Your opinion of the notch – one year later

[Fthree]

what notch?

 

[unrigestered]

BUT, Apple won't do that, too many people do need a camera that's not just for Apple software.

true, but do they desperately need 1080p?

some PC laptop manufacturers use even thinner bezels and have no notch at all. they're using 720p cams though.

sure 1080p is nicer than 720p, so would be 4 or 8k. but are 1080p for video conferences really that important that you rather put a permanent obstacle on your screen, rather living with "just" 720p?
are you planning to shoot professional movies with that?

 

[BigMcGuire]

Figured I’d add my voice to the crowd. I don’t notice the notch on either my iPhone or my MacBook. My enjoyment of using these devices is definitely at a peak for me since I’ve been using computing hardware. I absolutely love my MBP 16’ and my iPhone. Great devices.

 

[unrigestered]

i love them too of course.
still, i don't think they are really necessary on Mac

on the iPhone, they at least have Face ID as an excuse for it's existence.

 

[schneeland]

I still dislike it and if it were to disappear, I would certainly appreciate that. On the other hand, it's not a show stopper, so I guess my next Macbook will have one.

 

[Tagbert]

Hi, I'm interested in the app that was mentioned several times for managing apps in the menu bar, but when i search for 'bartender' on the app store, there is an 'iBar', 'barbee', and 'ByeBar' but the other bartender apps are drink recipes?

Bartender by Surtees Studios

Bartender 4 - Take control of your Menu bar

www.macbartender.com

 

[Zaydax333]

I baraely notice it day to day. Though I don't really have any apps that overflow to where things are hidden.
One thing that does bother me. In the software, the menu bar thickness doesn't match the height of the notch. That I notice the most and it seems silly from a "design pov"

 

[Tagbert]

I baraely notice it day to day. Though I don't really have any apps that overflow to where things are hidden.
One thing that does bother me. In the software, the menu bar thickness doesn't match the height of the notch. That I notice the most and it seems silly from a "design pov"

The bottom of the menu bar sits slightly lower than the bottom of the notch. That is a sophisticated design technique that takes into account how our vision works. If the bottom of the menu were exactly even with the notch, the place there the lines intersection would look odd. As your eye followed the line of the menu bar, it would diverge where it intersects with the curve of the corner of the notch and the line would look bent. The notch would also look like it was protruding more and would look bigger. Having the notch fully within the menu bar and not touching the bottom edge makes the notch visually slightly smaller and avoids a messy intersection.

 

[Dave Pearce]

oh, I have a notch up there? 😂
Nope, doesn't bother me at all. it's in line with the menus so to me all that area is used space anyway.

 

[Seiko4169]

Just picked up a new MacBook Pro 16” Max; from the reviews, screen shots and seeing it in a few stores I thought I’d hate the notch. 5 seconds into the config and choosing dark theme I’m pleased to say that I don’t even notice it.

 

[ryanmillercg]

I'd just get rid of the camera totally now that we can use our smartphones as a camera. I actually haven't used the camera on my 16" M1, so I'd imagine losing it wouldn't cause an issue... for me. BUT, Apple won't do that, too many people do need a camera that's not just for Apple software.

I never notice the notch though as I don't have many menu bar items and I use a black background, plus I like the extra space it brings.

Interesting proposal. What about a MagSafe charger/mount built into the screen behind where the webcam currently is? Would add some thickness I guess.

 

[doolar]

Didn't bother me on day one, and the same now. I don't think about it really.

 

[Realityck]

I don't even notice it.
(end of story)

Same, I actually liked that Apple chose to maximize the screen with that incorporated, rather then trying to hide it.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

Im the complete opposite, to this day I think it actually looks pretty cool and futuristic. Always reminds me that I have the latest design, which is a nice reminder to have.

 

[barkomatic]

People look at the notch as cutting into screen real estate and get annoyed by what they perceive as something being taken away. However, if the notch weren't there then there would just be a thicker bezel (like on previous models) and the menu bar would just get pushed down. I feel like the dislike of the notch is irrational and effectively those who wish it weren't there are wishing for a smaller screen.

 

[halledise]

it's like a lot of blemishes in life - it's only there if you look for it.
thank God my wife doesn't look too hard for mine.
and neither do I for hers.
life is good.
so is the 'notch'

 

[redheeler]

Im the complete opposite, to this day I think it actually looks pretty cool and futuristic. Always reminds me that I have the latest design, which is a nice reminder to have.

Yes you're the compete opposite of me, I'm the type of person who'd rather walk into a coffee shop with an iBook G3 Clamshell than the year-ago MacBook Pro that half of the people in there already have

 

[mdhaus72]

Another notch thread, huzzah!

I'm typing this on my 16" MacBook Pro with ye old Intel Core i9, but I also have the newer M1 MacBook Pro 14" from work. For a lot of people the space in the middle of the menu bar went unused, but not for me. I use iStat Menus to fill that space with all sorts of interesting system information at a glance. iStat Menus was the best way to make use of that space, until...yep, the notch came to town and ruined the fun. There's way less space for iStat Menus to do its thing on my work MBP to the point that it's basically unusable.

The M1 is amazing in every other way, but because of this I'm not a fan of the notch and hope that a notch-less design is in the MBP's future soon. What're your thoughts on it, now that the M1 MacBook Pro has been out for a year?

I'm not bothered at all by the notch. If having one is the price to pay for smaller bezels, then I'm totally fine with it. After a day or two, I stopped even noticing it. Personally, I think all of the "notch hate" for iPhones and the MBP is way overblown.

 

[Piplodocus]

I don't notice it. I just get more useable screen in a smaller laptop.

I'm far more bothered by the silly use of varying apps fullscreen with pointless top bars that pop out over the app menu bar. Means I always have to use some apps like Ableton Live maximised, but not fullscreen. Best explained in one of the points here...

(I don't necessarily agree with all the points in the vid, but most are spot on)

 

[Pooneil]

I have a number of apps that are most convenient when they live on the menu bar. Bartender solved that and the apps can be arranged on the menu bar according to user priority and if I remember, it was cheap. Aside from that I don't notice it.

 

[PetrolFuel]

I quickly got used to it. Doesn't bother me. The overall performance of the M1 14mbp is nice and I don't bother to think of the notch.

 

[spiderman0616]

Before answering this thread, I can't think of the last time I even noticed it being there.

 

[saintmac]

I never notice it and it's very rare that it bothers me by hiding something in the menu.

With the i9 16" I used to check iStats menu all the time because managing the heat was a pain.
With the M1 max ? The fans barely ever start spinning and when they do I can't hear them.
(Except when gaming which I rarely have time for)

CPU or GPU are never maxed out and I have a hard time passing the 24Gb RAM threshold.
At this point I could totally remove iStats menu and just enjoy the laptop.

 

[Elviss116]

i'm use topNotch

 

[Spaceboi Scaphandre]

My stance hasn't changed at all. I'm a big fan of the notch on Macbooks. The notch has made the screen so much better by being almost bezelless. Not to mention thanks to the added screen real estate I have my menu bar permanently on in full screen, which means I always have a clock and battery percentage handy.

If it wasn't for that notch, I wouldn't have a Macbook Pro right now, I would still be using a Mac Mini. But that notch lead to an amazing screen I just had to have.