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DrewHawk

macrumors newbie
Mar 4, 2024
20
33
Why not multiple external displays and virtual desktops?
People who have not had less than 2 monitors in at last 10 years? Why would I want to have to minimize and maximize a screen?

Sorry new to this forum. I meant that comment for the OP.
 

DrewHawk

macrumors newbie
Mar 4, 2024
20
33
I'm an IT professional that uses both PCs and Macs heavily. I have never used a laptop as a main PC. At home I have my gaming PC with RTX 4090 / ultrawide monitor. And then have a Dell XPS 13 for any situation when I'm not at home. Likewise I have a M2 Mac mini at home with dual 1440p screens, and M3 MacBook Air (Friday) for any situation away from home.

I would never touch a laptop that has a screen larger that 13" and weighs more than 2.9lbs. For me, laptops are meant to be portable. I want it as small and light as possible. For big work I will use my workstations at home or in the office.

That's just me, I know others may not have the budget or time for multiple setups but this is the way I view computing.
 

sleeptodream

macrumors regular
Aug 29, 2022
186
563
That's a pretty silly take, considering this thread is all about how the hardware was actually truly "up to it", but Apple chose to restrict you from using that hardware to its fullest potential.
It’s only been a few months since M3 came out, it takes time and resources to add these features, and with the launch of AVP those engineering resources have probably been spread pretty thin for the last year or so. We don’t really know what’s happening behind the scenes, they may have wanted it ready in time for the M3 launch but it wasn’t there yet.

I just don’t think our default mindset should be that Apple is evil and greedy for every little thing.

Also that’s pretty impressive, mine is a Latitude 5520 with Iris Xe integrated graphics 🤷🏼‍♀️ not sure why it chokes on 3 displays but it definitely seems to, unless it’s just Windows being buggy
 
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NT1440

macrumors G5
May 18, 2008
14,693
21,235
It’s only been a few months since M3 came out, it takes time and resources to add these features, and with the launch of AVP those engineering resources have probably been spread pretty thin for the last year or so. We don’t really know what’s happening behind the scenes, they may have wanted it ready in time for the M3 launch but it wasn’t there yet.

I just don’t think our default mindset should be that Apple is evil and greedy for every little thing.

Also that’s pretty impressive, mine is a Latitude 5520 with Iris Xe integrated graphics 🤷🏼‍♀️ not sure why it chokes on 3 displays but it definitely seems to, unless it’s just Windows being buggy
You’re replying to a poster that doesn’t understand there are only two “lanes” for video output. The only change this firmware provides is to power a second external monitor *instead* of the internal.

The hardware’s “power” has nothing to do with how many “lanes” exist for video output.

You can have a 600hp engine, but without a transmission (in this example the transmission is a video “lane”) to get that power to the wheels it’s doesn’t matter how powerful it is.
 

sleeptodream

macrumors regular
Aug 29, 2022
186
563
You’re replying to a poster that doesn’t understand there are only two “lanes” for video output. The only change this firmware provides is to power a second external monitor *instead* of the internal.

The hardware’s “power” has nothing to do with how many “lanes” exist for video output.

You can have a 600hp engine, but without a transmission (in this example the transmission is a video “lane”) to get that power to the wheels it’s doesn’t matter how powerful it is.
Yes, thank you, & I like the car analogy lol. Rerouting the internal display pipeline to an external is something new that needed to be implemented for this to happen.

Should Apple have included the hardware necessary for more displays? Maybe, but I’m sure they’ve done the market research and concluded that the majority of the target demographic for the base M chips aren’t running multiple display setups, and decided to use that bit of silicon for something they thought was more useful for more people
 
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FK9896

macrumors newbie
Feb 18, 2023
17
6
So, given this, would you recommend the new 15" MacBook Air M3 (1TB, 16gb, $2,499.00 CAD) or 14" refurb MacBook Pro M3 (1TB, 16gb, $2,199.00) for a normal office professional?

I even just looked at normal prices, the Pro 14" (non-refurb) is only $100 more than the 15" Air at that config...
No the OP. Per my knowledge, A m1 pro (8-10 core, 16gb,1tb) should be more than enough for your usage, unless you need HDMI 2.1.
 
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NT1440

macrumors G5
May 18, 2008
14,693
21,235
Yes, thank you, & I like the car analogy lol. Rerouting the internal display pipeline to an external is something new that needed to be implemented for this to happen.

Should Apple have included the hardware necessary for more displays? Maybe, but I’m sure they’ve done the market research and concluded that the majority of the target demographic for the base M chips aren’t running multiple display setups, and decided to use that bit of silicon for something they thought was more useful for more people
I think the problem here is that Apple knows their target audience per device, but the M series is so damn capable at its *lowest* tiers that nerds (us forum dwellers) now can do things on an Air that you previously definitely would have needed a Pro.

So they fall into the camp that are used to edge cases (multi monitor setups were rare for “normal people” until the pandemic if they had generous employers) that Apples internal data shows THEIR target audience for a device just doesn’t cover.

Do I wish the Air could drive 3+ monitors? Hell yes I do. But understanding the hardware for the base M series is more closely aligned with the A series in terms of display controllers, I get how we got here.

I’m not happy about it, but I understand how a decision like the two video “lanes” on the base models came to be.
 

jonjames505

macrumors member
Sep 26, 2017
85
101
Can anyone confirm if this update has been released? Or when it will? It's part of my buying decision!
 

hovscorpion12

macrumors 68030
Sep 12, 2011
2,619
2,587
USA
Can anyone confirm if this update has been released? Or when it will? It's part of my buying decision!

Surprised it wasn't already. Could be part of 13.4 beta?

I'd be very surprised if Apple released this update in October with MacOS 14.

Even more surprised if Apple canceled it all together.
 
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