Official Next Macbook Pro Thread

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
It has now become apparent, at least to me, that new hardware redesigns

will likely be reserved for the launch of Leopard. At least, this would be an

ideal time to launch newly redesigned hardware updates for one or more

of the lines as Leopard will drive hardware sales like crazy.



Although the current Macbook Pro update is nothing to shake a stick at

(I'm exceptionally pleased with Santa Rosa, LED, and the switch to a pretty

decent nVidia card) it's not quite enough for me to upgrade my well-serving

Macbook Core Duo.



Reasonable changes I'd like to see in the next Macbook Pro before upgrading:



-Penryn

-Blu-Ray/HD-DVD

-Extended Battery Life

-Case Redesign

-Frickin' Magnetic Latch!




That's currently all I lust for and would make me sell off my Macbook for

a shiny new Pro that I don't really need.



I realize this is yet another thread speculating on the next Macbook Pro specs.

but let's all do our best to try and contain ourselves to a single thread on

this topic as I am sick of seeing the forum flooded with the same topic.



So anything you might have to say concerning the next Macbook Pro

(wish list, speculation, time to buy questions) feel free to contribute.



.
«1345

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 95
    sdw2001sdw2001 Posts: 18,015member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    It has now become apparent, at least to me, that new hardware redesigns

    will likely be reserved for the launch of Leopard. At least, this would be an

    ideal time to launch newly redesigned hardware updates for one or more

    of the lines as Leopard will drive hardware sales like crazy.



    Although the current Macbook Pro update is nothing to shake a stick at

    (I'm exceptionally pleased with Santa Rosa, LED, and the switch to a pretty

    decent nVidia card) it's not quite enough for me to upgrade my well-serving

    Macbook Core Duo.



    Reasonable changes I'd like to see in the next Macbook Pro before upgrading:



    -Penryn

    -Blu-Ray/HD-DVD

    -Extended Battery Life

    -Case Redesign

    -Frickin' Magnetic Latch!




    That's currently all I lust for and would make me sell off my Macbook for

    a shiny new Pro that I don't really need.



    I realize this is yet another thread speculating on the next Macbook Pro specs.

    but let's all do our best to try and contain ourselves to a single thread on

    this topic as I am sick of seeing the forum flooded with the same topic.



    So anything you might have to say concerning the next Macbook Pro

    (wish list, speculation, time to buy questions) feel free to contribute.



    .



    Agree with all buy Penryn. I don't think they will change architectures that fast. I would like to see blu-ray, mag latch, battery improvements, etc.
  • Reply 2 of 95
    Flash hard drive.
  • Reply 3 of 95
    Agreed, they probably won't. But Penryn is nothing more than a drop in replacement for Merom that plays nicely with Santa Rosa. Also, it's suppose to be dropping sometime in September/October. Apple was reasonably quick to implement Santa Rosa so it's not entire unreasonable to think it would adopt Penryn quickly given that Apple was so gangbusters about Intel's "roadmap".
  • Reply 4 of 95
    mimacmimac Posts: 872member
    BluRay burner would be really sweet though maybe a tad expensive. To hell with the expense... bring it on!
  • Reply 5 of 95
    kareliakarelia Posts: 525member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post




    -Penryn



    I'll be the last one to disagree with new processors. However, I think Apple should concentrate on better parts like graphics cards, newer RAM, and such. The processors are already top-notch.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    -Blu-Ray/HD-DVD



    Blu-ray slot drives cost about $800 at wholesale. It's nowhere near worth the price increase.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    -Extended Battery Life



    Good thing to improve, but since the battery can't get any wider due to space constraints, it would have to get thicker to accomodate more cells. And that means the vaunted paper-thin Apple notebook will disappear.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    -Case Redesign



    I don't understand this. The anodized aluminum is sexy, and has been since the first 12" and 17" PowerBook G4's. Way better than any of the other PC's out there. Sure, maybe a custom paint job on a Falcon Northwest is a symbol of bad-assness, but I think the smooth aluminum is just as much. I can't see it getting better.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    -Frickin' Magnetic Latch!



    It has to do with the location of the optical/hard drives, and the fact that the case is metal. Trust me, they would if they could. A better button would be good enough for me, the current one is too thin, and I have to use a fingernail rather than my thumb.
  • Reply 6 of 95
    aiolosaiolos Posts: 228member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    -Penryn

    -Blu-Ray/HD-DVD

    -Extended Battery Life

    -Case Redesign

    -Frickin' Magnetic Latch!



    Sure, Penryn is a possibility, but it would be hard to try and get that in time for leopard.



    Blu-ray would be nice as a BTO option only, because they're crazy expensive.



    Battery life improvement would be nice, but my MBP (2nd rev - core 2 duo), get way better life already than any of my friend's lappies.



    Case is a nice design, maybe a slight tweaking to make it newer looking and a bit more modern.



    Magnetic Latch would be nice, maybe the slight tweaking could make this possible, but I feel like it would be on them if it could be done. But if they can't, a better button would be nice. I agree with the fingernail comment.
  • Reply 7 of 95
    sdw2001sdw2001 Posts: 18,015member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    I'll be the last one to disagree with new processors. However, I think Apple should concentrate on better parts like graphics cards, newer RAM, and such. The processors are already top-notch.



    Agreed.





    Quote:

    Blu-ray slot drives cost about $800 at wholesale. It's nowhere near worth the price increase.



    Link? They're selling them retail for the same price. In six months that could drop 50%. Wholesale cost could be $300 or less by then.





    Quote:

    Good thing to improve, but since the battery can't get any wider due to space constraints, it would have to get thicker to accomodate more cells. And that means the vaunted paper-thin Apple notebook will disappear.



    Depends on if the desgin is improved. It's not a major issue for me. My battery life is good...I'm happy with it.



    Quote:



    I don't understand this. The anodized aluminum is sexy, and has been since the first 12" and 17" PowerBook G4's. Way better than any of the other PC's out there. Sure, maybe a custom paint job on a Falcon Northwest is a symbol of bad-assness, but I think the smooth aluminum is just as much. I can't see it getting better.




    Agreed.



    Quote:



    It has to do with the location of the optical/hard drives, and the fact that the case is metal. Trust me, they would if they could. A better button would be good enough for me, the current one is too thin, and I have to use a fingernail rather than my thumb.



    I think they could. But I agree that the current button is too thin.
  • Reply 8 of 95
    I must say, Penryn wouldn't be a bad addition, but would be pretty hard to get in and produced by Leopard. Heck, it took 3-4 weeks after SR came out until we saw new MBPs... Maybe if Leopard is launched at the end of the month, and Intel stays on schedule.



    Again, cost of the blu-ray/hd-dvd drives are much too high for it to be in the base models, and I don't see it until all displays on every MBP are standard full HD-capable. And even then, it'd have to be a BTO option because of cost. That's why they don't have faster HDs in them, because it's another $202 they don't have to add to the price, and you know how much Apple loves to raise prices.



    battery life isn't an issue for 15" models, but is more of a question on the 17" models. And those are large enough as it is. I don't see Apple willing to make them any larger or heavier than they already are.



    And I'm not going to put much on a new case redesign. I really, really like the aluminum of today, but I'm not going to shut out a new design if it's a good one. I don't know what it might be, but I have faith that Ive can find something that works really well.



    As long as the HD and optical drive are where they are, in addition to having a metal case, it can't happen. There are too many problems that could arise with the charge travelling through the case to somewhere you don't want it to be. Perhaps with the aforementioned Ive design, something could be worked out with a different material.
  • Reply 9 of 95
    Penryn is a definite possibility, although not necessarily for the processor alone but for the possible effect it could have on battery life. The current Core 2 Duos are slick as hell and I wouldn't ever need anything faster than what they are now, I mean...c'mon duo core notebooks?! Who woulda thunkit? Definitely not IBM.



    The mag latch is totally doable I'm not taking any shit about optical drives and metal cases. I'm talking about a magnetic latch on a MBP here, not a G4 Cube!



    Blu-ray would definitely be BTO, but give us the option! To be honest though I believe Apple will wait til someone develops a do all Superdrive.



    SSD- forget about it for the next year or two. But if Samsung and San Disk keep upping those GB's and the price keeps dropping I would jump at the chance to buy an aftermarket drop-in replacement.
  • Reply 10 of 95
    dhagan4755dhagan4755 Posts: 2,152member
    Why does the MacBook Pro have to be aluminum?
  • Reply 11 of 95
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    Reasonable changes I'd like to see in the next Macbook Pro before upgrading:



    Quote:

    -Penryn



    Yup, that's what I'm waiting for now. Won't be ready in time for Leopard, but it does mean that any Penryn MacBook Pro will have Leopard installed.



    Quote:

    -Blu-Ray/HD-DVD



    Would be nice, but will definitely still be pricey. Also, I'm not sure as to what the capabilities of these drives are with respect to DVD and CD reading/burning. I wouldn't want to sacrifice any speed or compatibility for those formats for the sake of HD-DVD or Blu-ray.



    Quote:

    -Extended Battery Life



    Will be delivered courtesy of Penryn.



    Quote:

    -Case Redesign



    If you mean easier access to HDD a la MacBook (non-pro), then yes. Otherwise, I like it as it is. I'm not sure if I'd buy one myself, but I reckon it'd be worth Apple's while to make a black anodised version and sell it at a premium - there's no doubt in my mind people would buy it.



    Quote:

    -Frickin' Magnetic Latch!



    Yes.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    Agreed, they probably won't. But Penryn is nothing more than a drop in replacement for Merom that plays nicely with Santa Rosa.



    Exactly. And it'll have SSE4 (much faster multimedia e.g. video compression), be manufactured on "Hi-K" silicon (lower power consumption, less heat), have more LII cache (speeds up lots of stuff), and have slightly higher clock speeds.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    Also, it's suppose to be dropping sometime in September/October. Apple was reasonably quick to implement Santa Rosa so it's not entire unreasonable to think it would adopt Penryn quickly given that Apple was so gangbusters about Intel's "roadmap".



    When originally announced, "Penryn" was the codename just for the laptop part - i.e. the Merom replacement. But then Intel decided to adopt the "Penryn" codename for all processors made on the new 45 nm "Hi-K" silicon process. The Penryn parts that should be shipping in September/October are desktop parts; the laptop parts will follow later. I'm hoping to see them in MacBook Pros in January.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    I'll be the last one to disagree with new processors ?The processors are already top-notch.



    In 2001, the 500 MHz G4 was a top-notch laptop processor. Why didn't we stick with that? Come on - CPU technology keeps on moving forward, and when Penryn arrives, Merom will no longer be top-notch.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    Good thing to improve, but since the battery can't get any wider due to space constraints, it would have to get thicker to accomodate more cells. And that means the vaunted paper-thin Apple notebook will disappear.



    Increased battery life will be provided by Penryn without the need for a bigger battery.



    The "paper-thin Apple notebook" will have to use Intel's super-low power consumption parts, which are more expensive and have much lower clock-speed.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    I don't understand this. The anodized aluminum is sexy, and has been since the first 12" and 17" PowerBook G4's. Way better than any of the other PC's out there. Sure, maybe a custom paint job on a Falcon Northwest is a symbol of bad-assness, but I think the smooth aluminum is just as much. I can't see it getting better.



    For the most part, I agree, but as I said earlier, an update to give us easier HDD replacement, and the MacBook magnetic latch, would be welcome.







    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    It has to do with the location of the optical/hard drives, and the fact that the case is metal.



    The case being metal has no effect at all. It would have an effect if the magnet had a constantly fluxing magnetic field (e.g. like the magnetic field produced by a coil when you pass A.C. current through it), but it uses a permanent magnet with a non-changing magnetic field, so the metal case has no effect.



    The magnetic field also isn't strong enough to disrupt the operations of the HDD or optical drive.
  • Reply 12 of 95
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    New keyboard design, new case design, and mag latch.
  • Reply 13 of 95
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    The case being metal has no effect at all. It would have an effect if the magnet had a constantly fluxing magnetic field (e.g. like the magnetic field produced by a coil when you pass A.C. current through it), but it uses a permanent magnet with a non-changing magnetic field, so the metal case has no effect.



    The magnetic field also isn't strong enough to disrupt the operations of the HDD or optical drive.



    ...so you'd like to have paperclips, scissors, and other such things sticking to your MBP? Or worse, would you like your MBP to stick to metal airport seat armrests? Or lampposts? etc?
  • Reply 14 of 95
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MusLtngBlue View Post


    ...so you'd rather have paperclips, scissors, and other such things sticking to your MBP? Or worse, would you like your MBP to stick to metal airport seat armrests? Or lampposts? etc?



    Er what??? None of that happens to my MacBook.



    Or are you suggesting that because the MacBook Pro is made of metal, putting a magnet inside it makes the whole thing magnetic? If you think that, you need to go back to physics class.
  • Reply 15 of 95
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Bad forum! Bad!
  • Reply 16 of 95
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Er what??? None of that happens to my MacBook.



    Or are you suggesting that because the MacBook Pro is made of metal, putting a magnet inside it makes the whole thing magnetic? If you think that, you need to go back to physics class.



    Wait... you're right... aluminum... duhrrrrrr... please excuse my stupidity... ^^;;
  • Reply 17 of 95
    One time...I left a copy (5.25" Floppy) of Kings Quest IV in the back seat of my car with a toy fridge magnet. 'WAHN-WAHN-WAAAHN.'
  • Reply 18 of 95
    kareliakarelia Posts: 525member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Yup, that's what I'm waiting for now. Won't be ready in time for Leopard, but it does mean that any Penryn MacBook Pro will have Leopard installed.



    I'll be happy. Not much else to say, lol.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Would be nice, but will definitely still be pricey. Also, I'm not sure as to what the capabilities of these drives are with respect to DVD and CD reading/burning. I wouldn't want to sacrifice any speed or compatibility for those formats for the sake of HD-DVD or Blu-ray.



    Agreed.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Will be delivered courtesy of Penryn.



    I hope so. But it's not like the Pro gets bad battery life as it is. More is better, though.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    If you mean easier access to HDD a la MacBook (non-pro), then yes. Otherwise, I like it as it is. I'm not sure if I'd buy one myself, but I reckon it'd be worth Apple's while to make a black anodised version and sell it at a premium - there's no doubt in my mind people would buy it.



    See, this I don't get. A black anodized version would kick ass, but why should it cost more? And for that matter, why does the black MacBook cost more? If they can build a Pro with a totally different LCD for no extra charge (glossy, that is), then I can imagine they can build one with a black case for no extra, as well.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Exactly. And it'll have SSE4 (much faster multimedia e.g. video compression), be manufactured on "Hi-K" silicon (lower power consumption, less heat), have more LII cache (speeds up lots of stuff), and have slightly higher clock speeds.



    I imagine an 8MB cache in a dual-core is a little farther off, at least for the same price point.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    In 2001, the 500 MHz G4 was a top-notch laptop processor. Why didn't we stick with that? Come on - CPU technology keeps on moving forward, and when Penryn arrives, Merom will no longer be top-notch.



    Well, no kidding. I don't mean that they should stop upgrading the CPU's altogether. I just mean that it's not top priority. Would you rather get meager CPU and GPU boosts, or get no CPU boost (2.2 and 2.4 are fine for now) and a kick-ass GPU boost, like a 512MB option on the higher end units? The MBP already matches or beats competing laptops on pure CPU power, but falls behind when it comes to RAM speed and GPU power. Let that catch up, then we'll talk about new CPU's.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    The "paper-thin Apple notebook" will have to use Intel's super-low power consumption parts, which are more expensive and have much lower clock-speed.



    I'm not referring to a thinner Mac, I'm referring to the current Macs which are already pretty damned thin. If the L-series or U-series Core 2's ever become available, you won't catch me dead with one.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    For the most part, I agree, but as I said earlier, an update to give us easier HDD replacement, and the MacBook magnetic latch, would be welcome.



    Agreed, for the most part. Although the HDD replacement isn't too hard on the MBP, compared to other machines (iBook, I'm looking at you...).



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    The case being metal has no effect at all. It would have an effect if the magnet had a constantly fluxing magnetic field (e.g. like the magnetic field produced by a coil when you pass A.C. current through it), but it uses a permanent magnet with a non-changing magnetic field, so the metal case has no effect.



    Well I stand by my original statement that they would do it if they could. Drives and metal case seem like the best explanations. I guess I should have worded it "I think it has to do with...".
  • Reply 19 of 95
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DHagan4755 View Post


    Why does the MacBook Pro have to be aluminum?



    I've wondered the same thing. In terms of looks alone, the TiBook is much more elegant.
  • Reply 20 of 95
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Go Banana View Post


    One time...I left a copy (5.25" Floppy) of Kings Quest IV in the back seat of my car with a toy fridge magnet. 'WAHN-WAHN-WAAAHN.'



    King's Quest IV wasn't that great a game anyway... now if it were King's Quest III, I'd be crying right along with you.



    ...but to stay on topic, I'll plug my usual:



    Integrated Sensing Display for eye-contact video conferencing. Historically, Apple seems to like introducing new tech into the pro notebook. I suspect they would want to use the MBP to introduce video conferencing for the new millennium.



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