New Macbook design?

[johnjohnsson]

For 25 years I have always felt a desire to upgrade my MacBook Pro/Air when new versions are released. However since two years that feeling is gone.

I honestly hate the fat looking rounded edge design of the MacBooks, feels like a tribute to MacBooks 20 years ago. I guess Ive/Jobs would never ever allowed that design.

So my question is: Does anyone have any info of a design overhaul for the MacBooks?

Thanks
John

 

[Basic75]

Does anyone have any info of a design overhaul for the MacBooks?

Outside of Apple? No.

 

[Ifti]

I cant't see a design change happening for quite some time yet.....

 

[Alpha Centauri]

I'd like to see the screen to keyboard tolerance increased. I have a 2023 M2 MBP, not sure if the KB imprint has been changed with the M3 models.

 

[jb310]

It seems like Apple likes to stick with laptop designs for at least 5-6 years, so maybe in 2026/2027 there'll be a design overhaul? That'd be my guess, at least. 🤔

 

[Random_Matt]

Aside from the notch the MacBooks are fine. I cannot see another better made laptop.

 

[Fishrrman]

For the MacBook Pro line, 14" and 16", I doubt we'll see any major exterior design changes for at least 2 more years.

2027, perhaps?
Late 2026 at the earliest.

They've got a pretty good design right now.
What works... works.

 

[curnalpanic]

Would be nice if they went back to 2012-2015 design. I mean, externally. But with the new display inside.

 

[Apple_Robert]

In my opinion, how the Mac works in and of itself, as well as with other other devices in the ecosystem is much more important than focusing on the look of the Mac. The Mac is a tool not a fashion statement or status symbol.

 

[Mega ST]

I liked the Ti-Books (MBP) best. Pure elegance. Including the underside and backside. No edges at all.
Apple might find a market for another rugged budget plastic laptop like for university use with a lot of rude backpack treatment.
I personally would hope for customer replaceable batteries again.

 

[cateye]

The Mac is a tool not a fashion statement or status symbol.

And yet, time spent on MacRumors makes it difficult to not conclude that it apparently is for a great many people. As absurd as that even is for me to type.

 

[G5isAlive]

For 25 years I have always felt a desire to upgrade my MacBook Pro/Air when new versions are released. However since two years that feeling is gone.

I honestly hate the fat looking rounded edge design of the MacBooks, feels like a tribute to MacBooks 20 years ago. I guess Ive/Jobs would never ever allowed that design.

So my question is: Does anyone have any info of a design overhaul for the MacBooks?

Thanks
John

You are going to be waiting for years. Maybe you should learn to love the new design. Or at least learn how to focus on the screen

 

[Basic75]

Aside from the notch the MacBooks are fine.

I don't get the hatred for the notch. The alternative is that the area left and right of the camera is bezel instead of display. I have the menu bar always visible, solid black, meaning the notch is essentially invisible. Most of the time I forget it's even there. But I benefit from the larger display area.

 

[Basic75]

The Mac is a tool not a fashion statement or status symbol.

Amen. I'm not blind, the previous MacBook Pros are aesthetically more pleasing. But the difference is minor, and not in any way important.

 

[Random_Matt]

I don't get the hatred for the notch. The alternative is that the area left and right of the camera is bezel instead of display. I have the menu bar always visible, solid black, meaning the notch is essentially invisible. Most of the time I forget it's even there. But I benefit from the larger display area.

How do you do that?

 

[G5isAlive]

Amen. I'm not blind, the previous MacBook Pros are aesthetically more pleasing

Eh, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder yes?. I can't ever remember what the old ones looked like, and I owned several. Just isn't that important to me. I realize its not that important to you either

 

[Basic75]

How do you do that?

Switch to dark mode, switch show/hide menu bar to "never", and make a wallpaper image of the exact pixel dimensions of your screen where the top part that fits under the menu bar is black.

 

[MacCheetah3]

How do you do that?

Switch to dark mode, switch show/hide menu bar to "never", and make a wallpaper image of the exact pixel dimensions of your screen where the top part that fits under the menu bar is black.

I use dark mode on all my devices, easier on the eyes.

Anyway...

Several of the included wallpapers work well. I chose the Pro Black for its dark color and non-distractive simple design. Well, it seems obvious why Apple created and uses it in the marketing images for the latest MBPs.

Even so, the Radial, several of the Light Stream, and most of the Earth collection wallpapers should do fine.

P.S. On my general purpose Mac (i.e., Mac mini) it’s a different story. I use the random shuffle on a folder filled with various images, mostly landscapes — a lot of them Bing wallpapers.

 

[Eric_WVGG]

Every model since the Powerbook G4 has used the same design for four release cycles. Literally the only deviation I can think of offhand is the 2019 Touch Bar Macbook Pro, which came out with a 16" screen instead of a 15" screen.

You can bet on the M4 being exactly the same as the M1-3, and the M5 being something new (which perfectly lines up with the rumors for an OLED MBP).

Apple is very predictable about this kind of thing! Watch designs have all lasted three releases each, iPhone has been three releases each since the iPhone 6 (unless you count the 8 which I don't)… only the iPad and Mac Mini are unpredictable.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

There’s a generation of folks that grew up seeing fairly significant changes in both the iMac and laptop designs. “A new design” became an expected part of a new release. Doesn’t matter what the internals are, does it LOOK different!? The thing is, those changes were always iterative steps working towards some eventual endpoint, though. And, I think we’ve arrived. All the mass market things are a variably sized slab of glass and aluminum (with other materials thrown in) you either carry with you OR you sit on a desk.

 

[TechnoMonk]

Keep the design same! Function over form for MBP. Don’t let Ive near MBP.

 

[TracerAnalog]

For 25 years I have always felt a desire to upgrade my MacBook Pro/Air when new versions are released. However since two years that feeling is gone.

I honestly hate the fat looking rounded edge design of the MacBooks, feels like a tribute to MacBooks 20 years ago. I guess Ive/Jobs would never ever allowed that design.

So my question is: Does anyone have any info of a design overhaul for the MacBooks?

Thanks
John

Don’t like the look? Buy something else. Because that’s why you buy a laptop…
😏

 

[Squirrrrel]

The Mac is a tool not a fashion statement or status symbol.

This couldn't be more false. Yes, it's a tool, but people most definitely use the Mac as a status symbol. I don't, but the culture of Apple is perceived that way.

 

[cateye]

This couldn't be more false. Yes, it's a tool, but people most definitely use the Mac as a status symbol. I don't, but the culture of Apple is perceived that way.

Which is a choice, not a requirement.

 

[Squirrrrel]

Which is a choice, not a requirement.

What's a choice?