Having bought a Macbook Pro with an Esc key earlier this year, lack of an Esc key was 90% of my issue with the touch bar. My biggest issue now is when I accidentally activate it. I didn't have an issue accidentally hitting the function keys on my 2013, so why not bring those back? Or invent something new. Forward or back, I don't care, just admit the touch bar was a dud and get it off my keyboard.

EDIT: My mother also says she gets distracting autocomplete suggestions on the touch bar while she's typing. I vaguely remember doing something to turn that off on mine, but she is terrified of Covid so I haven't had a chance to get at her laptop and fix it for her. I don't know what human factors genius at Apple decided it would be helpful for people to see words hopping around at the edge of their vision while they're trying to type.

> I vaguely remember doing something to turn that off on mine, but she is terrified of Covid so I haven't had a chance to get at her laptop and fix it for her.

You can use Messages to easily initiate screen-sharing (with you controlling her Mac) to do that. No 3rd party software, no action on her side needed.

Settings | Keyboard | Touch Bar Shows

You can choose a few different options there - try "Expanded Control Strip".

I remapped escape to caps lock to overcome this, it might work for others who don't use caps lock.

It's absurd that you had to resort to this. I wonder if someone also released a standalone bluetooth escape key that attaches to the side of a keyboard (equally absurd).

Time for Facetime?

Having used an MBP keyboard, I'd say "all of them".

All of them? I use the function keys regularly and it's much harder to hit the correct one without looking at the keyboard with the touch bar.

This is such a bizarre unforced error. Why would they just arbitrarily remove a row of the keyboard? Taking it away and asking why I need it is like asking why I need right-click, pinch-to-zoom, or my left pinky finger. It makes no sense that we have to choose between fully featured input and active cooling.

Either way, based on this announcement I'll probably hold off on upgrading for another generation. That'll leave some time to see how the transition goes, and with any luck the next ones will include 32 GB RAM, Mini-LED, and 5G (along with a full keyboard).

Don't know why they didn't just add a screen to the blank function key width gap of bare aluminum between the keyboard and the hinge if they were looking to add some decoration to the keyboard. That would have been praised, instead it's been a pariah.

What do you use function keys for? I was thinking about this, and I don't think I've used a function key in years.

Step Over/Into/Out shortcuts in Xcode (F6/F7/F8) are the really obvious ones which I hit many times per day. Play/pause/etc. with the Fn key are easier to hit without looking than the touchbar.

I prefer that they change labels in a context-sensitive way. For keys that I don't use that often the icon is a better trade-off than a tactile response. Sliders are useful as well.

Jetbrains IDEs and VSCcode have a ton of default shortcuts using the fn keys.

I'm happily tapping away with them on a 2020 MBA

I'm not the person you replied to, but I frequently use the play/pause key and also the volume keys. I occasionally use the function keys in my text editor too.

Ok yeah I guess I use volume sometimes.

That's a good question. I can imagine some people never using them because of their particular workflow and software of choice.

In my particular case, I use them all the time. Edit some SQL, press F9. Select some files, press F5. And so on.

I can't work without the function keys.

Do you use IDEs for debugging?

I'm with you. My work computer has the TouchBar, and my personal computer has the physical keys.

While I prefer the physical keys, once you get the TouchBar configured properly (I use MTMR), it's really quite nice. Combined with a physical escape key, it would be ideal.

Considering how the people on HN boast so much about being L337 Haxxorz, I'm surprised they don't see the value in a secondary interactive screen that they can make do anything they want.

I don't look when I type. The touchbar makes me look down from my screen if I want to interact with it.

I don't look when I type, either, except for the function keys, because I don't use them that often. So since I'm already looking down at the function keys, looking at the TouchBar makes zero difference.

One minor annoyance, however, is that the TouchBar isn't visible in direct sunlight, which is to be expected of any screen. Function keys don't have that problem.

The physical Esc key was already added in the previous generation

> Which other key do you miss now that Esc is back?

I really need a Forward-Delete key - pressing Cmd+Backspace just doesn't work for me.

Fn+Backspace would work for you, though :P

It is Cmd+Backspace for me because I remapped my MacBook's keyboard so it matches my ThinkPad's[1] - I really don't want to have to play Twister with my fingers.

[1] Yes, I've remapped/swapped the Ctrl+Fn keys on my ThinkPad too.

I actually miss "Esc" key being in the touchbar, it felt quicker to tap it on previous gen macbook pro instead of pressing it on my new macbook pro.

Funnily enough the MacBook Pro product page actually shows both the physical and virtual escape keys on the touch bar. Hopefully that's a mistake...

Adding back the escape key is not new, they had the same physical keyboard layout in the previous MacBook Air which was announced Nov 2019.

The lock button is super sensitive and prone to being pressed when hitting backspace.

light level down, light level up, mute, volume down, volume up.

That’s great!