The MB is garbage. It's aimed at the Kardashians of this world. I'm starting to think the delay in refreshing other Mac lines is a desperate attempt to coax people into buying MBs which would otherwise go unsold.

Umm, YYMV. I am typing this on an MBR. I primarily use it for programming (mainly C++ and Lisp development in Emacs, but I have written two in-house iOS apps with Xcode). It has MS Office on it, though I must admit I mainly use that for docs other people have sent me, though I do use powerpoint. I am not a gamer.

The external adaptor doesn't really support the promised UHD output (it's flakey and unusable at those resolutions so I think your term "garbage" could apply to it) though it does support 1080p. In practice I mostly use it without an external display. The machine is so portable I don't think I could ever go back to a larger machine -- even my kid's MBA seems brobdignagian next to the MBR.

Xcode definitely felt a bit cramped on the small screen, but I'm not a fan of graphical IDEs (or IDEs in general) so that was the least of my concerns. I did most of the code development in Emacs anyway.

I found that in practice I almost never used ports on my MBP. I don't sync my phone to my computer any more; I used the built in MBP SD card reader but discovered I can read from my waterproof camera over wifi so don't miss that. I have a USB A port in my video adaptor but have yet to plug anything into it. I have never been much of a user of removable media.

I use my phone for presentations. I would use the computer but the "garbage" video adaptor is too flakey. Actually the phone is fine.

Oh, and I just checked with my GF who described my buttocks as "tight and cute". So I can confidently say that I do not fit the profile of a Kardashian.

(The Apple product that makes the least sense to me is the iPad...but that's a different discussion).

USB Type C isn't really baked yet (in the supply chain) so I guess this is part of the price for being on the bleeding edge.

I think Apple would have done better to have added Type C into another MB first, alongside the existing ports. But apart from the external display problem I really do like the MBR.

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2aGogRd

What I like about apple laptops and computers is that each of them is aimed at specific work type environment, and when people choose a wrong tool for the job they should blame themselves not the tool.

The problem is that Apple are selling MBs as the evolution of MBAs (which will never get a Retina upgrade etc etc), when they are clearly in a different category. The MB is overall less powerful and flexible than the MBA was, so a large segment of people "upgrading" is naturally disappointed.

> it's a perfect machine for browsing Internet and Word work on the go

It's a very expensive machine for browsing and Word. The market is literally full of alternatives "for browsing and Word" with same or better specs and better price points. Where the MBA was indisputably the best "thin all-use laptop", the MB is basically an expensive Chromebook with an Apple logo.

should I have done more due diligence - YES (but you know, once your beloved air gets the kids&coke treatment you tend to panic), am I owning now a piece of chunk I can't wait to get rid of (with the hopefully coming soon mac book pro generation) - YES

Not if "specs" includes thickness and weight. At the moment there is one laptop that's thinner, the HP Spectre, and the MacBook has a higher resolution screen, significantly less weight, and better battery life; it's up there on weight, too, excluding convertibles that have a separate keyboard.