MacBook 2017 Review: Worth it?

Introduction

The last of the original MacBook series, 2017, has had a lot of bumps as a product, with a dull port situation and a wacky keyboard. In popular opinion, this isn’t a good product at all, but there are definitely some positive remains that could make it worthwhile for many people regardless of it's other cons.

Design

On first impressions, the MacBook looks pretty clean design-wise. It's got a simple finish which I admire from Apple. And also very thin, making it easy to just slide down into your bag, and go around with. This feels very sturdy, which honestly is something you'd care a lot for when buying an expensive Apple product. No single speaker point is left behind in the wrong pattern, and the hinges are very strong.

When holding it, the Mac feels very compact and comfortable, making the mobility very stable. The trackpad and keyboard also are put in the perfect position and aren't situated too big or small. There isn't the best of webcams, but honestly, why use laptop cams in the first place.

The only other 2 caveats I have with the build and design, is that opening it can sometimes be a bit uncomfortable, as you have to be really soft and delicate since the opening hatch is very thin. And even though the Mac weighs only 2 pounds, it somehow feels like it weighs 4 pounds. Which still isn't bad. Its full aluminum build makes it superior to its competition. Honestly, the design and build here is at Apple's usual Premium standard and still doesn't disappoint these days.

Screen

The screen here is what I'd say, one general word, adequate. The MacBook comes with a 12 inch 2304 x 1440 pixel IPS Retina display. Editing photos on this is great, as the screen shows most of the colour range and everything pops out well. It's also fairly bright, at 353 nits. The one wacky thing is that the screen aspect ratio is 16:10, even though most screens are 16 9, which means when playing normal videos the image and media will be a bit widely portrayed. Overall it's not the most special with an extremely high refresh rate. But I can't complain too much about the Mac's Screen either as it doesn't do me any bad, and I think the average person, would probably enjoy it as well.

Battery Life & Charging

Battery Life here also fits in pretty well considering the small size. On many tests taken. The MacBook usually lasts for around 8 hours. Which can last around a whole workday without being charged at all. Over time of course this will slightly diminish, and after 4 years of my relative using this, it lasts around 5-6 hours. So I usually can start off at 100% at day, and charge it at night normally. Still isn't bad, and is around average from what I've seen.

Charging though is a completely DIFFERENT CASE, I don't know if my relative got a defective model or something, but from the last year or so you literally have to force the charger in and hope it charges properly. And it doesn't even work when the laptop is turned on, it charges only when I put it on sleep mode or shut it down. And even then, after sleeping the charger doesn't even get much energy. It takes around 2-3 whole hours to charge, even slower than me after a PE session. This probably won't be the worst of issues. But it's like a really annoying fly that always has to buzz around.

Software

On the other hand, the software is tremendous on this laptop. Like with any other mac, you're getting 7 free years of software updates. This is incredible, most laptop just gets 2 to 3 years of updates. Then you probably have to pay for windows. And not even with apple's phones do you get 7 years of updates! This means that you'll have constant and up-to-date software until 2024! It's just crazy! Plus MacOS is very clean and you get many default apple apps that are phenomenal!

Hardware (Speakers, Keyboard, and Trackpad)

This is where things start to get a bit mixed and complex, hardware is what I'd say is... peculiar! Let's start off with the speakers, for a tiny device the speaker's performance is big. You can easily fill a whole room when this is put on max volume. They have a few short rows on the front, which honestly, performs alternatively to how it looks. The bass here is strong, but a bit muddy compared to the mids and treble. I'd say a good genre to listen to this is pop and high electronic. With the treble's high clarity, listening to podcasts is a pleasant experience. Overall even though the speakers sometimes get a bit low, it does a great job!

The trackpad and keyboard are a part of that complex chain in hardware. To be unique, let's start with the negatives, in my opinion, the keyboard is mixed up completely. First off, the butterfly design is kind of uncomfortable, I feel like I have to put more energy sometimes and that it's so thin that I have to actually press it harder than usual to know that I typed something.

It's not easy to press, but I haven't seen a decrease in my typing speed when using this keyboard, so in productivity terms, it's not bad. But I'd definitely prefer it if Apple just ditched butterfly keyboards as the regular ones for the pros as it is a much smoother design. Part of my small hate for the keyboard may because I'm usually typing with my Thinkpad, which keys are really thick, so the thin ones of the MacBook may have felt off to me. I believe this as I realized the more I typed with the laptop, the more humbly I've felt about the keyboard. Not the worst of things, but for anyone who's a Windows user, I'd highly suggest if buying this laptop prepare for the "finger" curve when using this keyboard. The trackpad like other macs is great. It doesn't have that cheap "plastic" touch. And is very easy to use and drag around. I believe it's aluminum that surrounds it making the trackpad a good surcharge to the Laptop.

Speed & Processing

Moving on to another complex matter, the processor and speed. This MacBook uses a 1.3 GHz dual-core Intel Core I5, which although isn't as great as the apple made M1, still can easily do the job. With the average 8 Gigs of Ram, you can't do some heavy gaming, but the laptop can handle many programs at a time well. Usually, my relative uses PowerPoint, outlook, and safari at the same time and the mac handles it with not much lag or heat. And I sometimes edit some relatives' videos and it also does pretty well. It's light editing, but with a 2017 mac, I can't really complain. One thing that is slightly concerning is that the mac has no fans at all due to its razer thinness. This means that the CPU just runs off with no cooling. This could be a bit of a risky move cause if the CPU heats up too much, there can sometimes be some throttling. I do believe that we will soon not need to use coolers due to Processors being very efficient in handling the heat. But I don't think the time's come yet, and I would've much preferred if Apple used a fan.

Ports

The port situation is also something I slightly dislike, ok, not slightly, HEAVILY DISLIKE, Macs aren't known to have many ports, but usually they have at least more than one. Here, NOPE, all you get is the charging port, so you can't do anything other than charge without a "dongle". And Macs are already very expensive, I don't want to pay for even more adapters and dongles just to have basic connections. In my opinion, this is seriously a MESS. The only thing I appreciate is that, unlike iPhones, there's still a headphone jack on the mac, which I must say I use a lot of the time.

Conclusion

To conclude my thoughts, I've noticed a pattern with each part of the MacBook, the screen isn't the best, but can do the job, the specs aren't the best, but usually do the job, the hardware isn't the best, but can do the job. So the MacBook 2017, isn't the best but can do the job. Is it worth it though? Although it started at 1.2k dollars, which I’d say is completely overpriced, You can now find the MacBook for around 750 to 900 Bucks. Which don't get me wrong, is still expensive, but as an Apple Product, you could definitely say that price has been spared. Although it seems that you're paying for all the mediocre hardware, but you're also paying for the ecosystem, for the special features like airdrop and simple pairing with apple products, and the 7 WHOLE years of updates. I'd this is perfect for anyone who's like a business geek, they won't need to do some heavy editing or gaming, and can easily work with the specs. As mentioned before, it's also very slim and easy to carry around. So anyone who does a lot of traveling will enjoy this too. Although there's been a lot of hate on this laptop, most people use their laptops for consuming media, completing work, and sometimes entertainment, and dare I say it does this well. Overall the MacBook 2017 will give you an ideal experience, just like subscribing to the KineTech site!