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Why Is Tim Cook Avoiding A Massive MacBook Pro Promotion?

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Why did Tim Cook’s Apple not heavily push the new 16-inch MacBook Pro when it was launched last month? Why was there no keynote address or special event for the mainstream media? Why were there fewer briefings for specialist press, and why is there still no major outreach to consumers as Christmas approaches?

Following its launch event in October 2018 for the new MacBook Air, Mac Mini, and iPad Pro models, Tim Cook was expected by many to hold an October event. This could have amplified the launch of the iPhone 11, given the iPad a springboard into the festive gift-buying period, and allowed the 16-inch MacBook Pro a moment in limelight as the largest screened MacOS laptop launched in the last seven years.

But there was no event. Apple declined to push forward its hardware, instead focusing on the launch of Apple TV - one of the many services that Apple’s management believe is the future for the company. Reinforcement of the iPhone 11 was not a necessity and Apple snuck out the seventh generation iPad in late September. It was the MacBook Pro that lost out on a significant push with the mainstream media.

Neither was Apple pushing the MacBook Pro heavily to the specialist press. Although a number of journalists were invited to New York to preview the laptop under embargo, Apple’s efforts to seed review units felt muted. It was notable that a number of key Apple-focused websites were not invited to the launch or to review the new MacOS-powered machine. Tim Cook’s Apple payed little more than table stakes for the quietest launch possible while still launching the product.

Finally, the 16-inch MacBook Pro has made a number of design changes that make for a better Mac laptop platform going forward. To highlight four key areas, you have the keyboard moving from the shambolic butterfly switch design back to the scissor switch style; the thermal environment re-engineered to allow for more performance before the processing power needs throttled; a larger display with less bezels required, and new audio solutions for clearer sound.

The problem with pushing the 16-inch MacBook Pro through events, a large press campaign, or retail prince, would mean promoting the new features of the laptop and why these features are worth it. And a quick look at the rest of the MacBook range - the units you would expect to seek in much larger quantities in the run up to Christmas - shows that these flaws are still present.

Any push on the 16-inch MacBook Pro would lead to general consumer questions regarding the reliability and desirability of the rest of the range. Heading into the biggest quarter of the year for commercial sales, Apple has done its best to dodge these issues, while still releasing the larger laptop to get it on sale before Christmas.

 Now read more about Tim Cook’s decision to cancel Steve Jobs’ vision of the MacBook Pro…

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