Blog

Short blog posts, journal entries, and random thoughts. Topics include a mix of personal and the world at large. 

The chip shortage

The global semiconductor chip shortage is no joke. I ordered a new 16-inch MacBook Pro with the “M1 Max” processor during the preorder period back in the last week of October. The laptop isn’t scheduled to arrive for another month. The delivery timeframe given by Apple is the first week of December. The struggle is real, the direst of first world problems.

I am very anxious to get my hands on these properly “pro” laptops with the vaunted Apple silicon. For work, I’ve handled the regular “M1” Macs, and their speed is always amazing. The M1 Pro and the M1 Max chips should be yet another significant leap forward. More exciting for me is the mini-LED display of the new MacBook Pros: full local dimming with variable refresh rate up to 120Hz. It’s basically the $5,000 Pro Display XDR, but in a laptop-sized package. Delicious.

Too bad it’s four week out. I’m hoping Apple will surprise me and get it to me much sooner than early December. I’m taking the entire Thanksgiving week off from work and it would be lovely if I have the brand new MacBook Pro to play with.

Or perhaps a PlayStation 5. Sadly, after one whole year since launch, I still cannot simply walk into a Best Buy or click on Amazon to buy one of these next-generation consoles. I’m far too old and don’t care about gaming enough to play the lottery game or wait in lines (virtual or physical). Good thing there isn’t really a new game that’s impelling me to buy a PS5 now. We’re closing in on nine years since the release of Grand Theft Auto 5, Rockstar Games; how about a new one, eh?

The waiting game continues.

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