329: Macbook Air, iPad Pro, and Mac Mini

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: The episode centers on Apple’s Brooklyn event, where hosts dissect the new iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini, with especially sharp debate over iPad Pro design, USB-C limits, Pencil changes, and Apple’s continued iOS constraints. The second half pivots to a deep critique of Foxconn’s Wisconsin deal, framed as crony capitalism and buzzword-heavy industrial policy, plus quick takes on the OnePlus 6T and Vergecast promos.

Main Topics: Apple event overview and keynote atmosphere (Priority: 4/5): The hosts describe the Brooklyn Apple event as unusually energetic and crowd-pleasing, noting the large venue takeover, retail employees, and a more casual, celebratory tone than typical iPhone launches. New iPad Pro design and hardware changes (Priority: 5/5): They debate the new iPad Pro’s squared-off industrial design, larger/smaller bezel changes, camera bump, Face ID in any orientation, and the redesigned Apple Pencil with magnetic charging and double-tap gestures. USB-C on iPad Pro: promise and limits (Priority: 5/5): A major segment is devoted to USB-C support, including charging, camera imports, DisplayPort, and docks, while emphasizing how restricted iPadOS remains for external storage, file access, and pro workflows. Performance and Apple’s ARM trajectory (Priority: 5/5): The conversation highlights the A12X chip’s speed, Apple’s messaging that the iPad Pro outperforms laptops, and the broader implication that Apple is moving its ecosystem toward custom silicon and potentially ARM Macs. MacBook Air and Mac mini as market-response products (Priority: 4/5): The hosts argue the new MacBook Air finally fixes the neglected line with Retina and modern specs, but may be too late to define the category again. The Mac mini is praised as a more practical and modernized desktop option. Foxconn Wisconsin deal critique (Priority: 5/5): A long, skeptical segment examines Foxconn’s Wisconsin factory plan as a subsidy-heavy, politically engineered project that has evolved from LCD manufacturing into vague 'AI 8K plus 5G' rhetoric, with environmental and governance concerns. Quick hits: OnePlus 6T and product-market tradeoffs (Priority: 3/5): The episode briefly covers the OnePlus 6T as a strong but imperfect affordable flagship, contrasting its price and features with camera quality and display compromises versus Google’s Pixel.

Key Arguments: The new iPad Pro’s hardware is impressive, but iOS/iPadOS still prevents it from functioning like a true general-purpose computer. USB-C on the iPad Pro is a meaningful shift, but Apple deliberately keeps it narrow: charging, camera import, DisplayPort, and docks—not open file-system or external-storage access. Apple’s A12X chip is so powerful that it strengthens the case for future ARM Macs, because Apple silicon is already competitive with or superior to many Intel chips. The MacBook Air is welcome because Apple neglected the mainstream Mac laptop market, but its launch is more catch-up than category leadership. The Foxconn Wisconsin project is presented as a textbook example of crony capitalism: massive subsidies, tax breaks, and weak oversight for a shifting, buzzword-driven plan. Foxconn’s project is environmentally and economically dubious because Wisconsin is underwriting a factory that may not deliver the originally promised jobs or manufacturing output. The OnePlus 6T shows that a relatively affordable flagship is still possible, but users must decide whether camera quality and display quirks are worth the savings.

Data Points: iPad Pro screen sizes: 11-inch and 12.9-inch - New iPad Pro lineup introduced at Apple’s Brooklyn event iPad Pro starting price: $799 - Base price mentioned for the new iPad Pro MacBook Air starting price: $1,199 - New Retina MacBook Air entry price Mac mini USB-A ports: 2 - Hosts note the revived desktop still includes USB-A Apple Pencil price: $130 - Price cited during discussion of the new Pencil Keyboard price: $180 - New iPad Pro keyboard accessory price discussed iPad Pro volume reduction: 25% smaller - Apple said the larger iPad Pro’s volume was reduced Face ID front camera: 7 megapixels - iPad Pro front TrueDepth camera spec Rear camera: 12 megapixels - iPad Pro rear camera spec matching iPhone XR/XS-class wide camera A12X CPU: 8 cores (4 performance + 4 efficiency) - Apple’s custom chip in the new iPad Pro Power profile of MacBook Air chip: 7W TDP - Reported tweak to the Y-series Intel chip used in the new Air MacBook Air display brightness: 300 nits - Brightness cap for the new Retina display Foxconn subsidy total: $4.1 billion - Combined subsidies discussed for the Wisconsin project Foxconn original subsidy figure: $3 billion - State subsidy amount in the original deal Foxconn jobs promise: 13,000 jobs - Projected employment tied to the Wisconsin project Cost per job: ~$300,000 per job - Derived by speakers from subsidy total divided by jobs Water withdrawal: 7 million gallons per day - Allowed Lake Michigan water extraction for the factory Water evaporation estimate: Up to 39% - Portion of withdrawn water expected to evaporate Facebook? no, Foxconn plant class: Generation 10.5 LCD plant reduced to generation 6 - The promised factory scale was reportedly downsized Ad age comparison: 10 years ago - Betterment ad references the Great Recession as origin context OnePlus 6T position: Flagship phone that is not a million dollars - Used to underscore value-oriented premium phones

Pivotal Quotes: "The thing is ugly." — Dieter Bohn: First reaction to the new iPad Pro’s industrial design and antenna/camera details "We have a great solution. We're so excited. ... Adobe has built a Siri shortcut for Lightroom." — Apple representative / paraphrased by host: Example of the limited and workaround-heavy USB-C workflow on iPad Pro "AI 8K plus 5G" — Hosts discussing Foxconn: Mocked as buzzword-heavy branding for Foxconn’s shifting Wisconsin manufacturing plan

Implications: Apple’s hardware is moving ahead faster than its software model, increasing pressure for a more capable iPad OS and possibly ARM Macs. Meanwhile, the Foxconn story suggests U.S. industrial policy can be captured by subsidies and slogans without accountability.