Note: This is currently a rumor, and I hope it doesn’t come to pass.
I remember the early 90s, when I was first considering getting a 5-string bass. 5-string had suddenly become very popular, thanks to Grunge and a lot of other popular music featuring those extra low notes the 5-string provided.
I was playing around with one in the store, and I got into a conversation with one of the employees.
“Do you think this is a fad? Will we all just go back to 4-string in a few years?” I asked.
“The way I see it, there’s nothing you can do with a 4-string you can’t do with a 5. So why go back to the limitation of the 4?”
I bought my first 5-string a few months later.
Nowadays, there are plenty of 4-string players around. But the 5 also is still used widely. And I’ve never considered giving up those extra low notes.
This is exactly how I feel about Apple’s Touch Bar. There’s nothing your non-Touch Bar Mac can do that I can’t do with my current laptop. So why would I want to give up my Touch Bar for a row of useless function keys I’d never use?
If I were Apple, I’d be doubling down on Touch Bar, not tearing it out in favor of plastic keys that can’t adapt to your needs.
