new motherboard. The new motherboard is significantly smaller and it appears that they can increase battery size with the updates. The Yoga Slim is going from 2.8 pounds for the current model to under 2.2 pounds which is really impressive for a 14. The MacBook Pro 14 weighs 3.5 pounds while the MacBook Air 13 weighs 2.7 pounds.
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon 14th Gen is also more repairable. They showed you how to take it apart and it appears to be easier to work on it yourself.
I am, of course, waiting for the numbers to come out. I do not need a new Windows laptop but we'll see how well they do and when they are actually available. One thing that I've noticed about the Lunar Lake Thinkpads is that they offer a choice of Gen 4 or Gen 5 SSDs now. There's an upgrade from 512 GB Gen 4 to 2 TB Gen 5 and it's $775.
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon 14th Gen is also more repairable. They showed you how to take it apart and it appears to be easier to work on it yourself.
I am, of course, waiting for the numbers to come out. I do not need a new Windows laptop but we'll see how well they do and when they are actually available. One thing that I've noticed about the Lunar Lake Thinkpads is that they offer a choice of Gen 4 or Gen 5 SSDs now. There's an upgrade from 512 GB Gen 4 to 2 TB Gen 5 and it's $775.
One other issue that I've been having with my Windows desktop is that I'm having a harder time seeing things on it. I thought it was a scaling issue but it appears that the monitor is getting dimmer. It's a Dell Ultrasharp U2718Q with 350 nits and reading the monitor has gotten tiring. I also have a U2720Q (350 nits), and a U2723QE (400 nits) and those are fine. Apparently the backlights dim over time on LCD monitors and that's what appears to be happening on my oldest monitor. So I'll have to figure out something for that.
The U2725QE would be a solution at $640 but then the Asus ProArt 27 inch 5k becomes an option at $740 and it has 500 nits. Another option would be to use my 2015 iMac for now as that's 400 nits and 5k.
The U2725QE would be a solution at $640 but then the Asus ProArt 27 inch 5k becomes an option at $740 and it has 500 nits. Another option would be to use my 2015 iMac for now as that's 400 nits and 5k.
Panther Lake is on a new process node, Intel 18A. Usually moving to a new node leads to efficiency gains. Like they kept the TPU the same 50 TOPs, but now it's smaller and uses less die space so it should use less power too.
The power envelope of Panther Lake is higher than Lunar Lake at the low-end and high-end which is why I'm questioning efficiency. Panther Lake is replacing Lunar Lake and Arrow Lake, a low-power design and a high-power design so I'm wondering if they're giving up some idle and low-power performance on the ultra-low-power end.
It seems like Panther Lake is more focused on higher CPU and GPU performance.
I pulled out my portable monitor which is 17 inches and 4k and 500 nits and hooked it up to the Mac Studio. It looks great. I'm going to test it out on the Windows desktop and I'm sure that it will look great as well. It's just that it will look out of place in between the other 27 inch monitors. It should suffice for now though. The hard part is the cabling as it only has a three foot HDMI to HDMI mini cable.
Acer's Panther Lake laptops. Of note is the Acer Swift Note which is under 1 kg (2.2 pounds). Acer generally sells less expensive laptops and the trend I see is thin and ultralight laptops. I'll have to check Dell, Asus and MSI for ultralights. I may not have to spend $3K to get a 1kg laptop if this is the trend.
I am curious if Apple will respond to this segment. This is usually done with materials like carbon fiber and magnesium. I think that Aluminum would be too heavy.
I am curious if Apple will respond to this segment. This is usually done with materials like carbon fiber and magnesium. I think that Aluminum would be too heavy.
I just went through the Dell XPS 14 and 16 and it wins the award for closest MacBook Pro clone. The 14 is 3 pounds (MacBook Pro is 3.5) and the 16 is 3.7 pounds (MacBook Pro is 4.7 pounds so they did a good job shaving off weight despite a similar CNC design to Apple's. Claimed battery life may be better than M4 but we'll need testing to see whether that's true in real life.
HP has the EliteBook X as their sub-1 kg laptop. The design isn't that attractive - it just looks plain utilitarian, kind of like the Thinkbook X1 Carbon.
I agree, and I think CES was so uninspiring in general - it seemed less Consumer Electronics Show and more Business to Business Electronics Show.
That has been the case since 2024 when they dropped the Consumer Electronics Show branding in favor of just CES.
I hadn't realized, its kind of a bummer. I wonder how the crowds were, i.e., consumers or professionals.
Crowds were down this year.
I can see going if you're a reviewer.
If you're a consumer, you just watch the reviews in the comfort of your living room or a local cafe.
I got an answer on 18A yields though I don't know if it is official. The answer was 10-30% with the goal of 70%. That seems like a truthful answer and that it will take a couple of years or maybe more for them to be profitable. Also why I don't think that they have any customers at the moment.
seems to me that Windows is more flexible than Macs with what software one can decide to use without a hitch.
Windows was/is designed to be more extensible, able to run on any hardware combination, that's both a good thing and bad things. The good is that have a level of flexibility that is amazing, software like STart11, Object Desktop, and Fences (all from Stardock) allow customization of windows.
The downside is that this easily introduces instabilities, as its tricky work to add support of new hardware and features without breaking support for legacy hardware and software. Performance is also impeded by needing to keep legacy code in place. It also extends the testing, as there's more to test and confirm, yet even after that bugs are popping up because its impossible to test every combination.
With macOS, you have less freedom, but you get a predictable experience, and the performance is dialed in because Apple controls both the software and hardware.
It depends. Every once in a while, we get a version of macOS that breaks programs and we have to wait for a while until it gets fixed, either by Apple or the software vendor.
I'm in that situation with Tahoe right now.
Windows has far more users and far more people to report bugs. Not fun when you have to deal with them but at least it's easy to figure out if it's just you or a lot of other people are also seeing it.