I can't help but love this outrageous MacBook Pro hack

MacBook Pro without a screen
(Image credit: DuanRui on Twitter/Future owns)

From the M1 Mac mini to last week's brand new Mac Studio, it seems Apple is giving its desktop computers a lot of love right now. But Chinese resellers have found a pretty ingenious (not to mention makeshift) way to create yet another Apple desktop. All you need is half a MacBook.

There appears to be an increasing market for MacBook Pros sold with the screen entirely removed. Connected to any of the best 4k monitors, this can function as a desktop Mac – but cheaper, and with the keyboard, trackpad and speakers already included.

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It's certainly an enterprising idea. Half a Mac is going to be cheaper than a whole one – and all the power and internals lie beneath the keyboard of the MacBook Pro. Sure, it looks a little daft, but the more I look at it, the more I'm coming round to the idea.

If you buy a Mac mini, you'll also need one of the best keyboards for Mac and the best mouse for Mac. No such issue here – they're part and parcel of the MacBook. And with the incredible speed of the 2021 MacBook Pro creatives are guaranteed awesome performance for years to come. 

Of course, there are major drawbacks. Don't expect a warranty of any description with this thing – although we'd love to see the faces of Apple's Genius Bar staff if we ever did bring it in for repair. And then there's the lack of portability – without a display, you're stumped. 

Then again, maybe this isn't so outrageous after all. Apple has already filed patents for modular devices with removable keyboards and screens – is it so wild to imagine a MacBook with a detachable screen? It could look a lot like, well, this.

While you won't find it in the Apple store any time soon, we have to tip our hat to the creativity on show here. But if you want the most powerful Apple desktop experience available, you'll want to check out the brand new Mac Studio.

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Daniel Piper
Senior News Editor

Daniel Piper is Creative Bloq’s Senior News Editor. As the brand’s Apple authority, he covers all things Mac, iPhone, iPad and the rest. He also reports on the worlds of design, branding and tech. Daniel joined Future in 2020 (an eventful year, to say the least) after working in copywriting and digital marketing with brands including ITV, NBC, Channel 4 and more. Outside of Future, Daniel is a global poetry slam champion and has performed at festivals including Latitude, Bestival and more. He is the author of Arbitrary and Unnecessary: The Selected Works of Daniel Piper (Selected by Daniel Piper).