Chris Hannah shares his experience building a gaming PC. I really like his hardware choices. I’ve been out of the PC hardware game for quite some time, but I imagine if I was building one, I’d end up with something very similar.
➝ Source: chrishannah.me
It’s about the size of a 13-inch MacBook Pro and is designed to be user-serviceable and upgradeable. It can be bought as a kit or as a fully assembled machine. This might be the most intriguing non-Apple laptop I’ve ever seen.
And the most interesting feature is the modules that can be slotted in to customize your ports. It has room for four and you can choose any combination of USB-C, USB-A, Micro-SD, DisplayPort, HDMI, or additional storage. I’d be curious to see what the most commonly ordered combination is — if I was ordering one, I’d probably get two USB-C, a USB-A, and an HDMI.
I sure would love to have one of these to tinker around with.
➝ Source: frame.work
Matt Birchler:
This all brought me to an interesting realization: Apple doesn’t make a Mac for me anymore.
Or maybe I’ve just changed what I want from a desktop computer. Either way, none of the options Apple currently sells would make me happy, which is how we get to today.
He ended up purchasing a PC from Dell. And this is someone that has been using Macs for decades. If that doesn’t tell you how dire the situation is, I don’t know what will.
I’ve written previously about my frustration with Apple’s Mac Pro pricing and I think that’s the key to all of this. The Mac Pro was the safety valve — the best option when no other Mac met your needs. Because of its internal expansion and high power ceiling, it was versatile enough for just about any task. The current Mac Pro has that in spades, but what it doesn’t have is a relatively affordable starting price point. Without that, folks like Matt and myself have to consider whether macOS is actually worth buying a machine that doesn’t offer the features or form factor we need.
Ten years ago, I suspect Matt would have ended up with a Mac Pro. Perhaps begrudgingly since it was a bit over his budget, but at least he would have had an option that was attainable. The current Mac Pro is just too darn expensive for a large swath of Mac users that previously would have considered it as the best option for them.
Unlike Matt, I’m not going to end up with a PC — my current plan is to buy a new Mac Mini. But it’s pretty sad that Mac enthusiasts are even having this conversation.
➝ Source: birchtree.me
My immediate thought is that Apple’s unreliable keyboards are finally catching up with them. I sure hope they swiftly update the rest of their laptop line with the new scissor switch keyboards to help keep this decline from getting out of hand.
➝ Source: imore.com
Shuhei Yoshida, Sony CE’s President of Worldwide Studios, writing on Twitter:
Some people asked if we plan to provide Remote Play function to PC, and yes, we are indeed working on an official application for PC/Mac.
Mike Bates writes about how the lines are blurring between PCs, smartphones, and tablets.
Neil Hughes, writing for AppleInsider:
Speaking to more than a thousand Apple IT administrators was Fletcher Previn, vice president of Workplace-as-a-Service at IBM. Big Blue began offering employees the ability to use a Mac at work starting on June 1, and adoption has been a tremendous success.
Previn revealed that IBM is now deploying 1,900 Macs per week, and there are currently 130,000 iOS and Mac devices at use within the company. All of these devices are supported by just 24 help desk staff members.
Further, Previn revealed that just 5 percent of Mac users call IBM’s internal help desk for assistance, compared to 40 percent of PC users.
Is this surprising to anyone?
I believe the protagonist is voiced by Rich Sommer, the actor behind one of my favorite characters on Mad Men and who is now the host of his own podcast, CARDBOARD! I don’t play too many video games these days — currently on Hearthstone and Alto’s Adventure — but Firewatch is the kind of game I could get in to.
