It's a 'Pro' laptop and it's people who use their Macs to earn a living that that particular line has typically catered to. So yes, geeks.

Pro label means nothing, it's just marketing. Self-described "pros" need to get over that. They have essentially been sucked in to believing they have special needs, its funny really.

It meant something when Apple's Pro laptops had SD card readers.

You illustrate my point perfectly. An SD card reader is not "pro". It is merely convenient.

It used to mean metal instead of plastic and way better specs.

You seem to be making the assumption that people who make their living on a computer are "geeks". I think you're wrong. My wife makes her living on her computer. She's a working artist and spends much of her time in Photoshop. She loves her new MBP.

Programmers make up a tiny percentage of the target market.

The New MBP serves programmers better than artists. As someone working in the creative field everyone I know who does work beyond basic photoshop or UI design is being pushed towards Windows.

Being able to get more cores and CPU power than a top of the line iMac for cheaper than the base iMac helps a lot in any motion work. Access to Nvidia GPUs and therefore GPU rendering engines completely changes your workflow for 3D and product design work. Products like Surface studio are way more valuable to illustrators than an overpriced Cintiq or a TouchBar.

Ten or so years ago you'd see plenty of Macs on the cutting edge of creative work, not the case now I mean heck they can't even consume VR content let alone create VR content.

Who are the other people that buy 4000EUR laptops then?

Rappers? Seriously though, nowhere does it say which Mac. For all we know it might not be laptops at all, it could be an iMac, a Pro, Macbook, cheapest Pro... who knows. It comes about $1350 per sale.

You mean technical people who generally know the topic they are speaking about?

Of course the average person is not complaining, in reality the average person can use a 10 year old PC for what they do with it. Facebook, stream music, maybe email....

Or technical people who obsess over details that most people don't actually care about?

In reality, most people can use pretty old PCs these days but laptops in particular do get beat up over time and eventually they get outdated enough that it may be time for something newer. I could use my 6 1/2 year old MacBook but I definitely prefer my 2 year old one.

> Or technical people who obsess over details that most people don't actually care about?

But most people care about money, so when a consumer needs to overspend on a piece of hardware that is less competitive than previous generations it matters. So the geeks need to inform the people that don't know enough to know they might be wasting their money.

If it works for what they need it for and, comparatively, has better reviews, then how is that a waste of money?

> You mean technical people who generally know the topic they are speaking about?

Technical people have a tendency to say stuff like "No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame." when the iPod is announced.