Macbook Pro speed bump

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
I know that WWDC is rumored to bring a speed bump to possibly 3.06 (up from the current 2.93).



How probable do you think this is? Considering that this is a developers conference, I would say not very personally... But I want to hear what you all think!
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 45
    futurepastnowfuturepastnow Posts: 1,772member
    I think all of Apple's notebooks probably have one more round of minor updates in store before Intel pushes out new mobile processors and they have to be redesigned internally.



    ...That doesn't answer your question at all.
  • Reply 2 of 45
    maratusmaratus Posts: 38member
    I really hope Apple to completely move from T9x00 series to P9x00.

    Most powerful P9700 (2.8Ghz) has 25W TDP compared to T9900's (3.06Ghz) 35W.

    This kind of CPU upgrade combined with cooler chipset/IGP may help to promote new MBP's as power efficient and cool. (larger battery will be very likely in 15 as well)



    According to history, Apple will announce new line of MacBook Pro's in June, no matter which show\\conference.
  • Reply 3 of 45
    john frenchjohn french Posts: 199member
    Hopefully it will look something like this:



    Least expensive 15" MBP:

    2.4 Ghz > 2.66 Ghz

    GeForce 9600 GT w/256 MB VRAM > GeForce 130M GT w/ 512 MB VRAM

    4 GB RAM, upgradable to 8 GB



    High-end 15" MBP:



    2.66 Ghz > 2.8 Ghz, Upgradable to 2.93 Ghz

    GeForce 9600 GT w/512 MB VRAM > GeForce 130M GT w/ 1 GB VRAM

    4 GB RAM, upgradable to 8 GB



    17" MBP:

    2.8 Ghz, Upgradable to 3.06 Ghz

    GeForce 9600 GT w/512 MB VRAM > GeForce 130M GT w/ 1 GB VRAM

    4 GB RAM, upgradable to 8 GB



    Maybe I'm just dreamin'.
  • Reply 4 of 45
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rustedbass View Post


    I know that WWDC is rumored to bring a speed bump to possibly 3.06 (up from the current 2.93).



    Really I'd be very surprised to find any sort of MBP update tied into WWDC. What ever they do with the MBP won't be revolutionary in my opinion. I say that because the product just go a brand new motherboard so I don't see them phasing that board out after 6 months. So at best minor bumps are in order.



    Even those won't be shown at WWDC as I suspect they have bigger fish to fry at that show. Instead expect a quite update real soon now.

    Quote:



    How probable do you think this is? Considering that this is a developers conference, I would say not very personally... But I want to hear what you all think!



    Yep; I don't want to reinforce bad news but WWDC is a developers conference and given that they have other interesting hardware available at the show I see no reason to focus on what would be a bump. Of course they could just say screw it and scrap a motherboard that is barely dry behind the ears and go for a new series of Intel processors. If Intel has any to go for.



    Frankly I'm hoping for a quad core solution for the MBPs. It is something that is sorely needed, but in may ways Apples hands are tied.



    Dave
  • Reply 5 of 45
    bjnybjny Posts: 191member
    I'm hoping 15" gets anti-glare option.



    I'm hoping 13" gets Firewire port and anti-glare option.
  • Reply 6 of 45
    benroethigbenroethig Posts: 2,782member
    One interesting tidbit over at MR, the Aluminum 13" machines slightly rebranded as Macbook Pros. Could this open up the market for a larger screen whitebook?
  • Reply 7 of 45
    sybariticsybaritic Posts: 340member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    What ever they do with the MBP won't be revolutionary in my opinion.



    I think Dave's right. The motherboard change won't come for another 6 to 9 months. A minor speed bump will be introduced in the meantime, though, almost as an afterthought.
  • Reply 8 of 45
    alexluftalexluft Posts: 159member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sybaritic View Post


    I think Dave's right. The motherboard change won't come for another 6 to 9 months. A minor speed bump will be introduced in the meantime, though, almost as an afterthought.



    Sorry to jump right in the middle and possibly break the conversation, but just to get this straight: to integrate the upcoming Intel chips, Apple will have to switch out motherboards?



    Which motherboard and processor combo?



    As far as I know and have read, the 130M is a super high-performance gaming-class GPU. Will anything need to happen to the 9400m (integrated + dedicated combination) to accommodate this?
  • Reply 9 of 45
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sybaritic View Post


    I think Dave's right. The motherboard change won't come for another 6 to 9 months. A minor speed bump will be introduced in the meantime, though, almost as an afterthought.



    I think that sums it up pretty thoroughly. I agree; I don't see the folks at Apple abandoning their new motherboard (for quad-core?) after such a short period of time.
  • Reply 10 of 45
    maratusmaratus Posts: 38member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by alexluft View Post


    Sorry to jump right in the middle and possibly break the conversation, but just to get this straight: to integrate the upcoming Intel chips, Apple will have to switch out motherboards?



    Which motherboard and processor combo?



    As far as I know and have read, the 130M is a super high-performance gaming-class GPU. Will anything need to happen to the 9400m (integrated + dedicated combination) to accommodate this?



    130M is basically 9600M GT with higher clocks.
  • Reply 11 of 45
    greglogreglo Posts: 63member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by alexluft View Post


    As far as I know and have read, the 130M is a super high-performance gaming-class GPU.



    I don't know where you read that, but the 130M is only slightly (~17%) better than the 9600M. It's a good card, and I'm 99.99% certain Apple will put it in some new MBPs, but I don't think I'd call it super.



    Apart from that, I'm hoping at least for the option of a 500GB HDD. Not sure about processors...



    The MBP is well over its average refresh time though. They don't have to announce it either - they've done silent updates in the past around WWDC. To be honest, I think it would be more surprising if they didn't update them.
  • Reply 12 of 45
    futurepastnowfuturepastnow Posts: 1,772member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by maratus View Post


    130M is basically 9600M GT with higher clocks.



    And the 9600M GT was basically a higher-clocked derivative of the 8600M GT. The 130M is nothing special as far as graphics chips go.
  • Reply 13 of 45
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by greglo View Post


    I don't know where you read that, but the 130M is only slightly (~17%) better than the 9600M. It's a good card, and I'm 99.99% certain Apple will put it in some new MBPs, but I don't think I'd call it super.



    Apart from that, I'm hoping at least for the option of a 500GB HDD. Not sure about processors...



    The MBP is well over its average refresh time though. They don't have to announce it either - they've done silent updates in the past around WWDC. To be honest, I think it would be more surprising if they didn't update them.



    Ah! I didn't even think about a HD bump.
  • Reply 14 of 45
    sybariticsybaritic Posts: 340member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rustedbass View Post


    Ah! I didn't even think about a HD bump.



    If they include an HD bump, it would probably be a 5400 RPM model. Right now, only Seagate offers a 2.5" 7200 RPM model at the 500GB tier, and Seagate's drive is getting mixed reviews. Some users are very pleased with it, and others complain that it is no faster than a 5400 RPM drive. Apple tends to be conservative about introducing drives that are "out front" of the mainstream.
  • Reply 15 of 45
    k515k515 Posts: 36member
    Here's what I'm hoping for:

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rustedbass View Post


    I know that WWDC is rumored to bring a speed bump to possibly 3.06 (up from the current 2.93).



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by John French View Post


    High-end 15" MBP:

    GeForce 9600 GT w/512 MB VRAM > GeForce 130M GT w/ 1 GB VRAM

    4 GB RAM, upgradable to 8 GB



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by greglo View Post


    I'm hoping at least for the option of a 500 GB HDD.



  • Reply 16 of 45
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rustedbass View Post


    I think that sums it up pretty thoroughly. I agree; I don't see the folks at Apple abandoning their new motherboard (for quad-core?) after such a short period of time.



    I could see them going quad core if Intel came out with a CPU that was compatible with the current motherboards. Timed nicely for Snow Leopard of course. This would have to be unannounced product because I don't think Intel has anything in the public pipes so to speak. Frankly I need to brush up on what they are doing with the portable chip line up.



    Right now I'm of the opinion that to go quad core they would need a new motherboard to support a new chip set. I could be wrong with that. The other part of the equation of course is that the motherboard is brand new last revision so I can't see a major update on it. Plus any potential update would need to be power stingy as Apple really likes to advertise that long run time on the MBP.



    So it comes back to minor updates, maybe clock increases or more base memory. I just don't think it is time for a major redesign.



    Of course I could be proven wrong. Apple really needs to have mainstream hardware out there that can be exploited by SL. This is really a key element that makes me less than 100% sure of myself here. Apple is going to have one nice software update and no mainstream hardware for it to shine on. That seems like a major error to me, but there has to be suitable hardware from Intel. Frankly I think iMac will go quad first.





    Dave
  • Reply 17 of 45
    applebookapplebook Posts: 350member
    Replacing the HDD in the MBP and MB is so simple and inexpensive. Why would you folks care if Apple offered 500Gb or not? There's no way that I'd pay them the ridiculous premium that they would demand anyway.
  • Reply 18 of 45
    futurepastnowfuturepastnow Posts: 1,772member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    I could see them going quad core if Intel came out with a CPU that was compatible with the current motherboards. Timed nicely for Snow Leopard of course. This would have to be unannounced product because I don't think Intel has anything in the public pipes so to speak. Frankly I need to brush up on what they are doing with the portable chip line up.



    Intel has had a mobile quad-core suitable for the iMac or MBP since late last year. Very expensive processors, though.



    I think quads will wait until the "Clarksfield" processor around the end of this year (probably later rather than sooner). Which will still be expensive, but it'll be Apple's only option if they want to stay competitive.
  • Reply 19 of 45
    I think Apple's recent upgrade to the white MB is a telling sign of the future of the MBP (some obvious exceptions)
  • Reply 20 of 45
    sybariticsybaritic Posts: 340member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rustedbass View Post


    I think Apple's recent upgrade to the white MB is a telling sign of the future of the MBP (some obvious exceptions)



    It would be great to hear an elaboration on these points.
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