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Comment by OldGuyInTheClub | Hacker News Reader

I scoffed at Apples for years before getting a 2012 Macbook Pro for the Retina display. I'm still using it 7+ years later whereas the highly rated Vaios and Thinkpads I had before conked out in less than 3 years each. The Unix underlying macOS has been rock solid and I can run whatever I need to. I much prefer Android to iOS though.

I'm worried by what I hear even from full-on Apple aficionados about the new notebooks and Catalina, which I am resisting. I have to use Windows 10 at work and I don't like it nearly as much. Someday this MBP will need replacing and I feel like I am caught with no good option other than dealing with Windows-whatever or paying a huge Apple premium for hardware that may not be worth it.

(I have tried several flavors of Linux desktops and have been frustrated by all of them)

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I'm in the same boat. Except a part of me keeps haunting my thoughts: "you still haven't tried FreeBSD...you still haven't tried OpenBSD..."

And there's another part that goes: "Linux just needs a tyrant...maybe System76/PopOS is good..."

but then I go on with my day in macOS.

I haven't used Catalina yet, but I also don't really have any 32-bit apps that I care about losing. I've found a way to make the TouchBar useful (BetterTouchTool). I map CAPS to Esc anyway. I kinda like the keyboard when I'm only using it for short periods of time (ie not hooked up to my full desktop setup). Those are the main complaints that I am aware of, and I don't share them. I know I'm the weird one, but my 2017 MBP is my favorite computing device to date.

You'd think that'd buy some loyalty, but I can still hear voices ("...you will love OpenBSD...just try it...")

I picked up the MBP 16" and I've been pretty happy with it. No issues, coming from the 2013 rMBP. I held off on buying a new laptop for awhile due to all the keyboard issues, glad they've gone back to the old design. I do wish some of the hardware was self upgradable though, but I doubt Apple is ever going to move away from having all the components soldered on.

Not sure about Catalina, I've read a lot of people having issues with it, but personally none of them have affected me. I don't use any 32-bit apps and the security prompts can be a bit annoying but not disruptive to my workflow since it's mostly just a one time thing for each app.

FWIW I have the new 16 inch MBP and I like it a lot more than my 2015 rMBP. Touch ID is a thing you won't want to live without once you've had it on a laptop ;P

I'll second this. They fixed everything that was wrong with the previous generation, and it's hardware I'd actually recommend now.

Catalina, on the other hand...

This is reassuring. I hope that by the time I need to replace that Catalina or its successor will be stable. I keep an eye on refurbished 2015 MBPs because my friends who have them rave about them and don't want to give them up.

BTW, I am still relatively new to HN. This article/thread is marked as 'flagged' for some reason and I have to access it through my own "Comments" link. Can anyone explain why? It seems on-topic. I have not submitted anything yet and am trying to understand the ground rules.

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