I just hope they make these things 'pro' again like they're supposed to be. I've noticed they've been watering them down since the Mid-2009 unibody came out.
I hope to see i7, the return of the expresscard slot (which was a total joke to take out in the first place), and a newer GPU. The 9600M GT is seriously old... what gives? All 3 of these should be included for sure.
USB3 and eSATA would be sweet too, but I doubt apple has found a way to make money on them so I don't expect to see them show up yet.
Apple selling you a 248 gig SSD? Get ready to spend an extra $1,000.
I just want them to allow an SSD instead of an optical drive as a BTO option. Of course the problem is they'd charge their usual outrageous prices for add-ons and I bet they wouldn't sell you a MBP with an empty bay. Maybe I'll get one from some reseller or some user, with an empty bay, in that scenario.
Although I've been thinking lately...I'll get a MBP with the lowest HDD or whatever, since I'll throw that in an external case. And then...I'll put a 120 gig SSD (Intel G2 or some other good SSD with fast chipset) in for the hard drive. And since 120 gigs is enough for my OS and apps and VMs but not for my music/photos...I'll buy a 32-gig SD card and just keep it in the machine permanently. How fast are SD cards compared to hard drives? I would like to even get a 64-gig one but they're too expensive for now and the current MBP doesn't do SDXC or whatever the new SD is that supports >32 gigs. Hope they add that ability in the update too.
This update is seriously overdue...305 days and counting and no update wtf.
C'mon. It's Apple. They don't have an SSD "trim" function, so your SSD would wind up the speed of a 4200 RPM disk anyway. Hopefully by 2015 they implement one.
C'mon. It's Apple. They don't have an SSD "trim" function, so your SSD would wind up the speed of a 4200 RPM disk anyway. Hopefully by 2015 they implement one.
Anyway a lot of new SSDs keep themselves running efficiently with firmware. I wonder if the SSD Apple sells customers does this? Their prices for BTO options are a joke. I have been pissed at them screwing customers on RAM prices since the 90s. Because just throwing in a bit more memory is and has been for decades the BIGGEST jump in performance. In a few years SSDs will actually be the biggest jump. HDD was the last bottleneck. But my point is that it's like buying a sportscar, let's say a high-end BMW. And they put the cheapest POS tires on the car. I'm talking the cheapest crap possible. Wow, that would be stupid. Stupid like Apple lowballing the RAM in almost every computer they have ever sold. Ever. So I don't expect them to ever offer SSDs for even near what you could get for the same exact product on TigerDirect or NewEgg. Oh well.
Apple wants all music and movies purchased via iTunes - why have an optical drive? By removing the optical drive and switching to SSD in all laptops, they can come close enough to the AIR's thickness that it won't be a novelty any more, especially when folks can use the iPad as an ultraportable.
The weight of the Panasonic/Matsushita UJ-868 is somewhere between 0.5-1lbs so accounts for most of the weight difference between the MBA and the Macbook - it has a smaller battery too. If the drive is removed from the Macbook and the aluminum design changed, the weight difference between the MBA and MB could be so little that it would no longer be worth having both models.
Plus it reduces the cost to the consumer not having an optical drive. It would save between $50-100. If they were able to get the machine down to $999, the white model can finally go.
Sony removes the optical with their Vaio Z-series although it's just an option:
13" display
2.4GHz Core i5
320GB drive
4GB RAM
1600 x 900
Geforce 330M
no optical
£1409
If you get one with Blu-Ray, they charge £550 for the Blu-Ray alone . You'd think Sony would give themselves a discount.
Apple currently sell:
13" display
2.5GHz Core 2 Duo
320GB drive
4GB RAM
1280 x 800
9400M
DVDRW
£1214
The optical drive removal would probably need an event to tell everyone why it was happening though. I think the MBA will just be delayed due to the ULV chip supply.
"can replace, VGA, DVI and ethernet". It seems like it's intended to co-exist with USB 3.0, which you'd expect given the ubiquity of USB devices that you simply can't just make obsolete.
The ports currently holding back the thinness of the laptops are ethernet and FW800. With USB 3.0, we don't need FW800 and so we are left with 3 x USB 3.0 + 2 x Light Peak - two displays or one ethernet + one display. Light Peak will split over one cable but it's handy to have two ports. Then the thickness of Apple's laptop can go down by 1/3rd at the sides.
I wonder if Apple would stick with Mini-DP with Light Peak on the scene, especially considering Apple were involved with the Light Peak development.
Apple wants all music and movies purchased via iTunes - why have an optical drive? By removing the optical drive and switching to SSD in all laptops, they can come close enough to the AIR's thickness that it won't be a novelty any more, especially when folks can use the iPad as an ultraportable.
I don't think the air was every very successful anyways....
I loved the MacBook Air, and use it everywhere (we have 2 in the family to go with a whole range of other Macs), including the iMac 27 I'm using now, BUT, not having the integrated DVD drive has often made me nuts. I don't expect such a feature in the iPad, so won't miss it, but I am afraid I've got to agree, I don't see me using my MBA once the 3G iPad's come in. I'll use my new Japanese keyboard MBP 15" when I need the whole thing.
Though, I, too, would like to see the entire line upgraded to give me an excuse to replace my aged 17".
Blue-Ray anyone? How can we really use solid-state drives at the 500 GB level these days?
Comments
I hope to see i7, the return of the expresscard slot (which was a total joke to take out in the first place), and a newer GPU. The 9600M GT is seriously old... what gives? All 3 of these should be included for sure.
USB3 and eSATA would be sweet too, but I doubt apple has found a way to make money on them so I don't expect to see them show up yet.
I just want them to allow an SSD instead of an optical drive as a BTO option. Of course the problem is they'd charge their usual outrageous prices for add-ons and I bet they wouldn't sell you a MBP with an empty bay. Maybe I'll get one from some reseller or some user, with an empty bay, in that scenario.
Although I've been thinking lately...I'll get a MBP with the lowest HDD or whatever, since I'll throw that in an external case. And then...I'll put a 120 gig SSD (Intel G2 or some other good SSD with fast chipset) in for the hard drive. And since 120 gigs is enough for my OS and apps and VMs but not for my music/photos...I'll buy a 32-gig SD card and just keep it in the machine permanently. How fast are SD cards compared to hard drives? I would like to even get a 64-gig one but they're too expensive for now and the current MBP doesn't do SDXC or whatever the new SD is that supports >32 gigs. Hope they add that ability in the update too.
This update is seriously overdue...305 days and counting and no update wtf.
BTW, you guys are actually the subject of Apple news now... http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20...heCircuitsBlog
Blogs about comments about rumors. Jesus.
BTW, you guys are actually the subject of Apple news now... http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20...heCircuitsBlog
Blogs about comments about rumors. Jesus.
Well this is a reply to a comment about blogs about comments about rumours. I fear this may take some time.
I think a refresh from the Mac pro and Cinema Displays are going to be more likely.
C'mon. It's Apple. They don't have an SSD "trim" function, so your SSD would wind up the speed of a 4200 RPM disk anyway. Hopefully by 2015 they implement one.
BTW, you guys are actually the subject of Apple news now... http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20...heCircuitsBlog
Blogs about comments about rumors. Jesus.
Anyway a lot of new SSDs keep themselves running efficiently with firmware. I wonder if the SSD Apple sells customers does this? Their prices for BTO options are a joke. I have been pissed at them screwing customers on RAM prices since the 90s. Because just throwing in a bit more memory is and has been for decades the BIGGEST jump in performance. In a few years SSDs will actually be the biggest jump. HDD was the last bottleneck. But my point is that it's like buying a sportscar, let's say a high-end BMW. And they put the cheapest POS tires on the car. I'm talking the cheapest crap possible. Wow, that would be stupid. Stupid like Apple lowballing the RAM in almost every computer they have ever sold. Ever. So I don't expect them to ever offer SSDs for even near what you could get for the same exact product on TigerDirect or NewEgg. Oh well.
Why would Apple confuse us with another great portable product?
Just a guess, but perhaps because they're way overdue on a refresh and the delay is all but certainly hurting MBP sales at the current time?
They should make the Air an 11", expand its features, and storm the netbook market with what results.
It would likely have the same effect that Sony's upscale netbooks do. I would do dirty, nasty things for a pint sized Air though.
Why would Apple confuse us with another great portable product?
I think a refresh from the Mac pro and Cinema Displays are going to be more likely.
So the Macbook (Pro) internals aren't a generation behind the competition.
Anyone else thing the Macbook AIR is toast?
Apple wants all music and movies purchased via iTunes - why have an optical drive? By removing the optical drive and switching to SSD in all laptops, they can come close enough to the AIR's thickness that it won't be a novelty any more, especially when folks can use the iPad as an ultraportable.
The weight of the Panasonic/Matsushita UJ-868 is somewhere between 0.5-1lbs so accounts for most of the weight difference between the MBA and the Macbook - it has a smaller battery too. If the drive is removed from the Macbook and the aluminum design changed, the weight difference between the MBA and MB could be so little that it would no longer be worth having both models.
Plus it reduces the cost to the consumer not having an optical drive. It would save between $50-100. If they were able to get the machine down to $999, the white model can finally go.
Sony removes the optical with their Vaio Z-series although it's just an option:
13" display
2.4GHz Core i5
320GB drive
4GB RAM
1600 x 900
Geforce 330M
no optical
£1409
If you get one with Blu-Ray, they charge £550 for the Blu-Ray alone
Apple currently sell:
13" display
2.5GHz Core 2 Duo
320GB drive
4GB RAM
1280 x 800
9400M
DVDRW
£1214
The optical drive removal would probably need an event to tell everyone why it was happening though. I think the MBA will just be delayed due to the ULV chip supply.
Oh dearly beloved brethren, we are gathered here today ask for new models that justify the considerable markup Steve Jobs demands...
Are you a jerk all the time?
When can we expect to see a 17" quad-core Macbook Pro with a couple Lightpeak ports?
The earliest mobile quad will be Q1 2011. According to Intel, Light Peak is the same ('about 1 year from CES 2010'):
http://techresearch.intel.com/articles/None/1813.htm
"can replace, VGA, DVI and ethernet". It seems like it's intended to co-exist with USB 3.0, which you'd expect given the ubiquity of USB devices that you simply can't just make obsolete.
The ports currently holding back the thinness of the laptops are ethernet and FW800. With USB 3.0, we don't need FW800 and so we are left with 3 x USB 3.0 + 2 x Light Peak - two displays or one ethernet + one display. Light Peak will split over one cable but it's handy to have two ports. Then the thickness of Apple's laptop can go down by 1/3rd at the sides.
I wonder if Apple would stick with Mini-DP with Light Peak on the scene, especially considering Apple were involved with the Light Peak development.
Anyone else thing the Macbook AIR is toast?
Apple wants all music and movies purchased via iTunes - why have an optical drive? By removing the optical drive and switching to SSD in all laptops, they can come close enough to the AIR's thickness that it won't be a novelty any more, especially when folks can use the iPad as an ultraportable.
I don't think the air was every very successful anyways....
I loved the MacBook Air, and use it everywhere (we have 2 in the family to go with a whole range of other Macs), including the iMac 27 I'm using now, BUT, not having the integrated DVD drive has often made me nuts. I don't expect such a feature in the iPad, so won't miss it, but I am afraid I've got to agree, I don't see me using my MBA once the 3G iPad's come in. I'll use my new Japanese keyboard MBP 15" when I need the whole thing.
Though, I, too, would like to see the entire line upgraded to give me an excuse to replace my aged 17".
Blue-Ray anyone? How can we really use solid-state drives at the 500 GB level these days?