Why I cancelled my MacBook Pro 13" M1 Order

[Sanpete]

I hope so but I doubt it. Apple would have said so if it were possible.

Yes, one would think. There's also this, though reps are often not fully informed:

MacBooks only one external monitor???

I spoke to a rep on live chart this morning who said one external monitor only, even in clamshell mode.

forums.macrumors.com

Should know for sure soon.

 

[Sanpete]

Apple should drop the "pro" from their pro line, they are barely inline with a MacBook. No "pro" machine should be running the same processor as an air or mac mini, and still have integrated graphics. The I/O is a joke, just form over function.

Many pros who actually use these machines for work will disagree, of course. But that's never stopped people here from opining that only what they see as pro matters.

Oh, and integrated graphics aren't always so bad:

MacBookPro17,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacBookPro17,1 with an Apple Silicon processor.

browser.geekbench.com

 

[Stella]

Hello everyone! Just thought I would share the reasons why I cancelled my Apple Silicon MacBook Pro order.

I ordered it as soon as the store opened after the keynote, but as I read the documents, I discovered many little things that annoyed me to the point of making me wait for the next iteration:

• The MacBook Pro M1 only supports 1 external screen using Thunderbolt. That's a huge turn off, especially during pandemic because I was just thinking of getting another UltraFine 4K.
• There are only two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, versus the four on my current Mac. I'm concerned they might have bandwidth issue as well (since Apple only included 2 instead of the four on my current MacBook Pro.
• Windows ARM virtualization is still unclear. I'm not ready yet to make the jump not knowing if/when it will arrive.

Did anyone end up cancelling their order?

I cancelled my order for the exact same reasons. I ordered a Mac Mini instead.

Now, if the real life benchmarks are not good, I'll cancel that order or return it without opening the box. Instead I'll have to wait for the redesigned machines in 2021. Peferrably I want a Macbook Pro for the portability.

The Virtualization is another concern. The developer CPU did not support virtualization, but Apple suggested that the shipping CPUs would do, but that's still unclear.

 

[flapflapflap]

I cancelled mine as well just because of the 1 external monitor. Shame too, I was really looking forward to Apple Silicon.

how about an ultrawide monitor like say LG's 34 inch 5k2k?

 

[flapflapflap]

Hello everyone! Just thought I would share the reasons why I cancelled my Apple Silicon MacBook Pro order.

I ordered it as soon as the store opened after the keynote, but as I read the documents, I discovered many little things that annoyed me to the point of making me wait for the next iteration:

• The MacBook Pro M1 only supports 1 external screen using Thunderbolt. That's a huge turn off, especially during pandemic because I was just thinking of getting another UltraFine 4K.
• There are only two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, versus the four on my current Mac. I'm concerned they might have bandwidth issue as well (since Apple only included 2 instead of the four on my current MacBook Pro.
• Windows ARM virtualization is still unclear. I'm not ready yet to make the jump not knowing if/when it will arrive.

Did anyone end up cancelling their order?

how about an ultrawide monitor like say LG's 34 inch 5k2k?

 

[DeanL]

how about an ultrawide monitor like say LG's 34 inch 5k2k?

Nah I already have a UltraFine and want to add one. The LG 5K2K doesn't look as good as the UltraFine 4K

 

[flapflapflap]

Nah I already have a UltraFine and want to add one. The LG 5K2K doesn't look as good as the UltraFine 4K

Noob question --- do you think the M1 MBP will work well and support the LG 5K2K?

 

[Tech198]

I thought it would have been too soon for a thread like this .

 

[Graham King]

We have until 1/8 to return it. That gives me 6 weeks to decide if I want to cancel my order. Good deal!

 

[GiantKiwi]

Why wouldn't he order it right away to ensure he got in first delivery batch and then research a bit further after the fact? And maybe he was busier yesterday than today?

Because that defies logic. If you're too busy to pay attention when buying hardware, you shouldn't be buying it in the first place.

 

[DeanL]

Because that defies logic. If you're too busy to pay attention when buying hardware, you shouldn't be buying it in the first place.

Preorder police 👮‍♂️

 

[GiantKiwi]

Preorder police 👮‍♂️

Whereas you seem to be the epitomy of why Mac users get regarded with the "More money than sense" moniker by the rest of the tech world. Thanks for that.

 

[DeanL]

Whereas you seem to be the epitomy of why Mac users get regarded with the "More money than sense" moniker by the rest of the tech world. Thanks for that.

Not really. I don’t think people upgrading their Macs expect that the upgrade will be less capable in terms of external screens. Why would I specifically be looking for that? How deep you search for details is up to you and another person doesn’t lack of sense because they didn’t get into the details 😉 Especially when the computer can be returned until January.
Thanks for the laugh though.

 

[wyrdness]

Apple should drop the "pro" from their pro line, they are barely inline with a MacBook. No "pro" machine should be running the same processor as an air or mac mini, and still have integrated graphics. The I/O is a joke, just form over function.

Even when that processor is faster than the Intel Macbook Pro's?

Though I'm not convinced that they should call it 'Pro' when it only supports 16GB and a single external screen. Many people need two or more large screens and a lot of memory for their work.

 

[adrianlondon]

As someone who has never needed to run Windows on their Macbook, or connect more than one monitor, thank you OP!

My dream is that my Intel i5 2020 Air will become sought after, so I can sell it for a profit and buy the M1 version.

 

[deeddawg]

Hello everyone! Just thought I would share the reasons why I cancelled my Apple Silicon MacBook Pro order.

I ordered it as soon as the store opened after the keynote, but as I read the documents, I discovered many little things that annoyed me to the point of making me wait for the next iteration:

• The MacBook Pro M1 only supports 1 external screen using Thunderbolt. That's a huge turn off, especially during pandemic because I was just thinking of getting another UltraFine 4K.

We don't know for a fact that this is the case. Re-read the spec. The only-one-external is when using the internal display. We also don't know that it isn't the case. If that is critical and if returning the system would be problematic, then best to wait for confirmation.

• There are only two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, versus the four on my current Mac. I'm concerned they might have bandwidth issue as well (since Apple only included 2 instead of the four on my current MacBook Pro.

Yes, they've only updated the two-port MBP to M1 -- the four-port MBP will presumably make the transition sometime in the future. If your needs dictate having a four-port MBP then you'd likely be better off waiting.

• Windows ARM virtualization is still unclear. I'm not ready yet to make the jump not knowing if/when it will arrive.

Did anyone end up cancelling their order?

Yes, I'd definitely suggest that anyone needing Windows virtualization / bootcamp (or any other mission-critical app) would be best waiting to buy until they've validated what they need to accomplish is working fine on the M1 systems.

 

[Lord Hamsa]

right, because when you buy a more recent Mac, it’s top of your mind that it might regress on how many external screens are supported? 😟

If you consider it a make-or-break issue, then yeah.

 

[JPack]

The lack of dual monitor output is disappointing, especially on the MacBook Pro. Who doesn’t have dual monitors these days? One of the first things our dept. got when the pandemic hit was funding to buy at least two 27” monitors for everyone along with keyboard mice and chairs.

 

[Ethosik]

I really wish people would stop complaining about the word Pro in every thread. Not every pro is the same. Not everyone needs to perform statistical analysis and needs 1.5 TB of RAM. Not everyone needs multiple 8k streams or 16k video production. Not every pro needs 1,000+ instruments in Logic Pro. There is a WIDE RANGE of Pros from basic tasks to what I mentioned earlier.

If people are wanting Pro in products that only is the top of the line, $50,000+ computers, then only the top of the line Mac Pro would qualify.

Pro in product names only means an enhanced version. MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro now, the Pro here is much better due to having the fan - which allows the processor to get hotter and sustained workloads more since it is actively cooled.

And stop comparing it to the old days. These processors are their own unique item that cannot be compared to Intel or AMD. They are technically 32 cores if your software using the Neural Engine cores too (which a few demos were shown that used it like upscaling images). That is MASSIVE.

 

[JMacHack]

If it is one specific application, then perhaps there are other solutions. Codeweavers Crossover 20 supports Apple Silicon Macs and runs many Windows applications, albeit not as smoothly as BootCamp or a virtual machine.

So I’m not allowed to ask? Who made you the forum cops?

Fair enough, but I still consider it a reasonable criticism, even if most of us really don't need Windows compatability.

 

[KPOM]

Not really. I don’t think people upgrading their Macs expect that the upgrade will be less capable in terms of external screens. Why would I specifically be looking for that? How deep you search for details is up to you and another person doesn’t lack of sense because they didn’t get into the details 😉 Especially when the computer can be returned until January.
Thanks for the laugh though.

The previous MacBook Pro couldn’t drive a 6K display, and would be taxed by heavy 5K content, so the new MacBook Pro should be an improvement there.

 

[GiantKiwi]

The previous MacBook Pro couldn’t drive a 6K display, and would be taxed by heavy 5K content, so the new MacBook Pro should be an improvement there.

I suspect this point is fairly irrelevant to OP, as I somehow doubt he would ever have need to process any content taxing enough to be a concern to his existing MBP. Having figured out what he does, the necessity for multiple screens makes some sense, but not the necessity for multiple 4K screens.

 

[phl92]

Why are long-term Apple users now complaining about only 2 Thunderbolt ports? I mean, ports, this is a issue with Apple ever since. Just buy a USB-C dock, for around 40$ you get everything you need (3-4xUSB-A, 1-2x-C, HDMI, Ethernet, Card readers etc.) (Not that I am amazed what Apple is doing with their port "management")

 

[Zazoh]

Why are long-term Apple users now complaining about only 2 Thunderbolt ports? I mean, ports, this is a issue with Apple ever since. Just buy a USB-C dock, for around 40$ you get everything you need (3-4xUSB-A, 1-2x-C, HDMI, Ethernet, Card readers etc.) (Not that I am amazed what Apple is doing with their port "management")

It just dawned on me this is like the charger with the iPhone. Apple has data on how many ports are in use on the devices they ship. I’m sure they make a calculated decision to say 87% of users are fine with 2. If we give a premium config 2 more we can jack the price and justify. This will upset 3% of consumers but if they leave Apple over it, we are still positive cash by the premium sales.

Point, they are a trillion dollar company for a reason.

 

[maflynn]

Windows ARM virtualization is still unclear

AFAIK, there will not be any windows ARM virtualization - at least natively. Yes, Parallels stated they'll have something running under Rosetta 2, but that means, running an emulation, running a virtualization. I'd be very surprised to see anything resembling decent performance under that scenerio. True it will get you windows app access and for some that's what is needed.