thekendrickllama-blog

[thekendrickllama-blog]

MacBook vs HP Spectre who gets closer to the perfect ultraportable?

The announcement yesterday of the new Apple MacBooks left us a little cold, and in fact it was inevitable to think about that surprising and eye-catching-perhaps too-HP Spectre that seems to have been created to show that to iterate over a product already created and improve it is not only C Bear of the Cupertino.

This twist to traditional laptops shows that there is still a path for this format. Convertibles (both tablets and laptops) try to offer the best of both worlds, but it is clear that there are still many users who still do not want milongas, and that is where these contestants enter.

War on paper ...

When HP presented his Spectre a few days ago he did it forcefully: the idea that Apple had with the MacBooks was good, they seemed to mean, but its execution did not. It we then, but it is as if that computer had been analyzed to try to overcome it as much as possible in terms of technical specifications.

That table reflects cold data, but there are other elements that also have a lot to do with the end result. One of the aspects that clearly differentiates both teams is the integrated processor. The Core M of the MacBooks make possible that there is no active ventilation, but in the HP Spectre has integrated a new and promising cooling system that if it meets as we hope could become one of the most noteworthy points of that proposal hardware.

If there is something that the MacBook exceeds the HP Spectre is in screen resolution: its Retina screen is one of the safe values of the brand, but in HP have preferred to bet on thinness: its managers claimed that not going to a 2 K panel (1440) allowed them to reduce some Precious millimeters. They did not speak of the impact on battery-which certainly exists-but we already said in that presentation that the decision we like, although logically the definition of the screen is damaged.

That disadvantage is probably offset for many with that HP decision to leave the dust biting the MacBook on connection ports: those three USB-C ports (two of them with Thunderbolt 3) ensures that we can connect all kinds of peripherals, However, the adapters will still be needed if we want to take advantage of conventional USB-to-peripherals.

It is also inevitable to talk about sections such as keyboard and touchpad. In HP they boast a 1.3 mm path for the keys, which a priori will convince users of conventional keyboards. In Apple decided to make a different keyboard for the MacBook, and here are opinions found by the fact that the touch and travel of those keys is very special. There are those who are accustomed, and there are those who do not, but in the analysis of our colleague Javier Penalva his impressions were not too positive.

In a matter of touchpads we have the striking Force Touch trackpad that seems to convince those who prove it, and in the absence of testing the HP Spectre what is clear is that the experience and know-how of Apple here is usually a guarantee.

And then there are the designs of these equipments, of course. This subjective section ends up being a decisive factor in the purchase, and here many have complained about a "dangerous" combination by HP, which in the Spectre makes use of gold and black that make the team have a debatable finish. It is not that the new MacBooks in Golden Rose are not well unprepared for those who criticize the choice of HP, but this is such a particular aspect that it is difficult to issue judgments. I personally would have appreciated at least one more option for the HP Spectre, perhaps with silver colors instead of gilded.

... but there is a world beyond the specs

Some people say that in laptops happens as in cameras: The best is the one you have with you, not the one you have dusting at a table at home. This is the defining characteristic of these ultraslim ultraportables that precisely focus on making portability the main factor that attracts potential users.

Here it is clear that Apple's proposal is clear: in the MacBooks that have just been renewed there are no more USB-C ports, but it is possible that there may never be any because Apple does not want you to connect anything to this computer: I see it as a computer to use as it , without using that usb 3.1 type c port more than to charge it.

The problem with that conception is that for many-and I include-that is simply limiting the possibilities to another segment of users. What happens if I also want to use it at home connected to an external monitor and other peripherals? I can do it, but I'll need several adapters or a concentrator that will allow me to conjugate all those accessories.

In HP they have preferred to expand possibilities and provide the team with multiple ports to open that possibility as well. It is a team that one can move just as well (or almost 90 grams of difference) but with which we are not so condemned for its capacity to expand. True that on the MacBook a good USB-C hub provides various connection options, but here it is clear that the HP Spectre offers more freedom and possibilities.

In this bet also influences the power that can give these teams, and will certainly be higher in the Spectre thanks to its processors Core i5 and i7. The new MacBooks have made the jump to the Core M of the family Skylake, something that surely is noticeable in a performance that will improve appreciably with respect to the obvious limitations of the models of the previous generation. Here again the same as in the expansion ports: Apple does not bet on more powerful processors because this equipment is not for that. And while the Spectre adopts the same format but opens the range of options and allows us to be a little more ambitious with our workflow. It is a different way of understanding the ultraportable, but personally I have always been clear: the options are good. If I want to use my ultraportable and ultra-thin equipment as a desktop I can do so with much more guarantees in the case of HP Spectre.

I can do it or not, but there's the possibility. Apple has no interest in that, and the problem is that this team is rival of its other concept in mobile computing, the IPad Pro. Since these new convertible tablets also offer that approach to productivity, who does Apple run the MacBooks and who does the IPad Pro? It is true that one is more consumer-oriented and other to production, but that line is increasingly blurred.

Others also look for the perfect portable format We have focused on the MacBooks and the HP Spectre as referents of a new trend that gives a twist to the ultrabooks that Intel was pulled out of the sleeve years ago, but in fact many other manufacturers are trying to offer their own proposals in a Merc ADO that desperately seeks to try to attract new (and old) users.

Here it is clear that convertible tablets and notebooks are absolute protagonists. Everyone who bets on Windows 10-based computers has tried to validate the Microsoft paradigm, which according to which with the screen is a perfectly valid way to interact with the machine.

That has resulted in teams of all colors and flavors that in my opinion are a huge song to the love and I can not. The 13 inch convertible tablets are very eye-catching in the photo, but believe me when I say that using a diagonal like that in tablet mode is not recommended unless you work on a table.

Three-quarters of the same thing happens to convertible notebooks that have a fundamental advantage for those who produce (produce) and do not consume as much: the keyboard with Touchpad is a blessing, but there it returns to regret (and never better) the fact that its Utility as tablets is compromised. In my view a 13-inch tablet does not have (too) sense, but does not have (too, I insist) a laptop of 10. is to want to fulfill everything without ever getting it.

That's why manufacturers continue to iterate. We have eye-catching equipment like the Surface Book, or the Lenovo Yoga 900, the Samsung Galaxy TabPro S, or the new IPad Pro 9.7 inch. They all try to convecernos that we can have the best of both worlds, but none of them achieve perfection.

It is for that reason that the laptops of all life-those without milongas-still make sense for many of us, and for which at least in my case if I want to work in mobility I do in a conventional laptop, and that's why that search for the laptop Il perfect they are driving Apple and HP seems so valuable to me. The concept is not dead, and these teams-I hope-are only the first of a batch that retrieves a format perfectly valid for many users.

[thekendrickllama-blog]

What to choose between a MacBook, a MacBook Air and a MacBook Pro 13?

If you are planning to buy an Apple compact laptop (say between 11 and 13 "), you are spoilt for choice between the MacBook Air, the MacBook, the MacBook Pro and the the Retina MacBook Pro.

Many criteria include: power, retina screen or not, Trackpad Force Touch, autonomy, amount of storage, graphics performance or (and perhaps above all) price.

Indeed, the cheapest Apple laptop starts at €999. This is obviously the MacBook Air 11, which ships a Core i5 processor at 1.6 GHz, 4 GB of memory and 128 GB of storage space. The most expensive one costs twice as much. This is the MacBook Pro Retina 13 ". Sold €1999, it ships a Core i5 to 2.9 GHz, 8 GB of memory, 512 GB of storage space. The addition can even mount up to €2949 if you inflate this block configuration: Core i7 to 3.1 GHz, 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage space.

MacBook: A difficult place to find

The difficulty for Apple is going to be getting to make a place on the MacBook. More expensive than the MacBook Air, it is also less powerful. Will its benefits succeed, to make a difference? In addition to its increased finesse and feather weight, it has the Trackpad Force Touch (read: The trackpad Force Touch will add a dimension to the interfaces), is declined in several colors (an argument that seems to be important if one believes the results of this (recent poll), and unlike the MacBook Air, it has a retina display.

Apple insists a lot on the fact that its machine has only one port, certainly multitasking, but it is not certain that the user sees this as an advance. Especially that MagSafe (and its magnetic connection) is rented for years by millions of users.

We're not going to be able to muscle this MacBook. On its presentation sheet, Apple evokes the possibility of including a slightly more powerful processor: an Intel Core M processor at 1.3 GHz (with Turbo Boost up to 2.9 GHz), against a core m at 1.1 GHz for entry-level and 1.2 GHz for high-end. A priori, we will not be able to equip it with 16 GB of RAM or a 1 TB SSD.

But this model is not necessarily intended to become a bestseller. In fact, the production volumes would be relatively low if one believes Ming-Chi Kuo's indiscretion (read: MacBook: Few sales at its exit, but a long-term influence). This new computer also features a technological demonstration of what it is possible to do in 2015, much like the very first MacBook Air in its time. No doubt, many of its innovations (visible or not) will end up in other machines of the range. This has already started with Force Touch (read: A small MacBook that announces upheavals).

This MacBook is often presented as the new MacBook Air, which it shares the DNA. You can also see it as an iPad with keyboard ... that benefits from the power and opening of OS X.

MacBook Air: the MacBook for all

While waiting for the new MacBook to democratize, the machine that should seduce the greatest number by its value for money is the MacBook Air. The ultra-portable Apple does not have a Retina display, but its definition in 11 "(1 366 by 768) or in 13" (1 440 by 900) is far from ridiculous. When it comes to connection, it is the exact opposite of the MacBook. Everything is there or almost: USB 3, Thunderbolt 2, SD card reader on the 13th "..." Finally, the CPU/processor torque is otherwise more efficient than on the new MacBook. Too bad Apple will clamp the MacBook Air on some options. It is regrettable that it is not possible to equip it with 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage space. This "ultimate" configuration could have made the happiness of all those who do not need a retina display.

MacBook Pro 13 ": The Relic

Next to the new MacBook, the MacBook Pro 13 is an old ancestor. He'll be celebrating his third candle in the month of June. Nothing has changed since it was the price that took €100 two weeks ago.

It is heavy, its processor is handle, its hard drive is slow, its graphics circuit date, the definition of its screen is limited ... In short, it does not have much to it except that one can completely personalize it yourself (change the RAM, the hard disk) and that it has a superdrive drive. But for the latter, is this still an advantage in 2015?

«MacBook Pro Retina 13»: The anti-MacBook?

Abundance. This is how one could summarize the "professional laptop" of Apple in a nutshell. It has all the superlatives: the most powerful processor, the only machine that can accommodate 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of SSD, the most efficient graphics circuit ...

But with its 1.6 kilograms, it is also the heaviest if one sets aside its illustrious predecessor. The target of the MacBook Pro is easy to describe: those who need power first and foremost. Of all the machines mentioned, it is the one which is the most suitable to be used as the main machine. It seems unthinkable for the MacBook.

Its main weak point probably comes from its graphic circuit: sufficient in many cases, but probably too fair if one wishes to do serious things particularly in the field of video.