Let me preface by saying this that I've owned 2 PowerBooks and 2 MacBook Pros. My current machine is a maxed out 2013 MPB 15".
I ordered my new MacBook Pro 15" a couple of weeks ago and received it this past Friday. It is now Wednesday of the following week and I've decided to return it. There are many reasons both minor and major (at least to me) for returning it. Many have been seen in reviews, but some are probably unique to me. I'm not trying to talk anyone out of buying one, but I thought I might share my experiences.
In no particular order, here are my complaints:
- The Touchbar is mostly useless. This will probably get better over time, but at present, there is nothing gained by having the Touchbar.
- TouchID does not work for initial log on. It only works if you have locked the machine and left it on. This is silly, since every Windows machine can use it for initial log on and I was looking forward to that on this machine.
- The screen is excellent, but with other vendors offering 4K densities and similar color profiles, the screen is left wanting in comparison.
- Keyboard travel is okay, better than the MacBook, but it's incredibly loud and clicky. Key feedback is not good. I can probably get used to it over time.
- The giant trackpad is not a bonus. I can't tell you the number of times I've accidentally deleted text by accidentally brushing my palm against it. This might not be a problem for others, because everyone holds their hands differently, but it's a problem for me.
- I don't really care for the non-tactile trackpad. Not a deal breaker, but I find moving files from one folder another to be a PITA now, with it often not recognizing the click and drag.
- There are sharp edges all over this machine. From the notch used to raise the lid to the edges of the vents underneath, they all catch your hand in a way that my old MBP does not. These edges are sharp and snag your hands as they rub across them. It's very un-Maclike.
- Performance isn't much better than my current MBP. It is faster, but not for most things. Unless you are using pro apps on a regular basis, you will notice the difference over a 3 year old MBP.
- I'm used to paying an Apple Premium. I like the products and the OS. But this is ridiculous. After deciding I wasn't going to keep this, I looked around the competition and found similarly specced (and a little higher, actually) Dell XPS 15 was roughly $900 less. And it had more memory, a higher dpi screen, a better GPU, and a more recent CPU. While the MBP cast aluminum enclosure and OS are worth a premium, it's not $900.
- Little things: No more Mac "bong" start up. No more lighted Apple. And lack of MagSafe. I didn't realize how much I would miss all of those, but I do.
- Thinner and lighter do not take precedence over speed and capability. My MBP was light enough and thin enough and at the time was one of the fastest machines you can buy. This new one is lighter, but not faster. This is not something I want with a Pro machine.