What's next for Apple notebooks?
I was thinking the other day that the Apple notebook lineup (PowerBooks & iBooks) will need to be refreshed soon. The current design is still very nice but it has remained the same for a while now, so I'm sure Apple is preparing something new. What are your ideas on what the new notebooks could look like (what material will they be made out of, what sizes will be available, etc.)? And what may be the next specs? Your thoughts?
Comments
As for the iBook, I'd expect a new enclosure before long. It'll probably be similar to the current iBook except for some kind of new exterior texture or material. Perhaps not though, since the new iMac has the crystal white look. The current iBook design has been around for three plus years. Even though it's popular, it seems ripe for a revamp.
Frankly this would be another model entirely and like the Toughbooks low volmne. It would be nice to see Apple introduce niche variants of the Mac for specific markets, I think it would demonstrate confidence on the part of Apple as a corporation.
Dave
Originally posted by s_sarinana
I'm not sure if Apple would use carbon fiber. It would definitely raise the price on the notebooks. I have a feeling Apple is planning to stay with aluminum for a while.
changing enclosures.
Biometric fingerprint scanners as part of the track pad.
OLED displays
Removable keyboards with underlying tablet surface.
Dual HD for RAID configurations using IPOD HD.
Fully user serviceable laptops
Given Apple's public statements about the G5 in a PowerBook, I would venture to say that the next PowerBook will feature a 1.8GHz PowerPC 7448 from Motorola/Freescale. I know, I know. The speeds of the supposed 7448 have yet to be discussed, but I am assuming that because the iMac G5 is at 1.8 GHz, the PowerBooks will attempt to match the clock speed, albeit it will be a G4 processor and not a G5.
I think the next rev of PowerBooks will be the first to sport 100GB hard drives.
I don't know if an enclosure modification or complete make-over is in the works, but the current crop of aluminum clad PowerBooks have been around since January 2003 ?_closing in on two years. Rumors of carbon fiber have been floated for quite some time ? mostly from Mac OS Rumors. So who knows how true this is!
Regarding the iBooks ? even longer still ? their enclosures have remained relatively the same since they were released on May 1, 2001. I would expect both lines would receive a cosmetic make-over.
Which brings us to the when. I think it's a crap shoot at this point. I would say anywhere from the last week of September (when a promotion with PowerBooks ends) to MacWorld SanFran in January. The later we wait for an update, the more and more the liklihood that they will be getting a major redesign at MacWorld in January.
Aluminum detailes would also be great for the Ibook (to boost the resemblence to the i pod).
As for performance, they will be the fastest powerbooks Apple has ever made
Originally posted by farve
As for performance, they will be the fastest powerbooks Apple has ever made
well, yeah...
i think mosr is actually pretty reasonable with what they think for the next update: freescale 7448, ati 9800, faster hard drive etc.
i don't think there'll be a new case unless they switch to the dual core g4 or g5...
It was mentioned on another thread but I'd love to see a miniBook also. This would be a machine with a small display and no spindles except possibly a micro drive. The idea would be to have OS/X in ROM! Supply a bunch of USB and Firewire ports and a graphics port and that is it for hard ports. Networking would be WiFi. Sort of like half way between a laptop and a PDA.
Dave
Originally posted by DHagan4755
I think there is a reason to improve the exterior of the PowerBook...so they can make the interior more servicable. Look at the new iMac and its serviceability. I think this is more of a trend you will start to see on all Apple products. They have built the current iBooks and PowerBooks with such a compact internal design, it is costly to fix minor issues and components because of it's brutally compact unforgiving internal construction.
? New Enclosure
Taking a cue from the new iMac G5, a PowerBook design mindful of internal arrangement of components, therefore making it easy to upgrade and service. Carbon Fiber? Thinner? Possibly.
? Displays
A new PowerBook line that heralds a brighter, wider angle of view display with improved resolution.
? Battery Life
An increase in battery life would be a step in the right direction. Look for PowerBooks with new battery technology. This will have to be the case since the processors have gotten faster, and the displays brighter.
Other interesting parallels with the iMac G5 were made. With Apple playing up the G5 will they have a problem pitching a three grand laptop with an "old, slow, non-64-bit" G4 processor? Without a magically cooling process, or special "mobile line" for G5 chips how can we see them fitting in the current design?
[list=1][*]Apple continues using G4-variants, as they are "low power, embedded" processors, and meant specifically for platforms such as laptops[*]Introduce a heavier, thicker, hotter, power-hungrier PowerBook to the masses early next year[*]IBM creates a special "mobile" version of the G5[/list=1]
Don't think for a second Apple will simply underclock the current G5 to 1.2GHz and attempt at passing it off as "Professional" and faster than a 1.5 or 1.8GHz G4.
As far as colors go. They should offer their consumer line in colors. iMac and iBook should be a rainbow.
Originally posted by earthtoandy
They are working on G5's thats will work well in rack mounted servers. Same principles of heat and all.
Not necessarily no. While racks may be thin (1U = 1.75") they are commonly powered by very fast fans. A Power Mac G5 can't hold a candle to a 1U server. Its a step in the right direction but mobile requires smaller areas, much less power and a sliver of the cooling.
The simplest way to reduce heat is to trim the amount of power going into a chip. That's what IBM has probably done with its PPC blade servers, which are slated to hit the shelves in March, 2004. This implies that a low-power G5 laptop chip is only a small step away from the existing product. "The only thing lacking in the current 970 to make it a laptop is a low-voltage mode. The technology of the PPC 970 is very rapidly approaching the point where such things become slam dunks," says Glaskowsky.
Originally posted by IonYz
What's all this talk of carbon fiber? Yuck.
Yeah, it seems so Honda Civicy modish
I expect Apple may stay with these basic designs for some time. I actually hope they do. Now, that doesn't mean the internals will not change (of course). And I can imagine Apple working hard to (as they do with iPod) to squeeze millimeters, ounces and dollars out of these product, while still trying to deliver better products.
The iMac is the same. The iMac G5 is basically a portable computer. Yes, a bug one. But look at it. It is simple a ginormous laptop. It's the best they can do with the G% right now. But the same question applies...how many different ways can you really design a computer before you are really stretching the boundaries of taste, reality, and what people want?