Sealed-Box Macs: Should Computers Be Disposable? 673
An anonymous reader writes "Apple's new Retina MacBook Pro is essentially completely non-upgradable, a sealed-box, following a trend started with the MacBook Air in 2008. It's a given that hardware companies are in the business of selling hardware, and would love for computers to have iPhone-like replacement cycles of 1-3 years. But does this mean we're moving irresistibly into an era of 'sealed-unit computing,' even for power users?"
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Germany's model (Score:5, Informative)
Re:$3000 every 1-3 years. Right. (Score:0, Informative)
Battery.
Alright, I'll play. (Score:5, Informative)
The T and W-series ThinkPads have socketed CPUs.
And the displays can be upgraded.
And the drive is removable, so you can add Blu-Ray or whatever you'd like.
And Lenovo publishes complete manuals with step-by-step instructions detailing how to disassemble everything and how to replace pretty much any part (along with a list of the FRU numbers for said parts.)
And they let you order individual parts (or you can just get them from any number of third party suppliers.)
And replacing CRUs doesn't void the warranty.
Your turn.
Re:MacBook Air confirmed most don't care. (Score:5, Informative)
I own a MBPR, and it is not slow. I imagine they went with the "Pro" name because it does not have the Air's 1.6Ghz 2-core processor, it has the Pro's 2.3Ghz 4-core processor.
Re:Alright, I'll play. (Score:5, Informative)
In a given T-series Thinkpad, there's several different displays with the same physical dimensions, and different resolutions. There isn't much holding the display onto the rest of the laptop except a few screws and a couple of cables with connectors. Replacing the display (along with the rest of the lid, which usually also contains the WiFi antenna and webcam) is fairly simple, so if you want to buy a dead laptop with the better display on Ebay and upgrade yours, it's not hard to do.
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:3, Informative)
Oh yeah, I totally forgot about that one. Yep, with your non-Apple laptop, if it's a few years old and the battery either dies or only lasts a short time, you can just go on Ebay and buy a new (aftermarket) one dirt-cheap that'll work just fine. With an Apple laptop, you either keep it plugged in all the time or you throw it in the trash.
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:5, Informative)
I've got a 2006 MacBook Pro - for reasons all my own, I've never upgraded the OS, but neither have I downgraded it... bit by bit, piece by piece, the things I still do with that computer are stopping working, typically with each software patch pushed via the web.
Similar story for the XP machines we have, though one of those finally fried a power supply and put itself out of our misery.
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:4, Informative)
Oh yeah, I totally forgot about that one. Yep, with your non-Apple laptop, if it's a few years old and the battery either dies or only lasts a short time, you can just go on Ebay and buy a new (aftermarket) one dirt-cheap that'll work just fine. With an Apple laptop, you either keep it plugged in all the time or you throw it in the trash.
Again, the same nonsense modded 5 insightful. A quick search on Amazon will show you many Apple laptop batteries. I just replaced my wife's 2008 MacBook battery for $40 (new and mfg. by Apple, not a third party).
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:0, Informative)
it wouldn't lay flat.
So did it lay standing up instead?
Note: the word you meant to use was "lie". The laptop lies on the table. The hen lays eggs.
Re:"moving irresistibly"? (Score:5, Informative)
Why is this modded down? Besides, the Retina MacBook Pro batteries ARE replaceable, you just replace the entire top-case with battery, keyboard and trackpad as a single unit. It's $200 including the Apple-certified work to replace it: http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro/service/battery/ [apple.com]
IMO, at the time the battery is worn-out, the top-case/keyboard/trackpad have seen better days anyway, which makes this operation much more affordable than on earlier MacBook Pro models.