- cross-posted to:
- hackernews@lemmy.smeargle.fans
- hackernews@derp.foo
- cross-posted to:
- hackernews@lemmy.smeargle.fans
- hackernews@derp.foo
I have half memories of patents for Mac Laptops with cellular modems from like… the late PowerPC early Intel era.
I wonder what’s changed to make Apple give the green light? Certainly isn’t cellular prices.
There was a prototype that popped up on ebay out of nowhere back around 2011. Seemingly made it pretty late into development before the idea was canned.
I’ve heard part of the issue is Qualcomm’s licensing is a percentage of the devices selling cost, so putting the same cellular chip in a MacBoom Pro costs a lot more than putting it in an iPhone. If Apple can make their own chips and doesn’t have to pay that fee it becomes a lot more affordable.
Maybe patents
Strange, considering most cell phones have a wireless tether mode. Why would you need a modem in your laptop?
Tethering burns through battery and a laptop’s battery is much bigger. I believe Apple’s smallest laptop battery has roughly three times the capacity as their biggest iPhone battery. Tethering works well for occasional use but if you’ve got a job where spend pretty much your whole work day roaming around to different locations, having it built in can be quite useful.
Unless physically disconnected it’s a nice place for a backdoor
Yeah, I’d prefer less privacy invasive features.
I don’t get people who downvoted your comment. Like your MacBook can literally connect against your well if apple wants especially with eSIM cards.