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Comment by acdha | Hacker News Reader

> Would we support laptops that required replacement every year or two as applications required more memory and batteries atrophied?

This is the key misunderstanding most people made: a 2010 MacBook Air still makes a fine system, even for software developers. For almost all users, hardware capacity has exceeded their needs for years and the newer battery technology holds up better than the older designs as well.

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When I was 14 I would build my own computer from parts and boy did I care about upgradability and serviceability. One of the reasons I switched to Apple is I didn't want to spend time making computers, I wanted to spend time making things with my computer.

My 2011 Macbook Air is the best computer I've ever owned. Go to any meetup for software developers and you see a lot of the people in the crowd who have gone the same way. Being a geek (for me) doesn't mean I need to upgrade the ram, or harddrive in my computer. Sorry if that means I get a better, thinner machine at someone else's expense.

> One of the reasons I switched to Apple is I didn't want to spend time making computers, I wanted to spend time making things with my computer.

I can't up vote that comment enough.

Before VM Ware, I used to run a Windows 2k box, and a Mac OS X box. The fundamental difference was when I used the PC, I was always busy fiddling with hardware or software (the registry, etc.) Using the Mac, I simply got work done.

I think this is true for many people. But apart from growing old, boring and having less free time, I think gaming is a big part of it. I knew some people who would buy a new MBP every year because they wanted to both use OS X and play recent games on Boot Camp.

Thats a sign you have sold out and become the "man" - subs eh :-)

If it was just a case that hardware capacity has reached a point where most of us really don't need to upgrade our computers any more, that would be one thing. But the article also says that many of Apple's decisions are making their laptops less recyclable - even if the actual materials they're being made from are more so. This is a serious issue that people should care about.

People should also care about not being able to replace their batteries. Even if the rest of the hardware remains useful after 2, 3 or even 4 years, a battery is a consumable. It gets used up. In the article, it says the original Macbook Air was rated for 300 charges. That's not a lot, and since you can't replace it, you're going to find yourself buying a new laptop in 2 or 3 years even if the rest of the hardware would have lasted 5 or 6 years. And your old laptop won't be recycled either, because they decided to glue everything together.

First of all Apple has a battery replacement program that is way, way cheaper than buying a new laptop ($129-199 for a MBP depending on the size of the laptop).

And you'll probably be able to buy aftermarket batteries just as you can with iPhones. I replaced the battery in my 3GS and it wasn't difficult at all even though the battery was glued in.

It's not like it's glued to the chassis with epoxy resin, it's designed to be replaced. iFixit didn't want to completely ruin the battery of their new laptop, so they kept it in.

What are you talking about ? The battery IS replaceable just not by you.

And I hardly think saving an hour at an Apple Store once every 3 years is worth having a substantially thicker device.

You'll probably get one use of that, then. I doubt they'll still have 2012 Macbook Pro batteries sitting around in 2018, much less a person who knows how to install them.

I took my 2006 Macbook in to an Apple retail store to get a new battery, and they don't stock them any more. They said they could special order one, but actually suggested I try Amazon.

> I took my 2006 Macbook in to an Apple retail store to get a new battery, and they don't stock them any more.

You'd have the same problem in 2018 even if you had a replaceable battery.

How long before we hit the - The device is programmable, just not by you.

Developers that write apps to fill the App Store give people a reason to buy their products in the first place. This is paranoid nonsense.

We're already most of the way there with iOS. The Windows 8 ARM UEFI stuff is pretty foreboding too.

My 2010 MacBook Air, which is 20 months old according to coconutBattery, still holds a four hour charge. This machine was fine for the final two years of my degree. Hell it can even play Diablo 3 pretty well.

I would expect to make a return on my investment when I sell it later this year. No other manufacturer can claim results like this.

A MacBook Pro will have an even longer life, this is just a 1.4GHz processor.

A minimum spec 2010 macbook air came with 2GB RAM. Trying to do C++ (for example) development in 2GB of RAM would get very painful. I'm sure several other languages would as well.

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