Next MacBook update a yawner; Ultra-portable to get 13-inch display
A forthcoming update to Apple Inc.'s 13-inch line of consumer MacBooks won't deliver much in terms of new features, AppleInsider has learned. Meanwhile, the dimensions of the company's ultra portable sub-notebook initiative are taking shape.
MacBook update
People familiar with the Mac maker's portable plans tell AppleInsider the Cupertino-based firm is looking to absorb a bit more from its initial 13-inch MacBook design.
Unlike an upcoming revision to its professional 15-inch MacBook Pros, the next version of Apple's consumer MacBooks is unlikely to benefit from architectural enhancements recently presented as part of Intel Corp.'s "Santa Rosa" notebook platform.
Similarly, the 13-inch notebooks won't reap the benefits of an LED-backlit display until a successive revision later in the year.
As it stands, the MacBook remains the most rigorously-redesigned Mac system to break free from Apple's industrial design labs in recent years -- an accolade it will soon surrender to a pair of radically restructured 20- and 24-inch iMacs.
MacBook Pro update
For the time being, Apple will reportedly focus on boosting the grade of its professional MacBook Pro line which, unlike the MacBook, is expected to draw an enhanced set of features from Santa Rosa.
These should include faster front-side bus speeds of 800MHz, and second-generation Core 2 Duo mobile processors that scale up to 2.4GHz.
As reported by AppleInsider, a new 15-inch MacBook Pro model will also signify the first Mac to trade in its cathode fluorescent-backlit display for one that uses LED backlighting.
MacBook ultra-portable
At the same time, Apple continues to pound away on an ultra-thin portable designed to capture a slice of the growing sub-notebook market and boost sales in Japan.
In what's sure to be a warmly received move, people familiar with initiative tell AppleInsider that the Mac maker plans to go easy on our eyesight and is building the model around stunning, ultra-thin, 13-inch LED backlit display.
That's right -- it appears those recent Apple orders for 13-inch LED backlit panels are destined for the firm's ultra-portable initiative and not its impending 13-inch MacBook update.
Combining this latest tidbit with information presented in previous AppleInsider reports, here's a summary of what we know and don't know about the next-gen Apple sub-notebook:
What we know:
13-inch ultra-thin, LED-back lit displayNo optical disc driveOn-board NAND flash for faster application launching and boot timesBuilt-in iSight webcamThinner and lighter than existing MacBook offeringsAirPort Extreme 802.11n enabledMagSafe power adapterTarget launch late '07, early '08
What we don't know:
Precise Intel architecture (but appears to be Santa Rosa-based)Target price pointRAM and HDD storage capacity and expandabilityI/O port breakdownOperating system software (appears to be Leopard)Expected battery lifeEnclosure makeup
Additional reading (backstories):
Next-gen MacBook Pro to shine brighter
Apple to re-enter the sub-notebook market
Apple's next-generation iMacs to add a touch of grace
Resetting the timeline for Apple's ultra-portable initiative
Steve Jobs confirms first Macs with LED backlighting due this year
Apple delays Leopard release until October
Apple moves to certify LED-backlit panels for 13-inch MacBooks
Intel rolls out Santa Rosa notebook platform
MacBook update
People familiar with the Mac maker's portable plans tell AppleInsider the Cupertino-based firm is looking to absorb a bit more from its initial 13-inch MacBook design.
Unlike an upcoming revision to its professional 15-inch MacBook Pros, the next version of Apple's consumer MacBooks is unlikely to benefit from architectural enhancements recently presented as part of Intel Corp.'s "Santa Rosa" notebook platform.
Similarly, the 13-inch notebooks won't reap the benefits of an LED-backlit display until a successive revision later in the year.
As it stands, the MacBook remains the most rigorously-redesigned Mac system to break free from Apple's industrial design labs in recent years -- an accolade it will soon surrender to a pair of radically restructured 20- and 24-inch iMacs.
MacBook Pro update
For the time being, Apple will reportedly focus on boosting the grade of its professional MacBook Pro line which, unlike the MacBook, is expected to draw an enhanced set of features from Santa Rosa.
These should include faster front-side bus speeds of 800MHz, and second-generation Core 2 Duo mobile processors that scale up to 2.4GHz.
As reported by AppleInsider, a new 15-inch MacBook Pro model will also signify the first Mac to trade in its cathode fluorescent-backlit display for one that uses LED backlighting.
MacBook ultra-portable
At the same time, Apple continues to pound away on an ultra-thin portable designed to capture a slice of the growing sub-notebook market and boost sales in Japan.
In what's sure to be a warmly received move, people familiar with initiative tell AppleInsider that the Mac maker plans to go easy on our eyesight and is building the model around stunning, ultra-thin, 13-inch LED backlit display.
That's right -- it appears those recent Apple orders for 13-inch LED backlit panels are destined for the firm's ultra-portable initiative and not its impending 13-inch MacBook update.
Combining this latest tidbit with information presented in previous AppleInsider reports, here's a summary of what we know and don't know about the next-gen Apple sub-notebook:
What we know:
13-inch ultra-thin, LED-back lit displayNo optical disc driveOn-board NAND flash for faster application launching and boot timesBuilt-in iSight webcamThinner and lighter than existing MacBook offeringsAirPort Extreme 802.11n enabledMagSafe power adapterTarget launch late '07, early '08
What we don't know:
Precise Intel architecture (but appears to be Santa Rosa-based)Target price pointRAM and HDD storage capacity and expandabilityI/O port breakdownOperating system software (appears to be Leopard)Expected battery lifeEnclosure makeup
Additional reading (backstories):
Next-gen MacBook Pro to shine brighter
Apple to re-enter the sub-notebook market
Apple's next-generation iMacs to add a touch of grace
Resetting the timeline for Apple's ultra-portable initiative
Steve Jobs confirms first Macs with LED backlighting due this year
Apple delays Leopard release until October
Apple moves to certify LED-backlit panels for 13-inch MacBooks
Intel rolls out Santa Rosa notebook platform
Comments
Should I get a MacBook or MacBook Pro?
Presonally, I'm waiting for the new MacBook Pro models and will buy the day the are released. I'll be heading to grad school soon so I'm in need of a new portable.
my guess Storage will be on Flash Memory 16GB, with out support for Bootcamp and Vista dual booting. 16 GB is more than sufficient for lightweight travel note book with OS X.
too many confusion over updates of MacBook and Pro, WWDC has all the key!.
Quote: my guess Storage will be on Flash Memory 16GB
That's too small in my opinion. They should have like 40 80 and 100. and if they can fit it, more.
I am ultra-skeptical about this ultra-portable Macintosh. Hmm.
I am too, but Appleinsider has been pretty reliable when it comes to this stuff, I must say. I think one of the analysts also vouched for a tiny macbook later this year.
-MRG
If not, why not?
That's the one upgrade the MB really could use.
In what's sure to be a warmly received move, people familiar with initiative tell AppleInsider that the Mac maker plans to go easy on our eyesight and is building the model around stunning, ultra-thin, 13-inch LED backlit display.
This makes sense to me, a 13" screen is easily the smallest I'd ever go with a notebook again. Personally I think the 15.4" is the sweetspot, and the fact that we're now gone widescreen 12" would be non-productive IMO. The thinness and the weight reduction is what will make this thing a take anywhere notebook, not the small reduction of a couple of inches off the screen size, this makes sense. I was discussing this with a friend recently, we held up that tiny Sony (11" widescreen) and we both remarked (at the same time);"the screen is too small".
But I must resist.
I'm going to be so tempted by the new Macbook Pro.
But I must resist.
Do you need it?
In my view, it would make sense for Apple to build "separation" between the MacBook Pro and MacBook lines. This would ensure that people who need the enhanced features will have no choice but to buy the MacBook Pro. It would be better for Apple's bottom line and it should reduce the number of people who have historically asked:
Should I get a MacBook or MacBook Pro?
Presonally, I'm waiting for the new MacBook Pro models and will buy the day the are released. I'll be heading to grad school soon so I'm in need of a new portable.
Actually, the have the option to stay on the PC side and get them from HP. Sticking users with old tech in the Macbooks will help get extra money out of existing Mac users pockets, but it could seriously hamper its growth among switchers and notebooks is where Apple is getting the vast majority of its converts.
Do you need it?
I have a PC desktop I'm itching to get rid of, as well as a Core 1 Duo Macbook. The only real reason I still have the PC hanging around is for gaming. If I bought a MBP I could transfer all my docs and settings from the Macbook, get a Windows installation up and running, install the few remaining games that I play, and donate my PC to someone else in the family, where I'll never have to deal with it again.
It's very tempting.
I may hold on to see what the new iMacs have in store, though.
I am too, but Appleinsider has been pretty reliable when it comes to this stuff, I must say.
Yes, this is true even when it is a bit off in time frame. But this rumor raises some questions. How this portable is going to be positioned between the existing lines? Will be a supplement to the pro line, probably a replacement for the extinct 12" Powerbook? A species of its own? If so what would be the point of the Macbook? Price choice only?
In my view, it would make sense for Apple to build "separation" between the MacBook Pro and MacBook lines. This would ensure that people who need the enhanced features will have no choice but to buy the MacBook Pro.
You mean go back to crippling the cheaper hardware to make the more expensive offerings look better?
Only way this makes sense: Apple's trying to get more of the "$100 computer" customers worldwide.
http://reviews.cnet.com/Sony_VAIO_X5...-30886049.html
Seriously, if that's what Apple equates to "ultra-portable", I'll just get another 15" Mac notebook. Guess I can keep hoping that they have an reasonably sized iTablet design to follow from the iPhone.