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Is The "PROLED" Macbook Any Good?

Waveform: The MKBHD Podcast

Hosted by Andrew Manganelli and David Imel

2h 2m
Transcript

Original podcast

Summary

Written by a model from the transcript; not yet reviewed.

The hosts cover the week's major tech announcements, starting with the new 60Hz OLED iPad Mini priced from $700, followed by minor chip refreshes for the M6 iMac and M6 MacBook Pro. The centerpiece of the discussion is the new MacBook Pro featuring a tandem OLED 'ProLED' display, a controversial touchscreen, a dynamic island, and a slightly lighter design. They also touch on the Arc Browser being sunset by Atlassian, the continued fallout from iPhone Duo hardware reports, and how users are bypassing sluggish smart TV interfaces through custom debugging and root access.

  • Before purchasing the new iPad Mini, note that its OLED display is locked at 60Hz and starts at $700. 57:51
  • The new high-end MacBook Pro features a lighter chassis, a tandem OLED display, and a controversial touchscreen. 1:11:12
  • Smart TV owners are increasingly using the Android Debug Bridge to remove background spyware and sluggish software. 1:42:29

Chapters

  1. 0:00
    Podcast Introduction and Host Greetings

    The episode opens with the standard sponsorship blurbs and the hosts introduce themselves and the show’s theme.

  2. 0:33
    Costume Reveal and Halloween Theme

    Hosts reveal their Halloween costumes, joke about their appearances, and explain the playful theme for the episode.

  3. 3:52
    Tech News Overview and MacBook Pro Announcement

    The hosts outline the tech topics to cover, including the new MacBook Pro release and other recent tech news.

  4. 8:00
    iPhone Duo Screen Failure Investigation

    Analysis of the iPhone Duo display issue, potential causes, Apple’s response, and advice for affected users.

  5. 13:44
    Arc Browser Sunset and Market Impact

    Discussion of Arc Browser’s discontinuation, its influence on the browser market, and the reaction from users and Apple.

  6. 34:32
    Wrap‑Up and Future Tech Speculation

    Final thoughts, upcoming Apple events, and speculation on future product directions and subscription strategies.

  7. 43:27
    Intro and Spooky Trivia

    The hosts kick off the episode with a quick intro and a playful spooky trivia segment.

  8. 44:11
    Apple Subscription Pricing and Dia Daily Brief

    Exploration of Apple’s subscription tiers, the cost of Motion VFX, and the shift of Dia Daily Brief to a lower tier.

  9. 45:15
    Pro Tools Pricing and Feature Debate

    Discussion of Pro Tools' tiered pricing, the Go Back and Play feature, and Apple’s price laddering tactics.

  10. 1:00:00
    New iPad Mini Features and Pricing Laddering

    Detailed look at the new iPad Mini’s OLED display, 60 Hz refresh, storage options, and Apple’s price‑ladder strategy.

  11. 1:09:32
    Apple Creator Studio and M6 iMac Update

    Overview of Apple’s Creator Studio launch and the new M6 iMac chip refresh, highlighting performance gains.

  12. 1:11:15
    New MacBook Pro with ProLED XDR and Touchscreen

    Unpacking the 14‑inch MacBook Pro’s ProLED XDR display, touchscreen, and design changes, plus pricing and thermal design.

  13. 1:22:32
    Wrap‑Up and Final Thoughts

    Hosts recap key takeaways, reflect on Apple’s pricing tactics, and close the episode with final remarks.

  14. 1:23:54
    Touchscreen Usability and macOS Integration

    Critique of the MacBook Pro’s touchscreen usability, gesture support, and how macOS adapts to touch input.

  15. 1:29:10
    Touchpad Risks and Apple’s Cannibalization Strategy

    The hosts discuss how Apple’s new touchpad feature may cannibalize the iPad and how other brands like Asus are experimenting with touchpads.

Highlights

  • 10:01

    Arc Browser Is Officially Deadinsight

    The hosts reminisce about the rise and fall of Arc Browser after the company announced its upcoming sunset date.

  • 57:51

    New OLED iPad Mini Specsdata

    Marques Brownlee breaks down the new iPad Mini's specs, including its $700 starting price and surprising 60Hz OLED display.

  • 1:11:12

    The New ProLED MacBook Proinsight

    The team discusses the new high-end MacBook Pro lineup, which introduces tandem OLED displays, dynamic islands, and touchscreens.

  • 1:21:09

    MacBook Pro Weight Reductiondata

    The hosts highlight the physical improvements of the new MacBook Pro, noting that it is significantly lighter than previous generations.

  • 1:42:29

    Cracking Smart TV Firmwarestrategy

    Ellis explains how advanced users are rooting their smart TVs with debugging tools to strip out aggressive surveillance and bloatware.

Quotes

  • “The original chapter number has to be one zero followed by a colon, not two zeros followed by a colon.”
    Andrew Manganelli · 9:04
  • “If you want to get the inner screen replaced, it costs almost as much as buying an entirely new.”
    Unnamed speaker · 26:46
  • “The only phone that's okay with is the Royal Flex Pi 1 because it's crunched all the time.”
    Andrew Manganelli · 23:06
  • “There's a feature in Pro Tools that makes this possible called Go Back and Play. It's awesome.”
    Unnamed speaker · 45:34
  • “The 14 inch computer goes from three and a half pounds to three. That's pretty nice.”
    Unnamed speaker · 1:21:11
  • “The 16 inch goes from, I think it's 0.7 pounds lighter. So it's like almost, it's like 3.8 pounds now.”
    Unnamed speaker · 1:21:16
  • “I feel like there's a lot of brands that take risks with the touchpad. Like I think Asus, is it the Zen Books have always done kind of crazy things.”
    Unnamed speaker · 1:29:10
  • “But they're slowly cannibalizing their own products with their own products because eventually they're forced to, right?”
    David Imel · 1:29:26
  • “The touchscreen is just an option and it's a thing you can do if you want, but it just kind of sits there. You can disable it. You can just never use it.”
    Unnamed speaker · 1:29:52
  • “And I kinda like that.”
    Unnamed speaker · 1:31:54
  • On Investing, an original podcast from Charles Schwab 0:00–1:46
  • Mariah Zank 50:59–51:04
  • Framer 54:19–55:19
  • Shopify 55:20–56:19
  • Pipe Drive 56:21–57:32
  • Jira by Atlassian 1:38:37–1:39:28
  • Gusto 1:39:28–1:40:32
  • Google Gemini 1:40:24–1:41:06
  • Home Depot 2:05:00–2:05:24

About this episode

On this week's spooky episode Marques, Andrew, and David talk about the death of Arc Browser, Apple's new OLED Macbook Pro with a silly name, and the new craze of rooting your TVs. Links: Death of Arc: Twitter MKBHD: Macbook PROLED This episode brought to you by: Charles Schwab: https://www.schwab.com/oninvesting Framer: https://www.framer.com/wave Jira: https://www.jira.com Shopify: https://www.shopify.com/waveform Pipedrive: https://www.pipedrive.com/waveform Gusto: https://www.gusto.com/wave Follow us on socials: Marques: https://www.threads.net/@mkbhd Andrew: https://www.threads.net/@andrew_manganelli David: https://www.threads.net/@davidimel Adam: https://www.threads.net/@parmesanpapi17 Ellis: https://twitter.com/EllisRovin Waveform Threads: https://www.threads.net/@waveformpodcast Waveform Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/waveformpodcast/?hl=en Waveform TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@waveformpodcast Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/mkbhd Intro/Outro music by 20syl: https://bit.ly/2S53xlC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

0:00
2:02:05

24,790 words · 7 speakers

Speaker names marked are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

Topics

  • Apple
  • iPad
  • Google
  • MacBook
  • iPhone
  • Samsung
  • Chrome OS
  • Claude
  • LG
  • Warhound

Page updated · transcript and summary are machine-generated