Apple expected to unveil Retina 13" MacBook Pro at next week's 'iPad mini' event

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
In addition to a smaller iPad, Apple also reportedly plans to unveil a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display at a media event next week.

People familiar with the company's plans told John Paczkowski of AllThingsD that Apple will debut the redesigned 13-inch MacBook Pro at an Oct. 23 media event. The notebook will feature the "same thin chassis, all-flash storage, and a 2,560-by-1,600 pixel density display."

Pricing on the new MacBook Pro remains unknown. The current 13-inch MacBook Pro without a Retina display starts at $1,199.

The redesigned 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display was launched by Apple in June. It takes many cues from the popular MacBook Air lineup, including flash-only storage and the lack of an optical disc drive.

MacBook Pro


For customers who still need a disc drive or more storage offered by a traditional spinning hard drive, Apple continues to sell its legacy 15-inch MacBook Pro starting at $1,799. The 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display starts at $2,199.

The redesigned 15-inch MacBook Pro is said to have hit the market first because of apparent production issues with the 13-inch model. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI securities first said in July that Apple would launch a new 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro along with a redesigned iMac this fall.

Apple is expected to hold an event to unveil its smaller 7.85-inch iPad, unofficially referred to as the iPad mini, at an event next Tuesday, Oct. 23. Invitations making the event official should be sent out to members of the press tomorrow, as Apple typically gives one week's notice.

Over the weekend, a photo claiming to show internal components of Apple's redesigned iMac also surfaced online, suggesting the all-in-one desktop could also see an imminent refresh. Supply of Mac mini units at third-party resellers has also been constrained, which could be a sign of a product refresh.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 79
    Is this in fact a retina MacBook Air? or will it not have the wedge shape for a bigger battery?
  • Reply 2 of 79
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,388member


    Fucking YES. I may have to sell my Macbook Air for this..

  • Reply 3 of 79


    Originally Posted by OriginalG View Post

    Is this in fact a retina MacBook Air? or will it not have the wedge shape for a bigger battery?


     


    It says "Pro", so that would mean not an Air. Basically a smaller 15" rMBP design.


     


    Hopefully still with two Thunderbolt. But I doubt it.

  • Reply 4 of 79
    I'll pass. I'm tremendously happy with my MBA 11 inches, and I'm waiting (with growing impatience) for the iMac 27 refresh.
  • Reply 5 of 79
    gxcadgxcad Posts: 120member
    Chances are this will NOT have the wedge shape, they need the space (plus the space gained from excluding the optical drive and traditional HDD) for a bigger battery. Making it wedge shaped will just reduce the amount of space available. While it will most likely be lighter than the ~4.5lbs 13 inch Macbook Pro, it likely will not be as light as the 13 inch MBA. I'm thinking somewhere inbetween, like lets say 3.7lbs. It'll probably also pack more "pro" power by not using ULV chips. I guess we'll find out soon.
  • Reply 6 of 79
    Hmmm this could be a toughie, I would go for the specs of the 15 inch in a 13 inch package if that makes sense. The 15 is just a bit too big and heavy for my needs but I wonder if the 13 will be up to the job.
    Maybe it won't be too long to find out now.
  • Reply 7 of 79

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


     


    It says "Pro", so that would mean not an Air. Basically a smaller 15" rMBP design.


     


    Hopefully still with two Thunderbolt. But I doubt it.



    I agree about no two Thunderbolt ports.  There have to be reasons to get 15" instead of the 13" rMBP.


     


    Other questions:


     


    1) Discrete graphics? I would say no since 13" never had discrete graphics.  But, will it have enough power to drive the retina display?


    2) 16GB RAM BTO? I hope so.


    3) Minimum SSD? I hope it is 256GB at $1,499 price point.


    4) Maximum SSD? I hope it is 768GB.  But, to encourage upsell to 15" rMBP, they may limit the max to 512GB.


    5) Will all 3 lines continue: Air, Pro and rMBP?


     


    Will be hard to decide between the Air and the rMBP.

  • Reply 8 of 79
    flaneurflaneur Posts: 4,526member
    Interesting, if true, that they would introduce a retina device and a new non-retina device at the same event.

    One would think that one would make the other look bad, unless there were some redeeming feature of the new device's screen. Or can they just assert that 163 ppi looks great on our new pocketable iPad?

    I haven't anticipated a new device so much since the original iPad. So many unknowns in such a crucial product category . . .
  • Reply 9 of 79

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AppleGreen View Post


    I agree about no two Thunderbolt ports.  There have to be reasons to get 15" instead of the 13" rMBP.


     


    Other questions:


     


    1) Discrete graphics? I would say no since 13" never had discrete graphics.  But, will it have enough power to drive the retina display?


    2) 16GB RAM BTO? I hope so.


    3) Minimum SSD? I hope it is 256GB at $1,499 price point.


    4) Maximum SSD? I hope it is 768GB.  But, to encourage upsell to 15" rMBP, they may limit the max to 512GB.


    5) Will all 3 lines continue: Air, Pro and rMBP?


     


    Will be hard to decide between the Air and the rMBP.



    There was at least one 13 silver Macbook with decent discrete graphics, it was the last with swappable battery.


    I have a 15MBP retina maxed out for my own use - its truly fast fantastic machine - even if battery life is not as goos as i would like - the 13 version will surely loose at least one of the Thunderbolt ports

  • Reply 10 of 79


    Also, a pink unicorn will be unveiled by Apple next week.

  • Reply 11 of 79


    Originally Posted by AppleGreen View Post


    1) Discrete graphics? I would say no since 13" never had discrete graphics.  But, will it have enough power to drive the retina display?


    2) 16GB RAM BTO? I hope so.


    3) Minimum SSD? I hope it is 256GB at $1,499 price point.


    4) Maximum SSD? I hope it is 768GB.  But, to encourage upsell to 15" rMBP, they may limit the max to 512GB.


    5) Will all 3 lines continue: Air, Pro and rMBP?



     


    1) I'd say not this time.


    2) Hopefully. Maybe not.


    3) That'd be nice.


    4) I'd shoot for limting


    5) Of course! Absolutely. Until the retina Pros can hit the prices of the non-retina Pros, the latter will stick around.

  • Reply 12 of 79

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


     


    It says "Pro", so that would mean not an Air. Basically a smaller 15" rMBP design.


     


    Hopefully still with two Thunderbolt. But I doubt it.



     


    So next week is all about smaller versions of the iPad, MBP?

  • Reply 13 of 79
    If the weight is kept down, I might be tempted, but I'm truly spoiled by the11" ... a laptop I truly can and do take anywhere. But sounds like a winner for those who need both the power and want something more portable (I also find the 15" machines just too unwieldly now, I can't imagine buying that form factor again, except to use as a compact desktop :-).
  • Reply 14 of 79


    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post

    So next week is all about smaller versions of the iPad, MBP?


     


    See, I still don't get that! Doing a Mac at an iDevice event, or vice versa. 


     


    What I'm seeing from these rumors is… now actual leaked pictures of an iMac and talk from the same source about a 13" rMBP. The latter we've been hearing "October" about since the 15" came out, so it seems to me that it's gonna happen. But what I'm also seeing is… nothing on the iPad mini front. Nothing that could be legitimate, at least. The ribbon cable was debunked, and all case parts that we have seen have either been only pitched as "mock-ups", or were evidently fake due to some aspect of their construction.


     


    Now, that orange mold? Ever since that, I've definitely believed the thing could happen (even though it itself isn't confirmation of anything). But we haven't seen any hard evidence (images) like we've just received for the iMac. And with some of the former "evidence" having even been debunked, I think this could just be a Mac event and the iPad mini saved for some other time.

  • Reply 15 of 79

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Flaneur View Post



    Interesting, if true, that they would introduce a retina device and a new non-retina device at the same event.

    One would think that one would make the other look bad, unless there were some redeeming feature of the new device's screen. Or can they just assert that 163 ppi looks great on our new pocketable iPad?

    I haven't anticipated a new device so much since the original iPad. So many unknowns in such a crucial product category . . .


     


    I was thinking the exact same thing.  I was convinced the iPad mini would be 163 ppi due to supply constrains on the retina displays, bigger battery needed and especially, cost.  But it would be very odd to introduce a retina product and talk about how great the display is at the same time as a non-retina display.  Of course, Apple's not been making a lot of sense lately.

  • Reply 16 of 79

    Quote:


    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil


     


    See, I still don't get that! Doing a Mac at an iDevice event, or vice versa. 


     


    What I'm seeing from these rumors is… now actual leaked pictures of an iMac and talk from the same source about a 13" rMBP. The latter we've been hearing "October" about since the 15" came out, so it seems to me that it's gonna happen. But what I'm also seeing is… nothing on the iPad mini front. Nothing that could be legitimate, at least. The ribbon cable was debunked, and all case parts that we have seen have either been only pitched as "mock-ups", or were evidently fake due to some aspect of their construction.


     


    Now, that orange mold? Ever since that, I've definitely believed the thing could happen (even though it itself isn't confirmation of anything). But we haven't seen any hard evidence (images) like we've just received for the iMac. And with some of the former "evidence" having even been debunked, I think this could just be a Mac event and the iPad mini saved for some other time.




     


     


    I hope you're wrong.  I'd kind of like an iPad mini if the specs are right.

  • Reply 17 of 79
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member


    I can't wait to see how cryptic the invitation is.

  • Reply 18 of 79
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,822member
    See, I still don't get that! Doing a Mac at an iDevice event, or vice versa. 

    What I'm seeing from these rumors is… now actual leaked pictures of an iMac and talk from the same source about a 13" rMBP. The latter we've been hearing "October" about since the 15" came out, so it seems to me that it's gonna happen. But what I'm also seeing is… nothing on the iPad mini front. Nothing that could be legitimate, at least. The ribbon cable was debunked, and all case parts that we have seen have either been only pitched as "mock-ups", or were evidently fake due to some aspect of their construction.

    Now, that orange mold? Ever since that, I've definitely believed the thing could happen (even though it itself isn't confirmation of anything). But we haven't seen any hard evidence (images) like we've just received for the iMac. And with some of the former "evidence" having even been debunked, I think this could just be a Mac event and the iPad mini saved for some other time.

    Or it is a mini iPad event and the Mac 13" Retina will simply be added to the Apple Store with little comment. I seem to recall some product bumps that are simply the same as previous launched products except for size can just pop up as available without an event.
  • Reply 19 of 79


    Originally Posted by digitalclips View Post

    Or it is a mini iPad event and the Mac 13" Retina will simply be added to the Apple Store with little comment. I seem to recall some product bumps that are simply the same as previous launched products except for size can just pop up as available without an event.


     


    Eh, that might work. But relegating their best selling laptop to Mac Mini levels of recognition is something I'd rather not see.

  • Reply 20 of 79
    Personally I'm hoping for a new Apple Cinema Display. It's the Apple device that I spend the most time looking at and it's really overdue for a redesign.
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