I'm confused by the negative reaction. To me, these new laptops seem like the ultimate pro dream machines.

I can understand the frustration with with lack of other Mac updates somewhat, but really, Intel has not been giving much reason to update the cpu for a while now, so it is somewhat justified. Ram speed, and ssd speed, are more important by far now.

What puzzles me more is the lack of Mac mini action. Isn't this an excellent route for Apple to introduce new customers to the Mac? Why don't they make it compelling, and a tiny bit a loss leader? I know Mac revenue is a minor fraction of apple's revenue now, but on the same token, a reduction in asp for macs would be minor overall as well.

My guess: they don't want the cost and hassle of providing apple-grade support to new Mac users.