Uh, notice where he said rMBA and not rMBP?
There's very little difference in terms of size and portability between a 13" MBA and a 13" rMBP, that's the point being sarcastically made there. For the most part, the 13" rMBP might as well be a 13" rMBA. The 13" rMBP has a smaller surface area than the 13" MBA, has faster processors, uses the same SSD options and then some, and has the 13" MBA's maximum RAM option as its ONLY RAM option; the price is a couple hundred dollars more, but so is the performance. If a prospective 13" MBA buyer wants retina, and can spend the extra money, they might as well.
hmmm.... Will this be the day I bite and get a MBA to replace my late 2007 whitebook?? I've been, "I'm buying the next Macbook refresh" for just over 2 years... But the reality is that it gets the job done. Especially when I'm using my iPhone and iPad most of the time anyway... It's just hard to justify the need now.
If OS X 10.9 really impresses me that could be the differentiator, cause I'm stuck on lion with my machine
10.8 really is better than 10.7, and we're at the point where 10.6 is finally being phased out in a lot of places. If they delay 10.9 much longer, then waiting for it might be silly for you unless you can stomach it and are running with 4GB of RAM in your MacBook.
What would be the difference between the rMBP and a rMBA besides a discrete graphics chip?
First off, the rMBA doesn't exist yet, so I'll be answering your question based on what's out today: Faster CPUs, 8GB RAM standard (instead of CTO), 768GB SSD option; otherwise the two are even.
If I was managing Apple's notebook like, the standard non retina MBP would stay the same (well maybe lose the optical drive to allow for a larger battery or a second HD) and be rebadged as MacBook. The MBA would stay with the standard display and be Apple's ultra portable consumer computer. The so called Retina MacBook Pro would simply be MacBook Pro.
It's probably a good thing you don't manage Apple's notebook line then.
So
MacBook 13" and MacBook 15"
MacBook Air 11.6" and MacBook Air 13"
MacBook Pro 13" and Macbook Pro 15"
How about:
MacBook Pro 13" and 15" with retina
MacBook Air 11" and 13" with or without retina
Because I'm pretty sure that's what you'll be getting this year or next.
This year, what is more likely is:
MacBook Pro 13" and 15" with retina and Haswell
MacBook Pro 13" without retina and with Ivy Bridge (likely the current high-end model unmodified at the price-point that is currently held by today's low-end model)
MacBook Air 11" and 13" with or without retina and with Haswell
Not everyone wants or can afford a retina product.
I appreciate your point, but you do know that the SSDs are what is keeping the prices of those machines as high as they are and not the displays, right?
If I could afford one, I still wouldn't buy it. I like the freedom to upgrade my hard drive with out paying my soul to Apple. I also don't want to have to sell a computer at a loss so I can get one with more RAM.
Bad news, you're in the minority and Apple doesn't care. If it's any consolation, I'm right there with you,
Alright, that's a bit much.
How about bringing back the 17 inch MBP? Even better, how about an MBP without the B?
This is a developers conference. I don't know that many professional developers that use a MBA.
WWDC 2009 saw MacBook Air and MacBook Pro refreshes that had nothing to do with the software being demoed. It's not common, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. Last year, the MacBook Air and non-retina MacBook Pro were build-up to the retina MacBook Pro which sort of needed to be unveiled at a developers conference because developers needed to get the memo that their software should work with this screen because soon those screens will be the norm. As for a 17" or the return of the MacBook, don't hold your breath. Though, I would be mighty tempted by a 17" rMBP.
Curious to see what haswell can bring for the retina mba.
First off, there's no telling that there will even be a retina MacBook Air with Haswell. They might wait until Broadwell or even later. One never knows. Secondly, the ULV parts to Haswell and all their information is up on the interwebs somewhere. If you want to know what it can bring to whatever the next MBA is, all you gotta do is look it up.
Why do people keep going on with this idea of "rMBA" being a thing?
Because it's inevitable that all computer displays will be "retina" and it only makes sense that the MacBook Air (being of smaller screen sizes than the retina 15" MacBook Pro, of same or smaller screen sizes than the retina 13" MacBook Pro and larger screen sizes than the retina 9.7" iPad) would be next in line along with the iPad mini for the retina treatment. That being said, who knows how soon this will happen. But it happening is inevitable.
I use Final Cut Pro 7 and Motion on my 2012 13 in air and editing 1080p really isn't bad at all. It's actually just as good as my old dual core macbook pro that had a discrete GPU. If you get fancy, the rendering can take some processing time but the SSDs in these things are quick.
But if you're willing to pay 1700-2000 for an air with that storage option....i feel like you'd be better off with the rMBP? But then again, having that much storage in an air would be sick...using an external usb 3 drive isn't as fun on the road.
Motion 4 and Final Cut Pro 7 will both look terrible on retina, not having been optimized for it. I'd stay non-retina with those.
I also have a 2007 MacBook. I'm pretty sure the answer for me is yes, this is the time. MacBook's tab key is wonky, battery is drained (yes, just a $50 replacement cost), OS is outdated, and it is heavy, large and slow compared to a new Air. The only thing to hold me back will be that a refresh in the next month will probably not have Haswell chips, which is supposed to be huge for battery life. That and the issue about deciding to get a Retina screen or not. But MacBook is on last legs and a refresh could push it over the edge.
I don't know where you got the memo of no Haswell on the next MacBook Air. Secondly, Apple doesn't have the need to keep the MacBook Air updated as frequently (even if there is nothing really to update it with) as they do the MacBook Pro line, which is why they won't get pointless updates like the one that the MacBook Pro got in Late 2011 or in Early 2013. If there's nothing new to update them with, they'll just keep them around until there is something new to update them with.
While the rest of you fine folks quote days since the last update remember there are those of us who have been waiting numerous YEARS for a MacPro refresh. And, while you pine for a retina screen, we're still waiting for thunderbolt ports on a machine Apple is charging 2x, 3x or more than the cost of an MBA. Just a little perspective...
There are fewer of you Mac Pro whiners than there are MacBook Air whiners. Not saying that you don't have substantially better reasons to be whining, because you do. But Apple doesn't make anywhere near as much money from you guys as they do from the Air folk. Just a little perspective...
I shudder imagining the text size on a 13" notebook with 1080p resolution... (which I know are already out there)
It's really not as bad as you'd think and it does make the 1440x900 used in the 13" Air look like the 1280x800 used in the non-retina 13" Pro.
They could make a upgradable video card slot. That is the most important thing in all machines really...after years, that usually is the thing holding people back.
First off, upgradable video card slots do exist, but they're on higher-end gaming laptops (and 2007-2011 era iMacs) and they run REALLY hot. This would also completely kill much of the portability factor that exists even in the non-retina MacBook Pros.
Secondly, No, for most Mac users, the video card isn't what's holding them back. Most Mac users don't care about the video processing power or lack thereof in their Mac. The only time video held anyone back recently was with Mountain Lion was that AMD abandoned support for the Radeon x1xxx series GPUs shortly after buying ATI and Intel didn't care to make x64 OS X drivers for the GMA 950 and X3100, but that's it. In both cases, if drivers were made, the cards could run Mountain Lion easily.
Storage can always be external. RAM...if you start with the most, then usually its good for 4-5 years. My last home PC was good for almost 8 years with 4 GB of RAM.
You need an internal boot drive unless it's a stationary desktop or unless you want to kill the whole point of the thing being a viable single-unit portable.
I'm hoping that Apple don't merge product lines so we just end up with three laptops. 11, 13 and 15" all with retina displays. I have a 2011 15" MBP, and and while I appreciate the lightness of the MBA I wouldn't want glossy screen.
Personally I'd like the cMBP to be developed further. I would never buy a laptop for work with a glossy screen and while some people don't want legacy ports such as ethernet, which was the whole point of the MBA, I don't see how these things can be removed from a 'pro' laptop when all the rival 'pro' laptops have more ports than you can shake a stick at. I wouldn't mind a lighter laptop, but I'm willing to accept that isn't possible if I have to sacrifice flexibility.
This in my opinion is why Apple need to keep the cMBP and give it a refresh.
FireWire is being slowly abandoned in most industries and Ethernet use on a laptop is uncommon. While I'm a HUGE fan of the cMBP, Apple is obviously phasing it out; the writing is especially on the wall after what the arrival of the Early 2013 Retina models did to the rest of the lineup. For a while, you might still see a single model 13" cMBP, because Apple wants to be delicate with the retina transition in its "most popular Mac", but don't expect it to linger long. Realistically, the lines will look cleaner with two models of MacBook (Air and Pro) with two sizes each.
I think LTE is more likely than the retina display, but it seems like every tablet has a retina display for $199. It can't be that expensive.
LTE on a laptop is a novelty that very few care all that much about, which is why it isn't more widespread. Retina will come before LTE for sure.
Refreshes are good!
Progress is good!
A lot of negative people on here just seem to bitch and moan about every post.
Get a life please.
You clearly haven't been on these forums long.
It NEEDS the power. The rMBP already struggles to stay fluid even with the powerful processors.
That's more a software issue than a hardware issue. Both the Intel HD 4000 and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M are more than capable of driving that many pixels. The software and drivers just aren't up to snuff when drawing the images on display.
So, I am undecided wether the Air or Pro 13" is the better option
I would like 16GB RAM.
If you want a 13" Mac laptop and you want 16GB of RAM, then the 13" MacBook Pro is your only option. Apple doesn't technically support it, but it's totally possible and easily accomplished whereas it just isn't on the 13" Air or the 13" retina Pro.
Classic MacBook Pro destroys the retina model.
This.
Out of Air's. are you nuts? You can get one delivered to you next day.
Reread the headline before you post. The headline is talking about "Supplies at
Resellers" as in third-party resellers and not Apple. I work at an Apple Authorized Service Provider that is also an Apple Authorized Reseller and we are completely out of stock on MacBook Airs, so there appears to be some validity to the OP claim.
Is it possible to create a higher-rez Air without it being Retina? That with Haswell and better battery would be awesome.
I have a Sandy Bridge Ultrabook with a 13.3" screen with a higher resolution than that of the current 13.3" MacBook Airs. It's totally possible.
No, because they already have Retina displays, and a, for example, 1920x1080 (I know, 16x9) would put the 13" Air awkwarly in the middle between regular and Retina. How would Apple market it? "The new MacBook Air, now with a more beautiful screen than ever before. Not quite Retina, but better. Wait for it!..."
Apple does spec updates like that all the time; they did it with certain elements of the third generation iPad as well as the current crop of MacBook Airs. Feature updates like that just aren't given the spotlight; but you can definitely see them on the tech specs page.
Reading this, I'm reminded of the 'tightening of
thunderbolt display supply' thread back in January.
This is true; though Apple tends to keep their displays around for a good while before discontinuing them. Case in point the 27" LED Cinema display released in September 2010 is still being sold today.
Wish list for new MBA:
1. iPad size Touch screen, keyboard folds back for tablet only mode.
2. Better Battery Life
3. Runs IOS and OSX apps
4. Built in LTE
No. Just no.
Retina is a step back at this certain point.
Remember iPad 3? It was actually runs a bit slower and hotter at real world usage compared to iPad 2, why? Retina Display
For what it's worth, Apple designed the first three generations of iPad to be more sluggish with things than they really ought to be; hence why they released a fourth generation iPad with an A6X less than a year after the third generation iPad with the A5X and less than two years less than the iPad 2 with its A5. I chalk none of that up to the retina display as that's what the whole point of the A5X was; A5 on graphical steroids. With the Fourth Generation iPad, they just managed to give themselves enough performance so that when iOS 8 comes out, it's nowhere near as bad as running iOS 5 is on a First Generation iPad. As for the heat, yeah, sure, that's the battery, I'll grant you that with no argument.
rMBP? Oh yes it's nice to look at, but it's a bit sluggish even on iTunes interface animation, compared to cMBP with the same 650M.
No doubt retina improves contrast and color accuracy. But it's just too ahead of its time. Notebook graphic hardware barely catch up with 1080p gaming and having Retina display on 13" or 15" is asking for trouble.
Poor comparison with the full-sized iPad. In the case of the full-sized iPad, the hardware was always a step behind the evolutionary curve of the software (until the current generation). The hardware WAS too slow to keep up. In the case of the rMBP, the hardware is more than capable to output the number of pixels to the screen with good framerates, it's the software that's lagging behind. Drivers and the OS itself aren't yet drawing the HiDPI images efficiently enough, but make no mistake, a non-retina MacBook Pro can drive more pixels with external Thunderbolt displays than its retina equivalent has to drive in its own internal display. The hardware is ready, the software isn't.
Plus it's technically a more sealed and locked machine, screw customers up. It's so easy to go FUBAR and have a hard time with the repair. I would say rMBP is one step forward and two steps backward.
It's good to see Facebook and Twitter page colors popping out though
If a tech knows what they're doing, it's perfectly easy NOT to botch a repair. Otherwise, I completely agree with your sentiment.
That's a rMBP. Don't tell me you're someone who thinks because they made Pros slightly thinner there's no point for the oober-ultra-incredibly thin MacBook Airs?
They're not that much thinner. They're also, not that much lighter anymore. The only real difference in body style is that one is wedge-shaped and the other one isn't. Otherwise the 13" rMBP is superior in every respect.
Freedom as in freedom fries? Please define freedom™.
Freedom as in software that has freely available source code that you can freely modify and redistribute. Not freedom as in a free beer.
