But you can't upgrade them. I just added 4 GB of RAM and an SSD to my mom's 4-year-old MBP, ensuring it'll last another 3-4 years. 2 GB RAM and a 5400rpm drive just wasn't cutting it anymore. Several of my friends extended the lives of their MacBooks by replacing the DVD with a secondary SSD.
Apple's new generation design of Macs have soldered-in RAM and a proprietary disk. Will we be able to upgrade them in 4 years?
edit: Imagine if you could upgrade the RAM in an iPad. I could still have used my original iPad now instead of it being junk.
Every iOS update slows it down more and more and makes apps crash more as they run out of RAM and developers have only tested it with the latest device.
The original iPad was very much sold on the promise of upcoming third-party apps. If it didn't have the potential of apps, I would definitely not have bought it, just how I didn't buy the original iPhone.
My dear friend, that's the definition of compromise. Lighter/smaller vs. being very powerful. I carry my 15" MacBook Pro + iPad 2 in my bag and the next time would definitely go with the lighter product.
I'm not saying I like it. I would probably buy a Retina MacBook Pro if it wasn't "crippled" (for me), now I just use my 2009 MacBook Pro a year longer, hoping for a better rMBP next year. It's crippled for me, but the retina MacBook Pro does more things than anything 95% of the world could hope to do in 3 years (it's a beast).
I'm still going to buy the new Retina MacBook Pro, but I can currently afford to upgrade my laptop every year and gift away the old one. Plus I personally don't care much about recycling/the environment.
That doesn't mean it's not an environmentally unfriendly design.
Not true, only the Retina Macbook Pro and Airs have soldered-in batteries/RAM, just like ultrabooks made by other manufacturers (ASUS, Dell, Acer).
It's a design decision. If you want an ultra thin/light machine then you have to compromise. If servicing the machine yourself is an issue then buy one of the 'regular' Macbooks.
Sorry, with "new generation" I meant "next generation". There's no way the fullsize laptops are staying around any meaningful time (unless they survive on no-update life support like the Mac Pro)
Original iPad being junk? There's tons still in service. As a matter of fact, I'd imagine most who upgraded to the 2 or 3 did so due to additional features (camera, Retina), not the RAM.
Also, how do I upgrade the RAM in a Galaxy Tab or a Kindle Fire? I think the lack of upgradability is endemic to the tablet form-factor.
Main positives are for ability to remove the back side and use of Phillips screws: big pluses. However, primary iPad issues: glued on front glass, RAM, persistent storage: all true for Kindle as well.
Apple's new generation design of Macs have soldered-in RAM and a proprietary disk. Will we be able to upgrade them in 4 years?
edit: Imagine if you could upgrade the RAM in an iPad. I could still have used my original iPad now instead of it being junk.