Apple Trying to Beef Up Battery Engineering Team

In the wake of ongoing complaints about battery performance and reporting on MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, Apple is looking to beef up its battery-engineering team. 9to5Mac noted the company just added two positions related to batteries, Battery Algorithm Analysis Engineer and System Power and Control Architect.

Apple's TV App Reveals its Plight with Television Industry

From time to time, we’ve seem articles that explain Apple’s plight with its TV business. But John has found a splendidly complete diagnosis at The Verge  for this week’s focus. It examines the deepest motivations of Apple, it’s clash with the entertainment industry, its successes and failures, and how that has, in turn, affected Apple TV software design and customer perceptions.

Play Pac-Man on your MacBook Pro Touch Bar

The Touch Bar on the new MacBook Pro may be functional, but it can be fun, too. Henry Franks makes that point perfectly with his Pac-Man clone, called Pac-Bar, for the Touch Bar. It’s just like the classic arcade game, complete with Pac-Man and his “wokka-wokka” munching sound, ghosts, and music. The maze is a little limited since you can only go left or right, although the intersections do jump you to either end of the Touch Bar. You’ll need to use your MacBook Pro’s arrow keys to play—sorry, no touch controls here. Click the Clone or download button on Henry’s Github page get Pac-Bar.

Turn Your MacBook Pro Touch Bar into a Piano

Turning your new MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar into a piano may not be practical but it is pretty cool, and that’s exactly what Touch Bar Piano does. The app lets you choose between 128 different instruments, and you can play chords, too. Touch Bar Piano is a free download, and while it isn’t the same as using an actual piano, it’s a cool example of the creative ideas developers are finding for the Touch Bar.

Apple Kills Start Up Chime in New MacBook Pro Models

Apple has been on a killing spree of sorts with its new MacBook Pro models. The physical Escape key and function keys are gone, the traditional USB A and mini DisplayPort/Thunderbolt 2 ports are gone, the SD Card slot and MagSafe are gone, and the iconic startup chime is missing, too. It’s sad to see—or hear—the startup chime go, but it seems Apple has a reason for axing the sound.

Apple Has Missed the Plot

John Kheit thinks Apple has lost the plot about what users need in Apple devices, especially with creative pros. He argues that Microsoft nailed it with Surface Studio, while Apple’s new MacBook Pro is a far cry from a pro Mac.

Apple's 'Hello Again' Event Wasn't About the Mac After All

During Apple’s “Hello Again” event, Apple spent an hour and 25 minutes talking about several cool things. The new MacBook Pros are very nice—but they were the only major Mac announcement.  In contrast, the event tagline suggested that Apple would say something important about the “Mac” as a product. Instead, the vacuum persisted and Apple elected to take a stand, instead. on how it sees the MacBook Pro catering to the pro market with the Touch Bar.

macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Leaks New MacBook Pro Images

Apple seems to have tipped its hand and accidentally revealed the upcoming Retina MacBook Pro in Monday’s macOS Sierra 10.12.1 update. Photos showing the soon to be announced MacBook Pro with a touch sensitive OLED function strip were buried in the macOS update, which is about a close to a pre-event confirmation Apple will get.

E Ink Keyboard MacBook Pros Aren't a Sure Thing

A report last week suggested Apple will ditch the MacBook Pro’s traditional keyboard for an E Ink version with keys that dynamically change based on the app being used. Now the Wall Street Journal is chiming is saying it has sources confirming Apple’s plan. That makes it more likely an E Ink keyboard is coming, but it still isn’t a sure thing.

Apple May Want Sonder's E Ink Keyboard for MacBook Pro

Apple’s plans for adaptive keyboard elements may go beyond replacing the function keys on the MacBook Pro with a touch sensitive OLED strip. A new report claims Apple wants Sonder’s E Ink-based keyboard system for future MacBook Pro models, and may be negotiating to buy Sonder the company.

Technical Professionals Are Hanging on, Hoping For The Best from Apple

Soon, we think, there will be fall Apple event that launches new Macs. The nature of this event and the kinds of Macs that Apple updates and those that are left to quietly die will tell us a lot about where Apple is heading with technical professionals. Many of those former Apple customers have already switched to Linux. Those who remain are dismayed and are not very hopeful.  Some readers weigh in.

Don't Count on Kaby Lake Processors in the New MacBook Pro

With Intel’s Kaby Lake processors shipping and the MacBook Pro woefully overdue for a refresh, Apple could skip over Skylake and roll out new laptops with the latest chips—except that isn’t going to happen. Instead, Apple will most likely retire the aging Haswell chips it currently uses and finally move on to Skylake, and the really significant processor change won’t come until 2018 with Cannonlake.